Mai Tais and Other Concoctions

Sleeping late in Kauai is great. We woke up at 6 AM which seems early except it is 11 AM in Houston so it was really sleeping late. It was also Sunday so no emails from work to deal with. We went to the Westin store where we acquired a cup of Starbucks for Cherry and Jerry jumped in the spa. The spa was big enough for a dozen folks but we had it all to ourselves.

Shallow pools with spouting turtles look like fun places for the little people to play. I have a policy against getting in those pools for obvious reasons.

Last time we were here the Westin had just had a soft opening. The Princeville hotel where we stayed was set to close for a remodel and rebranding as St Regis. This hotel has a location that is hard to beat. Beautiful beach next to the largest coral reef in the Hawaiian Islands offers incredible sunsets over the Napali coast line. Now that I think of it, what a great place to watch the sunset and blog on your iPad.

We wanted to see what they had done with their $79MM renovation so we walked over to the St Regis. It was 5.2 miles round trip so it was a great way to start the morning. St Regis is spruced up but it was hard to see where all the money was spent from the lobby. We entered the lobby at ground level which is floor 9. You take the elevator to the fourth floor, switch elevators and proceed to floor 2. That is how it works when you build your hotel on the side of a volcano.

The St Regis really spruced up the pool with nice tile and flagstone. Mother nature provided the scenery which is still awesome. We decided to stay and enjoy the setting with a beverage. I would have to give the St Regis Mai Tai a thumbs up. Not sure why but they just taste better on the beach in the islands.

I called the Makai golf course and reserved a tee time for 2:30 and we walked back to the Westin. Cherry dropped me off and I played 18 holes in the sun and the wind. Makai is very open off the tee but it has lots of white sand. I shot my normal 15 good holes of golf ranging from pa4 to double bogey and three bad holes and did not break 100. It is a 127 slope rating but I would say 140 in the wind.

We had reservations at Nanea for prime rib night. The food was good and we had a nice Malbec with dinner. Our waitress was named Olena which is the name of an ancient Hawaian flower whose root is used for healing. Olena was BOI of Kauai. She has a three year old daughter whose Hawaiian name means "First Light of Heaven". Olena was college educated and very passionate about native rights. She grew up with her father living off the land and sea: night diving for fish, snaring wild boar, etc. She told us about the bones of the ancestors that were being found as people were building their multi-million dollar homes on the coast. The islanders want the jobs from the wealthy residents and tourism but want more repect for their culture.

We had such a good time talking to Olena that we stayed for another round of drinks after closing our check. Cherry had another glass of wine and I spotted a drink called the 2-11. It was invented by the Nanea's bartender and it has tequila, Cointreau, and a Grand Marnier float. But it is the fruit juices that make the drink. It is all natural and I plan to research the drink more later and bring it to the mainland.

Aloha!