| 1 | The tama"ara"a comes of course after the ahima"a. |
| 2 | It is the meal at which one eats what has been cooked in the ahima"a, together with the traditional raw fish, raw and cooked freshwater shrimps, raw and cooked crayfish, the mao"a [turbot] and the pahua taioro [clam marinated in juice of grated coconuts, seawater and shrimps], the mao"a or pahua with re"a [ginger], the miti [salt] hue [calabash], the miti ha"ari [coconut or coconut milk], the popoi [manioca or breadfruit paste], and of course the famous fafaru [fish marinated in seawater], the smell of which is always a little shocking to an outsider. |
| 3 | The usual drinks are beer, punch, red wine and water. |
| 4 | Both for the preparations of the ahima"a and for serving the tama"ara"a, the tahitians use traditional bowls, the "umete made of wood. |
| 5 | Some are beautifully decorated and are used to prepare the po"e [starch and stewed fruit preserve], the marinated raw fish, etc... |
| 6 | Other kitchen utensils are; the penu or pestle, made in stone or coral; the hue or calabash, used to keep the mite hue or fafaru; the "ana or coconut scraper++though nowadays metal-pointed scrapers have replaced the traditional coral instrument, now only found in old-fashioned households. |
| 7 | The tama"ara"a is not just a meal. |
| 8 | It has all the characteristics of a feast in the country and no effort is spared to make the table and the surroundings as colorful as possible, with plants, fruits and flowers. |
| 9 | Each guest is received with great attention and is crowned with flowers; the tiare tahiti, the tipanie, the fara [pandanus]. |
| 10 | On the ground or on a table covered with banana leaves (green ni"au [coconut palms]) the crockery is laid out; "umete, hue, bamboo cups, green coconuts and split emptied coconut shells. |
| 11 | Tradition demands that the ma"a [food] tahiti be eaten with the fingers and therefore no cutlery is laid out. |
| 12 | A tama"ara"a is always a happy occasion. |
| 13 | The family meets, friends come together, and everyone is gay. |
| 14 | There is music of course, because in polynesia a meal starts and ends with singing. |
| 15 | A small orchestra is improvised (all tahitians are amateur musicians) with guitars, ukelele and bass. |
| 16 | (this bass is a unique instrument; it is built with a 20 litre oil-drum, a broomstick an a string tying one to the other, and the sounds are obtained by plucking the string). |
| 17 | Punch, beer and red wine contribute to the gaiety |
