Every year at this particular time, give or take a few days, PACIFIC NEWS edits its traditional ADVENT CALENDAR, impatiently expected by our precious long-time subscribers as well as our newcomers: welcome to you !

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(not in the mood for reading > scroll straight down to the windows :-)

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Of course we weren't going to fail on the mission for 2021. Not too slowly but pretty surely, each passing day brings us closer to the yearend festivities, the end of yet another covidyear… a time that calls for bright and happy colors, and here they are :-)

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One window per day, every day, to share with you what my eyes are so lucky to see here, a bit of humor, lots of love, and sunshine !!!

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Braving all the complications traveling now implies (vax-pass-tests-mask-uncertainty-stress), arriving through sea and sky, our great team gathered up once again at international HQ here on the island, for this special maxi-photo mini-text edition, with the effervescent enthusiasm it takes to hold a disciplined publishing rhythm (…) for 24 straight days and, possibly the hardest, resist the temptation of the irresistible call of the lagoon. What a challenge!

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The winds are turning here, our dry season is still flirting with the rainy one that started a bit too early this year. Hot and humid, we call it "The Time of Abundance" (mango, avocado, pineapple, etc) everything grows and produces like crazy. There is quite some confusion up there, as both seasons take over the sky and color it alternately. The tropical rain with its huge drops feels like the gods decided it was time to pull the plug of their Heavenly Jacuzzi… Instantly soaked. A few minutes later, all the blues are back, together with a burning sun, leaving just a few cotton balls in the sky. Dried just a fast. We dress lightly, and barefoot is the way to go. It's rainbow season.

 

Elsewhere, very far away from here, the cold has now arrived. This is the season for socks, multiple-layer dressing, a fire in its place. Nature is grey, the colors have been turned off until next spring. While waiting for the snow to cover it all up with a beautiful white blanket, it's pretty miserable, which I remember bitterly... Early morning, still dark outside, motivation is below freezing level, the windshield scraping ritual begins… A frosty souvenir that inspired our 2021 windows.

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For you all… my dear friends from the past, the present, the future… all the brave and lucky travelers who made it to the islands and discovered Huahine with me… all those who are coming soon… perhaps even more for those who had to cancel their trip this year… and for all you nostalgic and dreamers out there… in so many places on our beautiful planet…

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The entire PACIFIC NEWS team of reporters, photographers, editors, highly specialized contributors, back office staff, chauffeurs and pilots, the maintenance department, the chief of coffee and even the lobster delivery guy (except the unmanageable IT guys, pouting in the shade, punished for having screwed up the technicalities implied by deadlines) all join me in wishing you a joyful discovery of this 2021 ADVENT CALENDAR.

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… enjoy without moderation, and without mask !