Out of Order, but Katie and Maggie at the Botanical Garden

On Katie's next to last day of her visit (now, two weeks ago!), we went up to North Shore and went to mass at the mission church on the hill next to Waimea Bay (St. Peter and Paul) for Palm Sunday. After church, we had breakfast at the famous Ted's bakery, and then headed into Waimea Valley to the Botanical Garden. We absolutely loved our time in the garden, taking a historical tour to hear about how the ancient Hawaiians lived in the valley and seeing the remnants of the villages. We also REALLY liked taking a ridiculous number of flower pictures. At the end, we made our way to Waimea Falls and took a dip in the cool, fresh water. We swam out and sat under the waterfall as it pelted our heads and wished that we had someone on shore to take our photo!

The amazing peacocks!




Fuzzy red things.


"Canonball Tree"

Happy Easter!

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Katie Visit: Germaine Luau!

Katie and I spent the evening of our PCC day at the Germaine Luau, which is down toward the Southeastern end of the island. We really liked the casual atmosphere and all of the audience involvement in the show.

Katie enjoys a tropical drink.


The stage.


Nice View!


"Ceremonial lighting of the torches"


Pulling the pig from the ground.

Katie Visit: Polynesian Cultural Center

Katie and I had a lot of fun at the Polynesian Cultural Center. I had never been there before, and we ended up just getting afternoon park entrance tickets because the luau was sold out. While we were sad about this at the time, we felt it was for the best, as we ended up at the Germaine Luau later that night, which was great. The PCC is owned by the Mormon Church/BYU Hawaii, and is basically like a "Polynesian Disney Land" where you venture through different areas of the park where you "experience" the cultures of the different Polynesian islands. One of the best parts of the day was the "Canoe Parade", where dancers representing the different island cultures came through and performed. Katie and I also got some fake tattoos in "Tahiti"...not to be confused with any real tattoos that may come into play later...

Kauai: Kilauea Lighthouse

On the way back to Lihue, we stopped off to take in the breathtaking views of Kilauea Lighthouse. These pictures really just don't do it justice. We also stopped for Blow Pops (yes, Maggie had a sugar craving) at a nearby gas station, and parked next to truck that held an adorable dog (see last pic).

"Kilauea Lighthouse is the northernmost point of the main Hawaiian Islands. Built in 1913, it was had the largest lens of it's kind and guided ships heading to and from the Orient. In the 1970's its light was turned off and this landmark was replaced by a low-maintenance light beacon. The lighthouse is located on a narrow peninsula and remains one of Kauai's most popular attractions. Crater Hill, landward from the lighthouse, is part of an extinct volcano that looms above the refuge and is open to hikers. From this hill are terrific views of the North Shore coast and the seabird nests."

Kauai: Taro Fields

Kauai: Little Green Church

On the road to Hanalei, there is a beautiful little green church that stands in a lush green field between the mountains and the water. I just had to stop and take some pictures (read: veer wildly off the side of the country road), leading Katie to declare that my emerging "favorites" when it comes to photography must include not only animals but houses of worship. As you will see in forthcoming posts, flowers may trump both....

By the way, I found out later that a woman from my running group was married in this very church!

Kauai: Na Pali Coast

We followed the road until it ended at the trail that leads up through the Na Pali Coast. Unfortunately, we did not have enough time to do any of the hike, but we did search around in the woods for what was supposed to be an ancient hula platform. Katie eventually found some of the rocks that made up the platform, and we headed back toward Lihue.

The beautiful north shore coastline.




The woods we tramped through looking for the hula platform.


Remnants of the hula platform!