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| Every Friday night, we see Norwegian’s Pride of America ship after leaving the port in Nawiliwili, Kauai. It sails along the Napali Coast and then turns back toward Honolulu where the seven day cruises end on Saturday morning at 7 am to depart again on a new cruise that evening at 7:00 pm. |
We’ve fairly well exhausted most of the possible sightseeing adventures in Kauai that appeals to our senses, level of fitness and interests.
With no house to maintain, no garden to tend, no grass to cut, no weeds to pull, no barbecue parties to host in the yard and no family functions to attend, what could we possibly do to entertain ourselves during our 27 remaining days on the island of Kauai?
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| New photo of one of our favorite views in Kauai, the mountains and sea at Hanalei Bay. |
Our average day consists of doing the requisite loads of laundry, cleaning the small condo, washing windows, preparing meals and grocery shopping every five days or so and on occasion making a trip to the Healthy Hut in Kilauea.
At night we dine and watch a few favorite downloaded TV shows or even a few shows that are on the TV, such as tonight’s AD The Bible and tomorrow evening’s Dancing with the Stars. In some ways our lives are not unlike that of many other retirees worldwide who live in condos or apartments.
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| Colorful orchid bloom. |
But, in many ways, we have more free time based on the above-mentioned items and more. With a rental car, we don’t even have the occasional obligation of having the oil changed or performing general maintenance. We never have a doctor, dentist, or eye doctor appointment.
Tom says he doesn’t have to chase the geese off the lawn. Instead, he spends the better portion of each day chasing the pigeons off the lanai railing to make way for the feeding nuts to our favorite birds who visit several times each day. In a funny way, our preoccupation with the same familiar birds stopping by occupies a portion of our time, calling them, watching them, and laughing at their antics.
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| Beautiful overlook. |
I no longer spend endless hours in the kitchen chopping, cooking, and baking for us, for family and friends, foods that no longer suits our way of eating, for those who are no longer a short distance away, spending the better part of the day stopping by with a delivery of some delectable plate or pan of something that I’d made to share. Those days are long gone.
Instead, I spend each morning from the time I’m up showered and dressed for the day, hair fixed with makeup on, ready to tackle the world, sitting at my computer writing, editing and posting. Usually, I begin by 7:00 or 7:30 and end anywhere from 10:30 to noon.
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| Sunset last night. |
During this period, Tom assists me by researching past posts for links and other information I may be posting that particular day. When done assisting me, he perused his favorite websites such as Facebook, news, financial markets, and of course, his passion, Ancestry.com.
As soon as the post is uploaded we often head to the Makai Golf Course which is listed as one of the world’s five most scenic golf courses. We head to the pool and fitness center where we’ll usually find Richard and Larry.
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| The overlook at the Hanalei Wildlife Refuse where one can see the world’s largest taro fields. |
As mentioned in past posts, we never spend more than 45 minutes in the sun all the while chatting with our friends as we acquire a good dose of Vitamin D. Doing so for 20 minutes a day without the use of sunscreen may prevent the necessity of taking Vitamin D supplements, a necessity for bone health for seniors. This avoids the necessity of hauling several more bottles of vitamins in our already heavy luggage. (It’s important to gradually work up to the 20 minutes by tanning for 10 minutes on each side to avoid sunburn).
Several times each week after the pool we stop to visit the albatross, the grocery store, or visit a local farmer’s market. At other times, we drive for awhile looking for new photo ops, later to return home to change back into our clothes and head out for a walk. By the time we return from the walk, it’s often 2:30 pm as the day quickly moves along.
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| One of Kauai’s most popular overlooks. |
Had we been retired and living our old lives, on occasion we’d have made a trip to Home Depot, a local nursery, or Costco. Returning home, we’d have had “stuff” to put away, projects to start, a garden to tend, or a meal to prepare for arriving family or friends. The day would have easily become filled with activities.
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| We’re never disappointed when we stop for photos at this amazing spot. |
A few evenings a week, we have social plans. We stay home the remainder of the, watching for a brilliant sunset and enjoying our evenings as if every night is a playful Saturday night. Add in a good meal and at times, a movie and what more could we want? Never bored, we relish each moment as new and interesting.
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| Red Lipstick Tree branches. |
Often on a daily basis, there’s tons of email to reply to, banking and finances to handle and plans for the future to investigate. We’ve found ourselves tackling what may have felt like a task in the past, as now being a pleasant experience. Perhaps, the lack of hustle and bustle in our lives makes paying bills online kind of fun.
On top of our simple daily lives, we both enjoy reading; me, an occasional novel but, mostly scientific studies, health, nutrition and medicine, and Tom, international intrigue and espionage novels and biographies of people he’s admired and respected over the years.
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| Cattle Egrets are commonly found near excavation areas, golf courses, lawn mowing, and gardening areas. They hang around these specific areas in hopes of worms and bugs being brought to the surface. We always laugh over seeing dozens of these birds at excavation sites. |
Tomorrow, we’ll share our current reading list. We’d love to hear from any of our readers who may have suggestions for reading material they’ve found interesting that may appeal to us. How fun would that be!
May your Sunday be relaxing and fulfilling whatever you decide to do!
Photo from one year ago today, April 26, 2014:
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| It wasn’t uncommon to find orange trees growing in restaurants in Marrakech when most restaurants were built, similar to our riad, with an open-air center courtyard. For details from that date as our time in Morocco was winding down, please click here. |