Life's a Stitch

Eating in Paradise

I agreed to go the land vacation route if C would be my room steward, making my bed daily and that if I cooked, it would be cleaned up afterwards. My travelmates came though for me, so I cooked my heart out. Who wouldn't want to in a kitchen like this one:

The out of the ordinary included marlin, opah and mahi mahi and a starter of bought lomi lomi and poke (versions of Hawaiian ceviche, raw fish marinated in dressing). C carried cedar planks from Vancouver for grilling the fish:

Chuck was our bartender, who went coconut crazy after finding  105 oz can of coconut milk for $1.99:

We only went out to dinner once, to a luau at the Mediterranean Gourmet in Hanelei, a drive that involved eight one lane bridges. It's a good thing it was a less commercial luau, with only one free drink. Can't say enough about it, who'd have expected an outstanding luau at a mediterranean restaurant, owned by a middle easterner? He contracts with a Hawaiian family for the entertainment complete with the fire dancing. A mom and dad, their four kids and friends were amazing. I recommend skipping the all you can drink kind of commercial luau and go for the quality of the Mediterranean Gourmet.

I found a treat for lunch at a farmer's market. I was surprised to see a food tent featuring the Puerto Rican food of my childhood.  It was the best of Puerto Rico without the long flight. Turns out that there are over 30,000 Puerto Ricans in Hawaii, brought over as early as the 19th century for their expertise in growing sugar.

 

 

Photography challenge

I read an article that challenged you to take a photo, paying attention to the composition and settings, no after click touch ups allowed. No cropping or photoshopping, what you click is what you get, the simple truth. Here are a few examples, my favourite shots of Kauai:

 

 

Knitting in paradise

And I was the one who didn't want to go, preferring the more relaxing aspects of a cruise. I was wrong. Paradise is the only way to describe Kauai. We stayed five nights in the south and six nights in the north of the island. In both spots there seems to be a tradition of people gathering at sunset to take amazing pictures. Sunset in the south:

The sun melting into the ocean:

Sunset in the north:

And a group shot, sunset closer to the west coast of Kauai.

In case you don't recognize us, that's Chuck, me, Blogless Marsha and Dave:

 

 

One more tree and then some knitting

It's the last for now, I promise. Last week's watercolour class was a scene I wouldn't have believed if I hadn't seen the picture with my own two eyes. It's a tree growing out of a crevasse in Enchanted Rock State Natural Area in Texas:

How is that possible? After researching batholiths, it's quite explainable. I do believe I need to see this one in person someday.

Next post:  While knitting in Hawaii I discovered the inability to post from my ipad. Next post, though, I'll be able to share with you some retrospective knitting from paradise. My plan is to play catch up by posting twice per week.

 

Brushes up, needles down

Time for more painting. My watercolour teacher shares my love of trees. In his class I have painted birches, black oaks, fir trees, deciduous trees, palms, trees in winter, some in summer, the gamut. Walking in my daughter's neighbourhood in Calgary I spied a tree that I had to try on my own:

It's a Chokecherry. I have a thing for painting trees and houses, I'm going to concentrate on those for awhile. In between knitting, that is.