The Dirt On This Tarnished South Pacific Paradise
Written: Oct 12 '03 (Updated Oct 12 '03)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: 115 Shades of blue can be found here.
Cons: Westernized attitudes and poor maintenance due to struggling economy
The Bottom Line: Raro is worth checking out, considering the value for the money. I would not consider a second visit.
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| siddy's Full Review: Rarotonga |
On the map, the Cook Islands are represented by mere dots close to New Zealand and about 2800 miles southwest of Hawaii. It took 13 hours of flight and stopover time aboard Air New Zealand, departing from Los Angeles via a stopover at Tahiti to Rarotonga, Cook Island's principal island.
As I cleared customs and exited the Rarotonga Int'l Airport in early April dawn, that resounding beat of drums from four island musicians instantly welcomed me, along with the representatives from the Edgewater Resort to award a fresh lei of plumeria flowers to anyone who went forward and bowed their heads. The dancing and the singing along the quinessential drums at the receiving point usually awaken the slumbering island beast in me. I stomped the ground to make sure I wasn't dreaming, and then...I begin to sniff. Was there a faint scent of exotic flowers in the humid air? Apart from the fragrance wafting from my lei, I didn't think so.
And alas, there were no dancers in grass skirts blowing me flirtageous kisses, but at 6 AM after spending the night in the suffocatingly ergo-dynamic airplane seat, I was happy enough to see the brown faces of my kinsmen and kinswomen, kiss the clean and antiseptic airport floor. Ahhh, here I was, home at last.
It was still dark when I was taken to my hotel, the Edgewater Resort. I was led to my garden view room along the quiet concrete path, landscaped with island plants, bamboo trees to the side to mark the hotel boundaries. I had paid $120.00 per night to stay for a week. The decor was mediocre, matching curtains and the bedspread sporting the typical colorful island motif. The bed itself was nicely firm, not like the ones at cheap hotels with saggy centers that goes "boing boing" everytime you squirm. It had a television with a good reception, showing American movies and New Zealand programming. There was a small refrigerator where I put in some canned food I had taken from L.A. The bathroom had those shower heads designed like pans. The door lock was a little tricky but the lower room that I was given had a balcony door opening into the grassy garden.
The hotel amenities were serviceable. There was a good sized freshwater pool shaped like the State of California, along the sandy beach adjacent to the hotel, with an outdoor cocktail bar called "Mal's Bar". The hotel had a laundry facility, a game room where local children came to play billiards and table tennis, and two aging tennis courts that needed a facelift, and an acitivities desk in a closet sized room presided by a helpful Caucasian lady who could arrange anything for your enjoyment. Linens were exchanged daily (You could request housekeeping to skip a day for eco-consciousness) and the bed was turned every day. For the value, the hotel was decent and well kept.
During the day when I lounged in the pool chair provided just outside the balcony sliding door, the black mynah (an introduced species) came to visit, showing off its quick acrobatic movements from the coconut trees planted in the middle. There were also a few wandering cocks with beautiful plumage and a brown cat who called occasionally for scraps. It wasn't the Beverly Hills Hotel but I was in tune with nature, the grass under my feet, the sounds of the surf, and my animal friends.
My problem, witnessed throughout my stay, was that somehow, the native people in Rarotonga seemed awfully subdued. There was that history of British rule, and with that, gone was the ancient island customs. With the introduction of what seemed to be mandatory Christian church attendance, the local men and women were just like those in Hawaii. They covered as much body parts with clothing like t-shirts and shorts despite the heat. No sarongs, no bikinis, no untamed, wild, unruly long manes like the true beauties I met elsewhere in the South Pacific. An elderly lady from New Zealand whom I had befriended at the bar had told me that the unemployment rate and spousal abuse in Rarotonga was very high. A lot of the young people went looking for higer paying menial jobs in New Zealand, and perhaps that was why the island seemed so devoid of life.
People were not the only ones who appeared less happy than they could have been. Even the natural landscape had been altered drastically, owing to developement and this included power poles, wires cutting across the impossibly blue skies in towns. Glitsy new shopping centers and buildings with flourescent lighting that attract tourist dollars contrasted sharply with the humble abodes, shacks, really, the locals lived in.
I couldn't find any unexpected surprises like the time I found a school of tiny fish in the sewers of Moorea. The vital element of a tropical island paradise was gone. I'm sorry if I am whining, but I had expected more from Rarotonga, this secret island paradise where only a small number of visitors from the United States dare venture.
That's enough grumbling, so here's my list of things that you must try in Cook Island, aside from all that quality time you'll spend in the water. (Actually, the snorkeling was a little disappointing.) I haven't gone to the other famous island of Aitutaki, so this list is limited to what is available on the island of Rarotonga.
1) Do try horseback riding on the beach. Horseback riding on the beach is off-limits by law in the U.S. Depending on the tide, the guide will take you to places where you're sure you and your horse will drown. The water does something to the horses and you will have an experience you will never forget for the rest of your life. (About USD$60 per person)
2) Again depending on your fitness level, do go hiking trails to the mountain peaks. The challenge level is moderate but the trails are not marked, so try going in a group with an experienced guide. I went with this guy with long blond dreadlocks who picked us up in his white van. He was knowledgeable (his name escapes me, I think it was "Pa") and very fast! He also provided a luncheon of sandwiches by a secluded waterfall but the mosquitos kept making lunch of us. (USD 40.00 pp)
3) Do walk/wade across the Muri Lagoon from the South Eastern coast of the island to the little islet called Oneroa. You can see that islet on the above picture (tan colored). The seawater is warm to the skin, and even at its midpoint in the water, it rises up to only about five feet. But remember, Oneroa is a private island unless you go there as a part of the escorted boat excursion, so don't stay too long or the guard chickens there will attack you.
4) Do look for crazy seashells on the western side of the island. There are a lot of those creepy crawfish living in them, so leave those alone if you decide to keep a few as souvenirs. You can also catch and release little crabs late at night on the beach.
5) I hate eating chicken, but do stop by at the food stands along the main road encircling the island and try the fried chicken dishes. I think they taste like no other chicken in the U.S. because they are free range and completely hormone free. But, resources are scarce and the restaurant will only give you one paper napkin each, those cheapskates. (USD$3.50)
6) On Sundays, there is an open market in Downtown Avarua. There are not too many things that's nice by U.S. standards, but here you can find inexpensive hand-made craft items like abalone shell hair pins, belts, and island edibles.
7) Do try climbing the Black Rock, the rock formations across the street from the golf course. It is believed that the spirits of the dead native people pass by this interesting landmark. When I heaved myself over a ledge here, I got a heartattack because at eye level, there was a monsterous red crab trying to poke my eyes out.
8) When checking in, try asking for the ground level garden view rooms. This allows you to feel like you're sitting in the backyard of your very own beachside bungalow.
9) Do get a driver's license at the DMV office in Avarua. The procedures are simple and the fee nominal. The line tends to get very long because of the number of tourists desiring these official souvenirs, so go early in the morning.
Things to Avoid:
1) Unless you're a golf aficianado, the golf course a little west from the airport is a place to stay away. It's next to a rock quarry and I kept losing all my balls in the bushes. (You might tell me to be a better golfer, too.)
2) Remember that the t-shirts and other manufactured goods you buy are usually imported from somewhere else, like China. You can get a good selection of inexpensive to quality t-shirts at the T-Shirt Warehouse, a little east of Downtown Avarua, run by the only Korean woman (also very beautiful) on the island.
3) If you're honeymooning here, no matter how much your honey bunny flutters her eyelashes at you, don't buy any jewelry for your better half. This applies especially to the infamous black pearls, unless you personally know someone in the oyster cultivating business in Tahiti. These shops catering to tourists rip you off mercilessly. Ironically, I found better quality black pearls from black pearl wholesalers in downtown L.A. for a quarter of the cost they charge in the South Pacific. (A lusterous bead of black pearls I bought in Cook Islands for US$450 could have been bought domestically for $150.00, plus beading charges and the cost for the gold clasp.)
4)) Despite how wonderful it looks on the tour brochure, decline the overpriced overwater bungalows that cost upwards of $US400-500 per night. Not only they destroy the marine life beneath, but it also affects your breathing, like that feeling as if your lungs were drowning when you spent all day swimming in the pool when you were little.
I hope you enjoyed this review.
Recommended:
No
Best Suited For: Families
Best Time to Travel Here: Mar - May
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Epinions.com ID:
siddy
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Location: San Francisco
Reviews written: 39
Trusted by: 0 members
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