After our failure with Easter Island, we are now heading to Pitcairn Island unexpectedly. Here's what we know so far:
Pitcairn is part of Great Britain; the water is said to be the cleanest in the world according to an assessment; a supply ship arrives every three months; approximately 40 descendants of the Mutineers of the Bounty live on the island today. And: Marlon Brando met his third wife here while filming and later built the luxury resort "The Brando" on a neighboring atoll.
The island is too small (1.5 km wide, 3.5 km long) and the docking area is too shallow for our tenders to dock themselves. According to communication with the residents, they want to come to AIDAmar with their two small boats to exchange honey and fish for frozen pizza and so on. The chances are about 50/50 with the current rough seas. They also offer to stamp our passports with an exclusive stamp for $20. It feels like dealing with shrewd trading partners. They also seem to have implemented inflationary government structures; according to our captain, there is an immigration minister, a health minister, and also a dock minister, with whom he has been in regular email exchange so far.
About half of the islanders have just come on board, set up a market, and also gave a lecture. 2 1/2 hours later, the islanders leave again. After going around the island, we are heading to Papeete.