1 dress, 100 ways

Dave and I watched the video this afternoon to learn all the ways to wear my new dress made out of recycled Indian silk. (not sure where they get "recycled" fabric...)

Here are a couple favorites!

Anzac Day

The heavy winds from last night continued into this morning. We decided a beach day was not to be had, so we decided we'd sample some more of the island culture. We stopped by the local coffee shop called Miro, where we ran into our dune buggy person from the day before. She recommended we go to the weekend market and see if there was anything good to buy, as well as the fact that they had local music and shows. We had a two day car rental included in our package, and figured today was as good of a day as any to use it. I went around to the left side of the vehicle, and quickly realized this driving on the wrong side of the road was going to take some getting used to (the driver's wheel is on the right side of the car). Rae was disappointed because she thought I was opening her door for her, but she is not that lucky. We drove a safe 10km/h below the speed limit (approx 20mph) and made our way towards town. With a deep sigh of relief, we found the market and a parking space fairly quickly. We spent about 45 minutes walking around at the local wares. Most of it was island masks, lotions/soaps, or sarongs. Rae found a particular dress she really liked that was similar to a sarong but a bit more formal in terms of tying it as an actual dress. We thought they might be willing to negotiate, but either they are really tough cookies or they really don't lower their price. We tried to get a hair flower for Rae that was regularly $5 at a 2 for $7 deal, but the person wasn't interested. In fact, she wasn't interested in selling one for $5 since I only had a $20 and she didn't want to make change.

After the market, we continued around the island in our minivan looking for a place to eat, finally stopping at The Rarotongan Resort on the west side of the island. The food was average and service poor, but they did have sangria which was a plus. We were also treated to a 15% surcharge since it was a national holiday. We were a bit skeptical it wasn't a non-resident fee, but later found out it was Anzac Day.

Piecing a couple pieces of data together, we discovered Anzac Day celebrates the Aussies and Kiwis participation in WWI at the battle of Gallipolli. Rae and I actually had seen a movie at the Rialto in Raleigh on the topic (Mel Gibson's first feature film if you're interested), and it was about a year ago, so we felt that was reasonable enough evidence of a holiday.

Inspired by the instantaneous sense of courage and honor brought by the memories of Gallipolli, we decided to get me an official Cook Islands driver's license. For a small fee of $20NZD and 10 minutes time filling in a form, I was approved. I'm certain the strenuous testing leads to fewer deaths, particularly from Gringos driving on the right side of the road. As you can see from my raised eyebrow in the photo, I was quite skeptical myself.

Tonight, we go to Tamarind restaurant, which we had a chance to check out on our drive today. Looks like it's quite the view, so we're hoping to get there before sunset and catch the views. We also picked up a few DVDs from the office, so it looks like a lovely night in for Rae and I.

Roger Rabbit's Car Toon Spin

Today we decided we'd get a view of the island's interior by renting some of the dune buggy's located just down the street. Our guide was John, a Cook Islander in his 60s, happy to show us the island's beauty as well as share some of the unique things about the island. After getting strapped in our harness (a la fighter pilot), we started off heading down the road in our buggy going a fairly swift 30mph. It took a bit of time getting used to driving on the left side of the road, but quickly got the hang of it. After a few minutes, we took a detour to our right, and stopped to learn about the local noni juice. John shared that noni juice is known for its medicinal purposes, aiding in digestion, lessening cholesterol and blood pressure, and generally a cure-all for whatever ailment you may have. We sampled a tasting, which he advised you shoot like whiskey. It tastes somewhere between whiskey and vinegar to give you an idea, but I have to admit it did clear up my sinuses immediately.

We continued on our venture, heading inland to more jungle-like terrain. Luckily, it had rained that morning, so we were able to drive headlong into mud pits, sending a flood of the filth over our bodies, and for this lucky driver, directly into his mouth. Just after having spit out as much of the mud as I could get, we hit our next giant puddle. After a while, we were having so much fun we'd aim for anything that looked like a puddle just for some extra entertainment.

John gave us a chance to cleanup when we arrived at a local waterfall and pool. It was quite serene, with the water feeling incredibly soft from the minerals it had picked up on its flow down the mountain. The mud didn't want to come off, but it was refreshing to at least get a layer of it off.

Off we go again, this time heading on the Maternity loop. I didn't quite catch the explanation for that description, though it had to do with one of John's co-workers either getting pregnant immediately before or after going around the loop at high speeds. After having completed the loop, I have to imagine it was the latter. By this point, semi-clean, we had lost our appetite for mud and simply were enjoying getting through the jungle, which Rae compared the fast twist and turns to Roger Rabbit's Car Toon Spin at DisneyLand.

John's final demonstration was a husking of a coconut, very similar to the demo the day before on our Tomas's Glass Bottom Boat tour. He gave us a chance to eat the inside of the coconut. It was surprisingly bland, I think they sweeten it up before we Americans get a taste.

We got back in time for a quick snack and headed for lunch at Sails. The view never gets old, and the food and drink is delicious everytime.

Day 3 and 4

Day 3 ~ Lagoon Cruise

Kurko and Tom Hanks a la Castaway would be proud: we ventured out on a kayak today. It was a great experience to be able to get a better view both of the reef as well as a perspective on the island. We spent a little over an hour paddling out and about, taking a dip in the turquoise waters, seeing fish swim underneath our boat. The reef is fairly impressive, it's made of coral and rock and completely stops the waves as they come in off the ocean.

We raced back in from our morning adventure in time to make it to Tamas's Glass Bottom Snorkeling Tour. The crew took us around one of the closer motus to the local state marine park, replete with lots of fish and coral. Most of the fish looked like infants, we're curious and might investigate more why there were so many smaller fish but no larger sizes.

We did learn in 2005 that they suffered 5 hurricanes in 3 weeks, which devastated much of the island, perhaps that's what it is attributed to. Regardless, we snorkeled for a bit (Rae hated it, so it was abbreviated) before hopping on the boat and going to another motu (island) for a bbq lunch and show. Food was delicious, and the show was entertaining as well. They did a special recognition for us honeymooners. We also discovered in a crowd of 50 people, we were the only Americans, and the vast majority of folks were Kiwis. (New Zealanders) The crew showed us the proper way to husk a coconut, including a demonstration of utilizing the interior coconut flesh and squeezing it for the milk that can be utilized as a moisturizer. We also learned there are 375 ways to tying a sarong, and a handful of popular methods for tying it. Rae doesn't particularly care for them, but I'm excited to try out the MC Hammer method for tying. Afterwards, we made it back to the main island of Rarotonga around 3pm.

For dinner we ventured down to The Point, a large white hotel right behind the main motu outside Muri Beach. I saw a banana+chicken pizza and had to sample it. I have to say, it was pretty decent, a mixture of sweetness with the traditional pizza taste. Rae loved her Asian fusion dish. The food in general has been above average here, especially given what I would guess is a challenge of shipping some items from outside the islands. The walk back along the shore showed an amazing number of stars, an incredible number given we are at sea level. The closest comparison would be Tahoe, with it's advantage of being 8,000 miles above sea level.

Day 4 ~ Bike Ride Circumnavigating Rarotonga

Today we rented bikes to take the challenge of going around the entire island. I'll kill the suspense: we made it! It's about 20 miles around the island best we can tell from our experience and from the web. We stopped for a great lunch at Oceans, right on the beach. As you get to the other side of the island, the reef is much closer to the actual island, so the waves are crashing maybe 100 yards from the shore. They were quite friendly, giving us a tour of the facility including some of the empty villas. Nice stuff, with clawfoot tubs and individual pools, but less luxury than our current residence. Again, the food superceded our expectations. We continued our adventure around the island, stopping off at the local police station to get me a local driver's license. Having failed to bring my own U.S. license, they declined my $20 ($12 U.S.) With our hands and knees sore, we arrived back at our rental location. Now, we're off to dinner at a local restaurant we visited on our tour, the Little Polynesian. Fingers crossed it holds with past precedent of the island.

Snafus thus far: we thought it odd that our dishwasher ran for 24 hours, apparently it was jammed. The fuse also blew on our iPod dock, requiring some help.

A couple snafus, but still having an amazing time

So our review on tripadvisor.com might be harsh, but you get the idea :) Honestly, we're having a great time and this place is incredible, despite our neighbors.

"Te Vakaroa is an amazing property. The amenities, view, and staff are great. Unfortunately our honeymoon was impacted by a family of four also staying here, with two teenagers who obviously do not meet the Adults Only requirement. We were looking forward to a quiet, wonderful honeymoon in a remote and exotic location. We thought we had found it upon arrival judging by everything Te Vakaroa offers. Unfortunately, the laps of butterfly and humpback whale noises from their snorkeling equipment make it hard to enjoy the serenity. The lack of truth in advertising is troubling. The staff did offer to move us to Rendevous Villas down the beach, but it's a 3 star type of place that smelled of garbage, so our best option was to put up with the kids yelling up to the top balcony consistently through the day. Hopefully Te Vakaroa will amend their policy to only 21+ ages. Rarotonga is amazing, I would recommend it anyone."

Even with the kids and the failure of our walking tour guide to show up this morning, it's hard to stop smiling this place is so amazing. We went for a run along the road and beach today, and a great lunch at Sails restaurant next door. Special thanks to Dave Sr for the cigars ;) And tomorrow, we go on a lagoon cruise.

David and Raechel

Honeymoon -- we made it!

We landed at the Rarotonga airport at 6am this morning. After sliding quickly through customs, we met our driver Dino who escorted us to the other side of the island to our lodging. Of course, driving to the other side of the island only took 15 minutes, to give you an idea on the size of the island. We were both impressed upon arrival into Villa 1 both at the amenities as well as the view. The place is pretty posh, with king-sized bed, indoor and outdoor showers, iPod surround-sound, satellite TV, etc. The view is pretty killer, with an infinity pool overlooking the turquoise lagoon, with the waves crashing out over the reef a 1/2 mile in the distance.

The only disappointment thus far is one of the six villas is occupied by a family of 4 with two teenagers. We expected "adults only" to require people to be over 18 at least. We'll have to work on our patience. But if I see a cannonball, call the embassy and see if they can work on getting me out of the Rarotonga jail.