Secrets d’une île authentique：Voyage à Maupiti, perle cachée de la Polynésie – Documentaire - GD

From all over the world, the light of the Bora Bora Lagoon illuminates the memories and future plans of many tourists. But this light makes visible, a few miles away, the shadow of a less known island, the silhouette of an island, high in color. Located at 315 km from Tahiti and only 40 km from Bora Bora, Maupiti is one of the most beautiful islands in Polynesia. Surrounded by five large moats, the basalt cliffs of the island separates a lagoon with a thousand shades of blue. Here, no mass tourism, only a few family guesthouses welcome visitors. Maupiti is not just an island, it is a whole story that is simply free. At the northern tip of the island, on the Mutupa Eo, a small wooden panel immediately tells you that here, there is no question to ask yourself, we love this island and we want to let it know. We are at Tiati and Therese's. The face marked by the sun and the salt, the old man is one of the ancients of the island. Tiati has a house on the main island, but it is here that he decided to end his days, far from the superfluousness of modern life. A small house by the sea, without electricity, just a few batteries to run his radio. This is my radio, that's it. Here is the bathroom. This is the shower. This is the honey. A shower in the open air, a pantry, and a small vegetable garden working on a barren land. When we are hungry, we go to the camp. With coconut milk, it's good for your health. A kitchen made of recovery, which gives on a large coconut tree, panels braided with coconut leaves as a cloisonne, made with his wife. The wife has to come and say it to her husband. The husband must not be the only one who does that. The two have to work together. Life is happy when we are together. It's love. Tiati is a poet of life. He takes advantage of his time to take the time. Take the time to take his ukulele and sing an ode to his island, accompanying the last rays of the sun. Maupiti, happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to you. Today, like a mirage, Maupiti is discovered in the early morning. Only the sound of a small boat can be heard. These are the children of the motos who join the island to start a new day of school. Every day, our little students find their schoolmates in the truck which will drop them off somewhere. First we take the boat that brings us here. The truck that brings us to school. Do you like the truck? Yes, because without it we could not go to school. Yes, we walk on foot. Maupiti has two schools. These students will go to elementary school before having to go to another island to continue their education. This new generation is hopeful because the population of the island is aging. Indeed, today, young people tend to go to Taiti to discover another life. There are at least 68 students who have to get on this truck. Elementary school plus primary school. Here we are in the primary school courtyard of Maupiti. Firmin is a bit of a man to do everything here. This morning, truck driver, he will change trucks in a few hours to feed the Renault population. But he is also a guardian of the knowledge of the legends of the island. A passionate man who does not miss an opportunity to tell his story. First, this is the coconut. Dry coconut. I will cut it and then I will break it with the blade. In the story of the coconut, there is a woman and her dog. They are guardians of the island. The woman's name is Hapore and the dog's name is Mataura. The day is the woman who guards the island, the island of Maupiti. And when the night comes, it is the dog who has to pick it up. So first you have to feed the dog and that's his food. She breaks the coconut, she grabs it and she gives it to the dog so that the dog gets in shape for the surveillance of the island. You have to count. One, two, three. It's to see well. Go ahead. One, two, three. And there you see. It's very, very beautiful. Maupiti is a land of legends, a land of history that we pass from generation to generation. All the islands, each one has its own history. Why do we say Maupiti? There is a mother here. It's the mother. It's right at the top of Maupiti. It's the mother. She has two children. Two twins. The boy's name is Potuparao and the girl's name is Potua. We say one twin, two twins, for two twins. That's why we say Maupiti. We talk about two twins. If each island has its own history, each island also has its emblem. And Maupiti does not disturb the rule. But be careful. For Tihati, there are the fake and the real Penu. On the Penu, there are three things. That is, the mother and the two children, the two twins. That's the real Penu. There are some who do things there, who point there. It's done like this. It's there. It's the rock. The one who made this Penu put three spikes. That is, the mother and the two twins. But the two spikes broke. It fell. There is a spike left. It's the mother. But the Penu, there are many things to do. It's to crush the onion, the garlic, the medicine, the taro, the manioc. They used that. Let's go. We will continue. Firmin starts a new day. He will take the only road in the village to fill the cisterns of the island's administrators. Firmin, what are you doing? I'm filling the cistern with the mouth of the fire. Water is precious in the islands. Firmin is the savior in these times of drought. Savior? Not really. I don't like that word. Help, yes. Help people, share, give what they want. And above all, protect the island. Try to keep the authenticity of this island through its culture, its customs. It's sharing. And in sharing, if you need something, there are others who will share. Like that, there is conviviality among the population. Firmin is a passionate man. He likes what he does, but above all, he likes to tell the legends of the island to passers-by. So, while waiting for the cistern to fill, he invites us to discover that of a strange stone. This is a stone. It's a conch stone. He is the only one who has to use this stone to gather the population. So it's a conch stone. You blow into the hole there. The sound goes. It's the echo. It goes into the mountain and it's the mountain that spreads the sound in the village. That's what you're going to hear now. Before, you weren't allowed to whistle, to shout. You still had to have a very, very loud voice to call the population to gather. In ancient times, people used this to gather the population. And that's always natural. Many Polynesian islands in Maupiti live mainly from fishing and copra culture. But one of the specificities here is the watermelon. Rino lives on his motorbike with his family. He is a farmer. He has several plots where he grows cucumbers and other tomatoes. But his main activity remains the watermelon culture. Every day, it requires a special attention like, for example, finding solutions to protect his fruits from a lead sun. What are you doing? I'm planting to protect the watermelon. At least there is protection so it doesn't crack. To know if it's better, you hit it. When you hear the sound, that's when you know it's better. Here, it's better, but you can still leave it. The soil of the motus is mainly made of sand and coral. It is therefore necessary to provide the soil so that the watermelon can grow and reach a good size. The soil comes from the island. We dig it up and bring it back to the motus. We don't find the soil on the motus. That's what helps us to find the soil. Thanks to this fertile soil, Rino manages to produce a good number of watermelons. And to know exactly how many, he has a very special technique, simple and effective. You count the holes. There are the woods. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. There are 8. In the 8, there are already 80. When you count, there are already 80. When you count again, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14. There are 14. How many are there? When you eat, you put everything in your mouth to taste. Super! That's it. It's good. Life in Montpetit today is better. It's easier than living in Pétit. Here, life is still easy. There is the fish. You can feed yourself with what you have. You can live on very few things. During the whole day, Rino goes through his fields. Because here, there is always something to do. His mission of the day, cut the coconut leaves that prevent the sun from reaching the young shoots. So we could wonder why in these cases it would not be easier to cut the coconut. His answer shows the state of mind of the people of these islands. The coconut, we leave it for them to cut. We just cut it and then we leave it. You have to share. You have to know how to share with others. OK, let's go. Share. It's a word you'll hear often in Montpetit. Sharing is important in Polynesian culture. It allows to make sometimes difficult conditions a little softer. Today as yesterday, tirelessly, little by little, a little daily water will make tomorrow the inhabitants of Tahiti will be able to enjoy these watermelons from so far away. But before providing the papayas, the fruits of his labor will first benefit the communities of his island. If there is a day when you can meet the inhabitants of the island, it is the day of weighing the coconut. Each coconut farmer will come all day to carry his bags to be weighed and then sent to Tahiti by boat. But today the inhabitants are attracted by a particular agitation at the top of the mountain. For a few months, this summit has become the playground for some best jumpers from all over the world. I come here because I do a bit of kitesurfing so the adrenaline makes me want to do it. It's a tourist attraction. Yes, and since it's at home, it's not long to get up, 45 minutes. I can do it every day. I get up in the morning. Yes, it's long. It's the second time. First, there was Rodolphe. He jumped at least a dozen times. He did well. Now it's the English who are starting to come. We think that seeing the cliff of this mountain, it's impossible. But they still tried to jump and it's a great success. For us, it's a great joy for this island. I also think that my son will be reputed to jump parachute. But before that, life goes on and everyone takes up his tasks with the good mood that characterizes this island. In the village adjacent to the impressive cliffs of Basalt, the quay is an essential place, a meeting place where generations meet in perfect harmony. Maupiti is an open-air museum that lets the traveler plunge into his mysterious past. Story or legend, Firmin knows his story and does not get tired of telling it. The petroglyphs are located in Haranay. It is also a sacred place. At the level of the petroglyphs, there is the crab and the turtle. They are island protectors. Because in the past, the Maori, the Polynesians, were all navigators on the sea. The crab and the turtle communicate with each other. The crab can go up the pirogue to see what is there. Are there thieves who have stolen things from this island? It is transmitted to the turtle. The turtle comes back here to announce to the sage that there were thieves who stole the wealth of this island. And the one who stole will die. The island is full of small family marae. But here we are on the only community marae. It is said that nine kings from all over the Pacific were enthroned on this sacred site. This is our right foot. And just in front of us, in this direction, is our left foot. The distance between these feet is about five meters. We multiplied by two to try to find the size of this tree. About nine or ten meters high. And it is the great warrior who watches this sacred place. His name is Tetowanui Fateretereti Oumaroua. He also left his footprints on his toes. Just the thumb is my foot. And at the level of the marae here in Maupiti, there are at least 122 marae. So on the island, in the lagoon, and on the mountains. There is also a large marae in the middle of La Paz. Before, to access, to come inside, you have to have respect before entering. So you have to ask for permission to enter. But otherwise, the waves will wave as if the entrance door of this island was closing. Maupiti surely owes its tranquility to this only pass known to be dangerous. Violent sea currents allow access only at certain hours of the day, and many navigators have ended up stumbling on the reef to have wanted to challenge it. You have to ask for permission at the pass called Onuia. There is a woman who also watches this pass with her dog. This is what the legend tells us. On the Motu Pae O, far from the tumult of La Paz, Tiyati quietly continues his daily work. Love too. If there is love, we are happy. If there is no love, we are not happy. Tiyati, the old man with the rudeness of expression, with the poetry of words. When there are girls behind, I pass in front. We see the landscape, the people who come by boat, and the people who go to La Paz outside the reef. I see the sunset, I see the whale that roars. That's my cinema. My cinema. At night, the stars, the moon, the clouds, the murmurs of the waves. That's it. Maupiti is one of those islands that will never leave you. These magical encounters of men and women living simply and having as a unique treasure an unconditional attachment to a land, to a culture. Tonight again, the old man will take his ukulele and simply declare his love to this land he saw being born.