It's My Birthday & I'll Kauai If I Want To

Well, the day finally arrived.  My birthday.  The big 3-0.

There was barely any time to say goodbye to my 20s as we spent the morning saying goodbye to Maui instead.  After soaking up the sun next to the resort’s pools for a couple of hours, we flew to Kauai and checked into our suite at the Wyndham on Poipu Beach.

Kauai's famous tree tunnel on the way to Poipu

Our Wyndham rental was amazing – three bedrooms, three bathrooms, a kitchen and living area, and even a laundry room.  After nearly a week traipsing across Hawaii, we were so thankful to be able to wash some clothes. 

The six of us had a ton of fun sharing the space.  In the evenings after dinner, we’d spend time looking through all of our photos and videos of the day’s excursions.  One night, we decided to watch Jurassic Park.  It had been years since Katie and Dave, and Cristy and Jon, had seen the movie, but we figured with our helicopter tour to Jurassic Falls scheduled for later in the week, it was a good time to break out the classic film.  The next evening, David stayed up with the girls watching the sequel, The Lost World.  But we stopped there.  The third movie is just too terrible.

Before my birthday celebration that evening, Katie, Cristy, and I spent more time relaxing by the pool, while the guys checked out a local sports bar, Kalapaki Joe’s.  Cristy made sure that Katie and I scheduled enough downtime on our vacation, and Thursday was definitely one of those days.

As the sun was starting to set, we headed down the road to the Grand Hyatt for a traditional luau.

When we arrived, we were seated at a private table directly in front of the stage.  The Grand Hyatt luau was not a huge affair like others we’d heard about.  It was a more intimate show held on the hotel’s great lawn, and included a dinner buffet, bottomless mai tais, and great performances!

Because it was our birthdays, the three ladies of our group were called on stage and taught a traditional dance by this handsome young gentleman we nicknamed the Hawaiian Magic Mike.  

Of course we made complete fools of ourselves, but it was still a good time!

After drinking many, many mai tais, David and Cristy decided it was time to take our 20s vs 30s pic.

On our second day in Kauai, we walked to Poipu beach.  David and I brought along our snorkel gear and checked out the marine life under the waves, which was surprisingly good at such a popular beach.  

Later that afternoon, we headed to Captain Andy’s.  During their honeymoon, Katie and Dave took Andy's boat tour of the Na Pali coast and raved about the experience, so the guys decided to surprise all of the birthday girls and booked the same trip for us.

Unfortunately the weather turned on us that afternoon, and the swells were too high to sail along the Na Pali coast.  Instead, we sailed back down the coast towards Poipu Beach.  I wasn’t disappointed, though.  The weather was beautiful, our steak and shrimp dinner was delicious, and the scenery was fantastic!

Along the way, we had seen a few spinner dolphins swim beneath the catamaran, but we were treated to the best show EVER on the way back to shore.  A pod of bottlenose dolphins showed up, and they couldn’t be happier to entertain us!

Even the captain and sailors were thrilled.  They told us that bottlenose dolphins hardly ever leap out of the water for boats; usually it’s just the spinners.  So it was a rare siting for everyone onboard, and you can tell by listening to the crowd clapping and the sailors cheering in the video below. 

On Saturday morning, we took a helicopter tour around the entire island of Kauai. 

If we were sad at all that we hadn’t seen the Na Pali coast the day before (and how could we be with the graceful dolphins in the stunning sunset?!), we more than made up for it with that helicopter flight.

We booked our tour through Jurassic Falls because it is the only company with permission to actually land at the waterfall where the copter lands in Jurassic Park’s opening scene, as the land is privately owned.

David had a lot of fun making this video to one of his favorite soundtracks

We had to wear little blue booties as we walked from the helicopter to the waterfall to ensure we did not disturb any of the vegetation.

Those fashionable fanny packs are actually life preservers in case the helicopter crashed in the ocean ... eek!

From there, we saw George Clooney’s land from The Descendants, Waimea canyon (which we were planning to hike that same afternoon), and one of the wettest places on earth, Mt Waialeale.  

The flight was about two hours long, which gave us plenty of time to see the entire island, including the Na Pali coast, which was breath-taking.

Back on solid ground, we decided to have a big breakfast before our hike through Waimea Canyon.  We asked the receptionist at the helicopter company where the locals ate.  She stared at us strangely before responding, ‘Are you sure?’  We were sure, so she recommended Tip Top.

Tip Top Bakery was not far from the airport.  Located inside a motel, the café was packed full of locals indulging in their large Saturday breakfasts.  We all decided to go local, so Katie and Cristy ordered the macadamia nut pancakes with homemade guava jam.  The guys ordered the restaurant's star dish – oxtail soup.  

 I was feeling just as adventurous and requested the bento box.  It came with macaroni salad (old-school, like the kind we ate at family picnics as kids), teriyaki chicken skewers, corned beef hash browns, and rice. 

It was an interesting combination of foods for breakfast, but way too much for us.  Needless to say, after we ate, we were well-fueled and ready for a long hike!

Waimea Canyon is known as Hawaii’s Grand Canyon and just like the rest of the islands, it is so beautiful.  We brought along our good friend, Yoda, and he was just as popular at Waimea as he was at Diamond Head.

We hiked the Canyon Trail, which offered spectacular views of the area, and a waterfall to cool off in at the end of the path.

The trek was a good three hours round-trip, so even after our enormous breakfasts, by the end, we were craving some shave ice!  We stopped at a local place on the way back to Poipu.  This middle-of-nowhere stand happened to have the best shave ice of the trip.  They served their ice on top of macadamia nut ice cream, and then topped it with coconut cream.  This made the shave ice extra creamy and flavorful. 

When we got back to the Wyndham, the girls went shopping before dinner while the guys headed back to their new favorite bar, Kalapaki Joe’s, to catch a game.

For those of you that have been to Hawaii before, you may have noticed all of the wild chickens running around the state.  With no natural predators, Kauai is especially known for its high population of chickens on the loose.  They were pretty bold, too, and would come close to us on the beach to try to steal our food. 

Funny story about Kalapaki Joe’s... the guys ordered a pre-dinner snack of chicken wings.  To their disbelief, they were told that the bar was out of wings.  They joked around that they could just walk outside and grab a chicken if the cook agreed to fry it up for them. Joe said no.

Lucky chicken!

Well, the boys were glad that they hadn’t spoiled their dinner because we ate a late meal at The Dolphin.  The sushi was inventive, fresh, and delicious.

The next day, Sunday, was Cristy’s birthday.  And poor Cristy…

Before the trip, Katie and I had warned her that we were going to get her out of her comfort zone with snorkelling and ziplining excursions, and we stuck to our promise.  On her actual bday, Cristy faced her fears and went ziplining with the group!  And she was a rock-star!

Outfitters on Kauai put together a great excursion for us and a few other couples.  With two guides and a small group, we didn’t have to wait long to get out on the lines.  Also, Outfitters is one of the only companies with access to Kipu Ranch, Hawaii’s main movie set.  All of their ziplines go through terrain that you've probably seen in films like Congo, King Kong, Indiana Jones, and Jurassic Park.

This hillside is named The Sleeping Giant.  Can you see him?

The majority of the ziplines in Kauai were tandem, which David and I hadn’t done before.  Flying through the air parallel to each other was so cool, especially since we had the Go Pro!  And because this was our third time ziplining, we felt comfortable enough to spin and go upside down!

Probably the best 20s pic of them all… David upside down, hanging who-knows-how-many-feet-off-the-ground, ziplining over the canopy.

After spending half a day ziplining, some on lines 1,800 feet long, we had lunch and cooled off at a private swimming hole.  The swimming hole used to be reserved for Hawaii’s princesses, but Outfitters was able to obtain the rights to put a zipline over the water for its clients.

After an adventurous morning, we drove across the island to Princeville to check into our fourth and final hotel, the St. Regis.  This was where it all started – the St. Regis where the Vollmars spent their honeymoon, and Katie came up with the brilliant idea of celebrating our 30th birthdays in Hawaii.

The St. Regis is situated in Hanalei Bay, and offers stunning views of the Na Pali coast.  The sunsets were unbelievable, and each evening, the St. Regis held an outdoor champagne sabering as the sun went down.

We had seen all that we wanted to see in Hawaii, and done plenty, so the next couple of days were spent relaxing on the beach.  We had Cristy’s birthday dinner that night at Bar Acuda, which served delicious tapas like pizzetta and honeycomb with goat cheese.

And, of course, we took one last 30s pic  

The next day, the guys took a deep sea fishing trip, where they caught a few mahi-mahi. 

Meanwhile, the girls stayed back at the hotel and had a relaxing spa day.  After a day of fishing and pampering, all of us dressed up in our new Hawaiian outfits and took part in the champagne saber toast.

It was an unforgettable trip to paradise spent with some of our best friends.  I can’t imagine a better way to ring in a milestone birthday.  Cheers to a new decade and many more adventures!

The Road to 30

David and I arrived in Maui on Monday afternoon to begin our group birthday celebration!  We met Katie and Dave, and Cristy and Jon at the airport, and then headed to Mama’s Fish House. 

Dinner at Mama’s Fish House was by far the best meal we had in Hawaii.  The food was amazing, the beach location was stunning, and the service was great!  The restaurant seated us in a private area in the sand, and waiting for us on our table were three birthday cards – one for each of the birthday girls.  

For dessert, Katie, Cristy, and I were treated to coconut ice cream topped with a birthday candle. 

After all of the deliciousness, the group dropped David and me off at our hotel, the Hilton Grand Wailea.  This hotel was my favorite out of all four hotels we stayed at during the trip.  A Waldorf Astoria property, the Grand Wailea was just down the road from the Marriot where the Simons and Vollmars were staying with their points.  There was a scenic trail along the beach between the Hilton and all other resorts, which made getting around super easy and fun.

As you all know, David and I love movies.  But you may not know that we happen to love cheesy, stupid Adam Sandler movies like Billy Madison and Grown Ups.  A few years ago, Sandler came out with a movie called Just Go With It starring Jennifer Aniston, Nicole Kidman, and Austinite, Brooklyn Decker.  It was a ridiculous film about a guy that fakes an ex-wife to somehow save his current relationship, and it takes place in Hawaii.

While David and I were unpacking that first night, we turned on the TV and Just Go With It was on.  As we were watching, I was thinking, ‘That hotel looks familiar… wait, are we staying there?!’  Turns out, the movie was filmed at the Waldorf and the hotel couldn’t be prouder.  That channel was dedicated 24/7 to Just Go With It.  It literally played the movie on repeat all day, every single day.  It was kind of strange… but also a bit helpful as it gave us ideas of different areas of the resort to check out.

On our first full day in Maui, we had a healthy breakfast of smoothies and banana bread on the beach between our hotels before boarding a catamaran to Lanai. 

Lanai is a small island near Maui known for great snorkelling, as it is mostly uninhabited and the reefs don’t get that many visitors.  We spent the afternoon in the water, with dolphins playing in the cove nearby.  By the time the dolphins showed up, it was late afternoon and everyone else on the excursion had gone inland for lunch or on a hike around the island.  Even though the dolphins didn’t get close, it was still special to watch them and feel like they were putting on a show just for the six of us.

Underneath the water, we saw a lot of cool fish, sea urchins, a bit of coral, and an eel. 

Snorkel selfie with the Go-Pole

When we were done swimming, we took a short hike to Puu Pehe, or Sweetheart Rock.  

Legend goes that a young princess from Maui was captured by a warrior from Lanai. Because of her great beauty, the warrior hid her from all other eyes in the sea caves on the island.  One day, the weather turned and the crashing waves engulfed the sea cave where the princess was hiding.  The warrior rushed back to save the princess, but it was too late, she had drowned.  Overcome with grief, he leapt to his death from the rock.

From the scenic outlook, we decided to take our first 20s vs 30s pic.  On the day of an actual birthday, we took a picture with everyone in their 30s, and then a separate picture of everyone still in their 20s.  As the week went on, the 20s group dwindled… until it was just David, whose birthday isn't until April.

When we returned to Maui, we had Katie’s birthday dinner at Ka’ana Kitchen.  The farm-to-table restaurant featured sharing plates like octopus, watermelon salad, and pork belly.  It was a late dinner after a full day, but it was nice to have the restaurant to ourselves since we were one of the last groups of diners.

That night, we walked to a local bar and stayed up late to see the harvest moon.  By 1:00 am, when the moon was at its reddest, we found ourselves lying on beach chairs next to the ocean, listening to the sound of the waves (and Dave snoring).  We finally made ourselves get up and walk back to our hotels because we had an early start to Hana on Wednesday.

The Road to Hana is a two-lane highway that runs along the east coast of Maui.  Starting in the small, beachside town of Paia, the road is about 60 miles long, but can take up to 10 hours to drive round-trip.  This is due to the fact that the road has more than 600 curves, 55 bridges (all but 10 of which are only one lane wide), and multiple sites to stop and explore – like hidden beaches, waterfalls, and pools within the jungle.

As we were planning our trip, we joked about getting an awesome mini-van for the six of us to drive around Hawaii.  But instead, we decided on a small SUV.  I was amazed that it fit all of us (and our suitcases)!

The Road to Hana was the highlight of our time in Maui.  And it was mostly because of our guide, GyPsy.

GyPsy is an iPhone app that acts as a driving guide for various routes in the Americas, including the Road to Hana.  Cristy found the app and downloaded it for us.  It was actually really cool, as it used our GPS coordinates to tell us exactly where we were, what we should stop and see, and give us information on the local area.  It planned our entire day trip to Hana for us as we drove.

Naturally, we nicknamed the voice of the guide providing us with directions Gypsy, and we poked so much fun at him.  He was very risk-averse and would tell us all about the amazing waterfalls to see, or hikes to take, or local villages to stop at, but then in the next breath, warn us to stay away for various, ridiculous reasons.  He also reminded us every time we stopped to take him with, and not leave him in the car.

Our first stop was a prime surfing spot near Paia

Then it was a 20 minute walk in the the woods to get to our first waterfall

Eucalyptus trees have the most beautiful, multicolored trunks 

David and Jon sat in the back of the SUV like Statler and Waldorf, the grumpy old Muppets in the balcony of the theatre that talk throughout the show and heckle the cast.  ‘Oh, what a surprise… Gypsy advises us not to hike down to this waterfall because the path could be slippery…’ or ‘Gypsy wants us to take him with us to the beach.  He’s starting to insert himself into our vacation.  Soon, he’ll be a part of our lives, begging us to take him home.  We’ll have to buy a seat for him on the plane next to us!’

Third stop was the Arboretum, where we hiked through thick vegetation to view some stunning flowers

The Three Bears waterfall 

And the treacherous ladder we used to get down to the falls

For all of the grief we gave Gypsy, we actually found ourselves missing him later.  As we drove across Kauai, I wanted to know more about the island, and I wished that he was there to offer his  knowledgeable tidbits.

We had lunch on a black sand beach,

and then took a quick dip in the ocean before moving on.

Because we started the Road to Hana early in the morning, we were able to actually make it past Hana to the Seven Sacred Pools.  And along the way, we saw everything we wanted to see – from black sand beaches to flower sanctuaries, and scenic outlooks.

Gypsy told us all about how Hawaii is over-run with mongoose... They were brought to the islands to kill the rats that were harming the sugarcane plantations.  But there was a major problem - rats are nocturnal and mongoose are not.  So for the past 100 years, the rats and mongoose have been living in harmony.  

Our final stop - the Seven Sacred Pools

On our way back to Wailea, we stopped at Paia Fish Market for fish ‘n’ chips and fish tacos.  We were happy to get out of the car by this point.  Dave was an awesome driver, and drove the entire way!  But those windy roads in the dark, without any streetlights, had him on the edge of his seat for hours on the way home.  He led a caravan with a few cars behind us, and when he pulled over to follow someone else’s taillights for a while, they were having none of it and also pulled over!  Follow the leader, I guess…

Before we knew it, our time in Maui was up!  We were scheduled to leave for Kauai on Thursday afternoon, so we had a little bit of time the next morning to relax in the infinity pool at the Marriot.  I also took an hour by myself to explore the Hilton’s amenities.  The hotel had so many pools and fun things to do that I wish we’d had more time.  But hey, with that direct flight from Texas, I’m already envisioning my next Hawaiian vacation…

For now, our next stop is Kauai!