Visit Pig-tures Part I

Visit Pig-tures Part II

Auntie Sheryl took me (Fluffy) to a Realtor Caravan with her husband, Darrel who sells real estate here on Kauai.  We got to see lots of places for sale - condos, houses, and land some of them regular and some really fancy with pools, hot tubs and views!  We didn't get to take any pigtures during that though, because Darrel also brought some of his clients and we were running late.  We got to munch on some great pupu platters - veggies and dip and some other things too.   I stuck to the veggies - carrots - yum!  Pupu is the Hawaiian word for snack - like the French word hors d'oeuvre.  Pupu is said "poo-poo", but humans don't serve that!  :-)

After the caravan we went and saw a few more places with Darrel's clients, including a condominium unit that was for sale which actually was three units all connected into one.  The pool at that place was really nifty because it looked like a natural pond with a waterfall and there was a path down to the beach as well.  We didn't have time to go to the beach, but Auntie Sheryl said we'd go there on the weekend if not sooner!

After we dropped off Darrel's clients I got hungry again and they thought I might want to check out how the grass by a view tasted.  They said they knew a place with fresh grass and greens that isn't sprayed or anything - is natural and safe to eat.  I was super excited about that and decided to drive us all there myself - couldn't wait - wheeek, wheeek wheeek!!!

They directed me to a place where we could see the lighthouse preserve, Secret Beach, and views of the mountains made famous in the movie From Here To Eternity and was called Bali Hai.  The grass was good there!  And we had time for pigtures too!

Here they are!  Enjoy!  :-)

Oh yes!  I forgot to tell you, it's common practice here for women friends of the family to be called Auntie by the keiki of the family.  Keiki is the Hawaiian word for child or children, it's pronounced like the name 'Kay' and the word 'key' together: 'kay-key' or 'kay-kee'.

Here I am arriving!  :-) Whew!  I can't wait to taste that fresh grass! Those are some nice views though! That's...munch...munch...the...munch...lighthouse...munch...behind me.  Auntie Sheryl thinks we might be able to go see it during my trip sometime too.  There are lots of birds there - it's in Kilauea Point National Wildlife Refuge. Mmmm...yummy hay - I mean - grass!  Wheek wheeek! Oh yes!  I forgot to tell you...munch...munch...munch...that's Secret Beach ...munch...munch...behind me.  It's...munch...one of Auntie Sheryl's favorite beaches.  You can also see...munch..munch...the Bali Hai mountains in the distance.  Munch...munch...munch...

We're going to Hanalei Beach today.  It's down in that valley.  From here we can see the Taro fields of Hanalei.  Taro is said (like the word 'tar' and the letter 'o' together).  People use the roots of the taro plant to make poi.. Poi (said 'poy') is kind of like mashed potatoes when fresh (with a different flavor), but people usually let it ferment a bit, so it tastes very different than mashed potatoes.  You can also usually see some of the Hanalei mountains with waterfalls on them from here, but not today - too cloudy. Here we are, down at a taro field.  That's taro behind me, and more mountains beyond.  Let's see if I can get closer... There we go, a little closer.  There are two main types of taro - dry land taro and the regular, wet-land taro.  This is the regular taro and it is grown in areas that they flood at different stages of it's growth - like how people grow rice.  It looks yummy, doesn't it?  Auntie Sheryl told me I shouldn't eat the leaves though because it has calcium crystals that will hurt people's and guinea pig's throats if not cooked carefully first.  She said most people just eat the root, cooked.  I think I'll just stick to eating this yummy grass!  This looks like a good spot - flowers too!  Mmmmm!  Munch... munch....munch.... This is a waterway that is used to flood the fields when they want.  Well, we're off to the beach!... Look!  It looks like they're having a birthday party!  I love parties!  Wheek, wheek, wheek!!! The people at the party were very nice to me.  Wheeeee had lots of fun! Oh look!  There's the sand and surf! Gee, I think I'd like to go under those umbrellas over there.  I can't help it, I like to hide under things sometimes - I'm a guinea pig, you know.  I wonder if those people would mind? They're really nice and didn't mind at all.  I had fun chatting with them about my adventures.  When they found out that my home is at a school, they told me that one of them used to be a teacher too!  No wonder they were so friendly!  Ahhh, this is the life!  Hmmm... is that WATERMELON? Wheeek?   Wheeek!  Wheeeeeek!   Just an umbrella - oh well.  Oh, look!  That looks like fun! Can I dig too?  This is fun!  What? Go in your kayak?  In the ocean?  Sure!  Why not?  Auntie Sheryl said the waves look okay here today. Let's go!  I'm ready! Whew!  That wore me out!  Where's the food? Gee, there's not much to eat at the beach!  Auntie Sheryl won't even let me eat these greens because she's not sure if they're non-poisonous or not.  I guess I'll have to go back to the grass at the park on our way in.  Look!  A coconut tree!  I wonder if there are any coconuts? Nope, don't see any from up here either - someone must have already gotten them!  Too bad, I could use a nice drink of young coconut juice right now.  Did you know that people here get the coconuts when they are still green-ish on the outside and not much 'meat' has grown on the inside so they can drink the sweet juice?  They sell them all over the place here and it's quite refreshing.  Usually the person who sells them to you will cut it open for you with a machete (big knife) right when you buy it.  They just cut off one end big enough to fit a straw inside (or pour the liquid out).  Some people will even use papaya leaf stems as a straw, because papaya tree stems are hollow, like a straw!  After you're done drinking the juice, you can usually get them to cut it open for you so you can eat the 'meat'.  The 'meat' is not hard like in stores in non-tropical places (unless you ask for mature coconuts), it's soft and jelly-like.  Here's a picture of Auntie Sheryl and her dad drinking coconuts with papaya straws.  I didn't get to meet her father - the picture is from when he visited her last time. Well, I think I'll see if I can help those lifeguards keep watch on things... Being a lifeguard is an important job.  You have to watch everything all at once. Wait!  I think I see something out there!  It's so hard to tell from on shore.  I think we'd better go out and check it out.  Come on!  Quick!  Wheeek!  Weeeeek!  Wheeeek! Help me get a good push off Auntie Sheryl! Here I go!  Gee, I hope these fins stay on - they're a little big! Wheeek!  Wheeeek! Wheeeek!  Auntie Sheryl!  Do you see anything?  Oh!  I think it was just a coconut floating out there.  Whew!  Oops!  One of my flippers fell off! I think that's enough for me for today. I'm ready to go to Auntie Sheryl's house and have some carrots, lettuce and lots of fresh grass!   But first I think I'll have some more grass at the park before I go.  Mmmm.. can't beat fresh grass - well, maybe with fresh lettuce!  Munch, munch, munch! Well, I guess it's time to say good-bye to my friends and go to see new adventures in Atlanta.  How exciting Atlanta's in Georgia on the Mainland! Bye Goldie dog! Bye Lil' Cat! And bye to my hosts, Auntie Sheryl, the sister pigs - Speedie and Patty, and the rest of the family!  Thanks for your hospitality! Auntie Sheryl and her family said to let everyone know how fun it was to host me.  Gosh, how nice! The people on Kauai are so nice.  Auntie Sheryl says it's that 'aloha spirit', I think it's just great! I hope they have lots of lettuce in Georgia! Bye!

Visit Pig-tures Part I

Visit Pig-tures Part II