January 20 – 29, 2011

For our 12 day stay on Rarotonga we had found a small self-catering place called Te Moana Muri (if my research on Rarotongan Maori is correct it means “The Ocean, Muri”). They have 3 units which each has 3 bedrooms and can sleep 6 persons. Again TripAdvisor was our friend and we were not let down. The “bungalows” were actually very spacious houses, placed on the hillside just above Muri beach. Muri beach has a lagoon and is the best place for both swimming and snorkeling on Rarotonga. Just down from us there was no real beach, just rocks, so we had about 500 meters (1/3 mile) to cover before we were at the closest sand beach.

For us, it was the perfect place to be. Calm and quiet, great view, lots of space.

As you can see, each unit has two floors. This is upstairs:

And this is downstairs:

In the kitchen we made Kool Aid, specially privately hand-imported from the US of A. Kool Aid is an American soft drink that brings back sweet memories from my childhood days in Chattanooga in the US. It is bought in the form of small sachets of a strong chemical powder. Mix in water and lots of refined unhealthy white sugar and you have a yummy all natural drink. When I used to go to the San Francisco Bay area for my work I would bring some back for the kids and myself. I couldn’t find it in the many upscale modern eco-friendly organic food supermarkets in the valley. After extensive search I finally found Kool Aid, this well-known beacon of American culinary culture, in one of the low-end stores in East Palo Alto.

The first time I brought some back i mixed a batch, tasted it and said to Helene: “Ah, just like I remember it from my childhood. You should try some, it tastes just like fruit juice.” She believed me and has never forgiven me, nor tried Kool Aid again.

No artificial coloring at all, almost:

There was a large balcony on the ground floor with a great view of Muri beach,

an outdoor table

and a barbecue, which we used frequently:

The place was run by an Australian couple, Tim and Janelle. Tim had come here some years ago to coach the Cook Islands national team in soccer! When his contract was over, after 2 years, the couple didn’t want to go back and decided to settle on Rarotonga. We only found out the last day that Tim had been a professional soccer coach for a national team. Adrian was really sorry he hadn’t known before, so he could have played with Tim.

Tim and Janelle were the perfect hosts. Tim dropped by every day to check if we were having a good time and that everything was in order. He supplied us with a steady supply of coconut and papaya from the garden. He also taught us how to open coconuts with a machete.

Editors note (hey, I am both editor and writer): Normally I am very much against animations on web pages, especially on pages with lots of text . They are a big nuissance since they distract you from the reading. However, there is a time for everything There is a time for work, there is a time for rest. There is a time to stand up for your rights, there is a time to chill out and party, there is a time for asking the big questions in life, and there is, finally, a first time for me to include an animation on a web page. May Odin forgive, I could not resist when I saw these two photos in succession. Tim is really going for the kill:

Me strong, me prepare food:

Tim gave us the traditional Polynesian good-bye shellfish necklaces when we left:

It was almost sad leaving the house. It was probably the best self-catering accommodation we have had so far during the voyage.

Eirik

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