Cook Islands Lifestyle

G'day

I have a couple of, opportunities in Rarotonga, and maybe Aitutaki too.

Can someone enlighten me on the lifestyle for expats in the Cooks? Compared to Tonga (as an example).

food? golf? sightseeing for someone that lives there as opposed to a tourist? safety? law and order?

anything else?

Oh, and can I get a rough idea of who flies from the Cook islands to theother nations? how much.

Tonga (of course)
Fiji
Vanuatu
Samoa
Tahiti
etc.

Flights on the major airlines only to NZ and Fiji (and LAX). Local airline starts flying to Tahiti in April. No flights from Tonga, Vanuatu, Samoa.

Lifestyle Q's--it would take a few books to answer these.

come on, come on.

I am told it is just the same as Tonga.

Never lived in Tonga, just visited, so can't really compare what it's like to live in both places.
We have a 9-hole golf course. Most locals speak English a lot better than what I found in Tonga. It's more developed than Tonga in a lot of ways. We don't have too many tin shack hovels like I saw all over Vavau, most houses are modern (but modest). People are friendly in both places. No king running things, it's a democracy. Tourism infrastructure a lot more developed.

thanks mate. I've made the finals. we'll see.

I have the Rarotongan beach spa place looking at me, and the CITC.

I would enjoy either job.

H,

My impressions from late 80's were that CI a lot more tourist aware than Tonga. Everything I have read about CI since seems to be indicative of progress - except the big resort on Rarotonga which started with Mafia money then when quiet for a lot of years - was restarted last year?, but I haven't heard much recently. (Raro???)

The only possible sraw-back is the size of the island - if you pine for the wide open spaces of Oz, you are going to need to be doing multiple laps of Rarotonga to get a few km's under your belt!

Tonga - between my visits in 1991 and mid last year - very little seemed to have changed on Tongatapu. Although I know you had a slightly unsettling experience (understatement???) at the Dateline, it was before the commencement of the "citizen initiated urban renewal programme" in Nuku'alofa.

If there is ever sufficient aid to fix all the damage, and Tonga works out a reasonable system of democracy and land tenure, perhaps there will be opportunities there for ex-pats who don't enjoy political patronage.

"Raro" is probably as good as any evidence that the Govt mind-set and opportunities in CI are better for ex-pats, but the Chinese Govt are certainly generous benefactors, and have reportedly built some wonderfully ugly and faulty buildings. I have no knowledge of their attitude towards chefs with sharp knives and short tempers, but I am confident that you are now wary of same!

Good luck with the jobs!

Rob

Thanks bendigo (and Raro).

Have not been to Tonga, but Rarotonga is very modern and in my opinion a "fully developed" island. Personally I would LOVE an opportunity to live there, but have to admit that the island is VERY small, so you may indeed start to feel a bit cramped after a while. CITC is indeed the largest retailer on the island (by far I would think). No idea how they treat their employees though.

With only about 10,000 people or so on the whole island, living on Raro would probably be rather akin to living in a very small town elsewhere - where it's likely that everyone knows everyone else and all of their business (lots of gossipping and local politics) . That's my guess anyway.

Ken

Missed the Rarotongan Spa job, now waiting on the CITC job.