En Route-Pit Stop 2-Rarotonga, Cook Islands

Now this is where things took quite the turn and became an adventure...

Nikao Beach, Rarotonga, Cook Islands

I decided to pull a 36 hour layover in honeymoon central Rarotonga, the Cook Islands with me, myself, and I! It was quite...cute....

However, NEVER arrive on a Sunday! It''s the worst possible thing since nothings open and the island is essentially closed. Plus, it down poured for the first time in weeks that day.


Nonetheless I trecked it to the beach and found a pretty sick spot to
nap and soak up the sun admist the on and off rain showers! I also went hitchhiking for the first time- sorry mom!




Nikao Beach- a with volcanic rock scattered along the white sand beaches...








The next day ended up being much more successful! It was BEAUTIFUL and the island reminded me of Moana...

The people at this shop were unbelievably nice! After biking
around the island, they took me on a sunset drive along the coast!

Since the island is only 26 miles long, I rented a bike and explored, hitting up every beach possible! The beaches here are stunning- crystal clear water, small waves, beautiful choral reefs, and spectacular views looking at the island! It was paradise! And the people were unbelievably friendly and helpful along the way. They also loved talking American politics haha yikes!









Muri Beach was hands down my favorite beach! There's a bunch of little islands that you can swim to in the area with panoramic views of the main island looking back! There was also traditional music at one of the islands so I swam there for a little jam fest. I also met a really sweet American couple who let me hang at their 5 hotel...


 It was super nice because the island didn't have high quality wifi or internet so I decided to embrace it and just soak up the beauty of the island and read. It was surprisingly empowering breaking all those snap streaks (sorry, friends!)

                                                      |        Pure relaxing        |

I also went mountain biking within the island to a waterfall! Quite the climb but it was totally worthwhile!

Sunset at my hotel...

Wigmore's Waterfall

All was good until leaving...then Rarotonga became a pain...I flew Air New Zealand there and it was high class and I enjoyed sipping wine along the way. However, I made the fatal mistake of flying Jet Star to Auckland. Even with my $100 additional bag purchase, I didn't realize I was only allowed 1, 7 kg carry on-not the usual 2...Rookie mistake! So...I had to throw out a lot of stuff at the airport and cry my way through gettin an additional 4 kg free. They also almost made me throw out my tennis racket because for some reason, in that one country, it is considered a weapon... Never had that problem before...However, that's traveling for you! It can't all go smooth and to plan, but I made it to New Zealand, a few pounds lighter and a lot of layers worn (3 jackets, 3 pants, a hat, gloves, a hammock stuffed in my jacket and hiking boots on) but nonetheless.