Rarotonga
20 August 2013 | Rarotonga, Cook Islands
. We hadn't envisaged Rarotonga being so beautiful. Every view to the sea (perhaps with the exception of the harbour) is of turquoise reefs, sand and blue, blue sky. Looking inland the hillsides are steep with sheer rock cliff faces and pinnacles. There is a cross island walk which climbs to the base of "the needle" a large lava plug reminiscent of those in Ua Pou. Its a challenging walk but well signposted - that's if you are looking. At one point walking from the north there is a large black rock. If you go to its right you stay on the trail. If you go to the left you find another trail across a stream and a steep but clear walking track. we (Jimmy and Carol on Vision and I) took this one since we were busy talking and found an alternative view of the Needle - from about a kilometer away - a nice walk but not one we had intended to take.
Two buses circle Rarotonga every day except Sundays (one bus on Sundays)and we bought a 10 ticket ride for $30 for our time here. The alternative is a scooter or a car but then you have to pay attention to the road which we couldn't be bothered with. The circuit takes 50 minutes and you can hop on or off anywhere along the way. So far we have used it to have dinner at the Vaima restaurant on the south coast - modern a la carte and sits on the edge of the beach. The food is excellent and the setting lovely. We then spent a day exploring the beaches and snorkeling spots and checked out the new tender dock for cruise ships. The jetty runs out to the Ararongi pass and the reef has been blasted to give a small marina at the end of the jetty. Apparently its only been used once since it was opened and by the look of the current in the pass when we were there we can understand why it is not used regularly. From there we headed east until the Muri Beach area where there are 5 motus and which is very pleasant but also very touristy. We prefer the upper west coast where the resorts are less thick but the beaches just as beautiful.
The photo is of one of the craft stalls at the Saturday market next to the harbour. Its a big event. The early stalls have fresh produce ranging from breadfruit and coconuts to fresh herbs and tomatoes and a wide selection of prepared food both hot and cold. Most of the market, though, is a craft market for tourists - pearls, shells, carvings, baskets, pareu, paintings etc etc - and there is a dance and drum exhibition. Its very colourful.