Leaving
the traffic of Lihue and Kapaa behind us, we turned makai (toward
the ocean) at the second Kalihiwai road (there's two of
them on either side of the
big bridge) to look back at Kalihiwai beach. Then we drove for a while along
Anini beach, before turning back to the main highway. Up the road, we parked
in front of the big bridge. (If we hadn't noticed it was "the BIG bridge" until
we crossed it, we could have parked just past it and walked back across, enjoying
the views of waterfalls and ocean.) Walking back on the mountain side of the
road, we gazed at a big waterfall right off the road that may have gone unnoticed
just driving by. (Later, we would often return to cross the shallow stream
and stand in the water or walk under the fall.) Throughout the day, it rained
for
a few minutes every hour - sometimes just a mist, sometimes pouring. Either
way, the breeze dried us quickly. We enjoyed it as part of the Kauai experience.
Driving
past Princeville, we pulled over for views of the Hanalei Valley taro fields
and the ocean, before heading down the hill into town to get our key from the
NaPali Properties lockbox. There, we ran into Big Save to buy cereal and milk
and taro chips and soda and Pina Colada mix, although it would have been less
expensive had we stopped in Kapaa.
THE HOUSE:
We returned to the gate house at Princeville, passing the huge fountain that
marks the elegance of our new neighborhood, and followed the hand-drawn map to
our street. As the street turned, we were pleased to see which address was ours.
The house was hot, so we opened all the windows, turned on all the fans, and
got a great breeze coming through. Then we filled the jacuzzi with cool water
and found it big enough for us both to stretch out. Steve brought a marvelous
collection of CDs and the player holds 5 at a time, so we either have the sounds
of wind in the trees, waves breaking in the
distance, and birds singing, or we have beautiful, quiet music. All of the hassles
of our long trip are already forgotten!
