RAROTONGA, Cook Islands

                   Cook Island's Capital

            Rarotonga is the largest of the Cook Islands, its capital, and is spectacularly beautiful. Shaped like a small round bean, it is surrounded by a protective reef with brakes in 5-6 places. There are four atolls within the lagoon on the east side of the island. The well known white beaches nearly surround the coconut palm fringed island. The turquoise blue lagoon is full of colorful tropical fish.

            Rarotonga, directly south of Hawaii, is the same distance south of the equator as Hawaii is north of the equator. Thus the climates are similar except the seasons are reversed. Extremes of humidity and rainfall are uncommon.

After truck or van buses on other smaller islands, here we had real buses, smaller than a greyhound, but a real bus as we know them. The island perimeter road is twenty miles long. There are two roads, the two-lane coast has one lane in each direction, except for a short distance in down town Avarua where the road widens to four lanes; the two lanes in each direction are divided with a wide grassed median. The second road is a half mile inland and connects with many small side roads that wind through banana plantations and farms. The inland coral road was built in the 11^th century by Chief Toi. The road, later fitted with large hand cut lava rocks, was covered with macadam a few years ago.

I observed few cars on Rarotonga’s roads but a lot of mopeds. The very quiet bikes are obviously a very common and economical means of transportation. I also saw a lot of bicycles. The yellow public buses run around the island on a fairly regular basis following a printed schedule. One of the two buses runs clockwise, the other anticlockwise. (We say counterclockwise, they anticlockwise)  One can flag down a bus anywhere and request special stops. After 6PM only one bus runs every two hours until 11PM. Friday is party night so the buses run until 1AM, and the buses run only to church on Sunday.

            The island, home to 11,000 people, is divided into two districts, each run by a powerful clan chief known as an  ariki. Avarua, the main town and capital of the island, stretches along the waterfront. Avarua is the commercial center for the island  and where  one can buy bananas, black pearls, flower leis, a souvenir carved figure known as Tangaroa, a pareu, woven baskets or fans, or any number of other souvenirs. Its one main street is easy to navigate and landmarks are easily identifiable. The island is often referred to as Raro and everything is on Raro time. Merchants open 8-4 weekdays and 8-11 on Saturday.

            Missionaries brought the people from the island interior to the coast where they live in small settlements surrounding a church. Today people live evenly around the perimeter. Hotels and guest houses are located all around the island as the beaches are good everywhere. To retain the picturesque charm of Rarotonga, a local restriction allows no building taller than the tallest palm tree. The rugged and mountainous interior of the island is covered with dense lush green growth. The narrow valleys and steep hills make it difficult to populate. The Needle, a rock pinnacle ,in the center of the island stands 2000-feet  above the fertile valley. It is the highest point on the island and a vigorous hike over a razorback ridge, one few tourist attempt. People were friendly and helpful. English is widely spoken, although everyone is bilingual, speaking their own language as well.

Homes were larger than on the out islands and many were made of concrete block with metal roofs. There are a few ‘native huts’. Telephone poles are concrete as no pine trees grow on the island.

            After leaving our small ship, World Discover, we headed to our luxury hotel. My room had sliding glass doors that led out onto a wooden verandah for an incredible view of a white sand beach, lagoon, and the breaking surf over the reef.  Diesel generators provide electrical power 24 hours a day; the smaller out islands turn off all power at 11PM. Two natural springs provide a good amount of the water supply, but islanders are still dependent on rainfall and all homes/buildings have catchment systems. Water now is piped into homes but is not treated so individuals and businesses all have filtration systems.

            The island is dependent on many imports, most of which come from New Zealand. The coco-net arrived in Rarotonga three months before our visit. Coco means to wander, thus the name of the cellular phone network!

Restaurants were plentiful with something for every palate. Local delicacies include octopus, ika mata which is raw fish marinated in lime juice, then combined with coconut milk and other ingredients, often vegetables and/or salad greens. Motu roni is the innards of the sea cucumber which I was told resembles spaghetti. These are cooked with butter, garlic, and other spices. Many natives eat motu romi raw. In this part of the world, sea cucumbers are called sea slugs which does little to tickle my palate! The slugs grow about a foot long and are plentiful in the lagoons near the reef. After extracting the insides the slug is thrown back in the water where it regenerates its losses and in 6-8 weeks is again ready for repeat punishment. Poke is a paw paw pudding. The paw paw is the same as the papaya. It is mixed with tapioca and coconut cream. Orange in color with  a funny texture it has a rather bland taste. Coconut is served with each meal, and since I love coconut I was a happy camper.

            I hope Rarotonga can remain as lovely as when I visited and not grow into a tourist mecca like Hawaii. I have my doubts, but maybe its distance from everywhere but Down Under  will discourage many a traveler. The world needs some of these lovely idyllic places.