Idea #689 – Making a tour of Tahiti Island
Tahiti is an island of French Polynesia, part of the group of Windward Islands, and the archipelago of the Society. This high and mountainous island, of volcanic origin, is surrounded by a coral reef. The island is composed of two parts – Tahiti Nui, the most important, and Tahiti Iti also called the Peninsula, connected to each other by the Isthmus of Taravao. The history of Tahiti was first marked by the settlement of the island by Polynesian navigators of Austronesian origin, then by the discovery of the island by European explorers. The exchanges with the Europeans allowed a Tahitian family, the Pomare, to impose their authority on the whole island. From the late eighteenth century, the island was colonized by English Protestant missionaries, then became French protectorate in the mid-nineteenth century. The island then becomes a colony, member of the French Establishments of Oceania, before being attached to a set of archipelago called French Polynesia.
Tahiti is home to important vestiges of the Polynesian civilization, such as the marae Ta’ata, one of the most important of the island, restored in 1973 or marae de’ārahurahu, a secondary place of worship restored in 1954. There are also geological curiosities, such as caves. The largest, known as Ana Pāero (ana: cave, pāero: barrel / barrel), has the distinction of having an optical effect with its vault, which gives the impression that it is not very deep, which is far from reality!
Where is it?
Marae Ta’ata et Marae Arahurahu, Tahiti, Polynésie Française
