lvk

They tried to warn me -- Kal and his Kauai Komedians (g'lou, i'2, iamq)-- but would I listen? Noooo. They warned me about the rain, the chickens, the cockroaches, the dark, the traffic, the terrible food. What they didn't warn me about was the most severe case of post-vacation depression EVER!

I've pulled myself together enough to post a few pix. http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/lvktra...=/8118&.src=ph
Details will follow.

Alisa

Great pictures! Which condo at HBR did you stay at? I am planning an October trip and am thinking about the HBR--problem is, I know that you can either get a great condo or a crappy one!

FainaAgain

Although it was not Kal, another Fodorite warned me not to go to Switzerland. I did't listen, and like you, lvk, the PTSD hit me hard - Post-Travel Stress Disorder. And now I am in love... not knowing if I ever can afford to go back!

Statia, we can discuss it on Friday, poison needed

Statia

I'll add it to the topic list, Faina.

iceeu2

See lvk....you captured in photos exactly what you were warned about..obviously it rained a lot for you to get those rainbow shots...beautiful, btw.

Just when I think I am doing ok, I read a trip report or look at someone's photos and it puts me right back into the same state you are in. Mind if I join you with the

lvk

Alisa,

Here is the condo we rented through Kauai Vacation Rentals:

http://www.kauaivacationrentals.com/...o&Avail=&Stay=

We needed the 2br+loft, since there were 5 of us. The advantage of the condos on the 3rd floor are 1) better view, 2) high ceilings, so they feel very spacious. The decor in this one was dated, but it worked fine for us. (It is currently for sale, so the owners probably don't intend to upgrade it. We saw similar condos at the HBR in the Real Estate books listed for $950k - $1.2 million)

Also, check out this web site for more rentals at HBR: http://www.summitpacificinc.com/hana...tml#see-condos

Alisa

Thanks for the info! With that view--I won't be looking at the furniture much!

sea_wahine

I love that mountain range. The sunrise and mid day shots bring sweet memories. I 'm so happy that we'll be back for a visit in a few weeks! Thanks for the pix and precise condo review, i'll post a few when i return. aloha!

iceeu2

topping for iamq....this is a great post by lvk

birgator

Just a point to avoid those loooooong URLs in a posting that make you have to scroll sideways forever to read the message (and the ones that follow and the ones that preceded it)

Here: www.tinyURL.com
which makes your long one of 144 characters into 24 -- like this:

http://tinyurl.com/7jl6t

Try it. It works. Cool, huh?

B/

iamq

lvk,

NO ONE EVER LISTENS TO ME! Serves you right!

Regarding the depression: My advice is to keep posting, it helped reduce my withdrwals! We just got back from a little trip to Lake Tahoe over the weekend that helped a bit too. Thanks for the great photos especially of the hula dancers. Shaka!
Aloha and welcome back.

-Bill

iceeu2

So when do we get the details of that horrible vacation destination?

MBnancy

Ivk, did you come back from Kauai after a week, as we did? What a bummer to be home. Love your photos, I'm impressed that you have them up on a site already.
Looking forward to your trip report.
Did you hear us honk an Aloha to you, last Tuesday, when we drove to the north shore?
8-)

lvk

Okay, I2, just for you. Since I can't sleep, I'll post a few of the mundane details.

There were five of us: myself, DH, DD (12), DS (10) and MIL (70+)

Flight - ATA - direct-LAX-Lihue. I'm so happy I found this direct flight. I was monitoring as prices hovered around $750 when Sidestep popped up with a $450 fare at ATA's website (Orbitz & Expedia still had the same exact flight listed for $750).

The 5 hours went by relatively easily, which made me think ....hmmmm maybe a long weekend getaway would be do-able in the future? (We've done NYC & Miami getaways in the past year --same approx. flight times, so why not?)

Anyhow, service was great all around and flights were on time. Yes, they still serve hot meals on ATA, but sorry, they are no more edible than the airline meals in your memory. DS said it best- "This pasta has no taste". The "french roll" tasted alot like "le Playdoh". DD thought the chicken was okay.

Rental Car. Okay, I'm going to go off on a rant here. There are no rental car lots that you can walk to from the terminal at the LIH airport. The rental counters are across the street from the terminal. You then hop onto a shuttle to go to the rental lot to get your car. I left the family at the carousel to wait for the luggage, went over to the shuttle stop , caught the shuttle, picked up our car and then circled back to the terminal to pick up the family & luggage. No problem, right?

Then someone please explain to me why the majority of families chose the following procedure: Entire family waits for luggage, rents a cart, loads all the luggage, car seats, golf clubs, strollers, etc. onto the cart. The entire family with loads of luggage then crosses the street to the rental counter and waits in line. They then all go to wait in line for the shuttle. They then load all their junk onto the shuttle & ride to the lot. They then have to haul all
this crap off of the shuttle and schlep it to their car without the help of the rental cart, which they had to leave behind.

I was still mystified when I saw the whole thing done in reverse on our way home, only this time add gigantic overstuffed Hilo Hatties bags and cases of pineapples to the equation. Baffling! Okay, end of rant.

lvk

Hi MBNancy! Welcome back. Hope your trip was great! I might have heard the horn, but I thought it was just our friendly rooster. ~gt; Are you going to post some details too?

lvk

Continuing...

As I was basking in my intellectual superiority for figuring out the whole rental-car-shuttle-thing, enjoying the East Shore scenery -- after the Kapaa traffic -- I realized something that will qualify me for one of Bill's "Microbrain medals" (gotta be at least a silver!).

Kauai Vacation Rentals told me that they would leave the keys to the condo at the Budget rental car counter. And this dawned on me when? Ohh, about at Anahola. Sooooo, turn around, back through Kapaa traffic to the airport, get the keys, head back up to Princeville. Yes, that's right, we got to do the "Kapaa Krawl" not once, not twice, but THREE TIMES in the first 2 hours of our vacation! Brilliant!

DH's comment? "Well, I hope there's plenty to do up on the North Shore, because I'm not making THAT drive many more times."

MelissaHI

ummm.....congratulations? I live in this ungodly place called Honolulu and every morning when I roll out of bed (to my left) and gaze out upon the glassy Pacific Ocean as the sunrise unfolds blues, pinks, and purples on the horizon, I wonder who the heck could have cursed me to a lifetime sentence in this place.

Oh yeah, don't forget--I have to work on the harborfront at Aloha Tower Marketplace so I have to watch oceanfront sunsets when I leave work all the time. Daaaaaamn! OK I know this doesn't compare to Kauai's serenity, but it's pretty darn close.

Start saving your pennies and your mileage--I'm guessing that you're now part of the Kalkahuna Kauai Luvers Klub and will be back to Hawaii very soon to serve out the rest of your sentence. Bad, karma, bad!


Maybe a GTG will help ease your pain.

kanunu

Excellent stuff, lvk! I especially got a charge about your "plan" to go to Kauai for a long weekend getaway..... now let's see, how I could work that out....hmmm... 20+ hours in the air, both ways, no problem. Not quite as do-able, from the east, but possible. Now all I have to do is talk my wife into it. Been back for four months now, and the "depression" continues. And it will get worse Saturday night, when I attend an "Elvis in Hawaii" party, and have to tell so many people about our trip...... At least, I don't have to play The Big E this time. Thanks for the reminders of paradise, which it would be, if not for the bugs, rain, chickens, traffic, tourists etc......

kanunu

In response to your "car rental rant". Yes, you did it "the right way", perhaps we all need to tell those who don't know better, as they are trying to get on the shuttle. The mistake that I made was after I picked up the car, and was heading back to the terminal to pick up wife and luggage, I must have missed a sign or read it wrong, and ended up leaving the airport and heading for Kapa'a or Lihue, or ? Turned around and got back just before my wife sent out a posse to look for me. Another mistake I will never make again, going from Maui to Lihue, via IslandAir, I assumed we checked in through Aloha Air....wrong! It is a long walk at Kahului, trailing luggage and golf clubs, to get to the "commuter terminal", way down at the other end of the airport. But the flight was good (and hey, we were in Hawaii!) so we forgot about the long caravan-style walk. It was good exercise.

JAKCruiser

I think I can answer your rental car question. If you want your spouse on the contract as a second driver, they have to be present and sign the contract. When we just went to Kauai this summer, we too hoped one of us could get the car while the other stayed with our son and luggage but that plan was nixed by contract legalities.