The Island

It’s been awhile I know since my last update…. But am I having fun! Family is a special space, a special place… and I’m back living and loving all I can. Folks if you only see and feel what see and feel you would believe that, “somewhere over the rainbow, way up high, and the dreams that you dream of, once in a lullaby…”

Finally I got to sleep on my first night… but not until I had all the doors and windows open allowing the breeze to rustle through the coconut palms in concert with the breaking waves from the lagoon and the Gecko’s calling for an evening of love. Even the odd mosquito that floats through the door sounds in tune with these serene surroundings, there is a harmony here that reveals itself only when you relax and live in its time frame.

I awake as I do every morning to look out on Danny’s garden with a mountain rising steeply behind. Sunrise comes quickly with a quite intensity that takes your breath away for a heartbeat then soar’s higher into the sky to bring life to this lush island punctuated every so often by the thump of a coconut falling and hitting the ground.

A little walk on the beach followed by tea and toast with Jayne and dad kick starts the day followed by conversation with mum or a nap. To be in a hurry here would be sinful, a slap in the face of God who surely made this place as a prelude to what is to come if you care to join him in heaven.

Now you will have to excuse me as its time for me to just sit with my feet in the water and think about… will I have a fresh Pawpaw, Star fruit, Passion fruit, coconut milk or maybe some hokey pokey ice cream… let me at them all!!!!!!

Arrival

I’m sitting in LAX airport waiting for flight to Rarotonga. I’m surrounded by New Zealand accents and chatter. It sounds foreign yet distantly familiar. As I sit here I can feel the tide of memories flooding back filling me with excitement and curiosity. Will I fit back into my birth heritage or am I too far removed no longer a die hard Kiwi but a soul of the world with no spiritual fixed abode. This trip is going to be very interesting… at least to me it will…LOL.

ARRIVAL

Moist warm air embraced me as I stepped from the plane. Walking down the embarkation steps to the tarmac I caught the sweet scent of Tipani to set my mind and senses that I was now in the lush tropics of the south pacific. It was the strong smell of jet fuel shortly thereafter that accompanied the rest of my descent to terra firma however.

The anticipation of meeting up with my family after such a long time was now welling up within me and that all my years of being an emotional tough guy was about to abruptly end. Stepping onto the customs and immigration area we were all met by the dulcet tones of Jake Numanga singing Polynesian tunes while strumming his guitar. I along with many of my fellow travelers loved this personal touch and showed our appreciation with a little sway of our heads and the tapping of our feet along with applauses at the end of each song. Jake had set rhythm and lyrics for all of us landing on the island… It was up to us now if we were to continue to hum along and enjoy the sweet melody of our individual journeys.

Once through customs I picked up my bags and headed for the exit where an immigration official, a lady in this case was stopping people and asking the nature of their visit and where they would be staying, then directing them on through the exit. I tell her while pointing at the door, “I’m coming to see my family”. She looks at my eyes that are about to explode with moisture and she quickly waves me on saying, “you better get out there then, eh”! A couple of heart beats and a deep breath later I’m through the exit and there before me is a bloody big sign saying, “Kia Orana Sunshine Boy”. The rough translation of which can be two as follows. First translation “Welcome, mums favorite”, the second being and more commonly used, “Welcome, to the one who when he bends over brings forth the light!” There are of course many variations on the second translation depending on the situation at hand.

Yes, Sunshine Boy had arrived and while the next part remains a blur, I do remember heading for the one embrace I sort for so long, Bubs (Jayne) my little sister, the matriarch of the family in the absences of my mother’s physical presence. Bubs’ the tower of strength, wit and wisdom, but, most of all Bubs represented the coming together in paradise of our tribe after so many years apart, we were all here, the brothers, sister, father and the spirit of mum. I won’t bore you with the rest of the meeting but suffice to say I was no tough guy when it came to tears… but I wasn’t alone either on that score!

The first day ended with sunset on the beach across from the Kelly compound… Ka kite (se ya later)

Almost there

Less than one week to go before I set off to the South Pacific. While the excitement is building I've been thinking about getting there, you see, from Los Angeles there is only one flight a week to Rarotonga and if I miss that... well you see my point! Also in order to make sure I get to LA I have to go through Cleveland then catch my connecting flight to LA taking into account delays, bad weather, etc, that seem to be prevalent lately. It will be a race against time connecting to these flights, but, that will make for an interesting trip or no trip at all! LOL.

In the mean time I thought I would share with you a couple of things I will see/experience while on the island. Firstly, the extensive bus timetable broken down to day time and night time. Coming from the land of the automobile taking the bus seems far from my idea of getting around.... but wait! The Daytime timetable has a bus going clockwise and a bus going counter-clockwise (meaning only 2 routes) and the night time timetable has only clockwise with no night buses on Sunday. But I'm saving the best for last. "Bus will pick up and put down anywhere on route when signaled". Now is that customer service or what?
I have included an image from the front of the bus time table... as you can see this is the counter-clockwise timetable as seen by the direction of travel of the fish around his island!


It seems my sister Jayne is somewhat of a culinary celebrity becoming well known in the tourist industry not only for her duty free store at the airport but also for her "Ika Mata" (raw fish). She and her husband Danny are part of a "Dine in local homes" program where tourist have a chance to visit and dine at local homes. I will report on this further, but what a great idea.... anyhow here is her recipe for all you sushi fans.

Lastly, let me tell you about an experience I intend to do. "Jetblasters" If you have ever seen the movie "Pushing Tin" then you will know about this. Because you can get up close to the the end of the airport runway you can get jetblasted as the plane lands. To quote a dedicated jetblaster... "As the plane gets closer fear, panic and excitement start to set in. As it goes over your head it almost feels like you can touch the wheels and you can scream and yell as loud as you you like, but the roar of the engines drowns out everything. Then there's an almighty gust of wind that can blow you off your feet... a real jetblast! Stay tuned for this one!!!!! If I survive maybe my sister will give me the tee shirt she sells.

Until next time,
e noho ra

My Rarotonga Pilgrimage

Two weeks until I leave for Rarotonga (You can Google it to find out where it is!). 14 years have past since all my family were together last and 21 years since I was in Rarotonga.
A lot has changed I'm sure in those years, both in the expansion of the island life and expansion of a few girths, not lest of which is mine.


I have included a couple of images for you to get a sense of the island lay out. I will be staying in "The Kelly Compound", Kelly being my sister's married name. Specifically I will be housed in the VIP "Hilton Hotel Private Apartment".

I'm intending to write a few words and post a few images of my sojourn now that the island is the center of my family. Why center you ask? Well my Father lives there, my dear Mothers ashes are enshrined there, my brother works there and my sister (the favorite and leader of the clan) lives and works there with her husband Danny and son Ryan. I am it would seem the only one missing. But, not for long, I get 3 weeks on a tropical island hence 3 weeks with my mum, dad, brother and sister, etc... sounds like the garden of Eden to me!

Stay tuned for more posts. I leave on the 6th of April, God willing and the creek don't rise... but I could post at any time from now on.

I can hear the ukuleles' playing, feel the south seas breeze waffling over the lagoon on my cheeks, taste the fresh tropical fruits and see the sign's "beware of falling coconuts"!!!! Paradise found...

e noho ra