Day 26 – January 30 –Rarotongo, Cook Islands

Traveling among these Polynesian islands is leaving me with a strong impression of tranquility that I wouldn’t soon forget.

Rarotongo is the most populous island in the Cook Islands, interesting because most of us travelers found it very quiet and non-crowded.  As we were driven around the island in the local bus, it felt like we were going through ordinary working class neighborhoods with beautiful white sandy beaches as their front yards.  Once again we are on a volcanic island surrounded by a lagoon.

 

The sea was extremely rough today so our tender service to the harbor was slow and even halted at one time.

We didn’t get off the ship until noon. 

As a cohesive group of travelers, we decided that our destination would be the the beach at Muri.

Mary Rose on the bus, notice the Japanese letters behind her.

Muri Beach was the perfect choice.  We swam for awhile, ate lunch and I took a walk down the beach while the others logged onto the internet at the Cyber Cafe.

Fellow passenger finds a Blue Starfish that is found in the waters surrounding Cook Islands.

Sign on the Beach…

Para Sailing off the beach.

Men were operating these model sail boats via remote controls – They were pretty serious.

I met a lovely couple from British Columbia on my walk.  We shared travel stories and we wholeheartedly agreed on the loveliness of Rarotonga.  They were on their way to New Zealand after a week of renting a small house on Rarotonga.  They gave me suggestions as to what I should see and do in New Zealand and Austrailia.  This sharing is common among World Travelers and it’s often well-received especially if you share interests and activity levels.  However, I’m afraid I forget what they usually tell me, since I never have paper and pen to write it down.  Anyway, I’ve recently adopted a “just go with flow” attitude in regards to making travel plans in advance. 

Taken from the bus window on our return trip to the harbor.

And once again our ship waits for us to return.  The ride back to the ship was quite exciting, like riding a wild horse.  The last tender had some serious problems because one of the wenches malfunctioned and loading the boat back on the ship was very nerve wracking.  Those of us on deck cheered the sailors as they finally were able to come aboard.