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| This Bird of Paradise is the best example we’ve seen of a bloom appearing to be a bird’s head. |
Last night’s dinner party at Alice and Travis’ house with Louise and Steve was more fun than we ever could have imagined. The stories, the laughter, and the bantering back and forth was indescribable. All I know is that by the end of the evening our faces and bellies hurt from laughing so hard and so long.
I drove home. Tom, who rarely drinks alcohol had his fair share last night, and although I don’t drink for health reasons I too felt intoxicated from the great evening.
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| Thanks to reader Annie, this is Ixora. |
How did we get so lucky to meet so many fabulous people? And how hard is it going to be to leave exactly three weeks from today?
It’s funny how we never have trouble leaving a place. Instead, we find it difficult to leave living beings behind, both human and animal.
This morning Birdie saw me wander into the kitchen while he sat atop his favorite tree. Immediately, he flew to the lanai railing and began singing his song as shown in this video (in case you missed it). For a more professional Northern Cardinal video presented by Cornell Labs, please click here.
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| Nature has a way of creating flawless symmetry as in this variety of Plumeria. |
We’ll miss him and his significant other both of whom we’ve interacted several times each day. He’s our first sign of life each morning and last, just before dark as we dine at the table beside the sliding screen door. While we’re dining, he sings. How can we not miss this magical display of life, however tiny he and she maybe?
And the people? Ah, how can we not miss them?
We’ve found that somehow we are able to build strong relationships with people we meet in our travels in relatively short periods of time. In our old lives, it seemed that building new friendships transpired over a period of years, not months.
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| The buds on flowers such as this Plumeria (often used for making leis) become beautiful in themselves. |
Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that many of those we meet are on the move like us in one way or another. Most of the friends we’ve made here in Kauai came from other locals for example Louise and Steve are originally from the UK.
Alice and Travis are from the state of Washington, having moved here permanently five years ago. This is the case with most people we meet. They, like us, came from somewhere else, longing for the lifestyle only Hawaii or similar island living has to offer.
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| Volcanic rock is also seen along the shore in some areas of Kauai. |
As for future islands on our upcoming itinerary which includes both Fiji and Bali, we have few expectations that life on those islands will be comparable to living in Hawaii.
Some have mentioned that both Fiji and Bali can be rough in areas with political unrest, poverty, and strife. We never promised ourselves nor expected that everywhere we live will be easy or feel as luxurious as living in Princeville has been these past months.
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| As the tide rolls in the waves pound against the lava rocks. |
We easily recall where we’ve lived in the past, in the heat and humidity with insects everywhere, crawling about our feet and buzzing about our heads. Last night, we mentioned that we’d lived outdoors in Kenya on the open (no screens) veranda for three months when there was no indoor living room, lounge, or salon. here were two bedrooms, one bath, a small galley kitchen with a small hallway connecting them.
Each day the temperature was in the high 80’s to low 100’s with humidity so awful that the zippers on our luggage turned green. Tom used WD40 (Kenya’s version) to release the zippers each week to ensure they’d work when we left.
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| From what I can determine online, this is a coot. If any of our readers have any suggestions on this breed, please post a comment or send an email. |
The flies and mosquitoes were rampant and every day I had to lather up with a DEET (below 30%), the only product that would keep me from being bit.
The insects and the heat were equally bad in South Africa but, by the time we got to Marloth Park, we were accustomed to being outdoors all day. There, we had two living rooms inside the house and yet we stayed outdoors on the veranda (again no screens) all day amid the heat and insects, batting off the flies, keeping an eye out for snakes and poisonous things.
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| This is a hala plant. Please see this link for details. |
After those total of six-month experiences during which neither of us whined or complained, we’re thinking that Fiji and Bali won’t be any more difficult and most likely will be somewhat easier.
As for the political climate in both of these countries, the properties are located far from the busy cities where most of the danger lurks. Plus, in Fiji, we’ll be living in a resort with managers and security on the premises. In Bali, we’ll have a house staff on the premises. Both scenarios put our minds at ease.
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| There are many bath and candle shops throughout the islands comparable to this shop in Kilauea. With the scent of flowers blooming year-round, it’s not surprising that many small businesses are centered around scented soaps and candles. |
Worry? No, we’re not worried. We’ve come to accept that there is no place in the world that is entirely safe from crime, natural disasters, and political unrest. We’d only need to watch the US news in the past week, months, or years to realize that nowhere is entirely safe.
We can’t live this life in fear of what could happen. We choose to live this life in love with each other, in love with what we see in front of us; the people, the wildlife, and the beauty.
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| The former movie theatre in Kilauea is now a church offering free lunches every Sunday after the service. |
That, dear readers, drives us on with the hope and the passion for an extraordinary and safe experience anywhere in the world we find ourselves.
Tonight is our final Full Moon Party to be held at the Makai Golf Course pool house. Today, I’ll make our pu pu to bring, Hawaiian flavored chicken wings (a few without the sauce for me), and off we’ll go to yet another fun evening on the island. We love island living. Stay tuned. Much more to come.
Photo from one year ago today, May 2, 2014:
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| In the Medina, aka the Big Square in Marrakech, vendors would often neatly place their products on the ground on a blanket expecting passersby to negotiate. Within a short period, this display would turn into a messy pile as the vendors were busy selling the item. At this time, one year ago, we were less than two weeks from leaving Morocco, chomping at the bit to be back on the move. For details, please click here. |