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Last days on Kauai, first day on Hawaii (the Big Island)

Last days on Kauai, first day on Hawaii (the Big Island)

Friday, after I did a little bit of work, we decided to just relax and hang around the resort all day. We just laid by the pool, relaxed in the Jacuzzi. We missed almost the whole Monk marathon on USA. We went back to Paradise Grill, the closest restaurant to the resort and so far my favorite place we have eaten. Had fresh grilled Ahi with this cold slaw they make that has a mild ginger background flavor. The seasoned fries are great, too.

Then we drove around. We could see a bay, but had not found it yet. We found a parking spot to get to a beach on the bay, where we went the next morning. We also went shopping, the first time not at Goodwill or Humane Society Thrift. I saw people wearing some of the black pearls at the Kingdom Hall. They are just beautiful. I bought a pair of greenish pearl earrings. I am still looking, though.

Toe sandals

They sell sandals that have toes. Not exactly sandals, shoes like toe socks. They were in two stores so far.

It poured Friday night and when we woke up in the morning there were waterfalls that had not been there before. There was a cloud over the tallest mountain and a series of falls coming down the side of it.

The bay, the entire little wave is dropping at the same time.

Saturday I was afraid it would be packed, since it was a Labor Day weekend, but it was not. We had no trouble finding a parking place. We just relaxed at the beach. I did not get any more sand from this island. I will get some from Hawaii. The bay gets deep fast, but has small waves. The entire wave crashes simultaneously. It is really strange. Silence, just the breeze, and then a loud low crash as a single long low wave drops at the shore.

Ke’e Coral Reef comes almost up to the beach. The cliffs drop down to the water. Cliff is out there snorkeling. I am reading under a tree.

After lunch, we went down to Ke’e Beach, at the end of the road around the island. We have now been to the last beach on the road, both sides. Only a few miles apart, but quite a hike. We were here our first day, but the waves were huge. The wind has changed direction, so it was just beautiful. Cliff dropped me and all our stuff off and went to look for a parking place. Just after he dropped me off, someone left, so he did not have to walk the mile or so to the closest parking we had seen open.

At Ke’e Beach, tree roots are high above the ground. They seem to have had the roots exposed from the water washing the soil away from under them. I don’t know if you can see all of the chickens.

Big trees to lay under (the soil under their roots is all washed away, I attached a photo), warm water. There is a reef that comes almost up to the shore. You can see big tropical fish from water only up to your knees. Cliff snorkeled for a while, then decided to teach me to snorkel. We settled on me wearing the mask and hanging onto him fiercely while we floated over the reef with the occasional panicked clutching and gasping. I blame defective equipment. But, the fish were incredible. Variety, colors most are beautiful. They just swam around doing their own thing whatever that is. They are grazing on something on the coral, or maybe eating the coral. I don’t know. Then they just swim around. Usually a bunch of the same kind together. There were these blue striped ones that were about 18” long. Most, though were about 6” to 8” long and there were clouds of small to tiny baby versions.

The beach was, of course, also covered with chickens.

The Big Island looks like a giant asphalt parking lot

Sunday we caught the plane to the Big Island, which is what everyone here calls the island of Hawaii. We changed planes in Honolulu and flew here while I slept. So far this island looks like a giant after-the-atomic-war asphalt parking lot. All we have done is drive from the airport to the resort. Cliff went grocery shopping while I slept off the Dramamine. On the sides of the highway from the airport to here people put down white rocks or shells to write things on the lava flows.

This resort is really really nice. We are in a two-story, beautifully decorated. The walls have paintings by Gauguin and similar works and have picked up the colors in everything else. The sheets were wonderful. (The last resort I complained and had them replaced.)

This morning Cliff is sleeping in. The resort has a breakfast (which they have promised is not a time-share promotion) sponsored by businesses on the island. That is at 10:00. Then we are going to go down to a bay near here and maybe look for some of the petroglyphs that are around here.

Tomorrow VOLCANO!!!