Chapter 12: Foiling & Fixing I swore I would never do it. It was too dangerous, and I was too old. But then Carine did it—so, of course, I had to try. I didn’t enjoy being launched out of the…

Chapter 8: 34,000 Steps  To truly experience Mangareva, you have to walk its gravelly, cracked streets. We walked twelve miles. We passed the medical clinic and the man with the missing finger, climbed the hill where the bananas grow, and…

Chapter 4: Day and Night The air is still. I hear water lapping against the hull, roosters crowing, dogs barking, and a flag flapping gently in the breeze. In the distance, Polynesian music drifts through the air—a ukulele twangs, falls…

Au revoir, Gambier! If it weren’t for the rainbow shooting out my toe, I would feel glum watching your islands fade into the distance. Instead, I’m taking my best memories with me and looking toward a colorful future with no…