RAROTONGA

Rarotonga, Cook Islands -  30JAN11

Another volcanic island, about 20 miles in circumference.  We joined another couple from Bourne, MA in a car rental and drove around the island.  But most important is that I risked death by lightning bolt by attending services at the Cook Islands Christian Church in Avarua.  Folks, this was an experience!  The service was at 10 AM.  We arrived about 9:40 to be greeted by the minister personally and a small cadre of men and women.  Sitting in the back of the church, of course to make a quick escape, we were in time for choir practice before the ceremony started.  The blend of male and female voices was extraordinary.  As the church filled up, anyone who sat in our row made sure to shake hands with us .

As it got closer to 10:00, the church started to fill up at about a 30/70 men to women ratio.  The men all wore suit jackets that maybe didn’t match their pants but it was the ladies dressed in their traditional brightly colored cotton fabric with straw hats that supported a garden of flowers that stole the show.  Please see the photo.  Now the service begins and when it’s time to sing, the whole congregation sings with volume.  I would call the music a mix of Gregorian Chant in four part harmony and African drum beat rhythm.  Very impressive, so much so that we stayed to the bitter end and did not get back on the road until about 11:15.

Beaches here are not really great except maybe at the resorts.  Friendly people, most of whom spoke English, natural beauty and a very laid back atmosphere.  Nice to visit for a day but I wouldn’t want to spend a great deal of time here.   

Alofi, Niue    01 FEB 11 

Niue is a solid coral limestone rock in the middle of nowhere.  Our  1,000 guests that tendered ashore equaled the entire population of Niue.  This island nation sends a representative to the United Nations.  Every child is issued a laptop in conjunction with a U.S. program with a title something like – One laptop per child.  I remember seeing a piece on this program years back on 60 Minutes.  Very progressive.

The big draw here was the fact that this is a nation with free internet.  EVERYONE dragged ashore their personal  laptops hoping to beat the slow and extremely expensive internet connection on the ship.  Well, we got off early enough to find the service was free, but actually slower than on the ship.  By 10AM the system had crashed when at least 500 laptops were all surfing at the same time. 

There was no public transportation or taxicabs although some entrepreneurs were offering rides around the island.  We just wandered the downtown area, the highlight of which was the extremely expensive super market.  A whole shelf of canned beef was of interest along with dishwashing detergent at NZ$6.20 which is about $5.00 US.  Glad to have been here, probably won’t ever be back.

When we wake up tomorrow morning it will be Thursday, 03FEB as we cross the International Date Line.  There will be no Groundhog Day for us this year.

Joe Wagg