We awoke this morning at 6am to the sound of a light rain falling. I slid open the wooden louvered doors covering the wide sliding glass doors at the front of our bungalow to check for a sunrise. There wasn't one (too cloudy), but I did spot Charger, Vina's adopted German Shepard, sitting on my cushioned deck chair looking at the lagoon and waiting for the sunrise, too. That was a picture! We seem to be collecting animal friends on this trip, and right now I am looking at a veritable menagerie: a rooster, several hens, even more baby chicks, Vina's cat, and, of course, Charger is again sitting on our deck staying dry (but we've reclaimed our chairs). You don't get experiences like this on a cruise ship!
We enjoyed our coffee and tea totally dry and snugly on our covered deck, and G walked over to the bakery less than five minutes away to get us some fresh things for breakfast. While he was gone, I finally signed into WiFi for the first time and purchased a data plan through Blue Sky Telecom. I purchased the largest plan- 1250 Mb for NZ $50 (about US$ 33)- not having any idea of how much data we'd use. At home we have unlimited data through AT&T but are usually on WiFi. I may get some photos uploaded after all, just before we leave, if I have data remaining. But it was wonderful to receive emails from Mom and blog readers (thank you all!)...and the twins! Their fall break started Friday, and, I have a feeling that their mom commanded some writing practice. McGee's was typically a bit more sensitive but he did regale me about his latest injury (landing him with two black eyes). McGuy's was all about sports and scores. I miss them. :-(
We had big plans for the morning that we figured would include food (they did) and so didn't eat a heavy breakfast. Every Saturday morning, there is a very large market in the only real town of Avarua, on the north coast of Rarotonga where the airport is, and we, as well as pretty much everyone else, were heading there. First, though, I took my second, newer (but still without a chip) ATM card to the local ATM and it worked fine this time. Success! The downfall is that I was charged a 10% ATM fee and then a 3% international transaction fee (the latte is customary with my ATM card). The end result is that I received a horrible rate of exchange but we do have some breathing room and were able to splurge a little today. We had figured that G's original NZ$ could get us through- barely- if we just spent money on necessities and tried to find places that take credit cards (they are rare). Now we can once again live it up (a little).
Luckily, the rain stopped as we were walking to the circle island bus just a minute or so from our bungalow, and, though the sun did not come out, the day was warm and pleasant. It was standing room only on the bus by the time we boarded...the Avarua market was the place to be! There are only two bus routes on Rarotonga: clockwise and counterclockwise on the coastal road. Both run every hour and, for locations such as Muri, located at about 5 o'clock on the island, either one works fine. This morning the counter-clockwise bus came by first, so that's the one we took.
It was about a 20 minute ride to Avarua and we were let off the bus in the midst of the action. There were probably 50 or more booths plus trucks and trailers set up, and live music and cultural presentations. There were lots of handicrafts and souvenirs, but also farmers' fruits and vegetables and lots of food trucks to choose from. We walked around for a couple of hours and settled on a truck selling waffles topped with a choice of fruit, sauce, coconut and ice cream. Yummmm! We first split one, but were joined at our table by a couple from New Zealand who purchased one each and that sounded like a fine idea. So G returned for a second one and we split that too. It was the first splurge we've had since our first night on Rapa Nui (a lifetime ago) , aside from tiny packs of M&Ms we received on our LAN flights.
The market wrapped up by noon, and, at about the same time, it began to rain again. We went into a grocery store (a reasonably well stocked one) in Avarua and purchased beverages for our bungalow, and then caught a counter clockwise bus back to the Muri Beach area. Our bus driver provided the best entertainment we've seen yet. He was a microphoned Polynesian who sang songs and told jokes and led singalongs...and drove the bus barefoot. He did have flip flops, mismatched ones, but they were set off to the side. What a hoot!
The rain kept up the rest of the day. We are so lucky that, even when it rains, we have a beautiful view of the Muri lagoon and the waves crashing on the reef. And even with no sun, the blue-green colors of the lagoon still pop. G cooked hamburgers (he was going to use the BBQ grill on the property but, given the rain, cooked them on our two burner gas cooktop instead) and we used split rolls as buns (they don't have hamburger buns) and we ate them, dry and cozy, along with potato salad on our deck. The dinner entertainment was Charger and the hens and chicks...and watching a few brave stand up paddleboarders in the lagoon.
We decided, on today's bus ride that fully traveled the coastal road, that we are staying in the best location at the best property on the island, though it is certainly relatively moderately priced. Some of the properties have a motu right offshore, blocking their views of the reef and sunrises. We look straight out to the reef, with a motu on either side, with a view that can't be beat. Rain is forecasted again for tomorrow but clearing starts Monday and then it should be sunny for the remainder of our time here. No matter...we're enjoying this regardless of the weather!
World Cup Rugby is all that is being talked about on the island, and our one TV channel is broadcasting Australia vs. Wales tonight. G is inside watching it while I am still watching the waves from our deck. Every so often, G shouts something about the game that he must be hearing the announcers say ('cause he's never watched rugby in his life). Mostly, I think he's just happy to have even one TV channel in English. Those non-stop Love Boat re-runs on the Pacific Princess are sounding better every day.