Kauai Day 9

I was the first to leave--Darlene and her Dad flew home on Sunday. But we had to leave the time-share and they were going back to the cousins home. We got to go to a few more shops...and that was about it! When at the cousins I saw these cute critters:

And this was my send-off view from the time share

I think we saw 3-4 rainbows the whole stay. I miss Ono Shaved Ice. And the cooler weather!
I really had a wonderful time! Aloha!

Kauai Day 8

This was Friday-- the last full day on the island. And it rained. I kind of liked it. So, we had seen so much we decided to shop this day. It was fun. We got some good deals on things because it was "sidewalk sale" day. Not sure if that happens every weekend or not (like the going out of business sign that is there year round for us silly vacationers) but it was successful for all of us! Due to shopping we got to tour most of the island too! I really wanted to see a sea turtle--so we went to Poipu beach. And I saw a HUGE sea turtle! (Again need pics from Darlene so I can prove it.) There were several chickens at this beach:

and lots of Plumeria:

They smell so good!!!
Thankfully it did stop raining so we could enjoy this beach. It was really rocky so not much fun for swimming, but still beautiful!
This night we watched "Soul Surfer". It was fun to watch as most of it was filmed on Kauai (as that is where she is from!) I recognized a lot of the places. Great movie.
Good times in Kauai!

Kauai Day 7

Another beautiful day. We decided to drive south for this day. We saw the Spouting Horn



This also had a great place to shop! I love the cheap jewelry! But it is so nice!
I also had to try a Puka Dog. This place had polish sausages...wrapped in a bun...I chose a pineapple salsa and Hawaiian sauce. SO GOOD!

I loved the yellow hibiscus all over the island.

Then we went up to the Waimea Canyon-- the grand canyon of Hawaii

Now that I live in AZ I guess I should go visit the actual Grand Canyon!
Then we got to see views of the island like this:

and then some hydrangea:

Such a beautiful place.

Kauai Day 6

We got up EARLY today. We had to drive to the southern end of the island for our boat tour. I wish I had brought a jacket or sweatshirt with me. I was just so excited for cooler weather I didn't think I would be cool! Anyhow we got to said boat place at 6 AM. We launched about 6:30. We got to have a nice breakfast on the Catamaran. All of us took some dramamine as we left which was a good thing. Poor Darlene should have had more. It was a pretty ride out. They moved quick... we got to stop and watch the Spinner Dolphins. I think we saw about 20 of them. So beautiful! That was really great for me as I LOVE dolphins. We also saw a lot of flying fish--so COOL! We went to around the Na Pali coast. SO beautiful. So many movies have been filmed on Kauai. The guy showed us where the recent Pirates movie was filmed. We went back really slow so we could get good pictures. (Darlene will someday send me those.) The water was so BLUE!!!
We then went to a place where the top of a volcano comes out of the water. This is where we snorkled. Saw some amazing fish. A Sea Lion came to check us out and swam below us. COOL! Then we got to see the "forbidden island" It is a very private island and you really have to be special or $$ to go to it.
The way back-- we went through a place where 3 currents came together. Darlene and I were at the very back of the boat because she had been a little sick on the way out...I was bouncing around like CRAZY! It was fun for me-- like a roller coaster. I made the guys nervous so they finally found a place for me to sit so I wouldn't go flying off the boat (and I really came close 2-3 times.) Darlene's Dad said the waves had to be 20 feet high in some places! I have no idea. The water kept spraying me so I had my eyes closed. I just know it was intense!
Next to the boat charter place was a chocolate factory. YUM!!! I got some great chocolate---I want more!
We went back to our timeshare. It was a "7 hour tour".
A wonderful Day! I can't wait to see the pictures!

Kauai Day 5

Tuesday--we decided to go kayaking up the Waimea River. Darlene's cousins had the kayaks YEAH!

Darlene and I shared and her Dad went by himself. It was a nice day--the river was calm. I enjoy kayaking. We decided to go straight to the Fern Grotto. It was so beautiful!



I loved the flowers. They were my favorite part of the island.
When coming out of the grotto we met a couple who said the falls that we could kayak to had a ton of people there... so we decided to skip that. The way back down the river was nice. EXCEPT---I discovered my camera was in my ziploc bag--swimming in water. Not sure how the water got in, but it did and it killed my camera. SADNESS- not even rice could save it. I didn't think about using my phone as a camera until towards the end of the trip. Darlene has some good shots but she is still in possession of them.
The pics job my memory--and so I don't remember what else we did this day. We went to bed early because day 6 started EARLY!