We landed in Tahiti around 9 PM local time after a 9.5-hour flight and deplaned right onto the tarmac — a unique and memorable welcome. Customs took about an hour, and then we grabbed our bags and stepped directly into the warm evening air.

We picked up a 5-speed Peugeot 208 — a tiny 1.2 L with barely any power, but surprisingly fun to drive. The maintenance light was on from the start, which was a little concerning, but it never caused issues (probably just from previous drivers abusing the clutch as much as I did).

Starving after the long flight, we stopped by McDonald’s on the way to the Airbnb. Their local specialty is the “Boss Burger,” basically a Quarter Pounder served on Hawaiian bread.

Another 20-minute drive brought us to the Airbnb, where our host, Eda, gave us a quick tour and made us feel at home before we crashed for the night.

For our first morning, we headed to LS Proxi to stock the Airbnb with drinks and snacks. Being a French territory, Tahiti is full of fresh baguettes — you’ll see bins of them at every store and people casually walking or biking with one in hand.

Back at the Airbnb, we had breakfast in the backyard with a view of the ocean. Becca made a charcuterie board from our haul — simple but perfect.

The ocean was so clear we couldn’t resist jumping in. We grabbed the inflatables and snorkels our friends lent us and headed into the reef. Without water shoes, though, we kept getting pushed into the coral by the current. Combined with the low tide (just a few feet deep), we left the water after a few hours with scraped ankles and knees.

On all our trips, we try at least one local pizza spot — a tradition that started years ago while camping in Chester. Our first Tahitian pizza was at Frero Della Pizza: a large pepperoni, pineapple, and olive pie that ended up being my favorite of the trip.

We started off our morning by walking 10 minutes to a nearby bakery, Le Passionné. This place was amazing — I had a strawberry-and-cream pastry (the one in my photo), while Becca raved about the croissants and even tried a hot-dog pastry (which her stomach regretted after a second breakfast).

We started off our morning with a brief swim and attempt at taking the kayaks out before driving 20 minutes to Grotto De Mara’a — our first “hike” of the trip. The grotto features three freshwater caves filled with mountain runoff. You can technically swim there, but we didn’t see anyone try. There’s also a steep rope-assisted trail nearby, but we passed on it this time.

Dinner that night was our farthest drive yet — to Le Foodcourt Punaauia. I got a chicken burrito but in Tahiti they were called a Tiapai Tacho and Becca got gyro but known in Tahiti as a Le Chiche. Both were really good. We’d come back later in the trip when Becca found her favorite pepperoni pizza of the entire vacation.

On the way back, the biggest storm of the trip hit. Heavy rain flooded the roads and dropped visibility to near zero

This little guy was wanting in the next morning

The storm rolled into our fourth day, so there were no morning swims this time. Becca, who had been monitoring the weather patterns all trip, noticed that the northern part of the island was completely sunny. We made our usual stop for energy drinks and snacks and then drove about 40 minutes north to Papeete — the island’s largest city and the place where we saw the most tourists.

We first stopped by the Papeete Market which is considered to be one of the must visit places for tourists.

After leaving the market, we explored more of the city and stopped at a small jewelry store where Becca picked out a black pearl to take home.

Sweaty and tired, we spotted a boba shop on the way back to the car and couldn’t resist stopping. The employees were speaking rapidly in French, and one gave a dramatic stink face when my brown sugar milk tea order was relayed — which made me wonder if something might be off with my drink! They also sold mochi, and I had one filled with strawberries and cream — basically a strawberry shortcake mochi — one of the best mochi desserts I’ve ever had.

With drinks in hand, we drove about 10 minutes north to Ahonu Beach. After a few laps in a roundabout (and cutting someone off — sorry Becca!), we finally arrived. We relaxed by the water for a while, but after a full day of exploring Papeete we were completely wiped out. On the way home, we grabbed another round of Le Foodcourt for dinner before crashing at the Airbnb.

That night, an 8.8 earthquake hit Russia, triggering a tsunami alert across the entire Pacific — including Tahiti. Combined with the ongoing heavy rainstorm. Thankfully, by morning the alert was lifted, the rain had stopped, and the skies cleared.