Aitutaki Day 3
Today we got picked up from our hotel to go on the Kia Orana cruise. The captain was named “Captain Fantastic” and he was great. Our boat was small and only had 7 people. Most of the other cruise boats were pretty big and slow. Ours was fast! In our group was Dieter from Hamburg, a weirdo who spoke English but it never made any sense.
First our boat took us way out in the gorgeous blue crystal clear water to a shallow area to snorkel. We could actually jump right out into the sand and black and white fish swam right by us. We put on our gear and Jim helped me get in the water like always, but it wasn’t that hard this time since the water was warm and clear. I wasn’t as scared. And after about a minute, I didn’t need to hold onto him and I floated around on my own. It was one of those special moments from our trip–snorkeling on my own in that insanely clear and warm water. [sigh]
We swam (I float, I wear a lifejacket.) to big chunks of rock with coral. There weren’t that many fish but the water was SO CLEAR that it was like air. Like a swimming pool! We saw a strange fish orange/yellow fish with a long tail and a weird roundish-thing before the tail.
Me feeding fish!!
Next we boated to Moturakau, where some reality show was filmed called Shipwrecked, I guess. Captain Fantastic told us some stories about the island. Then we went to One Foot Island and got our passports stamped. Then to Honeymoon Island where he made lunch. We had the best tuna sandwiches of our lives. Also banana, guava, coconut, lemons, starfruit, kumara, papaya, arrowroot, cucumber, lettuce, tomatoes, and donuts. The guava was SO good; I don’t think I’ve ever had it before. All the fruits were laid out on plates made of woven leaves. He told us more stories and we had time to explore.
Most of us walked across the shallow water (waist high) from low tide to another island. It was totally deserted except some small mysterious building. You could see fish right there, swimming inches from the sand, and cool ones too.
On the way back, I was sick of trying to walk thru the water with flip-flops to avoid the annoying sea cucumbers. I asked Jim for a piggyback ride, and he said ok, and I tried to get on but he fell backwards and we both fell into the water and I just remember seeing him completely under water but holding the camera bag up with his hand, and I took it. He was furious but it was his own fault for agreeing to do it! The camera was ok.
We walked back to the first island and saw some birds “nesting,” which meant we’d see a white bird cuddled into the sand and then a fluffy baby one next to it. Some newlyweds planted coconuts on the island and then we came back to Aitutaki. Jim got a motorbike and we went to Samade’s to meet a nice couple we’d met on the cruise for dinner. I took a shower in their room since the water in ours was off again. Then we ate and talked and Jim & I walked to the resort and lied in a hammock in the dark next to the water with the moonlight. Needless to say, it was quite nice. The stars were pretty.
When we got back, Jim had to kill a big spider on the floor (because I told him to.)
When driving through the island, we saw goats and pigs tied to trees as well as chickens and a few horses and cows. One time at night, a crab scurried out of the road in front of us. Heh heh.
The cruise was fantastic and my description could never really describe the beauty of it all, no matter how many times I say “It was beautiful.” The weather was perfect; hot enough that the water was warm but not so hot that we were dying. The scenery was just stunning and I would really recommend the little cruise to anyone. It wasn’t so much of a cruise as a neat boat ride around to other islands.
Tags: Cook Islands
Kelly