Tuesday, January 31, 2023 – Photo of the Day – Rangiroa, French Polynesia

Where in the World Are We?

Rangiroa is the largest atoll in the Tuamotus and one of the largest in the world.

It is in French Polynesia and is part of the Palliser group. Rangiroa is home to about 2,500 people on 31 sq mi. The chief town is Avatoru, in the atoll’s northwest.

Today’s Excursion – Discover The World Of Pearls

We traveled to one of Rangiroa’s renowned black pearl farms to learn how these lustrous treasures are produced and graded. and we browsed unset pearls at the onsite shop. The pearl farm was a modest size representing the pearling industry being a cottage industry on these islands. It’s certainly very much a hands-on operation as we saw the farm staff providing background on the evolution of the industry and on how these special black-lipped pearl oysters are selected, grown, and grafted for production. After hearing it described we saw the process underway as we toured the work sheds and observed a grafter skillfully plying his trade. Shape and luster are both key components of the pearl grading scale. Our guide demonstrated the criteria used. The pearls included round, baroque, and semi-baroque pearls ranging in grade from C to A.