It was Saturday 8 July 2017 and our flight was scheduled to depart at 4:30pm. We were wanting the least amount of stress because.. well.. there was 13 of us 😜
- 2 nannies - Nanny Nicholas and Nanny Bott
- 2 Bott adult sibs (my aunty and dad)
- 2 Nicholas adult sibs (dad's partner and sister)
- 2 O'Brien-Bott moko sibs (me and my sister)
- 2 partner's of the O'Brien-Bott sibs
- 3 Nicholas-Schuster moko
So we decided to leave Tauranga at 8:00am. We all met at Paeroa for some breakfast. And carried on the journey. Then at 11:00am We got a delay notification. Our flight had been delayed until 4:30am the next morning!! 😤
Are you fucking kidding me mate?!
After much deliberation and discussion, we decided to lodge a claim through our travel insurance and get a few rooms for us until our flight. 13 people remember, not everyone wants to powernap in the car haha Only worry about that was, we wouldnt know if we are approved or not for at least 10 working days.
$1,300 later....
So in the end, our flight departed at 4:00am Sunday morning.
And we arrived in Rarotonga 9:15am Saturday morning.
Woohoo!! Rarotonga is 22 hours behind New Zealand so technically we went back in time haha Time Travellers. Bloody pissing down though, you know thats not really the best thing you want when you fly to a tropical island for an 8 day getaway which had already been cut short 12 hrs...
The weather forecast said we were in for thunder for the next three days. Yippee 😑 Ohwell, we shall make the most of whatever is to come - Were in Rarotonga man!!!
The "Superstore"
So you just use NZD however, they have their own coins. I want to say super weird but thats just because I'm not used to them.. you be the judge 😎 $5 coins and $2 coins. (The $1 coin and the silvers werent as interesting so they didnt get a photo haha) Also, a few of the grocery prices:
- One can of woodstock costs $6.90
- One can of cruisers cost $4.50
- A bottle of wine starts from $18
- Chocolate and lollies starting costs $5
- Eggs were sold singularly 70c each (.7 x 12 =$8.40)
The only thing "super" about the store was the bloody prices!!
We chose Coconuts - bar and eatery.
Lemme just say, awesome atmosphere, rarotongans are so welcoming, so nice and so hospitable BUT they forgot a couple of our drinks, the veges were still raw, our garlic bread was burnt as, they forgot my dads meal altogether and they didnt ask if we wanted mushrooms or not... I hate mushrooms. I give it a 4/10.
Day 1 done.
Check out my video of our Rarotongan getaway here.