MARLON’S DREAM

Twenty hours after take off from Paris and the world is upside down. It has become blue, adorned with gold and diamonds when the terns fly in the blazing sunlight. This dream world, at its beginning, exists on the Tetiaroa atoll. The Brando, an extraordinary resort with thirty-five villas, was designed according to Marlon’s beliefs and on the island where he lived in French Polynesia.

Here, we talk about mana, “the spirit”. No need to ask questions. Open your big, round eyes and accept. Every living being has its own mana. The tiara flower, with its amazing red-footed wild look, dark plumage, turquoise beak and palms on fire alert, the potato chip coral that unites thousands of tiny fish in blue fluo dresses, striped like convicts, shiny, silvery… Even the black rock, memory of the volcanic times, vibrates in connection with the rest of creation. That’s the mana. They say that the Tetiaroa’s mana is of unequaled power.

Marlon Brando discovered this miniature atoll, 6 km² with thirteen islands, called motu, floating 53 kilometers from Tahiti, in 1960 when he was shooting the Mutiny on the Bounty. It was love at first site. The bad boy in a white T-shirt named desire, the impetuous Parisian lover, the godfather at the end of the road, the Buddha master of the apocalypse, finds himself overwhelmed by something greater than himself, bewitched by the mana of Tetiaroa: “It was more gorgeous than anything I had anticipated”, he says.

Without any hesitation, Brando settles on this concentration of intact nature, set at the dawn of time, just like what we dreamed of on the school benches, a huge scene of absolute freedom. He buys the atoll, marries the beautiful Tarita, his Tahitian partner in the film, and then comes cooing on his coral bench. A lost stare far beyond the horizon, day-shoots, lost in a thousand stars, night shoots. Final clap?

Certainly not. His pleasure of the moment, a crystal lagoon, birds inebriated by the tranquility, songs in the breeze combed by coconut boughs and Tarita’s hand, all of this doesn’t prevent him from imagining even greater, more intense and more exemplary. A project with a lot of style and powerful, like him: “I would like to establish a selfsufficient community in Tetiaroa where research and training would be associated with agriculture, aquaculture and tourism in a preserved environment for the benefit of all. And create a non-polluting community that would not upset the ecological balance of the lagoon.” This is the founding mantra of Tetiaroa, its Constitution, version Brando, the cornerstone of its Year 01.

Royal hideout

The site is rather well chosen to welcome this utopia. Does the actor know that the kings and queens of Tahiti, the Pomare dynasty, came here to withdraw from the world during the 18th and 19th centuries? Brando, modern ruler of a realm of wind, birds and coral, settles into his new world. At least a try. A hotel with a dozen bungalows, somewhat back to the basics, a turtle farm and lobster breeding, an ocean research center… Zero success, despite the aura of the mentor. Then life goes on and the dream fades. A tense family context, grueling film projects, accumulating debts… Brando left Tetiaroa in 1990 and never returned.

On the island, he leaves Teihotu, the son he had with Tarita, and the only resident of this small paradise. Years later, Teihotu got a girl named Tumi, the new princess of Tetiaroa. When she tells about her holidays here, she talks about how she counted small fish that swirled around her bare feet and how she caressed the sea turtles before they left on their long voyage to Fiji. They will come back to lay their eggs on the beaches of Tetiaroa. Tumi, 28 years old currently, works to protect the atoll’s flora and fauna. It’s her way of continuing the work of her grandfather.

When he died in 2004, Brando had secured the future of his estate. In his villa on Mulholland Drive, where he spent his last years cloistered, he negotiated the development of an exceptional project, to match the limitless possibilities of his dream.

It will be a hotel, obviously called The Brando who is now directed by Dick Bailey, an American, and his right-hand man, the Alsatian Philippe Brovelli. Together, they have exemplified the highest standards for a hotel chain, Beachcomber Intercontinental (five addresses and the cruise ship

Paul Gauguin), the reference in Polynesia. The specifications are unrealistic but Brando demanded that nothing be altered, that there be no carbon emissions and that “Tetia”, as we say, is totally autonomous to accommodate holidaymakers as well as researchers who come to study and save the local ecosystem. To definitively seal his attachment to his atoll, he demands that, when the day comes, his ashes be scattered here.

Leonardo, Johnny, Barack, Lady Gaga

In July 2014, just ten years after Marlon bowed out, the resort opened. Madness for 150 million euros. But as promised, 100 % green. It featured thirty-five spacious villas, each with a butler, a pool and direct access to the beach, not-to-mention an obstructed view from the room, 2,400 solar panels, a deep seawater recovery system (at 4 °C) to supply air conditioning (one of Brando’s old ideas), a desalination unit, a gourmet table signed Guy Martin (3-stars in Paris), an organic garden, a deluxe spa, giant screens, universal wi-fi and a university of the sea, open to researchers. The hotel’s philosophy of happiness says the rest: “that everyone fulfills their desire of the moment, that they eat when they want, drink what they want, do what they want”, according to Philippe Brovelli. No schedule, nor the slightest obligation. Try a yoga class or splash around in the lagoon, go to the island of birds (hundreds) in the company of a naturalist, or even Tumi Brando, who loves to come back to talk to her people about the wind, have a massage or take a class about coral. Maybe you prefer to toast with a

Tetiaroa Waters, the cocktail that pays tribute to the surrounding blue waters, vodka with tiara flowers, grapefruit juice, iced coconut water, curacao. Cheers!

As soon as it opened, this smashingly fashionable resort was a triumph. The jet-set, as well as the anonymous, hedonists and the stars delighted with such a hideout

(no access for paparazzi boats and the airstrip is reserved for residents). Provided you pay a daily bill of 3,500 euros, three nights minimum required. All inclusive, except for a few trifles. The most famous regulars, Leonardo (he compares the turquoise lagoon to a pool for billionaires), Johnny, Lady Gaga, Barack came here with Michele to write his memoirs ignore these little details. Just like Albert II of Monaco, guests-on-site with Charlene and the twins… Everybody leaves affected by the same revelation. Some talk about the fires of the Earth releasing an energy that is extreme and positive. Others evoke grace from the sky, its luminous plenitude, the harmonies of nature. Unless it’s the ocean… Everyone agrees that this initial framework challenges their limits, opening the mind to a thousand never explored territories. “It is the sea fled away / With the sun”, Rimbaud said about Eternity.

Celestial serenity

So, we always come back to mana. Modern societies have long since dismissed this notion that comes from this otherworldly realm. Just not profitable. On the islands, it remains vital. The mana lives and watches over the inhabitants, slips into the fishermen’s nets, reassures the patient, offers the fare its good intentions, hovers over the transparency of the lagoon. Spirit, are you there? Everywhere, omnipresent, omnipotent, say the Polynesians. A conviction that doesn’t prevent anyone from telling one’s beads. Mana accommodates to all types of complicity. Gauguin and Brel, of course, but also Loti,

Colas, Paul-émile Victor, Melville, Kersauson, Matisse, Dassin, Bougainville, Segalen… they all speak of intoxicating scents, celestial serenity, waves of happiness, a divine truth sitting on the edge of the ocean. Brando did the same and wanted to pass on this treasure. Now, Tumi contnues. Guardian of the mana of Tetiaroa.

“LE REPAS, UNE INVITATION AU VOYAGE”

A double-starred chef from the Grand Véfour in Paris, Guy Martin watches over the menu of the restaurant Les Mutinés du Brando in Tetiaroa, managed on site by one of his trusted right-hand men, Jean-pierre Boulot.

What Tahitian product has boosted your imagination?

Guy Martin: Polynesian nature is exceptionally rich. And the tropics add power to the flavors. This applies to fruits, vegetables, fish, crustaceans… If I had to name a discovery, I’d opt for vanilla which marries wonderfully with fish and obviously desserts, and even with foie gras…

What inspires you the most in Tetiaroa?

The atoll emits a very particular vibration, probably that of the souls who watch over, that of Marlon Brando with them, obviously. We quickly feel the unique atmosphere of places, birds, protected species, a whale and its calves, turtles… This initial and peaceful nature offers a constant source of inspiration.

How is that translated to the plate?

We must offer to each dish the elegance it deserves, with absolute respect for the product. In Tetiaroa, the meal must be an invitation to the travel, terrestrial as much as cosmic.

TRAVEL NOTEBOOK

TO GET THERE

Air Tahiti Nui has several weekly connections between Paris and Papeete. The flight lasts 22 hours with a mandatory two hour stopover in Los Angeles. The company has introduced the all-new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, one of the most comfortable aircraft of the moment. Beautifully designed and reminiscent of Polynesian tattoos, silence in the cabin, incomparable charm of the cable crew with a tiara flower around the ear, offering Tahitian magic as you board. Count between 1,400 and 1,800 € round trip in economy class, from 2500 to 2,800 € in Premium class and around 6,600 € in Business class. Tel. 0 825 02 42 02 and Airtahitinui.com

Also consult Air France and French Bee.

FORMALITIES

The stopover in Los Angeles requires all passengers, including babies, to complete the ESTA entry form into the United States (only on the Internet: https://esta.cbp. dhs.gov).

HOURS

There is 12 hours difference between Tahiti and France in summer, 11 hours in winter.

THE BEST MOMENT

The most enjoyable time to stay in Polynesia is from April to September, during the austral winter.

ACCOMODATION

The one-bedroom villas at

The Brando are available from € 2,900 to 3,700 € per night, depending on the period. A minimum of three nights is required. This rate is all inclusive, drinks and meals (including the restaurant

Les Mutinés, with Guy Martin at the helm), activities, as well as a spa treatment. Add 450 € per person for flight A/R between Papeete and Tetiaroa. Tel. 00 689 40 866 366 and Thebrando.com

INFORMATION

Tahiti Tourism Office (Office de tourisme): www.tahititourisme.fr