http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Cook-Islands/Rarotonga/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from Oceania , Cook Islands , Rarotonga en-us Wed, 22 May 2013 10:39:31 +0000 Wed, 22 May 2013 10:39:31 +0000 Quite simply we have discovered paradise in the South Pacific and we are quickly getting used to the pace of life as we entered weeks 2 and 3 on Rarotonga. The local Polynesian folk are lovely and invariably wear a flower behind their ear and a smile on their faces. We had settled into 39Are Moe39 bungalow.... Absolute heaven... just a few seconds from the beach on a remote Island. The sea a http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Cook-Islands/Rarotonga/blog-787133.html Did I say next stop the Cook Islands . . we almost didn39t make it as little did I know I was travelling with a terrorist . . when Geen got stopped and was randomly searched her hand luggage tested positive for explosives I had already passed through customs so was completely unaware of the mayhem unravelling behind me thinking Bloomy was just making eyes at the Security guards as usual http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Cook-Islands/Rarotonga/blog-753497.html For this year39s holiday we decided to stay relatively close and visit one of the Pacific Islands. Rarotonga seemed to be our best option even tho39 we had reservations about the often dodgy weather and wondered if there would be enough to entertain us for nearly two weeks. We decided to stay in private accommodation booked via the internet rather than in a resort and even tho39 we were http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Cook-Islands/Rarotonga/blog-748803.html When the ICD Gemini with the potent NVIDA Tegra 2 processor was introduced the pundits predicted that it will end the iPads reign and rightly so it had Flash assistance outstanding digital camera High definition video an SD card and the outstanding 40 hrs replaceable battery. But the ICD Gemini which arrived in with a bang went back again with a whimper mainly because it had optional apps and http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Cook-Islands/Rarotonga/blog-711445.html http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Cook-Islands/Rarotonga/blog-694137.html Un cierto lugar donde usted se especializa y rentable para suministrar un amplio negocio continuo y con un nombre y una imagen inolvidable de la empresa que har que sus clientes tengan en cuenta de que primero cada vez que se necesita tener. Tan pronto como usted construye sus tcnicas proceder a la construccin y redefinicin de ellos hasta que finalmente todo el mundo reconoce que para se http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Cook-Islands/Rarotonga/blog-691395.html We arrived at 630 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 surroun http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Cook-Islands/Rarotonga/blog-685609.html Pa39s Cross Island HikeToday 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 Pa39s is an interesting man. He is native and a herbalists. He runs his own hospital specializing in cancerous tumors. States he http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Cook-Islands/Rarotonga/blog-625490.html 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 brainerI will have to wait to get to Auckland.Rarotonga is i http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Cook-Islands/Rarotonga/blog-625489.html Raring to go in RarotongaThe 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. Jus http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Cook-Islands/Rarotonga/blog-625488.html 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 http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Cook-Islands/Rarotonga/blog-608094.html 13th 26th March 2011After 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 o http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Cook-Islands/Rarotonga/blog-590690.html 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 Steves while he was gone for the quiet time and to be able to have a real hou http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Cook-Islands/Rarotonga/blog-587672.html Rarotonga 31411Today 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 thou http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Cook-Islands/Rarotonga/blog-586184.html 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 http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Cook-Islands/Rarotonga/blog-586182.html The day has only just begun but as I sit typing on my ipad I'm watching the boat races in the ocean. Sail boats and canoes alike are racing each other in what looks like a recreational racing league. There is a college on the island so I could be mistaken I don't think more than a hundred people could fit in the classes so I doubt its them. Earlier in the day we ventured into the main town http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Cook-Islands/Rarotonga/blog-586180.html We switched hotels today moving from the west side of the island where we watched the nightly sunsets to the southeast side where the water is amazing. The real difference is in the water. The closeness of the reef around the west side prevents swimming its very shallow and full of reef and rocks. East side swimming is perfect warm clean turquoise water is ideal for spending all day in http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Cook-Islands/Rarotonga/blog-586177.html Today was a relaxing day. After enjoying a nice batch of cinnamon french toast and a diet coke soda is friggin expensive here we spend all day reading by the beach in hammocks. Already managed to finish off a book born to run. Just walking around the beach is nice and after reading about how nike is the devil it seemed only just to walk around barefoot. We got a knock on our door arou http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Cook-Islands/Rarotonga/blog-586175.html Today was more eventful. We decided to enlist the help of a scooter to get around the island and it was to say the least awesome. Btw to drive around you need a license and to get said license you must go to the police station. I think this was the first trip where I wanted to go to the police station weird feeling. Anyways after getting the license Sarah and I took a hour or two l http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Cook-Islands/Rarotonga/blog-585162.html Its day 2 of our round the world journey. After about 15 hours of travel we found ourselves on a charming island about the size of a quarter. The island Rarotonga is the capitall of the cook islands and is by far the largest of the 15 islands with a circumference of 20 miles. Essentially the entire island is coastline and everything is on beach front property. The international airport b http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Cook-Islands/Rarotonga/blog-584492.html