Black Pearls

Still in Tahaa we also stopped in at a pearl farm.  Black pearls are a specialty of Tahiti and prized for their dark beauty.
The farm was set up for tourists and the entire process was explained and demonstrated.  I'd visited the pearl museum in Papeete, so I had an idea of the process, but it was interesting to see it in detail.  The process of seeding the pearls was quite extraordinary to me and I was somewhat disappointed.  Sometimes it may be best to remain ignorant, or lost in the fantasy of things.  It was a bit like when the making of a movie is "explained" and the magic falls out in bits of cardboard and plastic and lights.
My companions bought a few, but stunning though the pearls were, I passed.
When we returned I was picked up by my host Max and brought back to Bellevue B&B where I could relax and admire the wide expanse of lagoon below. Definitely "Une belle vue" and the perfect place to chill at the end of the day!