Trip Report Part 6: Wrap Up

%26lt;sigh%26gt; Back in 100 degree Phoenix...

I organized this vacation with almost all the planned activities loaded on the first few days, so if the weather forced a cancellation we would be able to reschedule. Of course, the weather was perfect and there were no cancellations. So we had a relaxed end to a wonderful week.

On Wednesday night we made a relaxed trip to the South Side, our third and last of the vacation, for dinner at Tidepools at the Hyatt. The setting was gorgeous, with most of the tables beside the water which was home to huge koi. Near us a couple were dining with their two children, a boy of about three and a toddler girl. It%26#39;s not an exaggeration to say that the boy was a bit out of control. He kept a steady barrage of bread chunks coming, tossing them into the water and watching the fish swarm all over one another to get to the food. I wondered if this was what the fish should be eating, and wondered if the waiter was aware, but indeed he was, and said nothing. A couple of times the mother took the child for a walk to get his mind off the fish, but each time he returned, he abandoned his seat immediately for his project. Towards the end of the meal the dad came and kneeled beside his son and I thought, ';he%26#39;s going to discourage this.'; But no! He put a bread chunk in his DAUGHTER%26#39;S hand and helped her toss it out into the pond also.

Not that this detracted from the meal in any way - it was just free entertainment. After starting with one of those blue boat drinks (';Poipu Passion';), I had the corn and vanilla soup for a starter and a chef%26#39;s special opakapaka with prawns. A delicious meal, and worth the price.

Thursday we drove over to Haena Beach park and checked out the dry cave across the road, walking around the park but not going as far as Tunnels. We came back to Hanalei Bay and spent time around the pier section of the beach, then had a single slice of pizza from Pizza Hanalei to tide us over till the picnic. Shopping at Sand People and Yellow Fish completed the early part of the day.

After a rest, we drove down to Kapaa and shopped Pono Market. What a fun place! They had so much fresh seafood. I stayed away from the several kinds of tako dishes, and stuck with the familiar lomilomi salmon and ahi poke. We picked up some drinks and Breton crackers at Foodland and were ready for the picnic. It was such a treat to put faces together with names of all our TA friends. This was one of the trip highlights.

Friday we had to pack and be out of the room by 10, which saddened us! I did take the time to visit jebett%26#39;s wonderful condo. Now I know where I want to stay in 2009.

I have ';trashed'; the Sebring convertible in previous messages, but I will give it a compliment here. That%26#39;s a gigantic trunk. I held ALL our bags so we had nothing visible inside the car, making our last day less stressful when we got out for sightseeing.

We said goodbye to HBR and drove over to Kilauea to the lighthouse. It was a good day for bird watching. The shearwaters were nesting all around the area, and we saw several baby chicks. Lots of nene waddling around everywhere also, and of course the tropicbirds and boobys soaring over the bay. I bought several picture books for family back home. Back in town, we stopped for lunch at Lighthouse Bistro. I have heard some reviewers who weren%26#39;t pleased, but I must say it was one of our better meals. I had a fresh mahi-mahi sandwich and found it delicious. For dessert we stopped next door at Kilauea Bakery and bought macadamia butter cookies, which I%26#39;ve done every visit so far.

We had several hours to kill and spent much of that time in Kapaa. A shop new to me was Taj Beach (downstairs in the Olympic Cafe building). Margaux found a new bathing suit and I bought local earrings. After shopping, we drove around in Wailua Homesteads and later crossed into Lihue to the Wailua Falls lookout. We ended up a little before 6 o%26#39;clock at Kalapaki Joe%26#39;s, near the airport in Harbor Mall. What a surprise when we walked in and found Denny and Erica! We enjoyed visiting before having to get the car back to Thrifty and returning to the airport.

This third trip was filled with different activities from the first two, but very enjoyable. We are learning what we like and what we can skip next time. Soon I%26#39;ll start planning for what we hope will be a late October week in 2009!

Trip Report Part 6: Wrap Up

Thanks for the great Trip Reports Beckster - lots of great info! You%26#39;ve reinforced my desire for a dinner at Tidepools - sounds wonderful (except for the unruly kids - that%26#39;s something my grandsons would do - unfortunately!).

Anyway, appreciate all the reviews and insights - Thanks again!

Trip Report Part 6: Wrap Up

beckster...it was so nice to meet the two of you. So glad that you had a great trip. We too have enjoyed ours and I will post tid bits when we get back to the mainland along with pictures.

We missed you a Kalapaki Joe%26#39;s..we had lunch there on Friday.

Aloha from Kaua`i!

Glad that you had such a lovely time here - and it was lots of fun meeting you and your DH as well as seeing 3chihuahuas and DH again at the Hyatt torchlighting ceremony - congrats again on your anniversary!

Already planning your trip back - sounds like you are hooked for sure!

Malama Pono,

Janet

Aloha from Kaua%26#39;i!

Gad - I WISH we had an ';edit'; button -- I just realized as soon as I typed the above that it wasn%26#39;t ';Beckster'; that I met - but ';Delphi'; and her husband (and ';3chihuahuas and her hubby) at the Hyatt and it was on Friday night!

Ooops - kala mai!

Malama Pono,

Janet

P.S. - I still enjoyed meeting ';Delphi'; and the rest of the gang on Friday - that part wasn%26#39;t a mistake!

Hi Janet,

I met you a year ago, August 07, at a Friday night torchlighting, but we dined at the Hyatt on Wednesday this time and so we missed you.

And yes, I%26#39;m already planning my next trip also. :-)

Aloha from Kaua`i!

Sorry for the confusion ';Beckster'; - I thought that we had met, but couldn%26#39;t remember when - hope next time you come you%26#39;ll get a chance to attend the torchlighting ceremony some night and we can say ';howzit';!

Malama Pono,

Janet

Beck...roaming around the board raising trouble as usual.

Wish I%26#39;d been there so you could have pinched my pink speedo.

These people think I need to be in Kauai! I have a job and life.

How can I give pleasure when I haven%26#39;t finished the ';Caddy Dream';.

:) I enjoyed your report. I%26#39;m going to go to my room and behave now!

...for a short while.....

Caddy, there%26#39;s always next year. :-D

beckster--Thanks for your information packed reports. We are going to be on Kauai next month. We have a few activities planned, but for the most part it is going to be a ';catch as catch can'; week. We need to recover from a busier week on Maui (our first stop). Your reports gave us some good ideas for tings we haven%26#39;t seen in previous visits. I was glad to hear the Sebring has big trunk. The last time we rented a Sebring half the luggage went in the trunk, the other half in the back seat.

How often is the Slack Key concert held? We both enjoy music and it sounded very interesting.

Is the fish sold at Pono Market cooked or is it available for take-out to cook back ';where-ever';?

Were there other kinds of coffee at the shop? The DW LOVES different kinds of coffee (flavored are the best). Are they sold ground or whole bean?

The McMaster Slack Key concerts are held on Fridays at 4 PM and Sundays at 3 PM at the Hanalei Community Center. When you order your tickets online they will give you instructions on which road to turn into. Bring a chair cushion or pillow if you have back problems, and be prepared to leave your shoes on the porch.

Website address is:

http://www.hawaiianslackkeyguitar.com/

The two fish dishes I bought at Pono Market (Lomilomi salmon and ahi poke) are actually uncooked but marinated, so you don%26#39;t have to cook them. They were delicious! I don%26#39;t believe they sell fresh caught fish.

There are MANY kinds of coffee at Kauai Coffee Company, both dark roast and medium roast. There are also flavored coffees, which by necessity are ground, whereas you can buy the unflavored coffees whole bean or have them ground for you. You can even buy the green coffee beans and roast them yourself (no, I didn%26#39;t try that).

Website is:

http://www.kauaicoffee.com/

I am sure you both will love your visit.