This island of Tahaa is a quiet place with few tourists. It is known as the "vanilla island"  because  it  is produces so much "black gold"  We visited one of the farms and were inspired by the owner's enthusiasm & energy. She starts work at 4am in the flowering season & pollinates 2OOO flowers a day. Then when the pods are picked she dries them in the sun, turning them regularly so that they remain moist but do not become mildewed. Her passion for vanilla was as overpowering as the scent which wafted across her plantation.