Nawiliwili, Kauai was our port of call today, the first of four in the state of Hawaii. The Zaandam arrived very early and was docked before 8am. By 10am, the temperature was 79 degrees with 65 % humidity. The winds were light at 10.4 mph and there was a slight drizzle. Rain had been predicted later in the afternoon.
There were few customers in the Pinnacle Grill for breakfast, indicting that many of them took excursions today. The TV channel for the tours was not working this morning, so we only have a few to describe. The Wailua River cruise & Fern Grotto was $160 for 3 hours, while the Bike Experience was $190 for 4.25 hours. The jewels of Hawaii took folks to see Allerton & McBryde tropical gardens and waterfall with a gourmet outdoor lunch for $230 and 5.5 hours. The gourmet outdoor lunch may have been a picnic in a public park. We learned later on that it was indeed a boxed meal with a tasty shrimp entree or a chicken sandwich.
The island of Kauai is known for its lush landscapes, towering cliffs, impressive waterfalls, and beaches. Waimea Canyon has been compared to the Grand Canyon. The island is a hiker's paradise with one of the world's most stunning coastlines. One reason it is so green? It's the amount of rain they get. The average is 400 inches annually, however they have recorded up to 700 inches in one year.
Having taken most of these tours over the years, we always stay close to the town of Nawiliwili, which is named after the wiliwili trees that were found growing here centuries ago. So after the mandatory drill was conducted on the ship, we left the ship around 10am. For some unknown reason, our room keys were not working at the gangway. The security girl took our room number and said to have them re-done when we come back.
Packing umbrellas, we strolled to Anchor Cove where there are a few shops with jewelry, clothing, a coffee cafe, and an ABC store. A free shuttle ran from the pier to here also. We continued on to Kalapaki Beach A modern high-rise Marriott Hotel is located on this protected cove, however the beach is public and free to everyone. The tents, lounges, and hotel beach towels come with a price, but is a convenient way for the cruise ship passengers to relax in the shade or sun and swim in the warm waters.
We were just about to head up to the Marriott garden when we ran into friends Nancy and Mike who have sailed on several world cruises with us. We had no idea they were on this trip, so it was nice to see them again. We chatted for a while until we realized the heat from the sun was intense. We can always catch up on news on the ship and not risk sun burn or heat stroke. A light rain might have been welcomed.
We wandered up the walkway from the beachfront, and made our way around the Marriott garden, which is always well-maintained and photo-worthy. Lining the walls of the hotel are a couple of gigantic cloisonne vases imported from China decorated with many beautiful exotic birds. The ponds in the garden are full of healthy and brilliant koi carp. Making our way back down to the beach walk, we turned left and took in the scenery with the hotel's pools and lawn-covered beachfront. By now, there were dozens of hotel guests on the sandy beach as well as groups of guests from the Zaandam.
We always like to eat lunch at Duke's, mostly for their famous Hula Pie. Going at 11:30am, we still had a 20- minute wait for a table for two out of the sun. We ordered 20- ounce Longboard lager draft beers along with one order of nachos with marinated kailua pork on top to share. This is a treat we cannot get on the ship, and it was excellent with just the right amount of jalapeno pepper slices. It was fortunate that there was no other cruise ship here today, or else we would not have gotten a table in a timely manner. But the best part of the lunch was the huge slice of Hula Pie covered with whipped cream. Of course, we shared it.
We headed back to the ship slowly, taking time to purchase one bottle of water at the ABC Store. We did notice that a red trolley was taking folks to the Harbor Mall across the road from Kalapaki Beach. Another shuttle passed us that headed towards Hilo Hattie's, further away. These all appeared to be complimentary.
Back at the gangway, we found that our room keys did not work. So we went to the front desk to have them re-done....again. They printed two new ones, but they did not work. Back down to deck four, they were printed again, but this time one of the girls escorted me back to the room. These worked. While at the desk, we had some shipboard credit checked and itemized, which does not show up on our statements these days. A few credits were missing, so Margaret promised to research it. She did, but we were still missing one. All of this has to be done through the Seattle office which takes time. If we were not keeping an eye on this, the credits would have gone unrecognized.
Captain Thomas came on with his talk at 4:30pm and said we would be leaving before 5pm. We had 150 nautical miles to reach Honolulu tomorrow at 6:30am at a speed of 11 knots and 7-foot sea swells. The weather is expected to be hot with some showers. In addition, the Captain mentioned that the US Coast Guard will board the vessel and do major inspections.
We left too early for a good sunset, but we did see some birds as we left the island. They were very far out sailing over the water. We thought they were terns, but a close-up shot revealed they were masked boobies.
When we entered the dining room tonight, it felt like a sauna. Someone must have pushed a wrong button. Up to now, it has been on the cooler side. We ordered Caesar salads, pork tenderloin and a seasoned rack of lamb. Both good. Hot too. Dessert was one scoop of chocolate ice cream and one serving of an orange panna cotta. Full again....
The singer with the high notes was DJ Bucciarelli with a brand- new show by popular demand.
Honolulu....here we come.
Bill & Mary Ann
