Beautiful Kauai

Tunnels Beach, Kauai

Tropical Cats and Dogs

Ever hear that expression 'raining cats and dogs'? Well, every trip we take to a beach destination, we see so many cats and dogs -- I think it MUST be raining them! And we usually manage to befriend a few furry types on each trip. Here are a few of our favorites over the years.

This little kitty always hung out at the old Angelo's location on Isla waiting for some shrimp!

Spot loved tocino at the French Bistro on Isla. Haven't seen him lately?

It was a cold and windy December night on Hidalgo for FeFe (or Pepe)!

Playa Indio Dog

Cocktail hour guests at Mar y Sol

The Kids always greeted us every sunrise at Luna Turquesa.

Craig and LoLo in Hanapepe, Kauai.

Morning walk friend at Anini Beach. Look at that smile!

Craig and his Posse at Moloa'a Bay

Remember the Caribbean Cafe dogs? Here they're both waiting patiently for a bite of Craig's steak!

And here's the Secreto couch potato cat from 2002. They hated that cat on that couch! :) But no matter how hard they tried, she wouldn't stay away. She'd found her rightful place in life. And you have to admit, she looks very charming curled up on that white couch.

Last, but certainly not least, we have Mrs. Stripe. I'd never felt very warm and fuzzy about any of the Stripe family. They used to hang out down around the Convention Center and Maria del Mar. On our last trip, Mrs. Stripe had made her home at Bally Hoo. She'd sometimes wander over to the table and Craig would scratch her head. A friend on Isla, and I won't name name's, calls the Stripes the mutant dogs. :)

A Couple of Beach Quotes

I love this beach quote! -- “Our memories of the ocean will linger on, long after our footprints in the sand are gone.” Anonymous

Hideaways Beach, Kauai 2007

And this one's funny! --"A real friend is someone who takes a winter vacation on a sun-drenched beach and does not send a card.” Farmer's Almanac

Posada del Mar Beach, Isla Mujeres, 2005

Tropical Splendor

Sunset is usually a gathering time in the tropics. When we've stayed on Kauai, people gather in groups at the beach waiting for the sun to go down.

In the Poipu area, people line the sidewalks and lawn at the Beachhouse Restaurant to take in the above view.


On the North Shore, there's a party atmosphere on Hanalei Bay. Local families congregate at Hanalei Beach Park to picnic, play music, and watch the sunset. Little kids take turns jumping from the pier. Some evenings, a Hawaiian man appears and sounds a large conch shell as the sun descends into the water.



Some nights when we were too tired to drive into Hanalei, we'd get lucky from our location on the northeastern side of the island. I took this picture of sunset reflected in the clouds from the deck of our studio on Moloa'a Bay.

Sunset on Isla Mujeres is also a time to get a drink and watch the show. When I was there in December 2005, sunset was early, so I would take a stroll down Medina to admire the view.

Playa Del Sol, Isla Mujeres

Airport Strip Sunset, Isla Mujeres

Sunset over Bally Hoo, Isla Mujeres

Mmmmm. Teriyaki and the Tropics!

Since it's the weekend, I thought I'd post a recipe for the grill. Teriyaki is something we've been missing since moving to Arizona. In our past life, we had a large selection of little mom & pop teriyaki joints close to us where we could call in an order and pick it up in 15 minutes. And usually one order of teriyaki chicken and rice was enough to feed both of us. Yum!

Recently we decided we were in a rut and I HAD to come up with a decent substitute for chicken teriyaki. So Cindy McCain style (the cookie debacle), I had my assistant (that would be me) do an internet search, pull a recipe off the internet, modify it slightly, and now I'm calling it my own.

Asian Teriyaki Chicken

1/4 c. low sodium soy sauce

1/4 c. packed brown sugar

1/4 t. curry powder

1/2 t. red pepper flakes

Juice of 1 lime along with lime zest

8 skinless boneless chicken thighs

Combine first 5 ingredients and pour over chicken thighs placed in a zip-lock bag. Marinate at least 4 hours, then grill. Drain marinade into saucepan and boil for at least a minute. Use this sauce to baste the chicken while grilling. We also grill pineapple slices to serve with the chicken and rice.

We like this recipe better than the Chicken Teriyaki carryout (which is a good thing since we haven't found a place here). I think it's a little spicier than the average teriyaki due to the red pepper flakes, but we're hooked!

Teriyaki always reminds me of the tropics. In addition to teriyaki chicken, I love a good teriyaki burger. My favorite on Kauai is the teriyaki burger with pineapple and cheese at Duane's Ono Burger. But it's a bit of a drive and there's usually a long line. So sometimes we just settle for Bubba's in Hanalei. It's not gourmet, but Bubba's is a quick place to pick up a quick dinner after an afternoon of snorkeling.

One evening we were sitting outside by Bubba's enjoying our burgers and fries. We'd been too hungry to make our nightly trip down to the beach to enjoy the sunset before dinner. It must have been good karma because we were presented with a beautiful 'fire in the sky' sunset right there at the picnic table!

Here's a little bit more spice from around the island.

A Lonely Beach!

I hadn't paid much attention to the band Mana for a few years, so when I noticed this video on on YouTube, I decided to post it. Love it! Not knowing anything about Chico Mendes, I found this quote on Wikipedia:

Francisco Alves Mendes Filho, better known as Chico Mendes (December 15, 1944 – December 22, 1988), was a Brazilian rubber tapper, unionist and environmental activist. He fought to stop the burning and logging of the Amazon Rainforest to clear land for cattle ranching, and founded a national union of rubber tappers in an attempt to preserve their profession and the rainforest that it relied upon. He was murdered in 1988 by ranchers opposed to his activism. He is survived by three children (Angela, Elenira, and Sandino Mendes). "At first I thought I was fighting to save rubber trees, then I thought I was fighting to save the Amazon rainforest. Now I realise I am fighting for humanity."

The video's theme of man's spoiling of planet Earth made me reach today to think of an uncrowded unspoiled beach that we've visited. I know the music of Mana would go better with a Mexican beach, but my travels aren't extensive enough there to have discovered any less-traveled beaches. The only beach that came to mind was Hanakapiai Beach on the Napali coastline of Kauai. It's not a deserted beach, but we were the only people on it the day we hiked to it.

Getting there involved a slippery two-mile scramble up and down the Kalalau Trail that hugs the Napali coastline for its first two miles. At the beginning of the trail, I was convinced we were on the wrong path because it was literally what appeared to be a dry (but very wet since it's Kauai) rocky stream bed. But once we got beyond that, it was an up and down rocky dirt (at times extremely muddy) trail. Hiking boots would definitely have been a better option than my beach jogging shoes because the trail was a real beater on the feet and knees. The views were spectacular. We were even able to spot dolphins offshore. At times, we were overwhelmed by the fragrant fruity smell of guava. Craig picked some along the trail to eat, but waited until we were back to the trailhead (because no one wants to be sick where there are NO facilities!). The only people we passed along the way were some barefoot surfers trekking out after their morning fun. And I couldn't believe they could hike that trail with no shoes. OUCH! At the end of the two miles, after jumping from one stone to the next over a stream that rushes down to sea, we finally saw our reward.

Hanakapiai Beach

The surf here is extremely dangerous, as noted by this sign on the trail, so we stayed out of the water.

Kalalau Trail

View of Ke'e Beach from the Trail

Ke'e looked fairly deserted on this trip, but it's become a destination for cruise daytrips and is currently one of the more crowded beaches on the island. I'm guessing that Hanakapiai Beach is still uncrowded because the only access is that eroded and slippery trail. The Kalalau Trail parking lot at Ke'e Beach IS overrun because of the Ke'e Beach traffic, so get there early if you want a parking spot!

Here's hoping for visits to many more deserted unspoiled beaches in my future!

IZ

I always love listening to local artists when we visit Hawaii. I didn't discover the music of Israel Kamakawiwo (IZ) until after he died in 1997. This is one of my favorite songs of all times, and the video is a tribute to a life and beautiful voice that ended way too early. Recently on a message board, we had a discussion about our wishes for memorial planning (most people's plans involved distributing ashes in tropical locations!). My plans involved Playa Norte, a remote-control toy boat, a fireworks display, and the ashes. :) Take a look at the celebration of Iz's life towards the end of this video. What a fantastic way to go out!

Some more of my favorite Kauai pics!

Beach of the Day -- Craig at Hideaway's

Hanalei Pier

Wainiha Store

Old Stone Church

Hanalei Smoothie Stand

The Road to Ke'e Beach

Sailboat on Hanalei Bay

Surf's Up!

Old Hanalei Post Office

Anini View

Hanalei Bay Sunset