16-22 COVID-19 – Summary Week Two
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| This is what week 2 feels like - YES, we can do this! |
Another week gone by in no time
and we are still not a single step closer to knowing when this whole corona
crisis will be over. But the feeling really starts settling in that we might be
in for the long term. Most of our stuff is now at the resort and we basically
live here full time. We have enjoyed wonderful two weeks holiday with our kids
but as this comes to an end, it is time to work on a new family routine and
home schooling. I am sure we will discover new facets of our characters.
Please, let us all have a lot of patience with each other. But before we move
forward, let’s recap what happened on the blog last week.
Note: By the way the headline translations
are direct translations, which ruins their flow but I like the authenticity.
Note: I/we jump between first
person singular and first person plural quite a bit. This might be awkward or
confusing at times but is simply a reflection of Lucile and myself co-producing
the blog.
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| Good News |
16 – COVID-19 Viele gute
Nachrichten (A lot of good news)
A number of good things happened
during that day, so instead of writing a 500-word post, we (note above: in this
case we were having breakfast and discussed the daily post so the entry ended
up to be in first person plural) decided to compile 5 bullet points. Most
importantly Lucile had finished the first draft to her first contribution to
this COVID-19 cycle. The time is ripe for a female voice on the blog. To be
posted soon!
The newspaper in my hometown has
picked up on the blog (yeah, right. I contacted them but they like the project
and are very supportive of it) and they printed a very nice article about our
current situation and invited me to write a weekly column. Very exciting and
such a cool surprise for my parents and grandparents back home. Grandma things
we are famous now, bless her.
And this was the day that the wage
subsidy applications opened. A moment that everybody has been longing for to eventuate.
The governmental financial help will give the community some peace of mind. 3
months is just a short breather but at least it is that.
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| Many great adventures started at RAR |
17 – COVID-19 RAR – Rarotonga’s
Flughafen (RAR – Airport Rarotonga)
The post is a short introduction
and historical summary of Rarotonga’s airport. The initial idea for the fact
that we are only seeing a single flight to Auckland per week at the moment and
with that have some same flight frequency as in 1974 when the airport was first
opened by Queen Elizabeth. To ad some feel to the post, we shared a video by
Air Rarotonga introducing the airport and arrival procedures. It’s well worth a
view:
See all the people? Those were the
good times.
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| Can you spot the little guy on the SUP in the middle to the big lagoon. Nature putting us in our spot - small and insignificant. Caspar David Friedrich: https://www.sothebys.com/en/articles/caspar-david-friedrichs-vision-of-the-sublime |
18 – COVID-19 – Verbringt mehr
Zeit auf dem Meer (Spend more time on the ocean)
A short post exploring the
importance of taking some time to reflect, be active and if at all possible, to
spend some time in and on the water. For us here on Rarotonga it is a luxury
that we do not appreciate enough during the normal times. How often has
it happened during the season that I found myself answering a guest:
“Oh, I have not been for a swim since
Christmas.”
I would then look into a face that
would only stare back at me in disbelieve.
“But that was four months ago?”
And now I am thinking, how could I
ever be too busy not to go out and swim in the lagoon?
I guess working in service is a
beautiful thing but during the season we have very little time to reflect and
to recharge our batteries. If there is no work, there is picking up the kids or
dropping them off somewhere and then there are takeaway meals, coffees and most
of the things we do these days feels rushed. And our bank accounts reflect this
rush. Money comes in, we rush through our week and money is gone. Sad thing,
without us feeling that we have treated ourselves and that is more than likely due
to the fact that we do not take the time to appreciate the things we consume.
Instead we text in advance to grab a coffee just to cut back on the waiting
time? Really? We do not have the time to have a chat and enjoy the moment while
a wonderful revitalizing coffee is professionally being baristat for us?
Personally, I have decided to slash one phrase from my vocabulary when COVID-19
is history. The reply that you will not here from me again is:
“I am busy.”
Instead, when being asked: “How are
you?”
My reply shall be:
“My time management has improved,
thank you. How are you?”
The whole Corona crisis, as bad as
it is in parts of the world but there is one positive to it. It has slowed our
unhealthily fast and complex daily lives right down to a nice, positive and very
manageable pace. This pace really allows us to regroup, reflect and hopefully
learn and improve on how we used to do things. This will help us to rebound
quickly and be better than before! For our own and our guest’s benefit. Cause
one thing remains true: you need to be in a good place personally in order to
provide excellent service.
Now is the time to take of ourselves, so we can come
back from this and do what we do best: take excellent care of our visitors to
the Cook Islands. In the meantime, let’s all spend more time in the lagoon and
ocean. It will also help oppose the government touch Marae Moana. Time to wake
up!
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| A nice place to write - grateful |
19 – COVID-19 – Rarotonga –
Morgendliche Reflektionen (Rarotonga – Morning Reflections)
Guest experience over
productivity is one of the many
little mantras that we follow at Royale Takitumu. The other one is, nothing
ever works according to plan but it always works out in the end. Just two
short sentences that help cope with the daily craziness that island life can be
at times.
This post mainly talks about the
personal service that we deliver on a daily basis here at the resort. We hear
it time and again, our guests telling us that they generally never travel to
the same place twice but this island and this resort is different and so they
rebook and return. Apart from the apparent reasons like wonderful beach,
beautifully appointed property, very clean island and wonderful lagoon, in 9
out of 10 cases it is the same feedback: the people, i.e. our staff, made their
holiday. Meitaki team!
It is the fact that nobody is
every rushed, that everyone is encouraged to have a chat with the guests and
the fact that still everything always gets done. The staff doesn’t feel the
pressure and that directly reflects on the guests and helps them relax. A
feeling that we have completely lost in Europe and the rest of the Western
World.
We all cannot wait to be able to
share our Kia Orana Spirit again!
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| Fun Fact 11: Manihikians can build houses on water |
20 – COVID-19 – 10 Fun Facts –
Rarotonga (10 Fun Facts – Rarotonga)
1. Rarotonga has two roads. One main road and a back road
that has three segments
2. There are no traffic lights on Rarotonga just two
roundabouts marking the beginning and end of town
3. No house can be built higher than the tallest coconut
tree on the property
4. No one can purchase land on Rarotonga there are only
lease holds. Land gets passed down from generation to generation
5. Kia Orana – translates loosely into may you live on
6. Ika Mata is the national dish – fresh fish marinated
in coconut cream and lime juice – a must try when visiting the islands –
yumm!!!
7. Capt’n Cook never set foot on Rarotonga
8. Rarotonga has two bus lines – one clockwise and
anti-clockwise
9. The 15 white stars on the Cook Island flag represent
the 15 islands.
And here is the song that always makes me miss the islands when
I am overseas:
10. Rarotonga’s airport was opened in 1974 with a single
flight to Auckland, New Zealand. Today we have the same flight frequency cause
by the Corona crisis
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| Beautiful Ta'a Koka |
21 – COVID-19 – Schreibpause
(Writer’s break)
It just felt right last week so we
have done it again. Taken a day to relax.
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| Tamatoa enjoying the Ping Pong Project |
22 – COVID-19 – Ping Pong im
Paradies (Ping Pong in Paradise)
A father and son bonding and DIY
story about how we set up a table tennis table. The things you find at the
local shops can be so random and I love that. So, when I saw the table tennis
net and I thought about the sheets of ply for our cyclone shutters I thought,
yes, let’s build a table tennis table.
The pictures basically speak for
themselves but it doesn’t hurt to repeat it in writing; we had an awesome time!
I love how the island life forces you to be resourceful at times. Our time up
in Manihiki was really eye-opening in that aspect. Nothing ever gets thrown away
because it can always be used for something else. Up north they do not need to
learn to reduce, reuse, recycle it is their normal way of life. Scarcity can be
a driver for one’s creativity.
All we used was some electrical
insulation tape, a staple gun with 14mm staples and 5 cable ties. There is no
problem you cannot fix with a roll of duct tape and some cable ties! So old but
so true! Last week we talked about trying something new and this week we made
something new out of something old.
Best news of the week though:
still no confirmed corona cases in the Cook Islands. All tests have returned
negative. If all goes well, we might be able to declare ourselves a corona free
country mid-April. Then New Zealand just needs to keep up the great work
against the spread of the virus and once they beat it, we could introduce
interisland travels from one corona free nation to another. Fingers crossed and
please dear Kiwis, stay healthy, stay home. If you do, we might just see you on
the beach in paradise soon!
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