{"id":4899,"date":"2018-11-10T18:16:03","date_gmt":"2018-11-10T23:16:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/prstevens.stonehippo.com\/blog\/?page_id=4899"},"modified":"2018-11-13T08:10:19","modified_gmt":"2018-11-13T13:10:19","slug":"aloha-adventure-page-05-2","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/prstevens.stonehippo.com\/blog\/aloha-adventure-page-05-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Aloha Adventure – Page 05"},"content":{"rendered":"

Aloha Adventure<\/strong>
\nPage 05<\/strong><\/h1>\n

Here we go on our second day on Kaua’i<\/strong><\/p>\n

Today our tour schedule included a bus tour of movie filming locations including:\u00a0Jurassic World,\u00a0Pirates of the Caribbean,\u00a0Avatar,\u00a0Mighty Joe Young (remember that one?,\u00a0George of the Jungle (who could forget that one?), and\u00a0\u00a0Gilligan\u2019s Island (my favorite). The list could go on, but you get the idea…<\/strong><\/p>\n

Anyway, Mary Ann and I decided to skip this tour – too much bus riding and way too expensive<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

In the evening the group returned, we were surprised (not really!) that many others also skipped the tour – for the same reasons, We all gathered for a group dinner at Dukes “Bare Foot Bar”.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

This is Dukes. Not much to look at outside.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Inside it was decorated “TIKI” style Surprisingly, the\u00a0 food was excellent! I had a Rib Eye Steak with fixins. I couldn’t finish it and neither could Mary Ann with her chicken dinner and it became our dinner the next night. All in all, it was a nice evening!!<\/strong><\/p>\n

So with full tummies, we hit the hay.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Day 6 began with gloomy skies<\/strong>. On our second day on Kaua’i. We’re scheduled for a trip to the Fern Grotto and the Wailua falls.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

This is one of Walter Smith\u2019s famous Wailua River cruise boats which are powered by an ingenious\u00a0rear-engine system invented by Walter Smith, Sr.<\/strong>
\nBoat-2.jpg”>\"\"<\/p>\n

The Wailua River is known as \u201cthe only navigable river\u201d in all Hawaii. The river\u2019s fresh water pours down from Mt. Wai\u2018ale\u2018ale, one of the wettest spots on the planet. Lands along the river were the sacred capital of ancient Kauai and the\u00a0birthplace of the island\u2019s ali\u2018i, or royalty.<\/strong><\/p>\n

During the two mile river journey, we heard songs and stories of ancient Hawaii \u2014 like the “King\u2019s Highway” , “Sacred\u00a0Mount Kapu”, and “Tthe\u00a0First Hau Tree”. In addition, guests enjoy\u00a0learning the hula\u00a0during a lesson provided by one of our cousins. Everyone gets into the act during the river cruise!<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a> \"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Dancing and singing performed by the Smith Family. Music was mostly guitars and a ukulele. With one of the Smith ladies doing the Hula.\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Hula dancing is a complex art form, and there are many hand motions used to represent the words in a song or chant. For example, hand movements can signify aspects of nature, such as the swaying of a tree in the breeze or a wave in the ocean, or a feeling or emotion, such as fondness or yearning. Foot and hip movements often pull from a basic library of steps including the kaholo, ka\u02bbo, kawelu, hela, \u02bbuwehe, and \u02bbami.\u00a0 Google ’em.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

A short trail lead to the Fern Grotto. Note my travel vest.\u00a0 I’ve worn it on many trips.\u00a0 It can carry a lot and I can drop the whole thing in a TSA\u00a0 Airport Xray and move thru quickly.\u00a0 My only problem is to remember “which” pocket contained “what”.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

A short trail leads to the Fern Grotto.\u00a0This a fern covered, lava rock\u00a0grotto\u00a0located on the\u00a0Wailua River\u00a0on the eastern side of\u00a0Kauai.\u00a0\u00a0It forms a<\/strong> natural\u00a0amphitheater\u00a0which greatly increases the acoustics of the many bands that are hired to perform live music, which has traditional themes.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

This attraction is known primarily as the most romantic spot on the island of Kauai, and the area can be rented for weddings. Previously, weddings were performed within the grotto, (as above) but now they take place on the observation deck facing the grotto.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00a0On April 24, 2006, the Grotto was closed by heavy rains in March which caused a number of rocks and boulders to fall from the ceiling of the Grotto onto the viewing area below.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>\"\"<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

After visiting the grotto, we stopped at the Ahukini State park.\u00a0 This was the original cruise ship\u00a0 pier and harbor for Kaua’i.\u00a0 It’s a lovely spot but the harbor is too shallow for modern day cruise ships, Hence the rusty old pier and the new fishing pier.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a> <\/strong><\/p>\n

One interesting park resident was this cat.\u00a0 There are many feral cats on the islands.\u00a0 Why don’t they get the chickens?\u00a0 One reason is that the chickens are capable of self defense.\u00a0 Note that this cat has a missing eye.\u00a0 Probably as a result of a chicken encounter! Blinded cats are called “Popoki”.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Also, the island humane societies spay and neuter feral cats and release them (minus a bit of ear).<\/strong><\/p>\n

We returned to The Marriott and ate our “lunch” and wandered around the hotel grounds and gardens.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Near the Koi\u00a0 pond we spotted this bird: It is the Hawaiian Nene Goose. It is the Hawaiian State Bird,\u00a0It is thought that the nene\u00a0<\/span>evolved\u00a0from the\u00a0<\/span>Canada goose, which most likely arrived on the Hawaiian islands about 500,000 years ago, shortly after the\u00a0island of Hawai<\/span>\u02bb<\/span>i\u00a0was formed. This ancestor is the progenitor of the nene as well as the\u00a0<\/span>prehistoric\u00a0Giant Hawai<\/span>ain\u00a0goose.\u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

It is also one of a crossword puzzlers favorite clues.<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

We also saw a Bread Fruit tree. These were made famous in “The Mutiny on the Bounty when Fletcher Christian dumped a shipload of them into the sea after setting Captain William Bly adrift in a small boat.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Bly made it to Australia and England and came back to Tahiti.\u00a0In January 1790, the Bounty settled on\u00a0Pitcairn Island, an isolated and uninhabited volcanic island more than 1,000 miles\u00a0east\u00a0of\u00a0Tahiti. The mutineers who had remained on\u00a0Tahiti\u00a0were captured and taken back to\u00a0England\u00a0where three were hanged.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Pitcairn Islands is a nation, mainly inhabited by\u00a0Euronesians\u00a0of British and Tahitian descent. The culture held in common by most Pitcairn Islanders is a mixture of\u00a0British\u00a0and\u00a0Polynesian\u00a0culture derived from the traditions of the settlers who landed in 1790. Most of the people today are\u00a0descended\u00a0from the\u00a0HMS\u00a0<\/span>Bounty<\/span>\u00a0mutineers.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00a0As of 2018, there are a total of 50 people\u00a0inhabiting\u00a0the island and still growing Bread Fruit trees.\u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

So much for Bread Fruit.\u00a0 TMI?<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Another interesting plant in the Marriott garden was these Pink Bananas,\u00a0These plants are originally from Assam and the eastern Himalayas.\u00a0They are also cultivated in greenhouses.\u00a0Its fruits are 3\u00a0in long, pink, and fuzzy. The\u00a0sweet flesh that can be eaten. The seeds are quite hard and can chip a tooth.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

This is a Red Ginger flowers. It symbolize fiery passion. The general theme running through each species of the plant is strength. Ginger can represent limitless prosperity and diversity in the personality. Sometimes, ginger flowers are given as a substitution for roses. Don’t get too close, Mary Ann!<\/strong><\/p>\n

We walked to town again, bought some vodka mixers and returned to the Hotel,\u00a0 \u00a0The Hotel staff was nice enough to bring a microwave to our room and we heated up and ate our leftover steak and chicken.<\/strong><\/p>\n

After dinner, we packed our suitcase for tomorrow mornings short flight to Maui and hit the hay.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Go To Page 6<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Aloha Adventure Page 05 Here we go on our second day on Kaua’i Today our tour schedule included a bus tour of movie filming locations including:\u00a0Jurassic World,\u00a0Pirates of the Caribbean,\u00a0Avatar,\u00a0Mighty Joe Young (remember that one?,\u00a0George of the Jungle (who could … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-4899","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/prstevens.stonehippo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4899","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/prstevens.stonehippo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/prstevens.stonehippo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/prstevens.stonehippo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/prstevens.stonehippo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4899"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/prstevens.stonehippo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4899\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5001,"href":"https:\/\/prstevens.stonehippo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4899\/revisions\/5001"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/prstevens.stonehippo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4899"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}