The phone rang at 6:00 to wake us. We’re already packed, so we have a few moments to take in the view from our oceanfront balcony. We remind each other of the setting sliver of a moon last night that shone for a moment between passing mists of rain and glistened its light across the ocean. The farm stand, unfortunately isn’t open at 7:00 a.m., although the old ladies were already out there setting up. A collapsing ruin of a building we’d passed a few times on the side of the road demanded attention and so I added to the photo collection yet another memento to remind us of this perfect adventure.

One should wonder if a day in Hawaii is even possible without a rainbow. Breakfast out here today will have to happen at Starbucks for the sake of convenience; such is the cost of a little pleasure. With the encroaching weather pushing us along during our drive to the Oahu airport, there wasn’t much left to see, and there were no signs pointing us to where we could attend a meet and greet with President Obama. Not that there was one scheduled during their Christmas vacation, but it sure would have been nice had the family taken a moment to say hi to Caroline and me. Instead, we fill the tank with some expensive Hawaiian gas, return the rental car, and take the shuttle to the airport. Within an hour, we are on our way to Lihue, Kauai.

Six long years we’ve waited for this return to the Koloa Fish Market and the BEST poke bento we’ve ever enjoyed. This was our first meal on Kauai back then, and it’s our first meal on the island once again. It’s as great now as it is in our memories. On previous stops here, we’d never tried the dessert as each of us having our own bento was more than enough food, but now we’d acquired the taste for haupia, and the version here is served as a two-layer slice of pie, one haupia, and the other purple yam. Now dancing in gastronomic nirvana, we are able to go check into our cabin.

Cabin #24 – we know it well. We stayed in this very unit on our first visit, so this is a fond return to Kahili Mountain Park. Penny at the front desk checks us in and lends us some beach towels and two bodyboards before informing us there are a couple of treats waiting for us in the cabin. We are now all set up for the next week here in Kauai. Wow, an entire week!

Our primitive island cabin, though how primitive is a place in the middle of the Pacific with running water, a gas stove, refrigerator, flush toilets, microwave, lights, and locking door? Well, many people would find a place with no real interior walls, walls that in places we can see through, and screens that almost invite the mosquitos to join you in comfort for a snack, along with an outdoor shower to be a bit rough around the edges. For us, it is absolutely 100% perfection. On the other hand, the resorts that are closer to the ocean, while offering some nice views, cannot deliver the character and sense of unique experience that we find right here.

All the amenities, including the fact that there is NOT a television in this cabin. Pure luxury if you ask me.

One minute, it’s dark clouds and rainbows, and the next…

….it’s blue skies and bookstores. How had we missed Hanapepe on our previous visit? This small town is the home of Lilo & Stitch, and somehow, it never registered back then. Well, as interesting as that is, we are drawn in by Talk Story Bookstore, which claims to be the westernmost independent bookstore in the United States. Cynthia and Ed are the proprietors, and while we were only going to dip in and out, we ended up in the store for a good hour talking about travels, winners of Pulitzers, and stuff.

As we were about to leave, Cynthia invited us to their backyard, picked about a dozen starfruits, and offered them to us. We are now like puppies that have been shown kindness.

We leave the bookstore as yet another rainbow spreads smiles across the landscape.

Ah, the lovely plumeria we tried to grow in Arizona. Sure, it does best in tropical environments, and they thrive in Florida, can be found in California and there are those who’ve been able to successfully cultivate them in the desert, but we were not a party to that skill. Instead, we must photograph them and remember their delicate scent and the beauty seen where they effortlessly offer themselves in abundance.

Seeing we were in the general area, we went over to the Salt Ponds to check out the situation. During our trip planning, I’d considered camping for the duration of our time on Kauai, but I started finding unflattering reviews of some of the campsites, so I had second thoughts. The Salt Ponds were to be our campgrounds for the first three nights, and I was fairly certain that the reviews had not done justice to the place, but on our arrival, the conditions were affirmed to be on the hostile side. From the windowless POS racing around to the drunks and others sending us the “stink eye” or maka pilau in Hawaiian, we had made the better choice in choosing to return to the cabin.

A sign suggests we turn here to visit Ft. Elizabeth, so we oblige and head down the road. This is an old Russian fort that is now in ruin. Little remains beside the base of the walls. It doesn’t look like the fort was ever completed, as the Russians’ time in Hawaii was short before being given the boot. Hawaiians took possession of it, worked on it for a short while, and then let it fall into disrepair. More interesting than that narrative was the information on hand that claims that right here at the mouth of the Waimea River is the location where Captain James Cook first landed back on January 20, 1778.

Back on the move, propelled by Rainbow Power, we were driving into Waimea to pay a visit to the Ishihara Market. One can learn a lot about what it’s like to live somewhere by visiting local grocery stores. From the market, we walked over to Big Save, followed by Foodland and Tamura’s. What did we learn here? There is a big demand on the islands for snacks, bags and bags of various crunchy snacks. We also learned not to leave those bags open because the high humidity kills crunchy on contact, not exactly a problem for those of us who dwell in deserts.

A few doors down from these shops, we discover Aunty Lilikoi, purveyors of all things passion fruit. We bought everything. From lilikoi butter, lilikoi wasabi mustard, lilikoi pepper & salt seasoning, lilikoi mui (a preserve/chutney with whiskey and salt) to lilikoi pie, we seriously bought it all.

It will be dark before we reach Koloa near our cabin, and so knowing we cannot make it in time for another poke bento, we take the advice from Ed from Talk Story and stop in at Da Imu Hut Cafe in Hanapepe for some dinner [Update: permanently closed]. Pork lau lau and kalua pork fill our stomachs and weigh heavy in there as we travel up the muddy and bumpy road to our cabin. This place feels familiar; it’s wonderful to be back in Kauai.

At times, it is my bane to sit down and write. With night upon us, I, at times return to pre-industrial man where darkness signified that it was time to sleep. Dread of falling behind inspires me to set pen to paper, as it is difficult to catch up, and yet on those occasions where I opt not to write at all, I often regret not having the notes that fill in so many tiny details that flesh out a vacation and fill the gaps that would have otherwise been lost.