Category: Hawaii

… A Swim With Some Fish…

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Nawiliwili is a “day time only” port on the island of Kauai, the garden isle. The Star Princess sailed slowly into the port entrance at about 7:15 this morning.

The sun was just rising.

This afternoon we started out to snorkel with the fish but it was canceled by unsafe conditions at the site. As an alternative, we walked to a nearby beach at Anchor Cove.

The water temperature was rather cold, snorkeling would not have been too enjoyable. We settled for a visit with the local Kauai chickens that run wild only on this island.

Here is a recipe for Kauai chicken.
Place 1 chicken in a suitable pot.
Add 1 medium lava rock.
Add water to cover both.
Bring water to a boil.
After 1 hour, check regularly with a fork.
The chicken will be ready to eat when the rock is tender.

Maui on Wednesday.

…A Palm Tree Christmas…

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We’re in Honolulu. There are palm trees all around. It must be Christmas. We’ve seen evidence of the snow in Burlington and learned from another passenger of the -40C temperature in Winnipeg.
Past versions of this Christmas cruise managed to fit the four ports in between Christmas day and New Year’s Day. Not so this time. While very little was open in Hilo, being a Sunday, all of the tours were operating. However, all of the most popular tourist attractions in Honolulu are closed on Christmas Day.
We spent some time ashore just walking in the sun looking for a decorated palm tree. This was what we found.
Diamond Head just fits between the towers.

Later in the afternoon youthful Hula dancers captured hearts.

The late evening departure let us see the Aloha Tower, once Honolulu’s tallest building.

Kaui on Tuesday.

…Some Island Time…

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The cool, cloudy weather of the past four days has been transformed into a sunny, warm, snowy day in Hilo.
The snow was limited to the top of Mauna Kea, the warm and sunny parts apply the lower elevations.

We took a morning trip into the town to stock up on macadamias.

…Some Time At Sea…

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We travel from Los Angeles to Hilo, Hawaii in about 5 days on the sea. By air it would be less than 5 hours. I’d be surprised if Captain Cook could have made the voyage in 5 weeks Amelia Earhart must have needed 25 hours (guess) for the trip. Of all these I find the cruise ship to be the most civilized. Perhaps if owned my own jetliner I might feel differently.

It is common for the first two sea days out of LA to be rougher than the next two days approaching the Hawaiian Islands. This time day three has been the roughest although by no means difficult sailing. Apparently there have been storms over Hawaii responsible for rain and several feet of snow atop Mauna Kea and this is the source of today’s weather at sea. With a bit of luck our time on the islands will find good weather.

I find this time at sea provides opportunity’s for socializing while air travel always seems to be antisocial.

On cruise ships people actually converse on elevators, in lounges and while dining. Ok, end of Philosophy 001.

Passengers and crew continue to decorate the ship. Stateroom doors display Christmas themes and many passengers wear sweaters and/or flashing lights. Christmas trees have been popping up all around the ship and suddenly the gingerbread village appeared.

Sunday, Hilo, our first port of call.