Kauai

          Wednesday, 26 Sep 2012 – We woke up to our alarm at 6:00 A.M., dressed, and headed for breakfast, where we dined at a table alone this time.  Usually before an excursion, we meet our tour group in one of the dining rooms, where we are given bus assignments.  However, this time we were instructed to meet on the pier at 8:20 A.M but had to wait first, standing in an extremely long line for more than 20 minutes to disembark.

Walmea Canyon

Our tour bus guide/driver, who called herself Aunty Alicia, was very talkative and shared lots of Hawaiian history with us.  She is not a native Hawaiian and referred to herself as formerly Mexican, but now “Hispanic.”  She is married to a Filipino who was born and raised in Hawaii.

On Wailua Riverboat

We first took a long drive to the Walmea Canyon, then made a brief shopping/restroom stop, then headed for lunch.  We enjoyed an excellent buffet lunch at Keoki’s Paradise, an outdoor, covered restaurant beside a small pond.  One of the entrees was roast pork and cabbage, a traditional luau dish.



Fern Gratto

After lunch, we drove to the coast to see the Spouting Horn.   Apparently, when the waves come into the shore, water enters underground lava tubes and spouts several feet up into the air.  The Sprouting Horn is the source of timeless Hawaiian legends about an angry lizard goddess called Kaikapu.  The loud sound made by the blowhole is said to be her angry roar.





Opaekaa Falls

Hawaiian Performers

We then proceeded to the Wailua River dock were we boarded a riverboat that took us to the Fern Grotto.  At the Grotto, we enjoyed a live performance of the Hawaiian Wedding Song.  On the trip back, we were entertained with live Hawaiian music and the traditional Hula dance.  The men in the audience were also given the opportunity to perform the Hula dance.  (Sally says that Jesse was very good!)  Then after making a brief stop at Opaekaa Falls, we headed back to the Sea Princess, arriving at our cabin at 4:30 P.M.  This was an interesting but very long day!

Matching Hawaiian Outfits



The Nexus

For dinner, we dressed in our matching Hawaiian outfits that Jesse had ordered online; however, none of our tablemates showed up for dinner.  It seems that a lot of the guests were too tired for a 5:30 dinner after a tiring day.  After dinner, we danced for a little while in the Wheelhouse Bar.  For a change, tonight the Tritones Duo played a Tango, which we really enjoyed.  Later, we went up on deck for the “Ultimate Deck Party,” where there was music by the Nexus.  The party was to last “from 9:00 P.M. until,” but they played only very fast songs to which we danced the swing, and we petered out by 10:00 PM. But it was great fun!   We started our cruise last Thursday, so one week of the cruise is already over.  Time flies when you’re having fun!

In case you haven’t noticed, we are combining our “at-sea” days for this cruise to save Internet minutes.  After reading the blog for our last cruise, the at-sea days seemed a little uneventful.  Following today we will have five at-sea days.