Index....MENU ..MENU2.Raro Links.............Updated 6-21-06..(sort of)..........................2.

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Rarotonga 2000 pages: 1 , 2 , 3 , 4, 5 , 6 , 7 , 8, 9 , 10 ......RAROTONGA 2000, Cook Islands

.When I arrive on Rarotonga, I rent a Kawasaki motorcycle then drive the 20 miles around the island. One of the places I stop is at Muri Beach and the lagoon. I go to visit my favorite coconut tree...a survivor of the 1987 Sally IV hurricane. No, the hurricane didn't twist it, but it did survive with that looped trunk.

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Take a closer look.

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To see it, go to the Sailing Club, walk to the water...

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The Sailing Club.

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Look toward the left...

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...but walk toward the right. That islet is called Taakoka Motu. It is of lava rock, the other three motus are built up from coral.

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Muri Beach is for sunbathing.

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A cat at the Kii Kii.

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Scott left the Kii Kii and Rarotonga for California via Auckland on the 13th.

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I first stayed in Tiare Village in 1985.

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The main entrance to chalet 1 by the road.

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The cooking area.

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The other side.

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I stay in this room in the chalets.

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I was in Rarotonga in July 2000 on the way to Australia and then again on my return through Rarotonga in August 2000. So, I'll continue putting random photos from July. (Whenever I got on my Kawasaki to go anywhere, I took my camera...the island is small so I snapped shots from the same areas at different times).

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A stitched photo of Avatiu harbor.

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Here are some photos in and around Avarua...the capital of the Cook Islands.

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A hamburger and beer at Metua's.

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There different stories of how this seven-in-one coconut palm got started growing from one place.

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Here's a story about it from the September 6,2003 Cook Island News:

Seven-in-one palm preservation plan

6 September: Architects and builders are looking at ways to protect Rarotonga's famous seven-in-one coconut tree as work begins on the new courthouse. There were fears that the century-old palm, that stands on the corner of the site, may have had to be cut down or moved to accommodate the development.

Yesterday a team from the Chinese side of the project met with the Minister of Justice, Robert Wigmore and other officials to plan how best the historic tree could be preserved. The seven trunks are a tourist attraction in their own right and form a perfect circle. The palms are said to be just one tree, grown from an amazing seven-sprouted coconut, brought all the way from the island of Takutea.

Coconut tree climber Piri Puruto III said that cutting down the seven-in-one would be "bad news".
"Don't cut it, it is the only one like it in the Pacific - it is part of history," he said. But it now looks as though a plan to save the unique palm has been hatched. "The meeting with the minister was to see what vegetation could be preserved," said Secretary of Justice, Terry Hagan. "We are going to make every effort to preserve the tree. Originally we agreed to provide a clean site but we left the coconut grove because of its significance. "At the moment the Chinese have said that they will not be moving it because it does not hinder the work, and they are going to continue to preserve it."

The tree falls just inside the site boundaries of the development where other trees were uprooted to clear the area. - Jonathan Harwood

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The round-about.

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The cinema.

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Internet access in front of my Kawasaki.

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Inside the post office.

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On the main drag.

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In 1999, I had a nice apartment , Punamaia, which I couldn't rent in 2000. A movie was being filmed plus there was the revolt in Fiji and many tourists went to Rarotonga instead. Units to rent were hard to come by. Any way, on one of my trips around the island, I decided to take some photos of the filming of In the Eye of the Storm.

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