Last Day in Hawaii - Saturday, October 9, 2010

Early rising this AM…saw the sun rising behind the Honolulu skyline. We docked about 7:00 AM. We caught a breakfast (everyone on the ship had the same idea at the same time…lol) and then gathered our belongings. Gotta say that this was the easiest disembarkment we have ever had on a cruise. NCL does know how to do it so you don’t feel like cattle.

We took a taxi to the airport to rent a car for the day. Our driver knew everything about everything. We spoke a bit about politics and he was well versed on the subject. He even recommended a couple books for reading. Very interesting. It is my opinion that politicians underestimate the intelligence of the average working person. Big mistake.

We easily got our car and were out of the airport parking lot by 8:20 AM. First destination: Dole Plantation. Our goal was to get there before the crowds do. We have heard that it is very difficult to visit the place when a couple busloads are on site. We had a beautiful drive to the plantation. Once there, we found we were there thirty minutes before they opened. We decided to take both the train ride and the garden walk. We were the first riders on the train. The ride traversed two miles. We had the opportunity to see a variety of plants that grow in Hawaii. So many are plants that would never grow in Michigan. There were bananas, macadamias, coffee beans, cacao, lychee, mangos, papayas, and other unrecognizable plants. The soil is so high in iron content, you can see it in the very reddish soil In between the train conductor’s narration, they played Hawaiian music. We also passed the Tanada Reservoir, which serves to irrigate the surrounding land, on our ride. Everyone seemed to enjoy the excursion.

We learned that James Dole came to Hawaii in 1899 and began his business. He built a cannery nearby to process the ripe pineapple. Today, Dole employs 3,000 employees annually and 4,000 employees seasonally. They also have a great gift shop and snack. Dennis and I shared a delicious pineapple ice cream cone. Yum. The Hawaiian word for pineapple is "halakahiki" (remember what I said about 14 characters in the Hawaiian language?).

We also learned that a pineapple plant has three growing seasons before it is done. The first fruit is borne in eighteen months; the second is thirty-two months and the last is forty-five months. The plants grow close to waist high. The Cayenne pineapple is the variety grown for general customer purchase.

The people who plant pineapples can plant 10,000 plants per day on over a half acre. Can you believe it? Next time you buy a pineapple at the store, imagine the poor person that planted the plant. Yikes. They also had photographs depicting those who pick the pineapples. They are so heavily clothed to protect their bodies from the picky, pointy plants.

We enjoyed the walk through the gardens, enjoying bird of paradise, hibiscus, bromeliads (by the way, pineapples are bromeliads), and even an unusual purple water lily. This was so relaxing. We both noticed the unique bark of a gum tree. We saw something like this when we were in the Grand Canyon area last spring but this tree was really striking. It had the absolute smoothest bark and the bark was multi-colored in pale greens, pinks and grays. It was almost like a striped camouflage.

Once leaving the plantation, we head north towards the famed surfing areas. Along the way, Dennis got out of the car and took a few shots of pineapple fields with mountains in the background. Maybe the Dole family is looking for a new label on their canned pineapple and will use one. lol

The best surfing on the north shores of Oahu begins in December, but as we drove past spots where we could view the surfers, we noticed that every available parking spot (and even those places that were not parking lots) were filled with cars and trucks. Their owners were out on the waves, enjoying a gorgeous Hawaii day. The surfers were out so far, we were really unable to photograph them so that you would see more than a dot in the picture. Despite that fact, it was so enjoyable to drive along the coast and see the glorious natural wonder. When you think of waves on Lake Huron on a windy day and then multiply them by ten, that is hint at what these waves looked like. They must be unbelievable in December.

We stopped in a little town called Haleiwa (no, not Halleluia) that was filled with walkers and vacationers. There were craft stands and cute little shops. We saw an artist who cleverly painted Hawaiian scenes on surfboards. Some of the boards were standing up in the ground and created a “picket fence” or panorama. Very cool.

Our last stop for the day was the Polynesian Cultural Center, where many of the Polynesian nations are represented. They have the all American greed culture down pat as we had to pay $9 just to park the car. Then it was $45 each for general admission. Think of this place like a small part of Cedar Point or Six Flags, where an area is dedicated to a certain era. Cedar Point has Frontier Town. The Polynesian Cultural Center had areas representing Samoa, Fiji, Hawaii, Tonga, Tahiti, etc. Each area offered demonstrations and shows at different times of the day. The Center also abounded with gorgeous flowers, waterfalls and man made rivers. You felt as if you were on a Pacific island each time you entered a nation’s area.

We particularly enjoyed the Samoan show. The presenter was not only talented, but also funny. He showed how the Samoans made fire, cut a coconut, shredded coconut and even climbed a coconut tree. He said that in Samoa, the men do all the cooking. Now, I could learn to like that. He said that the men would serve their wife and family and their parents. Once their sons were old enough to cook, they took over and the older man didn’t have to cook any longer. He said that the women of Samoa were very happy. I can see why. He also said there weren’t any men left on Samoa. lol

Another area that was fun to visit was the Hawaii exhibition. They were teaching the hula. I got into it and learned the steps and hand actions. My hips however, do not perform the way the female hula dancers hips performed. They almost appeared double jointed at the hips. Hmmmm….

We took a ride on one of the canoes that traverses the river and enjoyed the scenery from that perspective.

We ran out of time, as we needed to get the rental car back and head to the airport. Everything went as planned and we were waiting for the plane about 1 ½ hours before departure. Watching them load that A330 Airbus makes you gulp. They had more pallets (looked more like boxcars) to load onto that plane. Much of it was probably food for the flight (300 passengers for a nine hour flight) but there also must have been a lot of freight that they were transporting to the mainland for other companies.

Once on the plane, we settled in for our non-stop flight home. We were leaving Hawaii at 6:00 PM and it would be 9:00 AM when we arrived back in Detroit. We would need to sleep on that plane in order to stay in synch. Dennis was successful; I was not. I watched a couple movies, read and dozed. We landed in Detroit, glad to be home but filled with memories to last a lifetime.

If you’ve ever considered Hawaii but thought it too far or too expensive, start saving your money. It is worth every penny. It is truly a national treasure. Hawaiians are friendly, kind and very appreciative of tourists.

“Mahalo” (Thank you) for reading this blog and traveling with us again. Aloha!

Last Day in Kaua'i - Friday, October 8, 2010

This is our last day on Kaua’i. The ship departs from port at 2:00 PM. In an unusual itinerary, the ship will actually head in a northwesterly direction along the Kaua’i coast so that everyone on the ship can see the beautiful Na Pali coast. Once we are at the coast and everyone on board has an opportunity to see this area that is only available for viewing via boat or helicopter, the boat will turn around and head south towards Honolulu.

We ate breakfast and then decided to catch a shuttle to do a bit of shopping. At the last minute, Dennis bailed on me and hopped on a trolley that would go towards the beach. Camera in tow, he was hoping to get a couple shots of the cruise ship and some beautiful scenes along the shore.

Did a bit of shopping and just people watching. I know this may be politically incorrect but I am going to say it anyway. If I offend anyone, I am sorry. One of the best things about this cruise was the fact that every sign we saw, every piece of information we read was in ENGLISH. No Spanish subtitles. It is amazing to me as the Hawaiian language is spoken on the Islands BUT they use English as the language of commerce. Why can’t we do that in the rest of the United States? There, I said it.

After browsing, I called Dennis because I realized the beach was right behind the shopping area I was walking. We connected. I told him that we should run to each other when we saw each other on the beach like they do in the movies, but he didn’t see it my way. lol

We walked along the beach and enjoyed the beautiful flowers and green areas around the nearby Marriott hotel. On the property was a sign, hanging next to a dangling coconut.
The sign said:




If the coconut is wet…it’s raining
If the coconut is swaying…it’s windy
If the coconut is hot…it’s warm
If the coconut is cool…it’s overcast
If the coconut is blue…it’s cold
If the coconut is shaking…earthquake
If the coconut is gone…hurricane

Too funny.

We ran into a Vietnam vet trying to make a few bucks who was making birds and flowers from coconut tree fronds. This guy was really talented. Too bad the delicate creations won’t make it in our luggage.

We headed back to the ship, ready to head back to Honolulu. Kaua’i is a beautiful and peaceful island.

At about 5:30 PM, we reached the Na Pali Coast area of Kauai. It was as gorgeous as we imagined. This is the spot where we tried to get a photograph yesterday and were foiled by clouds. Now we were at sea level and despite clouds at the top of the mountains, we had a clear view. We photographed the scene from our balcony and were even able to get the cabin steward to take our picture. How lucky we are.

The ship will be back in Honolulu at 7 AM tomorrow. We will rent a car again and drive to the north side of Oahu before we depart for home in the evening. I need to practice my “Aloha”.

Nawiliwili Kaua'i - Thursday, October 7, 2010

We arrived in Nawiliwili, Kaua’i about 7:00 AM. One of the first things we saw from our balcony was a mini lighthouse as we approached the harbor. Nawiliwili is very close to the town of Lihue. Kaua’i is the least populated island we have visited, with approximately 50,000 people (Oahu by comparison has one million inhabitants). Kaua’i is reputed to be run by five families that have some type of control over the population of the island. We’re not sure if that is true, but it is what we have been told.

When we departed the ship, we caught the shuttle for the rental car. Same gig, different day. lol There are many places to visit on this island and it is hard to decide where to start. We are so worried about the weather again. It is sunny with puffy clouds, but the clouds appear to be collecting and we could be facing cloudiness in a short period of time.

We decide to head to Waimea Canyon, considered the Grand Canyon of the Pacific. Just having been to the real Grand Canyon less than five months ago, this should be interesting. The drive is about 35 miles away, northwest of where the ship is docked. The drive is relaxing. We pass a coffee plantation. Maybe we’ll stop there on the way back. The road winds and ascends, taking us to over 5,000 feet. The road began to take on a reddish look and the guardrails looked rusty. The high iron content in the soil causes the coloration. We get to the top and climb to a platform above the canyon. Although not as deep as the Grand Canyon, Waimea Canyon is impressive and surprisingly like the Grand Canyon. The Grand Canyon has more depth to it when you look afar, but this is still breathtaking. Many languages are heard as we stand on the platform.

We continue along the road, heading to Kokee State Park. At the top of this state park there is a outlook that overlooks the mountains and what is known as the Na Pali coast. The coast is breathtaking and to really appreciate it, it needs to be viewed by boat or helicopter. We walk to the outlook and we see nothing but a cloud. It appears that it might clear if one waits long enough. We waited and waited, taking a picture of two, but none of them capture the beauty that we know is behind the cloud. We can hear a helicopter in the distance but it is a wall of clouds and so their visibility is as good as ours. Not. Okay, we’ll have to forego this one. We still want to find a waterfall that we have seen in one of our Hawaii books. We can’t seem to find it and so we stopped at the visitors’ center. The guide told us that the waterfall doesn’t exist anymore. You’ve got to be kidding. No, not kidding.

Now this is supposed to be one of the wettest places on Earth. In fact, nearby Mt. Wailaleale is THE wettest place on Earth with an average rainfall of 460 inches! So, how could a waterfall disappear???

On our way back to Lihue, we stopped at the Kauai Coffee Plantation. This is the largest coffee plantation in the United States. They have quite an operation, with a taste testing area, gift shop and lunch area. It is a beautiful day and what a great way to enjoy lunch. We photograph coffee bushes with the beautiful mountains in the background. Wow.

Leaving the coffee fields, there are two more spots we want to see. One is called Salt Pond. It is a lovely beach area and near it is a water pool that collects salt water and the salt residue is collected and dried as sea salt. We also stop at Poipu Beach Park where we get to see the “Spouting Horn”. This natural phenomenon is a lava tube (hollow) on the lava beach area where the ocean water shoots into and creates a water explosion every 15-20 seconds. It is so funny to see a large group of people (arriving by bus, car, van, etc.) to stare at a hole in the lava, spitting water. How silly, right? We stood right next to them, staring at the hole.

We head back to town and want to make one last stop before ending our day. We drive to Wailua State Park to see Wailua Falls. It is a two-stream fall that drops about 200 feet. It was actually more beautiful than we had expected.

Dennis wants to do a little shopping, so I dropped him off at a shopping center that has a shuttle back to the ship. I wanted to visit the famous Hilo Hattie’s store that carries all things Hawaiian. It is said that a trip to Hawaii is not complete without a trip to Hilo Hattie’s (even our brother-in-law told us about it). After my stop, I returned the car rental and took their shuttle back to the ship. Getting back to the room, we find a towel monkey hanging from the ceiling. If you have taken a cruise, you know the cabin stewards try to entertain you every day with another animal towel creation. This is the first time we have found a monkey hanging. Our cabin steward, Bonifacio is pretty funny.

Tomorrow we are just going to chill on the ship and maybe take a shuttle into town for a short walk. The ship will leave Nawiliwili at 2 PM tomorrow and the ship will take a spin by the Na Pali Coast before heading back to Honolulu.