FRENCH POLYNESIA'S 10 TOP BARGAINS

Here are the 10 Top Bargains in French Polynesia:

1. French Bread. Even the fish in French Polynesia eat thefamous French baguettes. They're fresh and delicious - and cost lessthan $1. The long, thin mailboxes at the end of each driveway hereare not for mail; they're for home delivery of the bread - that's howseriously baguettes are taken here.

2. Flowers. There's something inspirational about a culturewhere men and women wear flowers in their hair at all times. And itseems to be an unwritten rule that flowers on these islands are free.Pick any one you see, tuck it behind your ear - and voila, your dayseems lighter, the island spirit more benevolent.

3. Pareus. Pair a pareu with a bathing suit, flip-flops andsunscreen; that's all you need in the way of clothing. And pareus,the brightly colored fabric rectangles that can be worn a hundredways, are about the only worthwhile local handicraft. Costingbetween $12 and $30, they are infinitely useful as a skirt, dress,beach towel, bath towel, bathing suit cover-up and as protection fromthe sun.

4. Local Fruit. With the rich volcanic soil and lushvegetation, imagine the wealth of fruit: pineapples as sweet asoranges; creamy rambutans, a relative of the lychee; coconuts filledwith cool liquid; bananas growing right outside your window. For afew dollars, you can indulge in a tropical feast.

5. Tahiti's Le Truck. Here's one item that would be a realbargain almost anywhere. Tahiti's only form of publictransportation, this cross between a truck and a school bus outfittedwith wooden benches travels around the island and to and from theairport for about $1.50 a ride. Alas, Le Truck stops at 5 p.m. So ifyou land in the middle of the night as most flights do, you're stuckwith that $50 airport cab ride.

6. The Tahiti-Moorea Ferry. Prepared to fork over $30 or $40for the ferry crossing between Tahiti and Moorea, I experiencedreverse sticker shock: $12 round trip! - for a pleasant 40-minutetrip on a modern catamaran through clear, cobalt blue waters. AndMoorea is a great day trip if you're staying in Papeete for a fewdays.

7. Sunset at the Hyatt. In a land where every sunset is anightly event, there's no better place on Tahiti to watch it thanfrom the outdoor bar at the Hyatt Regency Hotel. Order a Hinano beeror a sweet rum drink, snag a chair and you'll know you're inparadise.

8. Camping. Balmy nights. A dome of stars overhead. Gentlebreezes. Few mosquitoes and none of them malarial. No wild animals.The sound of the sea. Camping is definitely a bargain here, thoughthere are relatively few campsites. The ones that do exist costabout $10 a night.

9. Lunch at Good Hotels. None of French Polynesia's expensivehotels seemed to care if I hung out on their beaches, sunbathed intheir lounge chairs and ate at their restaurants. I adopted theSofitel chain's Bora Bora outpost and made a ritual of eating thereevery day. At the bar, a sandwich was $4, and the croque monsieurstransported me to a Paris bistro with one bite. At the mainrestaurant, built over the water, a full meal ran about $15. Byhaving lunch late enough in the afternoon, I could get by with justsome fruit and bread for dinner to really keep costs down.

10. Peace and Quiet. There's plenty of it here - and it'sfree. One thing you'll notice about these islands is that everyoneleaves you alone. The French, being the French, won't dignifythemselves to talk with you, especially if you are American. ThePolynesians aren't really interested in you either. No one tries tosell you trinkets or braid your hair on the beach. If you cravesolitude, minimal distractions and no stress, this is your place.