Day 7 -Kauai By Air and Sea

Day 7 – Sunday, September 5 – We started the day with a two hour stand up paddle board lesson. It’s basically you stand on a surfboard and use one paddle to try to catch a wave. (See that little speck attempting to stand in the picture below? That's Bob!) I spotted a huge green turtle in the shallow bay where we had our lesson. They're an endangered species and the species almost got even smaller thanks to my lack of paddle board skills.  Surprisingly, paddle boarding isn’t as challenging as it looks. But it is tiring. After an hour I was ready to call it quits. Bob had at it another 30 minutes or so before he brought the board in.

Then it was off to lunch at an only so-so Mexican restaurant and then onto our helicopter ride. Kauai never looked more beautiful than from the air. I gained a whole new appreciation for the island and its beauty from the helicopter. So much of the island can’t be seen - or at least fully appreciated - by any other way especially the NaPali Coast, Wai'ale'ale, and Waimia Canyon. The landscape revealed beautiful waterfalls, pencil thin cliffs and stunning colors from the brightest reds to the most emerald greens and crystal clear turquoise water. I’m glad I enjoyed it since Bob said it will be his last – he nearly got sick about half way through and almost had to take advantage of the “comfort bag” (which is why he looks a little ghost-like in the picture).

We ended the night going to a traditional Hawaiian Luau at our hotel. We sat next to a nice couple from Fargo so of course we talked about my year out there and how winters are still brutal and my former stomping grounds burned down. Dinner included traditional Hawaiian food including roast pig and poi. Poi is made from the root of Taro which is farmed in Hawaii. It’s the butt of many jokes for its not-so-good flavor. Bob tried it and left most in the bowl. The entertainment featured dancers doing countless costume changes for countless dances. Our favorite was the fire dancer!