So, I am once again significantly late with this, but I couldn't help sharing. Elliot and I both turned 30 years old this season, and we weren't home to celebrate with our families, so we celebrated a different way! Tropical island in the Pacific Ocean, time to party! To celebrate the big 3-0 we put our butts on a plane and went straight to the tropical paradise of Rarotonga! Don't get me wrong, we considered Fiji, Tahiti, and many other popular destinations in the South Pacific... but why not use the tools you have, aka, locals! We got an overwhelming vote from the NZ locals and decided on Rarotonga. Man, they were so right!! It was absolutely amazing! I won't go into too much since the pictures tell most of the beautiful story. The majority of the week was beach, pool, sun, and relaxation, but we did do a few things story worthy!
Let's see, first off, I hitchhiked for the first time. Now don't get me wrong, I didn't stand with my thumb up on the side of the road. Elliot and I were peacefully waiting at one of the few bus stops (they don't have stops often because a bus just stops if it passes you and you flag it down, so simple!). An older woman pulls over, asks us where we are headed, we tell her, and she offers a ride. I'm not lying when I say I didn't have any red flags pop up, but you rarely do in a small island community. I'm still careful though, don't worry mom, but an older woman in nice clothes, driving a decent car, and offering a ride to me and my much-bigger-than-her boyfriend didn't seem like a hug risk! She was so nice. Especially since we pretended to know where we were headed... we only knew the name of the place and were hoping the bus driver would tell us when to get off. So, thanks to her, she dropped us off at the front door. It was so worth it! The food and fun service at Captain Jack's remains one of our favorites!
Other than that daring experience, wink wink, we enjoyed a few other great ocean activities. For all of those that know me well... yes, I did get in the ocean, multiple times!!! My favorite activity was ocean kayaking. Now, this may be partly due to the fact that when I'm in a kayak I don't have things swimming around my ankles, but mostly it's because it's a great way to explore. It also helps that there was free access to the kayaks from our resort. There was also free access to snorkeling gear, which we used, but it just wasn't as fun. I did like snorkeling, but the tide was low and you had to be careful to avoid the coral... which I didn't manage once and scraped my knee up a little. Not enough to worry about blood drawing in the non-existent sharks, but enough for me to pout about :)
One last thing, we did two tourist trips. One was a glass bottom boat cruise. It was the most amazing tour. The boat took us to an ocean wildlife sanctuary. We got to snorkel in the amazing, un-fished waters. The fish were so amazing. Every color, size, shape, and type. I loved it! We also had a BBQ on a close island where they cooked us up some fish caught that day. We were lucky, catch of the day was yellow fin tuna... yum, yum, yum! Those island boys can seriously cook. Besides the amazing fish spiced to perfection, they had local fruits and veggies that were super mouthwatering! We also had the coconut tree climbing champion (yes, it's a real competition... for island folks, it's like the Olympics... this guy traveled across the pacific island kicking coconut tree ass!!). He gave us a demonstration, and it was something to behold. This guy got to the top of a gigantic coconut tree, picked a coconut, and was back down in less than 10 seconds, amazing!
Last thing to mention was the Highland Paradise Cultural Experience. Our last night we signed up for this unique experience. They pick you up, take you into the mountains, and show you a very authentic representation of life on the islands before the settlers came. It was moving, amazing, and educational. To top it off, there was a show after dinner by a group of locals doing some island dancing that would blow your socks off. I can't quite describe this night without too much detail, so I'll let the couple of videos posted below tell the story. What an amazing trip
To conclude, if you have the chance... GO TO RAROTONGA! amazing. Below are pictures and a few videos from the dancing!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/eandleenz/sets/72157630021804811/
