Let's pack and go to a paradise island!

In the upcoming days and weeks you will see more posts about Kuaui, there will be mixtures of outfit posts and tid bits on where we explored and ate. Be prepared for photo explosions!! Hope it will be helpful to those who plan a future trip. I feel sluggish as I bounced back to work the day after the trip and suffering a mild case of jetlag (5 hour difference, not too bad for me but bad enough for a young one), but it was worth the sweat and tears traveling with a young child. I would do it all over again.       Never thought we would be able to squeeze in two major trips in the same year and never thought we would be able to visit Hawaii. Hawaii sure was on the dream destination list as one of “the places to visit before we die”. An opportunity sure came knocking on our door much sooner than we had EVER imagined and we said “yes, let’s go” as fast as we could to seize this trip. Our little one who is only 3.5 years old has already embarked her world journey at young age. It is something my husband and I didn’t have opportunity to do when we were her age and we are blessed to be able to offer this kind of experience for her to do fun activities such as riding an elephant and feeding crocodiles in Thailand, visiting Phuket, sightseeing in Bangkok, having a brief visit in Japan, napping in a helicopter while flying along Napali coast on Kuaui island – yes that’s exactly where she took her afternoon nap.    

Cute and funny thing in Kauai

One thing worth mentioning - Chickens and roosters are expected to be seen EVERYWHERE on the island! I don't know about other islands but roosters and chickens are the signature of this island. Can you imagine yourself relaxing and enjoying the sound of ocean, and all of sudden you hear this "cock-a-doo-doo-doo" now and then - lol. Somehow they don't seem to go in harmony but you get used to it after a while. Funnily, they must somewhat be stray chickens comparing to stray cats and dogs.

    Why Lihue-Kuau’i?   You will find an answer in one of the future posts. I am just SO glad it was Kuaui instead of Honolulu, Maui or other super popular islands. While Kuaui is also popular, it offers a true sense of nature, pureness and magnificent scene of island landscaping and coastline. A paradise for nature lovers. I am not that into exploring nature kind of person and would often opt for shopping centers but the beauty of this island is just stunning and mesmerizing I didn’t mind doing the sightseeing one bit. It is a place you can truly relax and soak in all its beauty everywhere you turn, plus you don’t see gazillion tourists everywhere (other than at hotels, restaurants or some shopping centers).   How we got there? It took us approximately 9.5 hours from a city where we live in Texas to LA. There is no direct flight to Kauai from where we live but a direct flight to Honolulu is available. We chose to fly to LA instead (3.5 hours), then another 6 hours from LA to Kauai, Hawaii. Then on the way back, it took 7.5 hours total (not including layover plus an unexpected delay sitting inside an airplane for 1.5 hour).   When you arrive Hawaii, you will need to fill a form to declare that you do not bring any seeds/plants/animals to the island with you. They don’t want foreign species on the island! Same as when you leave, you will go through a few rigorous bag scan to make sure you don’t bring any plants/animals out of the island.   Airport?   We flew in to and out of Kauai using Lihue Airport. How awesome is this - an open air airport (there are air condition passenger rooms throughout for you to wait to get on the airplane).   What the weather is like in Kauai?   The weather is EXTREMELY pleasant with cool breeze ALL DAY LONG. Kauai temperature is usually in the low 80 degree Fahrenheit with plenty of sunshine and bright blue sky (rain occasionally but don’t last all day – mostly on and off). Kauai beach I would say it is almost impossible to swim because tides are strong to very strong, more suitable for surfing. I am not bias here but personally think beaches in Thailand look much more beautiful and serene. The sight and scene in Kuaui is very magnificent though.   Where we stayed: Kauai Marriott Resort Beach Club 3610 Rice Street Kalapaki Beach Lihue-Kauai, Hawaii 96766 (808) 245-5050 (800) 845-5279     The hotel ground is absolutely stunning with turquoise colored pools, lush tropical green gardens, many hibiscus plants and plumeria trees throughout the hotel facility and huge Koi pond (there is a fish feeding at 9am every day so grab your kids to feed these friendly buddies – they came SO incredibly close. If you have never pet a koi, try it here.   A distance from the front of the hotel to the lobby is quite far, not to mention from the lobby to the room is even farther (depending what part of the hotel you stay) but it was such a pleasant walk due to awesome weather and beautiful view along the way. Hotel room will be in a separate post to avoid a super lenghty post here. Big minus – a 4 star hotel at this caliber, we expected free wi-fi and breakfast to be included but no. You have to pay extra to get wi-fi access/day. Where to eat?   So far everything we had in Kuaui was AMAZINGLY delicious, including hotel food (which is so rare here in the US to find good food at hotels). There will be separate posts as a short guide on where to eat. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------     The day we came back from Hawaii which was on 9/11 (kind of nerve racking due to engine problem at LA airport but we made it back in three whole pieces – phewww!!), we came home to find a little surprise awaiting. We soon will be embarking a trip to another amazing city. As much as I am dead exhausted from all the traveling activities this year and spending money on one trip after another (and slowly exhausting all my vacation leave at work), it would not be wise to decline a chance to explore another destination on our wish list.