Aitutaki... the last week

April 21
The day turned out to be awesome. We had some rain showers but it didn't stop most of us from enjoying the beach. I spent all day at beach watching the dogs. Every time some one would drag a stand up paddle board (SUP) or a kayak to the water, a few dogs would run to the water and hop on to the board wanting to go for a ride. There is a challenge for the guests at the resort - anyone who can get 5 dogs on a SUP or kayak will get a free magnum of champagne. Up until now, 4 dogs have been recorded.

I took a few a walks to the store and down the street just to get up and be mobile. It was a very relaxing day.

April 22
Had a very difficult night trying to get to sleep. Since it was cloudy with light rain, after breakfast I decided to take a walk.... to town. It was a very long walk... much longer than I expected! It took me 2.5 hours in flip flops. I had 5 people stop to offer me a ride to town, on guy stopped twice. He saw me when he went to drop his children off to daycare and saw me still walking on his way back.

I stopped at Trader's Jack for lunch. Beautiful view of the water. After lunch, I walked to the bus station to get the bus back to the resort.

The skies had cleared so I headed to the beach when I got back. I chatted up with a couple from Australia. Laurie and Kyle both nurses. We all watched another wedding on the beach. Showered and headed for dinner. Laurie and Kyle joined me.

April 23
Checked out after breakfast. Spent the morning at the beach. My airport transport picked me up at 2:00 pm for my 3:30 pm to Aitutaki. At the airport, I grabbed a quick snack and checked in. Didn't need to show my passport or ticket. I was given my boarding pass (looks like a Mastercard receipt) and told to sit. There is no security, no Xray scanners.... nothing. I had a tube of cream for my tattoo and was told that I could take that on the plane along with my bottle of water. It's pretty relaxed here.... chickens walking around the open air airport.

The flight to Aitutaki was only 40 minutes. Most of the passengers were locals going home to see family. There was only 3 tourists (2 girls from Germany and me).

I was greeted by my hotel transport. Nane (that's her name), gave me a beautiful lei made of tuberoses. It brought back so many memories of my mother-in-law, sister-in-law, and Gerald. They were my in-laws favourite flower and Gerald used to order them for me from the flower wholesaler when we were first married.

On the way to the resort, Nane told me that there are no dogs on the island. Many years ago, doctors believed that dogs spread leproacy so they killed all the dogs on the island and pass a law forbidding anyone from having them. The law still stands today even though they know dogs are not carriers of leproacy.

My bungalow is spacious and beautiful. It's got a full kitchen and a huge deck that has a hammock and a view of the beach. There are kayaks on the beach that I can use. My bungalow was full of beautiful flowers upon my arrival.

It was Island Night (buffet and fire show) at the resort and seeing that it was my first night here I went. I met a few couples.... Iva and Dave are from Oregon. They gave me ideas on what to do and which tour companies to go with. John and Helen are from Rarotonga. They are here for a week visiting family. They were at a big table beside me as they're children were going to join them. We talked about our families, our lives and what brought me to the Cook Islands. Helen said that here story is very similar to mine and she applauds my courage.

It turns out Helen is the owner of the resort. Helen was born and raised in NZ. At the age of 15 she fell in love with a Pacific Island boy. They were married in 1961. Helen's father-in-law became the first prime minister after the country gained independence in 1965. Four years later Helen and Hugh decide to moved to Cook Islands where she involved herself in the community and started raise a family. She looses the "love of her life". After the death of her husband, her family (4 boys and 1 girl) built Tamanu Beach Resort, their father's dream on family land. Helen is now happily married to John Hay an environmental scientist and Nobel Peace Prize winner. She has written her memoir, "My Kotuku of the South Seas" and has very kindly given me one to read. She said that this will help ease some of my fears of the life I have ahead of me.

April 24
Spent a leisurely morning at the pool and visiting with Iva and Dave. Got a scooter around 1:30 pm and drove around the island. The main road around the island is paved, the side roads are all gravel and sand. I headed up to Piraki Lookout, the road got a bit dangerous up at the top.

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Stopped for lunch and tried to buy some groceries since I have a kitchen. The stores here do double duty.... they sell lots of can foods, alcohol. They have a limited selection of fresh fruits and no meats. I picked up a 4 apples for $7.58 (NZ)! It started to rain so I headed back to the resort.

I started reading Helen's book and have not been able to put it down. During the break in the rain, I grabbed a kayak and paddles out to the reef. The water is so clear, it's like the water isn't really there.

I had plans to to go the Aitutaki Resort (a private island) for dinner but it was raining too hard. I stayed and had dinner here at the resort. Met up with Richelle and Dave from New Zealand. We spent the whole evening chatting.

April 25
Today is ANZAC Day. It's equivalent to our Remembrance Day. Thought about going to Aitutaki Resort for lunch but they add 15% to the bill because it's ANZAC Day. This is the only private island in the Cook Islands.

Took the scooter around the island and hung out at Ootu Beach. Apparently it's a great place to snorkel. The water has sand dunes everywhere allowing you to walk way out. Some points are deeper (you'd have to swim) others you can walk (ankle to knee deep). Headed for lunch to The Boat Shed and returned my scooter after that.

I snorkelled at the resort beach then I kayaked out to the reef. Sat in the pool and read most of the day.

I've been travelling alone for almost 3 months.... I've had some great days and some awful days. This last 2 weeks in the Cook Islands have been the most difficult for me. Everywhere I go, I see couples... holding hands, walking on the beach, on the street, talking and laughing, eating dinner together. Tonight at dinner, I had a major anxiety attack. I just wanted to get up and run and run and run... in fact I got my dinner packed up and ran out of there. Seeing these couples makes me miss Gerald so much. I've seen and experienced so much in this last 3 months but he's not been here to share it. For all of you that know Gerald, you'll know that he wouldn't have entertained the thought of travelling to New Zealand, Australia, or Fiji.... but he would have come to the Cook Islands with me. I hate eating alone!

Wifi is very slow and very expensive here. I will post another blog before I leave here.