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Show wLM French Polynesia lures romantic traveler Continued from Page 5 same black-san- d beach that Cook walked on when he strode ashore here; the same beach that Trevor Howard and Marlon Brando walked on in the opening scene of Mutiny on the Bounty. Today this beach is as uncluttered as it was a century ago; usually a few topless bathers will be sunning here, giving you even more of a H-1- feel for the way Tahiti was back then. Or drive along the East Coast of Tahiti, to the unprotected shores where the surf booms and young surfers ride the waves the way they do on the North Shore of Oahu. At the powerful FaAu-ruma- I waterfalls, long, silvery threads of water dive over black volcanic rock. Cool your wine in the pools of water, and have a swim. Afterward you can a handpainted paero, the piece of fabric that is the national costume in French Polynesia. As you ride your bike, you may be passed by a few motorbikes, maybe even a car, but mostly you will be by yourself, listening to the rustling of the soft surf and watching the scurrying of the land crabs hurrying off to their holes before you pass. This island was a place of dreams when the United States Navy opened a base in February 1942, and it is still a place of dreams today, when that same base serves as the islands airport. Most tourists will be met at the airplane and put into launches, which will take them to the hotels scattered along the lagoon. A Club Med is here, as is the Hotel Marara, built by Dino de Lauren-tu- s during the 1978 filming of on the island. But the Hurricane jewel of the island is the Hotel Bora Bora, with its overwater bungalows ($195 a night), from which you can watch the huge manta rays during their nightly ballet. have a picnic shaded by Tahitian ferns. chestnut trees and elephant-ea- r Even the hotels on Tahiti offer an escape. At the Beachcomber, bungalows stand over the water, and breakfast is delivered by a young woman who paddles a canoe to your back door with morning orange juice and croissants. One Argentine was so taken with the breakfast delivery that he jumped into the canoe and madly paddled into the surrounding lagoon. His seamanship was not as worthy as his passion, however. He swamped the canoe and nearly drowned before the young woman saved him. AT THE HOTEL Tahara, a modem structure crawling down the side of a hill overlooking the ocean (you take the elevator DOWN to your rooms), the favorite morning sport is to sit on your balcony, its sides covered with bougainvillea of red, orange and purple, and watch the dolphins frolic in the ocean Lindas for tie-dye- d just below. The tourist looking for a real escape soon tire of Tahiti, however, because it is more developed, more commercial, more of a city atmosphere than he wants. Escape can be found, though, on Bora Bora, an island James Michener called . . .the most beautiful island in the world . . . everybody who has ever been there wants to go back. It is a scene of positively dazzling beauty. Only 2,200 people live on Bora Bora, and there are just a handful of rooms available about 200. Life today has changed on the island, of course, with most of the locals making their living from tourism rather than fishing or copra production. But the smiles are still on faces, and tipping is forbidden as it has always been, and the sea is sweet and clear and filled with the most beautiful fish in any of the earths oceans. THE TWIN PEAKS of Pahia and Temanu give the island its rugged character and beauty; the sea gives it its living, providing fish and luring tourists. Here, only 143 miles from Tahiti, is an island that has accommodated tourism without giving up its essential character. You can safely bicycle the one road of the island, perhaps stopping at Mr. Chin Lees store in the village of Vitape for a drink or some groceries, or at Mama Chous for a snack, or Alain MARDI GRAS will On The I it. JUST A FEW yards off the Hotel beach is Bora Boras white-san- d another world, an underwater world of incredible beauty. Here snorkelers swim through great clouds of convict fish, see clown fish hiding in massive heads of coral and feed bread to the butterfly fish, which shyly and gently take pieces of bread from their fingers. Even today the only beggars on Bora Bora are the fish. There are many other places in French Polynesia to plot your escape: Hiva Oa in toe Marquesas group, where Gauguin is buried; Tetiaroa, the atoll owned by Marlon Brando, where you can walk on a sand bottom for more than 300 yards into toe sea; Moorea, flight from Tahiti; just a Huahine, toe location of stunning Polynesian artifacts; Rangiroa, the second largest atoll in toe Pacific; Tabuai, the island chosen by the Bounty mutineers for a home in 1789; Raistea, the ancient center of Polynesian civilization. Despite the changes in this world, French Polynesia remains remarkably stable. The names of toe islands still roll off the tongue like sonnets, and the feelings of safety and escape still seep into your body like warm sea water. In this troubled age French Polynesia might just be our last resort. ... r su Jumble on Page H-1- 0 1981 8, Answer: OPIATE ENTITY All The Fun and Excitement Of New Orleans ANDSTEAMBOATININONEMACICALVACATION. 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II 1981-8- K Sail spectacles. PROGRAM r M Ai.h IS most exciting STEAMBOATIN The THE LAST GREAT AMERICAN ADVENTUREc INCLUDES: Round tnp airfare from San Francisco All hotel accommodations 3 meals a day m China including Peking duck banouer All daily Sightseeing including Great Wall. Forbidden City and more All transportation and transfers English speaking escort and guides Group visa fee Evening cultural performances, e acrobatic shows. Peking opera and etc , when avaiabie j CHINA SIGHTSEEING, INC. ( Specialists in China 632 Kearny Street, San Francisco, CA 94108 Call Toll Free: (800) 227-392ma mm wm Please rush me your brochure My preferences: Departure Date Money-Savin- Fly Cruise options, seasonal pricing and Sew Orleans land package available. I I I Tel. Add ress City Tours Program Name 2(11 ENDEARMENTS I I Lae BOLERO TYPIST What "tender names" might b- e- H , DOOMED LANCER State I Zip |