Thursday, January 22, 2008: Another day on Kauai.
Bob: While other folks were taking in the breathtaking scenery of Kauai on various and assorted tours from the ship, we set out in search of some free Internet time. I had seen a sign for free WiFi at the local shopping center and there was a free shuttle bus out that way, so we packed up our computer in our old kit bag and headed ashore. The shopping center shuttle dropped us off at at, predictably enough, an outdoor type of mall with open spaces between all the buildings. Wandering around, we found the (outdoor) food court and saw some folks with their computers on, always a good sign of a free WiFi spot, and we settled in to do some serious email. Judson had called earlier about a Miata a coworker was selling, so I had a chance to check out the pictures of it on line and email him back about buying it. That was exciting. After all, how many people buy a Miata in New York while sitting in a food court in Hawaii? I mean, what could possibly go wrong? To get back we walked over to the K-Mart at one edge of the shopping center and took the K-Mart shuttle back to the ship. It was packed, and, rather unusually in this day and age, the driver insisted on the young men giving up their seats to the women taking the shuttle. That was "old style" courtesy that I haven't seen since the 1970s, but apparently it was alive and well out in Kauai and even more surprising in that the driver was a relatively youngish late-20s or early 30s guy. |
Monika: We still had half a day on Kauai. The day before I had spied a sign offering a free shuttle to the local mall that boasted free internet access. So after breakfast, we decided we might as well spend the last day in Paradise by taking a shuttle to a shopping mall. The mall was an outside mall with a nice foodcourt that also was the WiFi hotspot. They also had provided some columns with electrical outlets, so us WiFi users were clustered around the columns. We checked our email, looked at pictures of a Miata a friend of Judson is selling, and salivated over Princess deals on transatlantic cruises. But we first have to get Bob past his gallbladder surgery before we make serious plans for our next cruise. |
Bob: Back on board we had lunch and watched our ship maneuver itself out of the harbor. The entrance to Nahwilliwilli harbor is a big "S" and getting the ship out was not easy, but with the help of a tugboat we made it. Rather than proceed east southeast toward Oahu, however, our ship curled around the Kauai clockwise until we reached the Napoli coast area. The Napoli coast was called the "Grand Canyon of Hawaii" by none other than Mark Twain, apparently, and as we slid quietly by a half mile or so offshore we could clearly see why. Spectacularly sheer cliffs dropped several thousand feet into a huge canyon, but unlike the Grand Canyon, which is quite arid, all the craggy surfaces and cliffs as well as the canyon floor were covered in a vivid green tropical rainforest. A rainbow arched across the sky as we continued westward around the island, making it a truly enchanting scene. A couple miles further along the plateau came all the way down to the seashore, with the result that sheer, vertical cliffs that looked at least a couple thousand feet high dropped straight into the dark blue water and bright white surf of the Pacific Ocean. Wow. We continued cruising pretty much due West into a gorgeous reddish-orange sunset. |
Monika: We got back to our ship in plenty of time. After lunch we watched the ship slowly move out of the harbor. We then went to our stateroom to pack, hoping that we would be able to put everything back into our big suitcase and the two carry-ons. We were going to check those, and put the computer into the backpack we had brought along, so that our carry-ons would be the backpack and the Bob's new ukulele. When cruise director Doug came on the internet talking about the Napoli coast we were cruising past, we hastened up to the deck to look at this most famous scenic coastline. And it was really spectacular, with the cliffs coming directly into the sea. You could see why the only access was by water. When a rainbow came out over the mountain the photographic opportunities were boundless. And to help us say good-bye to these beautiful islands, we saw whales spouting in the distance. |
Bob: We were enjoying the romantic sunset view from the observation deck out in front of the Outrigger Lounge on Deck 11. I tried to help another couple by taking their picture with the sunset as a backdrop, but when I stepped back to frame the picture I suddenly heard something go "CRUNCH" beneath my shoe. I looked down to see the remains of what looked like a coffee mug splintered to pieces underneath the sole of my right foot. I was embarrassed when a steward came out to sweep up the shards, especially as this deck was say 20 feet wide and 40 feet across and yet I somehow had managed to step on the one spot where somebody had left a coffee mug! How do you explain that? I also found a wineglass rolling around in the gutter and fished it out without breaking it and gave it to the steward, which salved my pride, but the romantic spell of the sunset was broken by the unwanted comedy. And that was our last sunset on the Pride of Aloha. That evening we attended the last show that featured the ship's band plus an encore performance of the magician Matt Marcy and a bravura performance by Doug Dennell, the ship's cruise director. He had trained at Julliard, and we had the thrill of hearing a pure operatic voice tackle some fairly difficult songs in a truly professional and evocative manner. In particular, he sang "Memories" from the Sondheim musical Cats, which I have seen Monika and other good singers struggle with due to its broad range. Doug not only handled the range easily, he also was emotionally evocative despite holding a microphone in his right hand, which I also considered a real achievement. Afterwards we sadly packed up our bags and put them out before turning in for the night. |
Monika: The boat circled the Napoli coast so that we could get pictures on both the port and starboard side. But finally the sun went down, and we got some last sunset pictures, before going back to the stateroom to finish packing. The evening entertainment was a variety show of the Pride of Aloha band (keyboard, bass guitar, percussion, one woodwind, and one brass player) playing rather well, the magician Matt Marcy doing some slight of hand that was filmed and projected on the screen, and we still could not figure out how he did it. Finally, our cruise director Doug Donnell sang again for us. His voice is a fully trained operatic voice, and his singing was wonderful. When he sang "Memories" from Cats it was the best I have ever heard it. He not only knows how to sing, but also how to emote and take his audience with him. I can see why he did not sing earlier, as he would make all the other singers sound second rate. What a great ending. |
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||