Just 7 1/2 hours from Los Angeles, you'll find the crystal clear turquoise lagoons and pristine beaches of the islands where love lives. Tahiti and Her Islands comprise an area officially known as French Polynesia. The Islands are scattered over four million square kilometers (one and a half million sq. miles) of ocean in the eastern South Pacific.

The total land area of these 118 islands and atolls adds up to only 4,000 sq. km. (1,544 sq. miles), and consists of five achipelagoes: the Society Islands, Austral Islands, Marquesas Islands, Tuamotu atolls and the Mangareva Islands.

The population of French Polynesia is an amalgam of Polynesian (75 percent), Chinese (10 percent), and European (15 percent). Among these racial categories exists every conceivable mixture. It would not be unusual to encounter a Tahitian of Chinese, American, Polynesian and French ancestry. The term French Polynesia refers to five archipelagoes spread over an expanse of the South Pacific approximately the size of Western Europe (2,000,000 square miles or approximately 5,000,000 square kilometers). The region includes the Marguesas, the Tuamotus, the Society Islands, the Australs and the Gambiers. Each of these archipelagoes has its own culture, ethnicity and climate.

French Polynesia was the natural backdrop for the legendary paintings of Paul Gauguin. Like the vast majority of visitors to the region, Gauguin has inspired by French Polynesia's turquoise lagoons, multi-coloured reef fish, volcanic peaks, lush valleys and white-sand beaches.

Tahitian culture is a lively fusion of ancient Polynesian lore and European contemporaneousness.

The mixture of Polynesian and French cultures has resulted in a fertile culinary environment. There is a variety of splendid foods available in Tahiti ranging from traditional Tahitian fare to fine French cuisine, and tempting combinations thereof. The Tahitian diet consists mostly of fish, shellfish, breadfruit, taro, cassava, pork, yams, chickan, rice and coconut.

Visitors will also find any number of Italian, Vietnamese and Chinese restaurants of various price categories and quality. For Americans accustomed to fast-food, Papeete and some of the outer islands serve hamburgers, steaks, fries and similar staples.

In terms of art and culture, upper-class Tahitians have adopted western pop culture. French Polynesians wear the most chic fashions, listen to the latest pop music and drive the latest Bavarian cars and Japanese automobiles. Yet despite this obvious affection for Western style, the proud people of French Polynesia still have their own language and customs.

The area has inspired a host of legendary artistic works. Tahiti has captured the imagination of European intellectuals and artists ever since Rousseau waxed about the "Noble Savage." French Polynesia was the setting for Herman Melville's groundbreaking book, "Typee," which was the first novel about a romance between a white man and a Polynesian native. The region was also the inspiration for the popular theatre production, "Bali Hai."

Perhaps the most popular and influential artist to be associated with Tahiti is painter Paul Gauguin, whose earth-hued portraits of Polynesian life are world-renowned.

Arguably, the most resilient aspects of Polynesian culture are music and dance. Traditional percussionists offer one of the purest expressions of Polynesian music and are as much a part of the music scene today as are electric guitarists (percussionist always accompany dance troupes). Tahitian music has evolved into a fiery mix of Polynesian melody and rhythm and American pop, Jamaican reggae, French chansons and even hymns borrowed from the missionaries.

Crafts are an important part of the cultural picture in French Polynesia. Traditional mat or basket weaving and carving are still practiced in the more remote areas, such as the Marguesas, Tuamotu and Austral islands. The Australs in particular, are famous for the quality of mats and hats woven from Pandanus, a tree that grows throughout the South Pacific. Carvings and wood sculptures are produced mostly in the Marquesas Islands.

Polynesia is the birthplace of the tattoo, and this internationally-recognized form of body painting has been practiced here since ancient times. It's almost impossible to walk down a busy thoroughfare in Papeete or Moorea without encountering tattooed locals.