Blogs from Rarotonga, Cook Islands, Oceania
Good Bye New Zealand, Hello New Beginning.
Published: March 5th 2012Oceania » Cook Islands » Rarotonga
March 5th 2012
We’ve left New Zealand. We’re feeling good about it too. This past year has been life altering beyond words and I believe we really won’t understand the full effect of how this year has changed us until we settle back home. Honestly though, we’re on the E of D-O-N-E. I just want a freaking place to keep my tooth brush for longer than a month, I really want my electric tooth brush back. We’re both ready to buy property and settle done a bit. The past two months in New Zealand were unbelievable. The beginning of February brought us to a fabulous festival called Luminate. It was on top of a crystal mountain in the middle of nowhere, outside of Nelson, with about 2,000, earth loving, spiritually enlightened individuals. The festival was composed of both music ... read more
February 8th 2012
We arrived at 6:30 am and as we walked off the plane the heat and humidity felt like we had a hot wet blanket thrown over us. Quite a contrast from the temperature on the aircraft. Why is it that they try to freeze you to death on any flight, you would think it costs extra to heat the cabin to a reasonable temperature. Anyway, that aside, Rarotonga is a stunningly beautiful tropical island surrounded by white sandy beaches with several lagoons to swim and snorkel in. The pace of life is majestically slow and everyone seems very friendly, Yesterday we took the local bus ride into the capital Avarua. The bus route follows the only road on the island; one bus goes clockwise and the other anti-clockwise. The route round the island is only 32 ... read more
July 6th 2011
Pa's Cross Island Hike Today is going to be a big day! Hiking across the island through the mountain trails. I am nervous not knowing what to expect. Pa and his driver pick me up at the guesthouse and the driver is a Kiwi and rather normal in appearance however Pa's is an interesting man. He is native and a herbalists. He runs his own hospital specializing in cancerous tumors. States he has only had one fatality in all of his patients. He uses plants for the most part but swears in the healing power of Vicks vapor rub and lozenges. He is very religious and as most natives he is very respectful of nature. He points out medical plants as we hike. He prays, to the gods for a safe hike and he talks ... read more
July 5th 2011
What is rare here, well the beautiful orange flower only grown here in Raratonga. Fast Speed Internet is also a rarity. I was not able to send my blog out while on the island. To upload 20 pictures it would take 6 hours. The connection will only last about 15 minutes before severing. The cost per hour for internet is 10 NZD. A no brainer-I will have to wait to get to Auckland. Rarotonga is in the southern group of the Cook Islands and hold half of the population just under 20,000 people. It is the largest island at 67 sq. kilometers and the coastal road being 32 kilometers. One of the highest peaks is the “Te Rua Manga”aka the Needle is 653 meters. The island is encircled by a reef with a lagoon that ... read more
July 4th 2011
Raring to go in Rarotonga The flight to the Cook Islands was a 9 hour flight with Air New Zealand. I requested a seat change and was given the last seat literally the last row but the nice thing was no one sat next to me and I was able to spread out to sleep with 2 pillow and 2 blankets over the 2 seats. Just about as comfy as you can get on a plane unless you get three seats or first class. Just not gonna happen for me. They feed us dinner at midnight and breakfast at 7 am. There is a 3 hour time difference from LA and 6 from home. I arrive at 5:45 AM local time and it is pitch black no moon nor stars. There is a slight cool sea ... read more
April 27th 2011
Well, the time is finally here.... time for me to start saying my goodbyes to paradise and start thinking about heading off to my next adventure. The last few weeks here on Rarotonga have been absolutely amazing. I completed my Divemaster and have been having the time of my life. The people I have met and the memories we have made are absolutely priceless and as I look forward to coming home to see all of those that I have thanked so much for their support, I am a bit apprehensive because my life has changed so much since I left. When I got here I was still a New Yorker at heart, clinging to my Blackberry for dear life and desperately wondering what the hell I had gotten myself into. Now, I abhor the idea ... read more
April 11th 2011
13th – 26th March 2011 After making a mess of the 13th March in New Zealand, the fickle finger of fate pointed us over the International Date Line and gave us another stab at it, hopefully to do a better job this time!! We grasped the opportunity and declined the free alcohol on the flight.... well Ellie did, Steve broke after only an hour and ordered himself a cheeky chardonnay! Luckily it was only a short flight so before we knew it we were being greeted by the heat and a ukulele player at Rarotonga airport. We later found out that this chap was Jake Numanga MBE and he has been there to greet and bid farewell every flight for the past 25 years. We soon found our rental car with their instructions of ‘parked by ... read more
March 20th 2011
Well, it is certainly true that life can change in the blink of an eye, and in this case the last three weeks have been a total rollercoaster ride for me. Too many goodbyes but just as many good times. I moved back into the Intern house on Feb 27th and have been here with Amanda and Sara. I really enjoyed staying up at Steve’s while he was gone for the quiet time and to be able to have a real house all to myself, but I missed the girls, so it’s great to be back. Monday the 28th I had one of the worst moments on the island when by way of freak accident my signature pink sunglasses fell into the murky water between the boat an the dock and even though Tom and myself ... read more
March 14th 2011
Rarotonga 3/14/11 Today was exhausting. I started my day nice and early (because the roosters wouldn't shut up) with an easy job along the beach. After making it to the end of the beach, I came back to force Sarah out of bed and go kayaking (never do a double kayak with a girl, they don't paddle). We went around the water to the reef to watch the waves break. The reef we discovered was thousands of rocks piled up in very shallow water (like 6 inches), which made it difficult to pass (we couldn't). After finding some odd looking purple rocks and visiting an island with a 1/10 of a mile circumference, we headed back in. After a brief lunch, we headed out to the water fall to start a hike (it rained twice ... read more
March 13th 2011
Lazy day around the hotel. Only left the sunny lounge area to go to the store and get some ice cream. Went through two books today, the Alchemist and Night. Both interesting and spiritual, I can see why they make you read them in school (I never had). Walking along the beach at night made me realize how far from LA we are. Stars filled the night sky. We could see the milky way and many thousands of stars with clarity that can only be when you're in the middle of nowhere. Tried to find the north star polaris, forgot how, something to do with following the big (or is it the little) dipper...... read more
