Tahitians

This weekend's U.S. Outrigger Canoe Championships will have a peculiarly American character--not so much by design as by default. Tahiti, the nation that has practiced paddling for centuries and the winners of the men's race last year, will not compete. The Tahitians' decision to skip the race is believed to be a matter of economics, according to Bud Hohl, assistant race director.

Moro blood oranges grown in Southern California are almost different fruits from those grown in the San Joaquin Valley, the state's leading citrus district. They're smaller in size, lighter in color and a month or more later in ripening. By April, San Joaquin Valley Moros often develop musty off-flavors, but when grown in Southern California the variety can remain in good condition well into the spring and arguably develops its sweetest, richest flavor here. The season is particularly late at Old Gold Farms, which grows 6 acres of Moros in Somis, a relatively cool area of Ventura County.

We sat in an open-air snack bar on the waterfront, watching the schooner from Papeete being unloaded. The vahine behind the counter was serving papaya and eggs and French bread that she'd toasted on a charcoal broiler. It was dawn and the town was only beginning to stir. In a corner, a couple of islanders shared a bottle of Hinano, which is a pretty good Tahitian beer but hardly a substitute for orange juice at this early hour. The girl wore a pareu , and her boyfriend wore only shorts and sandals.

Tahitian squash: You might blanch when farmer Peter Schaner tells you that in order to taste his Tahitian squash you'll have to buy the whole thing -- they average 10 to 15 pounds. That's a lot of squash to eat at one sitting, unless you're feeding your local high school football team. But Schaner points out that the Tahitian stores really well. Hack off a chunk the size you need and leave the rest on the counter. The cut surface will harden into a skin that will keep it from spoiling.

The Tahitian man who arrived in Los Angeles in the wheel well of an Air France jumbo jet is expected to return home today as a passenger on the airline, days after he suffered severe hypothermia and frost bite to make the overseas trip. The Immigration and Naturalization Service has ordered the airline to put the man on the next flight back to Tahiti or face a $5,000 fine. Although French and U.S. immigration officials have confirmed the man's identity, they have refused to make it public.

While visiting Moorea, Tahiti, for the first time in 1998, I ordered a ceviche-like dish that Tahitians called poisson cru and Maori Cook Islanders referred to as ika mata. They're essentially made the same way. You start with diced fish (albacore or ahi) in freshly squeezed lime juice, which marinates for 30 minutes to an hour in the refrigerator. Drain the fish and mix in diced carrots, tomatoes, cucumbers and red bell peppers. Then -- this is what makes the dish stand apart from other ceviches I've eaten -- you add coconut cream and garnish it with cilantro, and even some diced avocado and hard-boiled egg. The Tahitian way of eating this ambrosia (French-influenced)

Tahitian squash: You might blanch when farmer Peter Schaner tells you that in order to taste his Tahitian squash you'll have to buy the whole thing -- they average 10 to 15 pounds. That's a lot of squash to eat at one sitting, unless you're feeding your local high school football team. But Schaner points out that the Tahitian stores really well. Hack off a chunk the size you need and leave the rest on the counter. The cut surface will harden into a skin that will keep it from spoiling.

Pleasant Tahitian Holidays in Westlake Village said it will substantially increase its available airline-seat inventory to Tahiti using an Air New Zealand Boeing 767, which is being chartered by Radisson Seven Seas from Los Angeles. The new service is scheduled to begin Friday. "This new arrangement will give us the airline seats we need to meet our growing customer demand for Tahiti," said Ed Hogan, Pleasant's chairman and chief executive officer.

Ia Ora Na That means welcome in Tahitian, and that's what it said on the invitations sent to members of the Visionaries--a support group for the Newport Harbor Art Museum. About 140 guests RSVP'd--or whatever you call it in Tahiti--and made their way to the Polynesian-themed party at Nancy and Jim Baldwin's Emerald Bay house Sunday night.

Four years ago Pasadena High boys basketball Coach Bill Duwe went to Tahiti for five weeks during the summer to help the Tahitian national teams train for the South Pacific Games. Now the Tahitian Women's National Team has come to the United States for three weeks of training, playing and sightseeing in preparation for the South Pacific Games in December, and it is Duwe's turn to be the host.

Marlon Brando spent the last few years of his life mostly cloistered in the master bedroom of his home on Mulholland Drive, the great actor reduced to an obese, distrustful and tormented recluse. But there was a place to which he could escape by simply closing his eyes. It was a place far away in the South Pacific, a 27-square-mile island called Tetiaroa that's protected by a coral reef, about 35 miles north of Tahiti.

While visiting Moorea, Tahiti, for the first time in 1998, I ordered a ceviche-like dish that Tahitians called poisson cru and Maori Cook Islanders referred to as ika mata. They're essentially made the same way. You start with diced fish (albacore or ahi) in freshly squeezed lime juice, which marinates for 30 minutes to an hour in the refrigerator. Drain the fish and mix in diced carrots, tomatoes, cucumbers and red bell peppers. Then -- this is what makes the dish stand apart from other ceviches I've eaten -- you add coconut cream and garnish it with cilantro, and even some diced avocado and hard-boiled egg. The Tahitian way of eating this ambrosia (French-influenced)

The Tahitian man who arrived in Los Angeles in the wheel well of an Air France jumbo jet is expected to return home today as a passenger on the airline, days after he suffered severe hypothermia and frost bite to make the overseas trip. The Immigration and Naturalization Service has ordered the airline to put the man on the next flight back to Tahiti or face a $5,000 fine. Although French and U.S. immigration officials have confirmed the man's identity, they have refused to make it public.

With a quick twist on a short wooden wedge, Tahitian pearl farmer Henri Tauraa pried open the shells of a hapless oyster, revealing a lustrous black pearl nestled on the half shell. "La couleur, c'est belle," he whispered, scrutinizing the marble-size pearl under the brilliant South Pacific sun. Henri grinned and dropped the dusky jewel into my hand.

Pleasant Tahitian Holidays in Westlake Village said it will substantially increase its available airline-seat inventory to Tahiti using an Air New Zealand Boeing 767, which is being chartered by Radisson Seven Seas from Los Angeles. The new service is scheduled to begin Friday. "This new arrangement will give us the airline seats we need to meet our growing customer demand for Tahiti," said Ed Hogan, Pleasant's chairman and chief executive officer.

The Tahitian Village Motor Hotel, with its bright tiki torches, festive music and glorious swimming pool, was Downey's most fashionable nightspot during the 1960s, hosting astronauts and other celebrities. Now, beset with problems like exposed electrical wiring, peeling paint, broken windows and wood rot, the once-celebrated landmark is home to welfare recipients, the working poor and the downtrodden.

The Tahitian Village Motor Hotel, with its bright tiki torches, festive music and glorious swimming pool, was Downey's most fashionable nightspot during the 1960s, hosting astronauts and other celebrities. Now, beset with problems like exposed electrical wiring, peeling paint, broken windows and wood rot, the once-celebrated landmark is home to welfare recipients, the working poor and the downtrodden.

With a quick twist on a short wooden wedge, Tahitian pearl farmer Henri Tauraa pried open the shells of a hapless oyster, revealing a lustrous black pearl nestled on the half shell. "La couleur, c'est belle," he whispered, scrutinizing the marble-size pearl under the brilliant South Pacific sun. Henri grinned and dropped the dusky jewel into my hand.

Ia Ora Na That means welcome in Tahitian, and that's what it said on the invitations sent to members of the Visionaries--a support group for the Newport Harbor Art Museum. About 140 guests RSVP'd--or whatever you call it in Tahiti--and made their way to the Polynesian-themed party at Nancy and Jim Baldwin's Emerald Bay house Sunday night.

The day when outrigger canoe racing becomes an Olympic sport might not be far off. Should that happen, the United States can almost count on a bushel full of medals. Why wouldn't Americans dominate the Olympics' first outrigger paddling event? After all, the sport was invented in Hawaii. But by 1996 or 2000, the best paddlers in the world could be from Southern California. It sounds almost disrespectful, boats full of fair-haired mainlanders out-paddling the Pacific Rim for the gold.