The island of Rarotonga belongs to the Cook Islands and is our destination today. The Cook Islands consist of 15 islands with a total population of 19,500 people that speak Maori as well as English. These islands are scattered over an area of 2.2 million square kilometers or 849,425 square miles. In other words, they are very far apart. These islands are part of New Zealand, but self-governing since 1965. The natives are all citizens of New Zealand and they use the New Zealand dollar as their currency. Today the rate is $1 NZD to .58 USD.
Rarotonga is among the largest of the islands with 236 square kilometers of land and 75 miles of coastline. The capital is Avarua where many of the 1000 people reside. The city is about the most modern of Cook Island cities with cafes and bars leaning towards the organic and artisan food scene. There are a number of resorts for the tourists with a plethora of activities to explore. But since we are visiting here on a weekend, there were no ship tours for sale. It is strange how often we end up stopping here on a weekend, especially Sunday, when practically everything is closed.
And we don't always make it here as it is a tender port with deep swells and rough seas at times. One time several years ago, the Captain decided to try a different landing spot for the tenders (where the mail boat goes), and one of the boats accidently ended up stranded on top of a coral reef. Putting a sizable hole in the side as well. Never again.
Anyway, the conditions this morning must have been OK and the Captain decided it was a "go". We have to say the that the majority of the front page of the newsletter was filled with warnings about who would be allowed ashore today. The swells could reach 3 ½ feet with sudden height changes, and if you felt unsure about being able to do this, they advised people to stay onboard. The final word used was "treacherous". We think that put more than a few people out of luck to even attempt it. And once again, tender tickets were required. Would that apply to the President's Club members this time? We learned before breakfast time that our group would receive priority tender service in this port. Some one other than us had questioned this policy and the decision was made to allow the small number of us to go without the tickets. Nothing like waiting until the last minute to inform us.
We enjoyed a nice breakfast before heading out by 10am. Just about the same time, it had begun to rain. And by rain, we mean a sudden tropical downpour. The weather prediction included a 40% chance of rain today, and here it was. It was one of those squalls that made unloading the tenders very slow. Yes people were coming back already and they were soaked. For a short time, it was announced that the tendering had stopped until the storm passed over. Most of us waited, although many folks dispersed. Oh well, that made it easier for the rest of us to board. We had wisely brought the umbrellas, so we were prepared for it.
The boat took 20 minutes to load, but while we were patiently waiting for our group to enter the boat, another tender from shore came crashing into us. That was a surprise we did not expect, and it was a good thing we were all seated. There was no apparent damage, but that should not have happened. By the time we landed, the rain had stopped. The sun re-appeared and it was hotter than ever. The sidewalk literally steamed. Many of the head officers were ashore getting a group photo taken. They were headed back to the ship on the tender we just left. They were followed by a string of very wet passengers that gave up and went back.
The local transport buses were in operation today. The ride was 50 minutes around the island (clockwise or counter-clockwise) and the charge was $5 USD one way. This was a plus for the guests that wanted go snorkeling for instance, at Muri Beach or any other resort around the island. Whether or not the buses stuck to their printed schedule, we did not know.
As we went through the info hut, we picked up the local brochure with an island map. Excellent sources of information. There were no souvenir tables at the info booth like there always are. But we discovered that the Punanga Nui Market was in full operation today, which we heard that Saturday is their big day. Every treasure you can imagine was for sale there, as well as healthy produce of island veggies and tropical fruit. When we come here on a Sunday, nothing is ever opened, so today it was fun strolling through this vibrant market which was full of locals and cruise ship people. Little kids were everywhere because there was no school. Prices seemed to be high to us, but then their money is worth about half of the US dollar. We doubt there was much bargaining happening either. The food stands were the busiest. One group had almost an outdoor kitchen set up with woks frying everything from noodles to fish cakes. It really did smell good.
Continuing up the road, we made our way through a seaside park setting with shops across the wide road. Most all of them were opened too. Our main objective was a visit to the church and a stop at a restaurant for beer and pizza. We could see that Trader Jacks was opened for business today and decided to come back here by 12:30pm or so. The outside patio was already full of guests.
Up the road a piece was the Cook Island Christian Church , an impressive whitewashed coral structure dating back to 1853. Stained glass windows made the inside very serene and pretty. The white interior with the vaulted baby blue ceiling created a feeling of coolness despite the soaring temperatures outside. While here last November, it was a Sunday. We sat outside on the wall while watching the congregation leaving the church service. They were all dressed in white suits and dresses with white hats….both the ladies and the men. Church-going is a serious part of the locals lives. If we had been here earlier in the morning, we may have heard the choir singing, which is quite special. One time we were even invited to share in their coffee and snacks after the service. If we had been dressed like them for the occasion, we may have said yes. Friendly people for sure.
Alongside the church is a cemetery with headstones that dated back to the 1800's. Scanning the dates on them, we found that folks did not live to be very old back then. There is so much history here, but it is well worth investigating. Down the road a little further is a museum where this info may be found. However, it was closed last November, and according to a passenger that was going to check it out, it is still closed.
From here, we back-tracked to Trader Jack's which is located on the waterfront at Avarua Harbor. Known as the drinking institution in the Cook Islands, it is a great place to enjoy a good meal and even better local draft beer. They were busy, but we did find a table for two at the railing of the actual restaurant section. A strong breeze cooled us off while we watched the locals and a few cruise ship guests swimming in the surf from a boat landing. We ordered two glasses of Trader draft beers along with a large Hawaiian pizza. The pizza was full of ham and pineapple and covered with lots of mozzarella cheese…..just the way we like it. One thing we did remember from past visits was that American Express is not accepted in the Cook Islands, which holds true in New Zealand as well. The front desk does not sell foreign currency anymore with the exception of Singapore, Euro, and US dollars. We could have used a different credit card or secured some local cash at an ATM. There were several banks in town, but they had closed early. Only the ATM's outside the banks were working. And sometimes, depending on where you are, they do not work, or take your card and eat it up. That is a chance we were not willing to take. So the only other option was paying in US dollars, but at a one-to-one ratio. Sure, it is not people-friendly, but for one lunch, that was the route we took. The ice cold beer and the excellent pizza were well worth the price. And there was a banjo player who got many of the younger crowd involved in a conga line on the lower level. For a nano second, we thought we were on a Royal Caribbean cruise. We can see why this venue is a very popular one.
We headed back to the tender wharf, glad that we were smart enough to have picked up the booklet and map on the way out. They were all gone now. On the way back, we stopped at a public restroom, and ended up talking to a local elderly couple who questioned us all about the ship and the cost to sail on it. They admitted it was a dream of theirs to be able to go on a long vacation like that, now that their kids were grown. When we ran some of the pricing by them, they decided their dream was way off in the future. We wished them well and we were on our way.
Boarding the tender was easy at the wharf, since the area is protected from the swells and the surf. However, at the ship, that was a different story. The boat driver was one of the officers, so we figured they were being very careful with the landing. It did not matter since the boat was being slammed into the side of the ship anyway…..giving some of us whiplash. There was a WOB (wife on board) with her two to three year old son. He thought the slamming was great fun. Kids are so resilient aren't they? We were about the last off and back in our room shortly after 3pm. And we never had to use the umbrellas, of course.
Drinking Coke Zeros on ice on our veranda sure cooled us down. And as we always do, we caught up on photos and reports covering the day's activities. All-in-all, we really enjoyed our stop today because with most everything opened, it was nice. And we did not get drowned in the sudden rain storm.
Dinnertime had another different starter with a lettuce wrap pork and crispy noodle appetizer. Actually the lettuce was shredded with a drizzle of hoisin sauce. Caesar salads were next followed by mains of chicken parmigiana. The serving size was ample, and the spaghetti with red sauce was excellent. We shared a thin slice of lemon tart…just enough.
Felix Jones, a mentalist, was the entertainer for this evening. He promised a bubbly specialty cocktail of magic and mentalism guaranteed to be funny.
We ended up watching a really good movie on TV with a group of kids playing baseball growing up in a small town. The title escapes us.
We now have a few sea days with a crossing of the International Dateline.
Bill & Mary Ann
