Niue

BEHOLD THE COCONUT! 

...is apparently what the name 'Niue' translates to and was the reason I arrived at the tiny South Pacific Island absolutely certain that I would be handed coconuts everywhere I went. I assumed I would eat so many coconuts that I would be sick at the sight of them by the time I left 10 days later and about 30kgs heavier due to said coconut consumption.

Whilst there was an abundance of coconut trees covering the island, it was surprisingly difficult to actually be handed any by random passers by and I think I ended up eating about 3 in total. They were absolutely DELICIOUS though and you'll be happy to know I'm not sick of them yet.

Anyway enough coconut chat.

FUN FACTS ABOUT NIUE:

• Niue (pronounced New-ay) is a small island country in the South Pacific about 2,400 kilometres north east of New Zealand according to Wikipedia.
• It is one of the world's largest coral islands
• You can only get there via Auckland and there are only two flights a week!
• Although its only a 3 hour flight from Auckland, you jump to the other side of the date line so arrive a day before you leave. Woah.
• Niueans are absolutely lovely, super friendly and EVERYBODY waves at each other.
• There is no traffic, hardly any tourists and more chickens than you can shake an egg at. (that well known phrase)

So Niue! Oh Niue. Where do I even begin? The crystal clear water? The beautiful and colourful coral reefs bursting with tropical fish? The kind and friendly locals? The dolphins? THE WHALES? I need a a minute to calm down and think this through.

Ok lets start with the people. We were blessed with a seat neighbour on the plane journey named Ernest who would show us true Niuean hospitality and kindness. After driving past us a couple of times in his truck (probably looking like absolute pathetic pale sweaty messes), he insisted we take his car for a couple of days to explore the island then called his buddy who owned a car hire company to get us a good deal for the rest of our time there. He also gave us bikes from his guesthouse (that we weren't even staying at) so we could have more travel options! 

There's a custom on the island to wave at everybody who drives past. When I say 'wave' a slight lift of the pointer finger will do, but acknowledging the other cars is a must. It's a small gesture but is incredibly endearing and was hard to stop after we left the country which may have confused some Australian drivers.

Niue is famous for it's crystal clear waters which makes it incredible for snorkelling. We spent our first 6 days there swimming every day which left me feeling about 95 years old by the end, but was worth it for the island's absolutely breathtaking underwater wonderland. There are SO many snorkel spots to visit on the island, some sheltered and others where you have to check the tide times and direction before you jump in. Side note: being swept out to sea is one of my biggest fears and there were a couple of times that I panic swam back to shore after being convinced I'd been caught by the current...I may have been slightly over dramatic. During one of these moments after I had decided to get out early, Nick stayed in a bit longer and ended up finding a grey reef shark that he followed around for a while, which I had been really hoping to see too. TYPICAL EY. Overall the snorkelling was out of this world - Nick was amazing at pointing out different fish to me and telling me their real names when I yelled OH IT'S LIKE THAT ONE OUT OF FINDING NEMO in his face many times. (obviously I've already forgotten all of these names) 

Snorkelling in a sheltered pool i.e. MY COMFORT ZONE

There were also some incredible caves to explore, some with beautiful pools inside like the one pictured above, and all with the most amazing stalagmites and stalactites that looked completely unreal and other worldly. 

Nick partaking in one of his favourite past times - rockpooling

We were fortunate enough to catch the end of 'whale season' whilst we were in Niue and saw at least one humpback from land or boat almost every day. From July-October humpbacks come to hang out in the tropics to calve and nurse their young before migrating back down to Antarctica. We were there at the very end of the season so were super lucky to see a few mothers with their calves plus some males hanging about. We were EVEN luckier in that we were able to go on a whale watch/swim tour and actually get in the water with a couple of them. It was only for a minute or so but it was one of the most surreal, huge and mind-blowing moments of my life. I cried into my mask and almost blinded myself in the process but I just was not prepared for how huge they were and how small they would make me feel. I know that our encounter was far from the best the tour operators had seen, but for me it was such a special moment and one I'll never forget.

I don't have any photos of this, so instead please enjoy my favourite photo from the trip which still makes me LOL every time I look at it:

It looks like I'm a Dementor sucking out Nick's soul

Another out of this world moment that again I don't have a photo for, was our encounter with Spinner Dolphins. We were on the whale watch boat again and caught sight of a pod of Spinners nearby. The dolphins love riding the bow of the boat and were soon surrounding our little vessel. We were allowed to jump in the water two at a time and hold onto a rope while the boat pulled us along and the dolphins surrounded us - so magical! The visibility was SO incredible and it felt like we were part of the pod swimming along with the boat. I should mention that in my panic and excitement I held onto the rope in an awkward way and almost broke my little finger. It was absolute AGONY and I genuinely still can't feel it properly. I think I may have done some lasting damage to it but y'know...DOLPHINS. Who needs little fingers anyway?! We even got to see them performing their rare but beautiful spinning out of the water.

Another great spot for snorkelling. Can you spot Nick?

The sunsets were also out of this world. We spent many an evening down on the beach just in front of our guest house with a couple of coronas, usually with one of the island dogs that we named 'Pat' who ended up following us about for most of our trip.

I genuinely well up when I look at these pictures. He was the best boy.

Pat deserves his own blog.

Pat making Pat angels in the sand

The below photo was taken on our second to last evening on the island, and looking back now I just can't believe this place exists. It's like nowhere I've ever seen in real life or in photos and I feel incredibly lucky to have gotten the chance to visit.

Evening Corona on the beach

Overall our trip to Niue was a totally dreamy 10 days. I absolutely haven't done it justice on this blog post, I've mainly just used it to talk about Pat the dog and showcase my Dementor photo to the world. But if you ever get the chance to visit this place you should jump at it. There are more famous Pacific islands with sandier beaches but I do think this is a truly special place that is like no other. Because there are only 2 flights a week it doesn't feel touristy at all, and the other tourists you do bump into you end up recognising throughout the trip as there are so few of you.

I really hope it stays this way and I get the feeling the locals agree. There are fewer and fewer places like this in the world so coming across one does feel very special.

Ok I'm done now, I think I'll curl up with my photo album of Pat the Dog pictures and cry myself to sleep.

I MISS YOU PAT