I woke up in 
Nawiliwili on the “Garden Isle” of Kaua’i, the fourth largest Hawaiian island and the last scheduled stop on the cruise. It was Thanksgiving Day, and I was approximately 4,900 miles from home and the traditions celebrated there. Well, most of them.
Instead, after a satisfying breakfast at my usual spot, the 50’s theme restaurant on Deck 6, I walked the deck and got several shots (the panoramic one is below with the rest available at http://singin1.pics/piwigo/index.php?/category/Hawaiian-Cruise-2024-Day-8):
At 12:30, I went to the ship’s theater, where they were live streaming the Dallas Cowboys football game. The Cowboys’ season hadn’t gone as we fans had hoped due to so many injuries to players, but we faithfully watch anyway, and it is a Thanksgiving tradition, so….
The main event of the day was the luau at the Kauai Plantation. It appeared that a lot of the ship’s passengers had been bussed there for the meal, featuring roasted pig, and a show with hula, fire dancers and history. Each of us was given a beautiful, flower lei, a closeup of which is included with the pictures at http://singin1.pics/piwigo/index.php?/category/Hawaiian-Cruise-2024-Day-8. Arrangements had been made for professional photographers to be available for those of us who wanted a picture taken on site. My photograph is below.
The plantation train ride and a walking tour of the plantation were tempting, but I had done a great deal of walking over the trip and was finally beginning to feel the effects. I decided to chill at the table and watch the preparations. It wasn’t long before we were called to the buffet and its extensive spread. No turkey was in sight, but the pig was extraordinarily delicious. I ate my plateful of food and drank mai tais until I could hold no more.
After dinner, the show began. It paid “homage to the bravery of the ancient people who endured incredible hardships and through their ‘inner fire of determination’ ultimately carried them to the new land, Hawaii.”
A load of pictures from the luau are below:
On Friday morning, we spent the day touring the island, primarily along Kaumualii Highway, Rt. 50. The tour guide gave us a map of the route in the lower part of the island (pictured to the left).
While there was mostly travel by bus, there was plenty of stops that required walking in order to view the location. At the Waimea Canyon Lookout, a series of ramps had been added to provide access to the canyon. Lots of walking, but it was worth the view.
We made other stops that I wish I could recall; however, the geolocation mapping of the pictures I loaded on http://singin1.pics/piwigo/index.php?/category/Hawaiian-Cruise-2024-Day-9-10 helps to provide that information. A small sample of pictures are below. Two things I want to note. First, as had happened throughout the trip, we again saw feral chickens wandering pretty much wherever they wanted to go. Also, the gas prices in Hawaii tend to be at least double of what I’ve seen in the DMV, which isn’t exactly the cheapest gas in the country. One more thing: the hand gesture pictured is called the shaka, the state’s official hand gesture meaning aloha spirit, love and local pride.
Our last stop was the Wailua River State Park. We boarded a riverboat and joined others using a variety of canoes and watercraft venturing on the calm waters. After a short ride, most passengers walked up to the Fern Grotto. I declined to take on the steep inclines, although there had been an attempt to make the pathways accessible. Several folks who did go kindly showed me their pictures, though. Mine of the trip are below.
My last hours on the ship were spent packing so my bag could be taken down to the staging area on the dock. Passengers were expected to disembark early Saturday morning. By the time I went to bed Friday night, everything was ready so all I needed to do in the morning was shower and dress. My taxi delivered me to the Daniel K. Inouye International Airport in Honolulu 12 hours before my flight was scheduled to leave for Seattle. I thought about renting a car and driving around a bit, but I decided to get through the madness of the post-Thanksgiving travel throng, get something to eat, and keep myself entertained with the movies, games and books I had downloaded to my kindle until the flight was boarded. The gate where I sat had a gorgeous view of the city and mountain, so I got one final shot of Honolulu.
The flights back were a torturous reminder of why I drive, if at all possible. This was Thanksgiving weekend, so both flights were packed. For the flight to Seattle, I shared the adjacent seats with two Black women who had also been endowed with generous hips, so no space to do anything but endure. From Seattle to DCA, two football player-sized guys joined me. Need I say more?
Final Thoughts
Thus ended my first cruise and the addition of my 49th state. I wasn’t as tired as I had expected to be despite the return flight and the very chilly weather in the DMV that my jean jacket wasn’t remotely adequate to handle. Now that I’ve had this experience, I want to consider the possibility of an Alaskan cruise and what pitfalls I can avoid simply by being more knowledgeable about what I can do to avoid them. It’s going to take some time to fund raise for that adventure, though, so I’ve got time to get ready.
Alaska, here I come!!
I haven’t given up on visiting the two national parks in Hawaii. I’ve managed to get back to previously missed parks before–most recently three parks in Florida–so I remain hopeful to get back to Haleakalā and Hawai‘i Volcanoes. Perhaps Honoulini National Historic Site on Oahu will also be open by then.
On the Monday morning after I returned, I picked up the Silver Bullet from the dealership. While I was away, they fixed the door handle and repainted the door so the scratch was gone. So SB and I are ready for our next adventures!
I added my souvenirs from Hawaii to my collections–kinda wish I had gotten one of the Spam toys at the ABC store. The display below is getting kind of full, and I’ve already had to separate my non-national park magnets to the fridge to make space on my book truck for new NP magnets.
As for 2025, I have two trips I hope to make. The first, in the Spring, would be a drive up I-95 to revisit the Northeast. I’ve pretty much either toured or driven through, but I really want to play tourist up there. All but Vermont are on the interstate. This can be addressed by diverting briefly then returning to the interstate to continue north. Eventually, I want to make it to Acadia National Park in Maine.
The other trip would be to finally get the Colorado national parks in the summer. If I can time it properly, there is a balloon festival at New Mexico’s White Sands National Park in mid-July. I generally prefer to visit the parks in the fall or early spring, but none of these parks are in the big ten and the summer heat likely that time of year doesn’t affect me much. There are nine national parks between western Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and Colorado that I haven’t visited yet. They are blue highlighted on the map to the right. How many I can get to will depend on how long and extensively I want to drive.