I arrived in French Polynesia two days ago, and on the island of Moorea today. It feels like I've been here much longer than that, because everything is so different. I landed in the airport at Papeete (the capital, on Tahiti) on Sunday night, after a full day of travel. I was met at the airport by a French postdoc who is affiliated with our lab and lives with her husband in Paea, half an hour south of Papeete (when there is no traffic--there are horrible traffic jams during rush hour on the way in and out of Papeete each day). I went to Papeete on Monday to meet a government biologist, and my appointment was at 2 pm, so I spent most of the day wandering around downtown Papeete--which is very small. There wasn't much to do after the first hour, so I ended up relaxing a lot in a waterfront area where there was a cool breeze and I could look out across the harbor and see Moorea in the distance. All the territorial government buildings are very close to each other, and I was amused to see that the territorial assembly is literally next door to a MacDonald's. The meeting at the Délégation à la Recherche (the government agency) went very well and one of the employees there was kind enough to give me a ride back to Paea afterwards.

There was a huge storm last night and this morning, with thunder and lightening, which is apparently really unusual in Tahiti. On the drive to Papeete we were delayed because low-lying areas of the road were flooded over a foot. I'd never seen anything like it, but fortunately we made it in time for the 9 am ferry. Moorea is a spectacular island, and much prettier and more rural than Tahiti. It was even sunny for a little while, but overcast now. CRIOBE, the French marine biology station where I am now, is situated on a small bay on the opposite side of which is a very tall, very steep-sided mountain which I am looking at as I write this. I should go out and make use of the rest of the day before it gets dark, and I am also frustrated by the different arrangement of keys on this French keyboard, so I will sign off for now.