Jan 22, 2018 - Skipped Sunday – Entered the Domain of the Golden Dragon

Today we crossed the international date line and skipped from Saturday Jan 20 to Monday Jan 22. My iPad is still not sure where we are but I hope it catches up soon. Sometimes I look at it is has Jan 22 and sometimes it has Jan 21. In celebration of the crossing, a brunch was held by the pool. At noon, the captain had a brief ceremony declaring us all fit for the Order of the Golden Dragon by having crossed the date line. We sang Happy Birthday to the 3 people that missed their Jan 21 birthdays and had a mimosa toast of “skoal” to us all....

Jan 20, 2018 - March around the Promenade deck

Mel and I have not been very diligent about getting our 4 laps = 1 mile around the promenade. May be 1-2 laps on most days. Today though we did a lap with several other people in solidarity with the women’s marches going on in USA this weekend. Mel and I had attended the march in Pasadena a year ago and agree the same issues still exist, especially with the government shutdown this weekend. The march was just word of mouth…., meet at 10 AM and walk a lap around. A couple of people brought homemade signs, so as we sat in the atrium, many...

Jan 19, 2018 - Cook Islands - Cancelled due to high seas

The weather was very ominous when we arrived at Rarotonga this morning. The seas where really rocking n rolling and the wind gusting to 35 mph. There is no protected harbor here, the ship just anchors out in the ocean and they shuttle you to shore on the tender boats. The tender boats that were launched to pick up the local immigration officials, had a lot of problems getting along side without bashing into the ship or water washing into the doors. After 30 mins, the captain announced it was too rough so we were going to try to go to the...

Jan 19, 2018 - Rarotonga, Cook Islands

History: Rarotango is the sleepy capital of the Cook Islands. Once a New Zealand colony, it’s needle -like rock, Te Aua Manga, pierces the sky from the island’s center. First little glitch in our trip, tried to tender to Rarotonga but Mother Nature said no, ocean swells to big so only got a sea view, now on our way to Tonga but not before we cross the International Date Line.

Jul 25, 2017 - A week in Paradise - Rarotonga!

I spent last week on the beautiful island of Rarotonga in the cook islands for my Birthday and it was PARADISE. 4 hours from Auckland, it was like stepping into the classic image of a desert island. White sands, aqua water, coconut trees, sunshine and cocktails! I stayed in Muri Beach and my accommodation was less than a 2 minute walk to the beach, some lovely cafes and a lot of the tourist attractions. The island is on a lagoon/reef so is protected from any nasty sea baddies but still home to some amazing tropical fish, giant clams, coral...

Jun 5, 2016 - Rarotonga, Cook Islands

Our lost stop- Rarotonga and we really wished we could have stayed for a week. It is certainly somewhere we would love to go back to and explore. The beaches were stunning, the people friendly and we had a delicious meal at a rather smart resort on Muri Beach. Four nights at sea to get back to Auckland. It is weird being in the middle of nowhere for so long.

Apr 18, 2016 - Raratonga, Cook Islands

As we are crossing back over the International Date Line we had two Fridays this week and because we missed Fanning Island it suddenly feels like a lot of sea days. We arrive next in Rarotonga tomorrow and this is again a tender port so fingers crossed that the seas are a lot calmer than they are right now. Viv and I visited Rarotonga for ten days many years ago on our way back from New Zealand so are quite familiar with parts of it. Today there was the usual Trivia that was especially busy due to windy, rainy weather that kept many people...

Sep 15, 2014 - Aitutaki

Quiet day on Aitutaki beach walking and swimming. One observation that I have noticed is how friendly everyone is to each other in the Cook Islands. During our time here we have met and spoken to many interesting people simply because people have time for each other. We have met many nationalities though it is mainly New Zealanders that come here. The locals are very friendly to tourists and genuinely welcome everyone to their Islands.

Sep 14, 2014 - Boat trip in the Lagoon

The day dawned sunny but breezy and proved to be an ideal day for snorkelling. An aerial view of Aitutaki and it's lagoon is very beautiful but when in a boat the turquoise waters feel like such a vast expanse and you get a very different impression of what this island and it's surrounds are all about. We were picked up by 'Captain Fantastic' of Kia Orana Cruises and driven in a rickety old van to the harbour. 'Kia Orana' means welcome in Cook Islands Maori. With 4 other people, two couples from Australia, and an elderly lady originally...

Sep 13, 2014 - Round the island

Early in the morning several hours before sunrise the local population of cockerels started to crow. One seemed to be almost under our hut but I can't say this bothered us as we have kept cockerels in the past and we have learned to ignore it. We were told a story today by Linda who we met in Rarotonga and now again here. She went to the market and asked for chicken but they didn't have any but was told she should just help herself to one of of the wild ones. It seems they are all regarded as wild and belong to no one in particular. There...

Sep 12, 2014 - On to Aitutaki

After a quiet morning sitting on the veranda overlooking the ocean reading, we headed for the airport courtesy of the taxi driver who brought us from the airport. He was a cheerful chap and they really are proud of their island and pleased that we have come to visit. He seems to be one of only 10 taxi drivers on the island. We asked him because we hadn't seen any around. Most people have either cars or motor bikes and tourists generally hire cars or motor bikes. We are pleased we hired bikes and now we are in Aitutaki have decided that it...

Sep 11, 2014 - Rarotonga

Our fourth day on Rarotonga and for some reason we decided to tackle the interior again with what we have been told is an easier trek across the middle of the island past Te Rua Manga (The Needle) at 413m. We didn't intend to go right across as we rode our bikes to the point where the road ends and the trek begins and we would need to get back to them. Well, it may have been slightly easier but it still involved steep clambering and as it is in thick jungle we could see precious little through the trees. We didn't make it to the top of The...