Miscellaneous Thoughts, Part 2

-
Here I continue a hodgepodge of thoughts related to our vacation in the South Pacific.

(Read Part 1)

3) The capital of the Cook Islands, is Rarotonga. But Rarotonga is not the name of a city. It is the name of the island. I'm not aware of any other place which has that distinction. Anyone care to correct me on this?

4) The island of Rarotonga is the weirdest mix of first, second, and third world characteristics I have ever seen. Chickens roam wild all across the island, and it is not uncommon to have a pig hanging out in the road where you intend to travel, something you would think to see only in developing nations. But contrast that with every grocery story using environmentally friendly bags for purchases: only high-end stores in California manage that. Or consider the somewhat rudimentary system for bringing heated water into the house and then remember that nearly everyone owns a washing machine. Only main roads are paved, but most everyone owns a vehicle. Perhaps this mix was the most disorienting aspect of our time in the Cook Islands.

Check back tomorrow for one more day of miscellany.

Comments

Anonymous said…
I wonder if the things like the shopping bags and the washing machines relate to the wider cultural importance of fabric and the alternative economies wrapped up in women's wealth. - otheous
10:24 AM
slowlane said…
Since the environmentally bags are degradable, I'm wondering if it has more to do with the island's need to keep their trash to a minimum. And you are probably right about the washing machine bit.
10:50 AM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The "No I" Phone

-
Image
It's a cheap party trick: I pull out my phone, flip it open to check the time or send a quick text, and watch for the reactions. In the decades I've owned a flip phone, people have given me a few double takes. Recently, though, when I opened my phone to squint at a photo texted to me, the person sitting across the conference table surprised me with a "Haha! I love your phone!" And I did, too. I loved my flip phone. Then, in a deadly mistake of distracted domesticity, I scooped it up with my bed sheets and dropped it in the washing machine: Eco Cold, extra spin. Oh gentle readers, the tragedy of beautiful T9 predictive text programming drowned at the bottom of the linens spin cycle! Yes, I lost saved phone numbers, the blurry store photos I'd snapped over the years to double check prices when back to internet access, the text threads with details about addresses and meet-ups... all lost. Sad, inconvenient, annoying, frustrating, all of it. But the biggest tragedy, ...
Read more

Amtrak Adventuring

-
Image
Trying to see it all, 2011 I may never look down the aisle of an Amtrak train without remembering a baby bouncing, holding fast to the seat as the train rocked and bounced even faster. All the world over, trains carry a reputation for efficiency and frugality. That has never been my experience with Amtrak.  The Adventure Begins, June 22, 2011 Thirteen years ago (almost to the day) our little family set out on our first Amtrak adventure. We thought three weeks touring the United States on a train with an infant made so much more sense than the alternative. The alternative being flying or driving (with the same infant) to a wedding in the middle of Cornfieldville, Ohio. Being young and foolish, it made perfect sense. Our baby did not yet sleep through the night, so sitting up in coach seating night after night wouldn't affect our sleep all that much. With a rolling ice chest filled with lunch sacks that prevented us from knowing in advance whether our meal was Option A, B, or C, w...
Read more

The Crazy Market

-
There is a place here in Beijing that I (not so) affectionately call The Crazy Market. Imagine four floors of wall to wall shops, one shop selling the same thing that 15 other shops are selling, all displayed with bright colors and lights and each shop having two or three people who call out "Hello! What are you looking for?" "Hello! We give you good price!" "Hello! How many coats you want buy?" "Hello! We have your size shoe!" (This one makes me want to stop and say "Oh, I greatly doubt it.") "Hello! Nice pearls for you!" If you so much as look at an item, it is immediately assumed that you will buy it and so they call out "What is your highest price? We give you good discount." The only exception to this is the very bottom floor that is filled with every imaginable and unimagineable sea creature and various sea creature parts in various stages of life. This serves as a good aroma which frequently makes its way up t...
Read more