The Expo layout was organized regionally. I entered through the Hawaiian section.
Here the aloha experts created an inviting space splashed with brightly colored images of the islands and scented with the occasional plumeria blossom and lei.
Here the aloha experts created an inviting space splashed with brightly colored images of the islands and scented with the occasional plumeria blossom and lei.
There is no shortage of travel packages to Hawaii so I moved on down the aisle into the rest of the Pacific Island section -- Pohnpei, Palau, Tonga, Vanatu, Yap, Guam, Chuuk, and the Marshall Islands.
My first stop was at a booth where a young woman wore a white chef's cap.
"Food tours? " I asked. "No, the Cook Islands," she replied.
We chatted a moment about Captain Cook's untiring explorations in the region. I recalled that two weeks earlier I was on a scuba tour. The folks at Dive! Tutukaka did an excellent job of accommodating me on short notice. The dive was around group of rugged islands that Captain Cook reportedly named the Poor Knights Islands.
My first stop was at a booth where a young woman wore a white chef's cap.
"Food tours? " I asked. "No, the Cook Islands," she replied.
We chatted a moment about Captain Cook's untiring explorations in the region. I recalled that two weeks earlier I was on a scuba tour. The folks at Dive! Tutukaka did an excellent job of accommodating me on short notice. The dive was around group of rugged islands that Captain Cook reportedly named the Poor Knights Islands.
They sit about 23 kilometers off the northeast coast of New Zealand. This island cluster nature preserve blooms bright red each spring - the color of the jam on Captain Cook's Poor Knight's Pudding (known to us as "French Toast.") while the sea below offers a labyrinth of eco-niches and a year-round visual feast for scuba divers. I made a mental note to look for a cruise that retraced some of captain Cook's travels - hopefully with a more imaginative kitchen crew than he had!
