Day 7 - Heading home

So after a long 10 hour flight we finally arrived in LA about a half hour late. We had an hour and a half to get through customs and check in for our next flight to SLC. Getting through customs took a bit of time but we thought we were still doing good. We still had about an hour before take off. Then we hustled to Southwest Airlines and that's when the nightmare began. The entire lobby was filled and the line extended for probably a half mile out the doors. It went all the way back to the international terminal we had just come from. So we got in line. The crazy thing is we had to stand in line with the people who were there 3 hours before their flights left and they wouldn't let us go up sooner knowing we had a flight leaving very soon. So of course, we missed our flight out of LA. So then they decided we could fly stand by but we would have to go to Oakland and then wait for a couple of hours before heading to SLC. What else could we do??? So we went to check in and the desk agent said she could get us on our way to Oakland now and pushed us onto a plane. So we had a quick 1 hour flight to Oakland. Unfortunately now our flight to SLC would get in a half hour past the time we needed to catch our flight to Houston. Another missed flight. We called Delta to see about rebooking but they told us they would charge $285 a person to rebook.(x5 would be wayyyyyy expensive) We decided we would wait and see if we missed our flight for sure before going that route. So we called Craig's dad and told him not to bring the kids and we would need to spend the night and head out early the next morning. We got to Slc finally. Craig decided he would go talk to Delta while I waited for our luggage. Craig gave them a sob story about flying for the last 2 days and not having clean clothes and we were cold and my suitcase did not show up in SLC. The lady must have felt sorry for us because she rebooked us on a flight for Monday morning without charging us. I am glad there are nice people out there. But unfortunately, my suitcase got lost in the shuffle. So we headed to Craig's parents for a few hours of sleep. By morning they figured out my suitcase was in Oakland and on a flight later that day to SLC. They said they would send it to Houston when it came in. We finally boarded a flight for Houston and were on our way HOME. It is nice to get away, but it is nice to come HOME!

Day 6 - Aitutaki

Today is our last day on Aitutaki. I enjoyed my last breakfast of banana and coconut pancakes. We had to check out at 10 am so they stored our bags and we had all day to wait and wait until 6 pm to fly out. Just our luck it finally decided to rain today. They are in a drought over there and everything is drying out and starting to die. They finally got a good day of rain. So with no room to wait in, we grabbed an umbrella and walked into town. We made it to the market before it closed at noon. One or two stores were open. I think everybody closed up early due to the rain. We bought some t shirts for the boys and a hat for Craig. Then we walked over to the market and bought a drink. There were some tables outside so we took a seat. We thought we would wait for the rain to let up. We waited for over an hour. We finally decided it was light enough we could head back. Of course after we started out, it started to pour and we were sopping wet. We stopped at our favorite little burger shack (of course it was closed) and sat under the roof to get out of the rain. We hung out for about a half hour and then headed back towards the resort.

We ended up walking to another resort to get some lunch. Their prices were only a few dollars cheaper but at least they had some other options. Craig had a curry wrap and I had a quesadilla. Interesting lunch. The quesadilla was a flat bread with some tomato sauce spread on it with some chicken and mozarella cheese in between. It had a very sweet taste. But it was good. Craig's curry wrap was really good too. When we got done with lunch (It always takes a good hour or two- you are on island time) it was dry enough that we walked back down the beach.

Finally it was 6 pm and time to go catch the bus to take us to the airport. We headed out with a rainbow in the sky. We had a 4 hour layover in Rarotonga. And with the new security measures for international flights going into the US, this was going to be a long night. We had to have every bag and carry on bag hand searched. Then we each had to have a complete pat down. About the time we should have boarded our flight, they called half the plane back to security to redo everything. OHHHHHHH. We were tired and we are LATE. Finally about an hour after scheduled take off, we were on our way home.

Day 5 - Aitutaki

Happy New Year from Aitutaki. Once again it is another holiday on a small island. Nothing is open and no tours are running. Today was spent kayaking around the lagoon. At least today, I felt better. We kayaked all the way up to the airport and back. Then it was time for a nap.

In the afternoon we biked into town to find the church. It was an interesting chapel. Instead of one big building there were lots of small buildings for classrooms and they even had one building that was for the missionaries to live in. The baptismal font was outside and they had a banana farm in the back. It was pretty cool. We especially loved the sign that said NO smoking,drinking,alcohol,littering, or swearing. We laughed and laughed. On the way home we stopped at the market and bought a tub of chocolate ice-cream.(After paying $8 for ice-cream, I won't complain about blue bell being expensive). The ice-cream over there is so creamy.

We had lunch at the resort restaurant. At $25 for a chicken sandwich we only did this twice. But today there were no other options. So we had linner (late lunch-early dinner) to tide us over for the day.

Day 4 - Aitutaki

Today we were up bright and early. We had a 5 am pickup to go deep sea fishing. Today was a bit rough. Dinner didn't sit so well with me last night and I got soooooo sea sick. It was terrible. I battled with my stomach the entire 5 1/2 hours. We didn't really have a lot of luck with fishing. Finally about half way through the morning a gentlemen from CA caught a barracuda. Then at the end of the trip they took us to a spot where we were all able to catch some tuna. I guess if you don't succeed at the big game fish, they take you to a sure spot to catch a tuna. It was still fun to reel in the tunas. Craig had a great time. I was glad to get back on land again. I was sick the rest of the day. I think at that point, I was ready to come home.

For dinner we headed back to the burger shack to grab some fish and chips for Craig and I had a hot dog and fries. My hot dog ended up being a corn dog. It was deep fried. But the fries were so yummy. I don't know what the seasonings were but they were good.

For New Year's Eve it was a long walk up the beach to the airport and back. We were exhausted by the time we got back. Plus there were some killer crabs out to get us.

Day 3 - Aitutaki

Today was a day for tours. We spent the morning at a plantation. Craig loved seeing this guys 3 acres of fruit trees. He had things I've never even heard of. There were fruits from all over malaysia and the south pacific. He had us try this "miracle berry". You put it in your mouth and swish it all over your mouth and gums. Then he hands you a lime or lemon to eat and when you bite into it, it is not sour. It was absolutely incredible. I ate the whole lime like it was a piece of candy. He says it is good for cancer patients. When they have the miracle berry then they can eat anything.

For lunch we biked into town and tried the burger shack again. This time it was open. Yeah. So we ordered burgers with cheese and egg. While we were waiting we chatted with some locals who told us it was closed yesterday because the cook was too busy playing bingo. We laughed some more. (At least a wedding sounded good). Our burgers were definitely interesting. They had beets in them too. Yuck. They were ok but not quite what we were expecting. We later found out that it was a goat burger. We didn't have another one after that. Then in the afternoon we went on a safari tour around the island. We were able to go up in the hills and see out around the whole island. It was beautiful and views were incredible. Our guide was great. He is an archeologist and is studying his people's culture to try and preserve it and help the younger generations understand what their history is.

For dinner it was a 3 course dinner and fire dance show. These fancy dinners are just not our thing. The appetizers were good. Dinner choices were only fish, lamb, or duck. We are not particularly fond of any of these options. Craig chose the lamb and I chose the tuna. It ended up being okay for both of us. We were definitely thinking a nice steak sounded good. Dessert was yummy. Cookies, divinity, chocolate covered strawberries, chocolate cake, and fruit. Again we were the crazy americans who didn't want bubbles. The fire show was great. It is amazing to watch them spin and throw their fire wands without getting burned. Although we saw lots of hands grabbing the sand to cool them off. It was a fun evening.

We returned home to our nightly treat from housekeeping and settled in for some sleep since we have an early morning tomorrow. (yes, it is fishing again)

Day 2 - Aitutaki

Today we started off with a traditional American breakfast (scrambled eggs, bacon, toast, mushrooms, tomatoes, spinach, and a deep fried hashbrown ball) and an omelette. YUmmy. After breakfast it was off to a lagoon cruise. They drove us to the outer edges of the atoll to a small island called "honeymoon island." People can actually pay to stay there overnight. Next time we are doing this for sure. It was a little hut with basically nothing but beautiful beach and spectacular snorkeling. Then we stopped at a great place to snorkel. The fish were HUGE. It was great! Then we went to the other end of the atoll where Survivor Cook Islands was filmed. It was a beautiful inlet and some small islands. One island we stopped at was one foot island. They had a post office where we were able to get our passports stamped with a foot. Cool. Then we had a buffet lunch of bbq tuna steaks and salads and fruit. So Yummy. And I am not a fish eater. Then we cruised back to the resort. We got totally sunburned. Then for dinner we rode bikes into town and found a little shack that sold burgers and fish and chips. They were supposed to be open. The grandma told us the cook hadn't shown up yet. (The cook was her daughter). Grand-daughter was running the little store that had snacks and drinks. So then grandma took off on her scooter and said she was going to find the cook. She was at the wedding up the road. So we waited patiently. We were in no hurry. Finally after an hour the phone rings and then the grand-daughter packs up the menu sign and starts to shut the store. Not opening tonight after all. We had a good laugh. I guess they work when they want to. So we figured we'd try another day. Great day on the island.

Day 1 - Aitutaki

All I can say is this is heaven on earth. It is so beautiful here. Warm weather, beautiful waters, and a crystal clear lagoon. It is typically about 5 degrees warmer here and not rainy like Rarotonga. Today was spent enjoying the resort, napping and snorkeling in the lagoon. There are so many fish to see. It is amazing to see them all and all the varities and colors. For breakfast I had the most amazing banana and coconut pancakes and Craig had corn beef hash. For lunch I had a chicken sandwich that had an egg in it and Craig had spicy goat cheese pizza. I also ordered a chocolate shake because I was craving ice-cream. Well my pretty drink was coconut milk mixed with some chocolate flavoring and mixed in a blender. What a disappointment and it didn't taste very good either. Oh well. We had sunrises on Rarotonga and this time we have sunsets on Aitutaki. Beautiful!

Interesting things about Aitutaki:
1. No dogs are allowed on the island
2. They don't drink cows milk. UHT milk for them
3. Chickens, pigs, goats are in abundance
4. Aitutaki is warmer and drier than Rarotonga
5. Pigs are washed in the lagoon to be cleaned for cooking
6. There are 5 flights a day to Aitutaki
7. There is a group protesting Sunday flights to Aitutaki
8. Business hours are M-F from 9-4 and Sat 8-12 (if they decide to work)
9. Satellite TV consists of a sports channel in french and CNN in English

Day 7 - Rarotonga and Aitutaki

Today was our last day on Rarotonga. We have an evening flight over to Aitutaki. We went to church at the Takitumu branch. It was kind of scary. We weren't sure what we would find or if church would even be in English. But to our delight, everything was in English (with the occaisional Maori). It's amazing how the church is exactly the same no matter where in the world you are. We were quickly made to be at home with hugs and kisses from all. It is a great branch and though it is small in size, they have an amazing spirit there. It was a lot of fun for both of us. Then we spent the afternoon reading on the beach waiting for our flight to leave. In the evening, we took a quick 50 minute flight to get to Aitutaki. It is north of Rarotonga. It is usually 5 degrees or so warmer here. The airport was this tiny little building but once again we were greeted with a beautiful lei and we were whisked away to our next amazing resort. On the way we passed a group of protestors who were protesting Sunday flights to the island. We stay at the Pacific Resort Aitutaki. It has won many awards and just won the world's best boutique resort. Wow, and we got to stay here. It is beautiful. Definitely what dreams are made of. We had a bungalow right on the beach. We could walk right outside to the lagoon. The lagoon was amazing for snorkeling. And all of this just right outside our door.

Day 6 - Rarotonga

Today is boxing day. Almost everything is closed. But the daily market down by the wharf was open. This is where all of the locals go to get food, frest produce and fruit, crafts, clothing, or whatever is for sale. It's best to be there early before the good stuff is gone. We were there right at 8 am. We bought some pareu's (sarongs), some yummy bbq porkchop dinners for lunch, and some fantastic pineapple scones. It was fun to walk around and see all of the shops. They each had their own little shack. Then we drove to the dental office and peeked in. Today was also spent relaxing in the lagoon and kayaking over to the small islands that we refer to as Gilligan's island.

Day 5 - Rarotonga

Merry Christmas! XMAS traditions include going outside at midnight and driving around the island banging pots and pans (similar to our new year's eve). Then they have a float that drives around during the day and beats the island drums. It was fun to see. Today everything was closed. We spent the day in the lagoon. We waded over to two small islands just out in the lagoon and then we came back. In the afternoon we found our way to what was supposed to be an amazing waterfall. But because of the drought here, it was pretty much all dried up. No running water. But there was an amazing farm near the waterfall that caught Craig's eye. So we stopped and looked at everything on the farm (without being too intrusive). Then it was home to our yummy nutella sandwiches for Christmas dinner. We were able to skype the kids at grandma's house while they were on the phone with Zach. So we did get to say hello to him. It was definitely a different Christmas without the kids.

Day 4 - Rarotonga

Let me just start by saying how I love this weather. It is low 80's everyday, humid, and brief 10-15 minute showers in the afternoon. I love to be warm. This is heaven for me. Today was our big fishing day. We had a guide to take us out for deep sea fishing. We met Brenden at the wharf at 5 AM. We didn't have much luck for quite a while. Then we got a bite and I got to reel it in. It was a tuna (probably 8 or 9 pounds). It's the biggest fish I've ever caught. Then a bit later we got another bite. Craig's turn. He started reeling. Brenden said it was going to be bigger than what I caught. Craig battled and battled. Then Brenden started swearing like crazy and pointing to the water. So I looked in and saw a HUGE blue fish. There was a marlin right behind the boat and Brenden said there must be one on the line. He was so excited and Craig was getting tired. Then all of a sudden it got real easy to reel. Craig was afraid his BIG fish had gotten away. After reeling in the line we could see where the line had been frayed from the marlin gnawing on it to get away. It was gone. No big fish for Craig. No other bites the rest of the morning. Just another day of fishing. We did have fun and no one got sick. Yeah! Then we decided we better go to the marked and get some groceries since the island shuts down for Christmas day, Boxing day (the day after xmas), and then it would be Sunday. Not such a good time to go on vacation there. We bough some chips, bread, nutella, jam, pop, and ice-cream. It came to $38 dollars. The most money I've ever spent on such few groceries. The prices were as follows: chips - $5, bread - $4, nutella - $7, jam - $5, pop - $10 for 2 1.5 liter bottles, and ice cream - $5. But at least we would have Christmas dinner. For christmas eve dinner we went to the restaurant next door (overlooking the beach) and had a fancy, expensive dinner. They thought we were strange we didn't want free bubbles with dinner. The appetizers were gross (mostly fishy things) but dinner was fantastic. I had turkey and Craig had ham. Then we had a yummy plate of goodies for dessert. This is the most expensive dinner we have ever had. Probably the last too. But it was romantic!

Day 3 - Rarotonga

Today we found out that the hot spot for the internet was put on backwards so still no internet for today. (But they should come fix it and knock on our door when it's done). Today we went up in the hills for an island heritage visit. (similar to the polynesian cultural center in Hawaii). We went up to some land that one of the queen's donated to share the island culture with visitors. We had an awesome guide named Donny. (I swear he was LDS even if Craig doesn't think so). He shared stories of wars and traditions with us, showed us around their amazing plantation, and then we enjoyed a "light" lunch of chicken, sandwiches, potato salad, salad, coleslaw, island fries, island spinch in coconut milk, and fruit. We were stuffed. And we had to go back later in the evening for the buffet and dance show. We went back for a quick nap and a swim in the lagoon. Then it was time for a buffet of all their native foods and a fantastic dance show showcasing their history. We had lots of fun.

P.S. At the end of the night, the internet finally worked. Veeeeerrrryyy slooooowww but working.

Day 2 - Rarotonga

Still no internet so today we were off to rent our luxury BMW convertible. Ha-ha-ha. Nothing luxurious about this car. It squeaked everytime you opened the doors, the convertible was taped together with duct tape, while driving it felt like it was going to fall apart (luckily you can only drive 30 mph), and sometimes the key would just spin in the ignition and the car wouldn't start. Yikes. I think we may have had better luck with a scooter instead. So then we headed to the police department so Craig could get a Cook Islands driver's license. Luckily he passed. He almost didn't because I filled out the application wrong. Instead of month day year, they put day, month, and year.
After paying our $20 fee we were on our way. Our next stop was ANZ bank. We proceeded to open a savings account and exchange some money. We want to return ASAP. Then we drove around the island to see what Rarotonga is all about. There are 3 chapels on the island, a massive Hilton Hotel that went under during construction and has been left to rot, beautiful beaches, and lots of lush greenery. That night we decided to go see a movie. The theater is called the cinema 3 because they have 3 movies to show. Each movie is shown every three days. On the day we went, A Christmas Carol was supposed to play at 8pm. So we went back a few hours later and it was a $5 special that night. The owners were afraid no one would come. So they also didn't pop any popcorn. So we had ice-cream cones instead. They love their ice-cream here. So the movie began. Then all of a sudden the movie stopped and the lights came on and everyone but the tourists, left. I thought this is just like the Silsbee theater. It hardly ever works. Then we saw everyone coming back with more goodies to eat and drink. They stop the movie for an intermission for 15 minutes. The movie started again and we enjoyed listening to all of the island kids laugh at what I thought was kind of scary and weird stuff. It was a fun night.

P.S. Still no internet. The girl at reception told Craig that he is on island time now. Relax!!!

Day 1 - Rarotonga

Today we left for our dream vacation for 2. We left the kids in Utah with Craig's parents and headed for the South Pacific. The Cook Islands are amazing. Our first stop is a week on Rarotonga. Today we boarded the largest plane I have ever seen in my life. We began with a 10 hour flight to Rarotonga. We left at 11 pm Sunday night and arrived at 6:15 am Monday morning. We were then greeted with a beautiful lei and whisked away to our island get away. We stayed at Te Vakaroa Villas on Muri Beach. It was a new, very nice, condo-style villa. We were on the ground floor and our villa faced the beautiful views of Muri beach and the lagoon. The time change is only 4 hours behind the central time zone. Amazing. We were greeted with an amazing platter of yummy island fruits that we would enjoy every morning for breakfast. Today was all about settling in, exploring, and taking a nap. We couldn't get on the internet, because it was broken. (Just our luck)

Interesting observations:
1. Dogs everywhere (on the beach, roads, driveways, yards, etc)
2. Drive on the left side of the road
3. NO shortage of fruit availabe on this island
4. Satelite TV consists of a half dozen channels airing a mix of networks and shows
5. Kia Orana is the "hello" of the cook islands
6. Everyone is soooooo friendly here
7. People drive scooters or small pick up trucks with kids piled in the back.
8. No seat belt laws here
9. Recycling is a must on the island
10. Loved ones are burried in yards of family members
11. Island time is whenever they feel like it!