Hi, long time no write!
Sorry its been a while, things get busy when you're not busy doing things! I just wanted to share a wonderful little website with you guys that I'm kind of obsessed with at the moment. Its a work exchange site that allows travelers to contact hosts in foreign countries (practically everywhere) who are looking for people to help them with farming, or domestic work. Basically, you work for them doing miscellaneous tasks for about 10 hours a week, and they supply you with free room- sometimes board too. Plus you meet new people, learn about their culture, and hopefully make some friends! This is a great thing to look into if you're planning to travel on a tight budget. The site is called: http://www.workaway.info. It cost 18 euros ($24.90) to sign up as a traveler, but its valid for two years.
Just thought I'd drop in and tell ya' about it, its free to peruse around the site and check out host profiles and pictures, so if you're inclined to look- no need to hesitate about the 18 EUR. I promise I'll try to write more often, I've just gotten a bit sidetracked lately.
Asta!
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Kauai- Day Eleven, Last Day on the Island
Aloha, or should I say Hello?
I've made it back home to Seattle now, and boy is it cold! I wish I were still in Hawaii despite the monsoon rains! Our last day on the island was spent cruising by the Na Pali coast with Hola-Hola Charters on one of their smaller catamarans. I discovered something about myself during this trip- I am extremely prone to sea sickness. Even after taking the medication (one pill the night before and one the morning of) I still felt queezy during the journey into the West coast of Kauai- though I suppose the fact that I had been feeling ill previously could have been a contributing factor. Needless to say, the boat ride was not as fun for me as it could have been for another, less nauseous, individual. However, I could certainly see how someone without motion sickness could easily enjoy themselves, plus- the scenery was spectacular!
The Na Pali coast is the only part of Kauai that cannot be accessed via car- only sea, air, and by an eleven mile hike through rough terrain. I would like to take that hike someday, but it was unfortunately not in the cards for this trip. We were on the catamaran for about five hours. We left at 8am, and got back around 1pm. Hola Hola provided breakfast and lunch, but I'd like to see you try sipping your coffee while simultaneously trying to hold your guts in and stay on your feet! They also offered beer and wine. I didn't have any, but who knows- maybe it made the boat seem more stable?
Before we'd even left the dock we saw whales jumping off in the distance! Humpbacks were breaching left and right (which was very cool for all involved, including yours truly) but for the life of me I could NEVER get a picture. This frustrated me to no end. However, I did snap a pretty good shot of a large pod of dolphins as they swam by!
Also, when traveling in this manner- you will get very wet. By the time we left the boat in the afternoon I was sick and wet and cold. Fortunately, our next stop for the day was at the Kauai Coffee Plantation! Not the first plantation in Hawaii, but the largest for sure! I purchased myself a nice dry shirt, and sipped some hot coffee in the plantation's tasting room (this is where they allow guests to try all their different roasts- for free!) On our way home from our voyage and coffee tasting we saw a little souvenir shop and jewelry gallery off the highway and stopped to do some shopping. Unfortunately, this was the last wave I was able to catch in Hawaii for a while:
The next morning we awoke before the sunrise and headed off for the Lihue Airport. :(
Since then, I've been constantly pinning for Hawaii, but no worries!
To console my older sister for leaving her behind on our Hawaii trip, my mom and I decided we would take a "ladies trip" to Italy and Greece! This trip will take place in spring of 2012, and will include Me, my mom (Kathy), my big sister (Heather), and my niece (Marina). I still plan on traveling to Thailand as well, but Europe may be sooner. Either way, I will be blogging about my preparation for both trips over the coming months! Our trip to Italy/Greece will begin in Rome, then take us to Florence, then Cinque Terre, and finally to Greece where we want to visit some smaller islands in addition to seeing Athens! We are planning on spending about three weeks abroad, and I can't wait!!
Until next time!
I've made it back home to Seattle now, and boy is it cold! I wish I were still in Hawaii despite the monsoon rains! Our last day on the island was spent cruising by the Na Pali coast with Hola-Hola Charters on one of their smaller catamarans. I discovered something about myself during this trip- I am extremely prone to sea sickness. Even after taking the medication (one pill the night before and one the morning of) I still felt queezy during the journey into the West coast of Kauai- though I suppose the fact that I had been feeling ill previously could have been a contributing factor. Needless to say, the boat ride was not as fun for me as it could have been for another, less nauseous, individual. However, I could certainly see how someone without motion sickness could easily enjoy themselves, plus- the scenery was spectacular!
The Na Pali coast is the only part of Kauai that cannot be accessed via car- only sea, air, and by an eleven mile hike through rough terrain. I would like to take that hike someday, but it was unfortunately not in the cards for this trip. We were on the catamaran for about five hours. We left at 8am, and got back around 1pm. Hola Hola provided breakfast and lunch, but I'd like to see you try sipping your coffee while simultaneously trying to hold your guts in and stay on your feet! They also offered beer and wine. I didn't have any, but who knows- maybe it made the boat seem more stable?
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| Add caption |
Before we'd even left the dock we saw whales jumping off in the distance! Humpbacks were breaching left and right (which was very cool for all involved, including yours truly) but for the life of me I could NEVER get a picture. This frustrated me to no end. However, I did snap a pretty good shot of a large pod of dolphins as they swam by!
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| Oh my! Aren't they cute? |
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| Yes, it is made of plaster. |
Since then, I've been constantly pinning for Hawaii, but no worries!
To console my older sister for leaving her behind on our Hawaii trip, my mom and I decided we would take a "ladies trip" to Italy and Greece! This trip will take place in spring of 2012, and will include Me, my mom (Kathy), my big sister (Heather), and my niece (Marina). I still plan on traveling to Thailand as well, but Europe may be sooner. Either way, I will be blogging about my preparation for both trips over the coming months! Our trip to Italy/Greece will begin in Rome, then take us to Florence, then Cinque Terre, and finally to Greece where we want to visit some smaller islands in addition to seeing Athens! We are planning on spending about three weeks abroad, and I can't wait!!
Until next time!
Friday, January 14, 2011
Happy Journeys, Travel Blog: Kauai- Day Four, You Can Dance if You Want to
Happy Journeys, Travel Blog: Kauai- Day Four, You Can Dance if You Want to: "Aloha! I finally got my pictures in order for Kauai Day Four! I think you're going to enjoy them. In t..."
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Kauai- Days Nine and Ten, Rain.
Aloha....
Its been raining for two days. Raining as in monsoon raining. We haven't been able to do much. Apparently there is a storm passing over Kauai and Oahu that is causing all the rainy, windy weather. There is also a flash flood warning. Also, I've been sick to my stomach with some kind of flu-type bug since yesterday evening. So yeah... not a whole lot to report, and I'm sorry for that. However, if the sun decides to grace us with her presence by tomorrow morning, and I get to feeling better, we're scheduled for a morning sailboat cruise along the Na Pali Coast- which is the only part of Kauai that must be accessed via boat, air, or eleven mile hike through jungles and over cliffs. We get to go snorkeling off the boat as well! Exciting. I hope I feel better by then.
Mahalo.
Its been raining for two days. Raining as in monsoon raining. We haven't been able to do much. Apparently there is a storm passing over Kauai and Oahu that is causing all the rainy, windy weather. There is also a flash flood warning. Also, I've been sick to my stomach with some kind of flu-type bug since yesterday evening. So yeah... not a whole lot to report, and I'm sorry for that. However, if the sun decides to grace us with her presence by tomorrow morning, and I get to feeling better, we're scheduled for a morning sailboat cruise along the Na Pali Coast- which is the only part of Kauai that must be accessed via boat, air, or eleven mile hike through jungles and over cliffs. We get to go snorkeling off the boat as well! Exciting. I hope I feel better by then.
Mahalo.
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
Kauai- Day Eight, Gypsies and Witches
Aloha!
Welcome back to my Kauai based travel blog! We are on day eight of the Great Hawaiian Adventure, and with only three days remaining of our trip, this chapter of the blog will soon be coming to a close. Sad face. But no worries, because there are many exciting adventures planned for later in the year, and for next year! For now, lets talk about day eight of the trip.
Day eight was yesterday 1/11/11 (oh my!) and the one thing I enjoyed most about Hawaii has been the surfing, so I deiced to take another lesson with Tanner to truly familiarize myself with being in the ocean, and catching my own waves. Unfortunately, I did not get a private lesson for the price of a group lesson this time. I shared my class with three tourists from Romania- Alitzia, Marioze, and a guy we just called "Armie" because his name was way to difficult to pronounce. Tanner decided to shorten their names even further into Mario, Ella, and Armie. I found this amusing.
Upon meeting the Romanians (who were actually from the infamous Transylvania!) I mistakenly thought that I had stumbled into some good luck, because even though I don't know much about the country, I had happened to read an article in the local paper about how their president had decided to start taxing the Romanian "witches" the previous day. "Yippie!" I thought, "I have a conversation starter! How fortunate it is that I read that article!". I slyly (or so I thought) mentioned "Hm... Romania, I believe I read an article in the paper about how your president has decided to start taxing the witches, yes?".
After a brief pause during which six pairs of Romanian eyes stared at me (in pleasant surprise that someone was knowledgeable about their country and wanted to converse with them about their culture? No.) they all burst out in riotous laughter, at my expense. Immediately embarrassed, I said "Oh, no? It must have been a different country...." even though I was positive the article had said Romania. The tall one, Mario, said in a thick accent "There are no witches in Romania." and began laughing again. His shorter, rounder counterpart (who I later learned was his brother-in-law) said, "No, this article was mistaken." finally, Ella, the tall one's sister said to the group "She means the gypsies!" then, looking at me and speaking slowly "You know..." gesturing to her hand, "the one's that read the palms."
This is how I learned that there is apparently a huge difference between gypsies and witches.
After this we all had a good laugh about how Mario and Armie were actually a werewolf and a vampire, and that they all lived in castles. Ha. Despite my initial mortification over apparently making a huge cultural faux pas, we had a good time surfing together that day. This goes to show, that even if you don't always know exactly what you're talking about (like when the American media lets you down via bypassing important details in their articles) you should still put yourself out there and be prepared to have a laugh and make a few friends. Besides, I got my revenge by watching the Romanians pound sand for the first half hour of our lesson (evil laugh).
Oh, yeah! Here are some photos of me being awesome and catching my own waves all day.
I know- I look very cool, and not at all like I'm about to fall over at any moment. What can I say? I'm a natural.
After my lesson the parents and I went to Kalypso's in Hanalei Bay. Out of all the towns on Kauai, I think Hanalei is my favorite. The restaurant was good- I had the fish burger with fresh Mahi Mahi. Its about medium price range there, and they have beer, wine, and cocktails. After lunch, I wanted to rent a scooter to ride around on my own for a bit. Those of you who know me, know that I deliver pizza via motor scooter back in Seattle, so I am an experienced driver. They charged $15 an hour at Island Scooter Rentals in Hanalei. This is a rip off for renting a scooter- if you ask me, but it was cheaper than any other place we'd seen (they usually cost about $20-25 per hour). When it was time to take off with the scooter, the woman running the stand handed me a bicycle helmet. This is very bad. If you crash at 45 mph, a bicycle helmet will do you absolutely no good whatsoever. However, I had already given her my credit card info, so I said ok and took the helmet. My mistake is your benefit- always check to see that you get a proper motorcycle helmet before relinquishing funds. The ride was ok, and it was a nice way to check out the scenery, but it was too pricey with low quality equipment. I would not recommend scooter rental- at least in Hawaii.
After roaming about on the scooter, we decided to head back to our hotel and make lamb chops on the BBQ. It was a good day, despite the bike helmet.
Until next time!
Mahalo.
Welcome back to my Kauai based travel blog! We are on day eight of the Great Hawaiian Adventure, and with only three days remaining of our trip, this chapter of the blog will soon be coming to a close. Sad face. But no worries, because there are many exciting adventures planned for later in the year, and for next year! For now, lets talk about day eight of the trip.
Day eight was yesterday 1/11/11 (oh my!) and the one thing I enjoyed most about Hawaii has been the surfing, so I deiced to take another lesson with Tanner to truly familiarize myself with being in the ocean, and catching my own waves. Unfortunately, I did not get a private lesson for the price of a group lesson this time. I shared my class with three tourists from Romania- Alitzia, Marioze, and a guy we just called "Armie" because his name was way to difficult to pronounce. Tanner decided to shorten their names even further into Mario, Ella, and Armie. I found this amusing.
Upon meeting the Romanians (who were actually from the infamous Transylvania!) I mistakenly thought that I had stumbled into some good luck, because even though I don't know much about the country, I had happened to read an article in the local paper about how their president had decided to start taxing the Romanian "witches" the previous day. "Yippie!" I thought, "I have a conversation starter! How fortunate it is that I read that article!". I slyly (or so I thought) mentioned "Hm... Romania, I believe I read an article in the paper about how your president has decided to start taxing the witches, yes?".
After a brief pause during which six pairs of Romanian eyes stared at me (in pleasant surprise that someone was knowledgeable about their country and wanted to converse with them about their culture? No.) they all burst out in riotous laughter, at my expense. Immediately embarrassed, I said "Oh, no? It must have been a different country...." even though I was positive the article had said Romania. The tall one, Mario, said in a thick accent "There are no witches in Romania." and began laughing again. His shorter, rounder counterpart (who I later learned was his brother-in-law) said, "No, this article was mistaken." finally, Ella, the tall one's sister said to the group "She means the gypsies!" then, looking at me and speaking slowly "You know..." gesturing to her hand, "the one's that read the palms."
This is how I learned that there is apparently a huge difference between gypsies and witches.
After this we all had a good laugh about how Mario and Armie were actually a werewolf and a vampire, and that they all lived in castles. Ha. Despite my initial mortification over apparently making a huge cultural faux pas, we had a good time surfing together that day. This goes to show, that even if you don't always know exactly what you're talking about (like when the American media lets you down via bypassing important details in their articles) you should still put yourself out there and be prepared to have a laugh and make a few friends. Besides, I got my revenge by watching the Romanians pound sand for the first half hour of our lesson (evil laugh).
Oh, yeah! Here are some photos of me being awesome and catching my own waves all day.
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After my lesson the parents and I went to Kalypso's in Hanalei Bay. Out of all the towns on Kauai, I think Hanalei is my favorite. The restaurant was good- I had the fish burger with fresh Mahi Mahi. Its about medium price range there, and they have beer, wine, and cocktails. After lunch, I wanted to rent a scooter to ride around on my own for a bit. Those of you who know me, know that I deliver pizza via motor scooter back in Seattle, so I am an experienced driver. They charged $15 an hour at Island Scooter Rentals in Hanalei. This is a rip off for renting a scooter- if you ask me, but it was cheaper than any other place we'd seen (they usually cost about $20-25 per hour). When it was time to take off with the scooter, the woman running the stand handed me a bicycle helmet. This is very bad. If you crash at 45 mph, a bicycle helmet will do you absolutely no good whatsoever. However, I had already given her my credit card info, so I said ok and took the helmet. My mistake is your benefit- always check to see that you get a proper motorcycle helmet before relinquishing funds. The ride was ok, and it was a nice way to check out the scenery, but it was too pricey with low quality equipment. I would not recommend scooter rental- at least in Hawaii.
After roaming about on the scooter, we decided to head back to our hotel and make lamb chops on the BBQ. It was a good day, despite the bike helmet.
Until next time!
Mahalo.
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Kauai- Day Four, You Can Dance if You Want to
Aloha!
I finally got my pictures in order for Kauai Day Four! I think you're going to enjoy them. In the morning of day four, I took some time to explore downtown Kapa'a (where our hotel is located) on my own. Its a cute little beach town, but I wouldn't recommend swimming or snorkeling due to the strong current. I saw little swimwear boutiques (expensive) and some surfing outfitters (expensive) and a guy with a rooster sitting on the handlebars of his bicycle. Yes... a live rooster. Now, if I rode around with a live rooster sitting on my handlebars, I would just expect people to take photos of me- I may even be encouraging them to through the act of rooster carrying, but when I asked if I could take a photo I got a cold stare and a "I would prefer you didn't". This is why rooster-bike-man is not pictured here today.
After wandering around for some time and spending too much money, I got a craving for some coffee. I found a little place (a local chain) called Java Kai. I recently discovered (when I went surfing there) that there is also a Java Kai in Hanalei Bay, but if you don't want to wait in line forever, you should arrive before 7:30am, because Java Kai is practically one of the only competent cafes on the island. A good breakfast/cafe place would make a killing in Hanalei Bay. Anyway, I had a pleasant day wandering around little Kapa'a. Its cute here.
Around 4:30pm, my parents picked me up for the Smith Family Luau! I know, "Smith" Family? What is that? Apparently, the man who first started the Smith Family Luau was an Englishman who came to Kauai years and years ago and married a pretty Hawaiian girl. Hence the Hawaiian Smiths. When we arrived we checked in at the front gates of the gardens. Tickets for both the buffet dinner and the show are $80 a person. This is a decent price for what they offer, and its half the price of the Princeville Hotel Luau.
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| Smith's Tropical Paradise! |
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| The tram they take you to the Luau on |
Upon Arrival, you receive a shell necklace, and a photograph with two young, fit-looking people dressed as Hawaiians that you can purchase later, if you wish. Then, they load everyone onto a tram that drives you around the park while a tour guide tells you all about the plants and birds in the garden. I'll be honest- it has a bit of a Disneyland feel. Like, it should be a magical experience filled with the purest intentions of a culture, but its been so well-loved by so many that it's lost a bit of its magic, and now the paint is wearing off and you can smell the fried food in the garbage cans, and there are way too many people. Its similar to the Disneyland feel.
However, I really did enjoy myself. The Smith Family Luau begins with the Kalua pig ceremony. This is where a pig is buried in the ground with lots of very hot rocks after being wrapped in large leaves and seasoned. Two burly young Hawaiian men appear in traditional clothing to unearth said pig. This is what we eat. Also included in the buffet is an assortment of salads, some sweet potato, fish, chicken, teriyaki beef (my favorite), and an array of dessert options like coconut jello, and rice pudding. They also serve the traditional Poi (not the dance, but the food) which is a gooey paste made from the root of a taro plant. In ancient Hawaiian times, the early Polynesians would take dehydrated Poi with them on long voyages (like the journey to the Hawaiian islands) and add water to eat it. Dehydrated Poi is very nutritious, and can be kept for up to two years- it tastes gross though.
After dinner (oh yeah, and the open bar) everyone shuffles to the amphitheater to check out the show. The Smith family Luau has a dance performance involving dances form all parts of Hawaiian culture- Hula, Tahitian drum dancing, the Chinese New Year dance, the Japanese fan dance, some Filipino dances, and the dances of the Māori tribe of New Zealand. But I think the best way to tell you about the show is through photos.
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| Pele, the goddess of fire, ascending form a volcano to create her people |
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| Hula dancers |
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| Tahitian drum dance |
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| detail |
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| detail |
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| Split bamboo dance |
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| Gourd dance |
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| Shaker dance |
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| Japanese fan dance |
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| Filipino stick dance |
and lastly, the fire Poi dances!
Thanks for reading! Mahalo.
Kauai- Day Seven, Rain Rain Go Away
Aloha Everyone!
Day Seven was a slow day... it was raining for most of the morning and wet during the rest of the day, so we kept it pretty low key. We decided to check out the Kauai Museum in Lihue around 11am. The museum was obviously a low budget endeavor in a neat old building across from the post office. It was still kind of cool to wander around and learn about the Hawaiian monarchy, and the many wars fought and lost over the conquering of Kauai by King Kamehameha "The Great" who ruled all the islands through the winning of battles, except Kauai. I also learned more about the unlawful takeover of the Hawaiian islands by the US government in 1898. It was educational. They also had an exhibit about the first Hollywood silent film made in Kauai "White Heat".
After the museum excursion, we picked up some flat rate boxes from the post office for mailing souvenirs to people. Then we went to lunch at a restaurant called "Duke's" named for the famous swimmer/surfer/movie star Duke Paoa Kahanamoku. Duke's is a Hawaiian chain of restaurants. The food was very good, though it wasn't cheap. There is a Koi pond in the Lihue branch, so that was cool. After Duke's, we wandered over to the Lihue Mariott Hotel to check out their botanical garden. It exists within their elaborate courtyard. There were swans, and Hawaiian geese, and lots of Koi fish. It was very beautiful.
That's about it for day seven. Sometimes you need to take a breather on such long trips to regroup your thoughts, and just spend time wandering.
Until next time!
Mahalo
Day Seven was a slow day... it was raining for most of the morning and wet during the rest of the day, so we kept it pretty low key. We decided to check out the Kauai Museum in Lihue around 11am. The museum was obviously a low budget endeavor in a neat old building across from the post office. It was still kind of cool to wander around and learn about the Hawaiian monarchy, and the many wars fought and lost over the conquering of Kauai by King Kamehameha "The Great" who ruled all the islands through the winning of battles, except Kauai. I also learned more about the unlawful takeover of the Hawaiian islands by the US government in 1898. It was educational. They also had an exhibit about the first Hollywood silent film made in Kauai "White Heat".
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| Kauai Museum |
After the museum excursion, we picked up some flat rate boxes from the post office for mailing souvenirs to people. Then we went to lunch at a restaurant called "Duke's" named for the famous swimmer/surfer/movie star Duke Paoa Kahanamoku. Duke's is a Hawaiian chain of restaurants. The food was very good, though it wasn't cheap. There is a Koi pond in the Lihue branch, so that was cool. After Duke's, we wandered over to the Lihue Mariott Hotel to check out their botanical garden. It exists within their elaborate courtyard. There were swans, and Hawaiian geese, and lots of Koi fish. It was very beautiful.
That's about it for day seven. Sometimes you need to take a breather on such long trips to regroup your thoughts, and just spend time wandering.
Until next time!
Mahalo
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