Wind Event

 The weather in Kauai has been different this year. We have had more rain and wind than in any previous year. We are at the end of a several day period of wind and rain that has generated high waves in the small cove that the condo overlooks. When we arrived I noticed that the grass in front of the condo was brown even though there has been a lot of rain. I speculate that salt water has killed the grass and only weeds have come back. 

I stepped outside during a rain shower to video the waves. At the end you will see the sea foam that has been lifted by the wind and drifts over land. Perhaps this is how the salt reaches us.

Na Pali Coast

 The Na Pali Coast is one of the most beautiful areas in Kauai. I have seen it from the overlook in the State Park and from the water. Last year some of our extended family members took on the hike from the lookout. We went a few yards and then decided the trek would not be safe for us. 

We take all visitors to the State Park to have a chance to see the view. It is a drive and always a risk because the clouds get very dense at this location and often there is nothing to see but white. We have been lucky this year,

Revisiting Russia and Ukraine

 We have friends who immigrated from Russia who frequently come to stay with us while in Hawaii. Our friendship goes way back to when Cindy first met Natasha who served as her interpreter and our eventual trip to Russia in 2013. They were with us here last year when Russia invaded Ukraine. They are part Ukrainian with friends on both sides of the conflict and their youngest son and wife have now left Russia to avoid the consequences of the war.

We were sitting around drinking tequila last evening and they were describing their more recent experiences as part of a Russian-speaking community in Denver. While "Americanized" they told of hostile social media posts targeting Russians rather than the Putin government. They find this frustrating as their presence in the U.S. obviously should be understood as an indication of their position on the situation in Russia, but the label is still applied. Our association with them and their circle of acquaintances has to be unique among our friends. Their life stories of being uprooted by multiple conflicts now (Chechen war before Russia) have long been a source of amazement at their resilience. 

Panoramas

The Apple phone has a great capability to produce beautiful panoramas. One significant challenge in capturing what you see in nature is the appreciation of scale. A panorama is a great way to provide the experience of scale. These individual images will enlarge if you click on one with your mouse.

Double rainbow

Taro fields

Nepali Coast

High Surf

Old guys in convertibles

We were visiting the Kauai Coffee plantation yesterday and this older gentleman pulled up in a convertible with his wife (I assume). He saw me notice his car and evidently felt the need to explain that it was an upgrade from the model they had reserved because the intended rental was not available. It was his need to offer this explanation to me, a total stranger, I thought was interesting. As an older winter tourist, he may have made a similar conclusion to what I have made about these old guys who rent sports cars (Mustang convertibles, etc) when vacationing in Hawaii.

I understand that the lack of a car top has an advantage in warm and sunny climates. You do drive with more sunlight on your head and the breeze in your hair and folks do find this appealing. Or, some old guys (the guys do seem to be the drivers) driving the kind of car they couldn’t afford or weren’t allowed to own when young, may just make them feel young again when behind the wheel of this kind of vehicle. I tend to judge such behavior as pathetic, but this may just be sour grapes. I no longer have hair to blow in the breeze and I must wear some type of head covering to prevent a sun burn that seems impossible to avoid when my head is exposed to the sun. Cindy also does all of the driving because she can instantly understand the roads, connecting roads, and strange town names that allow us to get around. 

On the other hand, the top highway speed on the Island is 50 and many of the roads require limiting your speed to 35-40. There just seems little reason to own or rent a fast car, so I will continue with my attitude problem.