Land Ho! At last. After 20 days at sea, we couldn't believe we were actually here. Fatu Hiva, in the Marquesas - our first polynesian landfall. The picture below doesn't do it justice. Everyday we would sit in the cockpit and marvel at our surroundings. Are we really here, or is it a dream?
On our first full day in Fatu Hiva we walked through the village to a gorgeous waterfall. We heard there were eels in the water, but didn't see any until after we got out. They looked harmless, so we're not sure why we were warned about them.
The Marquesans descend from a proud, warlike people, who were some of the last of the native Polynesians to be "civilized". Tatooes are an important part of their tradition. The man on the right, named Moetai, helped us with our entry paperwork into French Polynesia.
The next 3 pictures were taken during a parade in the main village of Nuku Hiva, that was part of the Bastille Day celebrations held throughout Polynesia.
Nuku Hiva was the sight of Herman Melville's real-life adventure protrayed in the book Typee. In 1846, he ran away from a whaling ship, and spent some months with the "savage" Typee tribe on this island. I read the book while we were anchored here, and could easily imagine the paradise it was before succumbing to the "guns and germs" of the French. The next four pictures were taken on a hike in Nuku Hiva.
Our boys were glad to meet up with kids from several other boats for the hike. Quite a few cruising kids were able to rendezvous in Nuku Hiva. They keep in touch on high frequency marine band radio "nets", sort of the nautical equivalent to text messaging.
After leaving the Marquesas, we spent a few days at sea on our way to the Tuamotus archipelago. Tyler caught a shortbill spearfish and his second marlin on this leg.
Here we are entering our first pass in the Tuamotus, at the atoll of Manihi. The current runs fast through the pass, and it helps to have someone in a high vantage point. These pictures were take by Tyler, as he guided us through the pass, after being hoisted 25' up our mast.
It's easy to see the danger from this high up, but many a boat has come to grief on the reefs of the Tuamotus. A couple we met in Panama lost their 57' sailboat on the reefs of Ahe, the neighboring atoll to this one, only 4 weeks before this picture was taken.
Most of the Tuamotus are home to pearl farmers. These pearl farms are found all throughout the interior lagoons of these atolls.
Jackie's good luck Tiki, "Dupie".
Here's the pearl farm where Jackie found her best black pearls. The pearls in the picture below were only part of their harvest. Buying direct from the pearl farmers turned out to be a great deal, versus the prices we later found in the black pearl shops of Tahiti.
Before there was pearl farming, there was copra. Copra, or the dried meat of the coconut, is still a cash crop for the Marquesans. Here's some copra meat being prepared for shipment.
The pink sand beach found on the remote side of the Rangiroa atoll. We sailed there with another boat, Surcouf, from Belgium. Our guides for the trip were a local family who lives on Rangiroa. 
There's no shortage of sharks in the Tuamotus. A few small blacktips swam right around our feet in the shallows next to the beach. They're harmless, though; Austin is trying to have a closer encounter with one in the picture below.
Here's our friend and guide, Noel, a local fisherman. He and his wife Lucy showed us a few neat survival skills during our beach barbeque. 
Lucy taught us how to make palm frond platters and how to cook delicious fish with very little modern implements.
Austin with Noel's son Tonio, and Roxane from Surcouf
From the Tuamotus we sailed to Papeete, Tahiti, for mail and supplies. Papeete is the capital city of French Polynesia, and is nothing like it was in the days of Captain Bligh and Fletcher Christian. Take a look at the Society Islands with us.
The Society Islands
