Wandering to: Kaua'i
My friend Ashley got married!! It was a hometown affair, in her native Kaua'i, to a man who suited her perfectly.
Ashley and I had met in Palo Alto, in 2014. We were attending a party given by our [future] Pastor-- We were both brand new at that church- and I was brand new on the West Coast!- but regardless, neither Ashley nor I could help ourselves from trying to welcome others into the festivity. I don't remember who beat who to the punch of trying to make the other feel at home in that stranger's house, but when we realized we BOTH didn't know anyone, or even anything about this community, we laughed so happily. We were instant friends. My years in California are now framed by warm moments around a dining room table, or at an ice cream counter, or in a living room Bible study with Ashley beside me. It had been several years since I'd seen her, but when I heard of her engagement, I prayed earnestly that she would remember me, and invite me to see her say her vows.
When I saw the save-the-date in my email inbox, it was about 3AM on a February morning. (Ashley and I are both hopeless night owls!) My heart leaped. I knew that I realistically could not attend this wedding. One, destination weddings are not for the impoverished! And two, the wedding date was during my cruise season, so I'd have to get approval for extra time off, and then travel 6,000 miles from China.
So I solemnly prepared to write a heartfelt "regrets" RSVP. But I also prayed, like a little girl, "God, Can I go?"
And the benevolent Lord gave me a green light, in the form of a fearless heart, and an easy conscience. Before the sun rose, with the gratitude of one accepting a longed for gift, I could send a heartfelt "Wouldn't miss it."
Travel Companions:
My travel philosophy is always, "The More, the Merrier". I posted an open invite to Facebook, messaged a few of my favorite people, and waited for the desire to take hold. By the end of April, I had secured myself an awesome girl gang. <3
Kim-- the ever-ready Adventurer. She is always the first person I invite to visit the world with me. I had given Ashley my 'Yes' within a few hours- Kim gave hers within a few minutes.
Lauren-- My Best Friend from the cradle to the grave.
Penelope-- Lauren's "Kim"
Karley--My second cousin- last seen/spoken to ~11 years ago. She reached out to reintroduce herself and join this trip on the recommendation of her wise and excellent mother.
BONUS: Brady-- A friend of the Bride's. I had messaged Ashley, and asked her if any other cost-creative travelers might want to share hotels with me and my friends. Happily, a new friendship was forged! The girl gang and I welcomed Brady as our 6th member, and he took up residence on our living room couch for 2 nights of the trip.
Sleeping Place:
3 nights in Princeville, at a Wyndham timeshare. An extravagant gift from my mother to me and the girls.
3 nights in Lihue, at Banyon Harbor Resort. The sweetest little apartment, perfect for our needs. A covered parking place for our Jeep, 3 patios, and a well equipped kitchen. Bedrooms upstairs for the ladies (and our grandma-bedtimes!), and a private bachelor paradise for our man friend to come and go on his own island time.
Daily Bread:
From the comfort of our apartment kitchens, we subsisted on a daily diet of pineapple wedges, strong coffee, banana pancakes, and box brownies. But once outside our apartment doors, we were totally unprotected from the powerful lure of the Açaí Bowl outlets all around us. We would pile into the Jeep, and just wait for someone to timidly say the magic words: "Second Breakfast?"
We were of one mind.
More than nourished by our colorful, protein rich and energy boosting dishes, we needed little more than the occasional Shave Ice, deli sandwich, or spicy poke bowl to-go, savored in blissful, satisfied silence on blankets on the sand.
Extravagant Hospitality Received:
1. Ashley compiled a list for her wedding guests-- a comprehensive guide of her favorite places to eat and enjoy around the island. Whenever the girls and I were in any doubt, we pulled out her list! It took so much pressure off of us from having to strive and guess for our next meal- without being right in the car with us, she took care of us.
2. Three of us got stranded in nonstop rain after a long walk one evening. We tried to wait it out, but it was so late, and we were so sleepy! When I saw a Valet bring a car around a hotel portico, and hand the keys to a couple. I sprinted over, knocking on their window just in time- and asked them if they would drive us home! They were tourists, but luckily, the Kaua’i Spirit of Aloha had overtaken them already. They drove us right to our doorstep, and gave us one of our best tips of the trip- when it's raining in the North, just drive to the South. It's a whole 'nother world.
Travel Complications:
The day before we left Hawaii, I was due for Injection #4 of the Rabies Vaccine. (See my harrowing tale of the Stray Dog attack in Chongqing.) These vaccinations are no joke, and my colleagues in China had actually asked me to skip my friend’s wedding, and stay in China where they could be sure I received my medicine on time! But it never occurred to me that not listening to them would turn out to be a matter of life and death.
Weeks in advance, I had confirmed a Walk-in appointment with the Urgent Care doctors at a Hospital in Lihue- But when I did walk in, I was told, very matter-of-factly, that there was simply no Rabies Vaccine available in the state of Hawaii. I was dumbstruck. There’s no other cure for rabies than timely prevention. And now I wouldn’t have it! (Bizarrely, another traveler had come to this exact hospital a few days prior, also seeking a rabies vaccine. He was sent away empty-handed, just as I would be. The nurses told me this because they wanted me to understand that it would be pointless for them to try and call other hospitals to find a dose of the vaccine in stock….. they already had.)
How ironic, I thought to myself, that all these weeks, I had been worried that if I was going to die of rabies, it would be because a Chinese clinic had sold me a knockoff brand of vaccine. But no, it would be because “Hawaii doesn’t have a rabies problem.”! I wondered if that other infected traveler was still on the island, and wished I could buy him a drink.
Since the receptionists couldn’t seem to get it into my head that there was nothing to be done for me here— I was still parked obstinately in front of the poor women, with teeth clenched, and tears spilling over my glaring eyes— a doctor was called. He was a kind man, and he invited me into his office- no copay required- so that I could cry and mourn for my chance to grow old.
The only thing I could think of as to why in the world this would have happened, was that perhaps God, both the Great Physician, and the Defender of the poor, was pleased to save me (or rather, save Kim) from an expense of ~$600 American dollars. Dear Kim had handed me her credit card for this visit as I walked out the door-- because she is an Angel. Now I could give her her card back with no damage done. I would be home in China within 3 days, and God-willing, the virus would stay dormant long enough that a 70-hour delay wouldn’t cause too much harm. The cost in China would be 85 Chinese Yuan, or $14.18 American dollars. Even this broke girl can swing that! I was worn out from my emotions when I came home to the girls that night, and they gave me the best medicine- Themselves, and 2 Virgin Pina Coladas. If I was dying, I'd die happy.
Local Color: My favorite scenes from the trails
1.Karley set us on a course to visit "The Queen's Bath" one morning- a glorious natural pool carved in behind black volcanic rocks and the crashing waves of the Pacific. But the trail leading us to it had been transformed by weather into a miles-long mudslide. The descent was a treacherous and sticky procession of hidden branches and dense, dark puddles. There was no telling how deep each puddle was until half your leg was in it! Shoes only hindered you-- their traction was rendered useless on the rocks, and in the puddles, they would stick dangerously in the depths, dragging you back as you tried to step forward. The wisdom of the trail was, do it barefoot. Brave the pain of the pricking twigs and sharp rocks, and trust your naked toes as your truest guides.
And trust we did. But not without incident! My first fall was a heart-stopping slide and crash. I pulled myself up- so thankful to cake, and bread, and beer for the plush cushioning of my hips and thighs- and announced my condition to our trailmates in my outdoor voice:
"NEW BRUISE!!"
Hiking in the Waimea Canyon- no mud this time, perfectly fine traction on the trail… but our high-spirited friend ran/jumped to swing on a tree branch, and instead, catapulted herself down into a ditch! Oh to be young, free and alive!
The echoing laughs distracted me from the throbbing as we pressed on, but it was painfully true- a plum -sized, plum-colored bruise would mark me well into June.
Kim went down next- she fell hard, and careened down a steep, slippery part of the trail, her shoe flying high and away, into some brush. Karley and I had to form a human chain to retrieve it, as Kim glowered from the sidelines, for a moment, hating the world and everyone in it.
None of us escaped the mud!
Kim had hung back, adapting a more careful pace after her disaster, but Karley and I had almost reached the bottom of the trail, when two guys caught up with us. They tried to start a cute conversation, which we probably would have cheerfully engaged, had we not needed our every ounce of concentration to stay upright!
But one of them found a moment to say "I love a girl covered in mud.", and we felt it right to respond appreciatively.
The other, not to be outdone, chimed in, "I love two!"
When we didn't manage a response for him, he helpfully went on to explain the comment for us:
"I meant I love T-W-O..... not T-O-O."
Suddenly I found the energy to respond… though not in my most gracious way! Thank you, yes, you were clear. 🤦🏻♀️
To our credit, we didn't laugh at him right then and there.... but I'm still laughing now.
2. My second favorite piece of local color was our Karley herself. A pure, whimsical creature, she had begun to imagine her life as a resident of Kaua’i from the first hour on the island. And when we hiked any trail, Karley, naturally as the waterfalls themselves, fell into the role of trail guide. For an entire week, she greeted every person we passed by, and told them of the beauty that they had in store ahead. If the trail was rough, or steep, or long, she told them, "You'll get there. It will be worth it. You are going to just LOVE it." The amount of spring that was put into stranger's steps, and the amount of cheer that was put into their hearts by our dear Karley can’t be measured. The Spirit of Aloha is strong with this one.
Co-Laborers on the Road:
Kim and I both had long layovers at LAX on the way to Kaua’i- she coming from Boston, and I coming form Chongqing. I had actually taxi’d to Koreatown to spend my layover in a hostel, grabbing a shower and a little horizontal sleep. Back at LAX in the early morning with a purse full of cold burritos, I found Kim in the waiting area of a random American Airlines flight. Who knows why the sleep deprived darling had chosen to be here, instead of at our actual gate, but I’m glad she did. Because if she hadn’t we never would have encountered Vivian*. You can imagine her just like the nail tech, Paulette, from Legally Blonde- except in Leopard leggings, and with a six-figure empire of her own making. Her flight was boarding as she began to speak to us-- initially only to declare to us that she had no intention of waiting in a line of sweaty people. She would wait till the entire plane was seated and she could glide through the aisles to her seat, unhindered. And she really meant it.
Kim and I were the favored ones that day to be honored with a few chapters of her story. Never mind that the gate agents were calling her to board. She waved them off.
Actually, she wasn't even supposed to be going to this city that she was flying to!.... but she had booked the ticket without putting on her glasses. No big deal. It just meant she would have to rent a car at this next destination and drive 3 large, midwestern states away to actually arrive where she meant to. She wasn't bothered in the slightest. She had a few detours she wanted to make anyway, a few friends here to visit, a few ex-lovers there to spy on, and possibly some unfairly held possessions to reclaim at an ex-husband's house. Certainly, Justice must be served, we cheered her on. She had a new love in her life now- a young one. There had been an old one, not long ago, but he didn't know how to stay. Even though the two of them had had it all.... Something in him couldn’t stop chasing something new, something shiny. Her heart was broken for him-- we could see-- but she wouldn’t be deterred in holding fast her own bliss. While his dollars were all being funneled into the pockets of pretty, young flight risks, she was flushed with her own cash, her own thriving industry, friends around the world, and-- best of all, and impossible to miss-- an unstoppable force of life spilling out from within her. Her story took on more and more passion and certainty, and her hand towards the frustrated gate agents only waved harder. Only when she was good and ready did she stand up, sling her carry-on over her shoulder, and wish us young girls the best on our own journeys.
A part of us wished we could follow her a few more paces on hers! With her glasses or without them, the course that this woman charts for herself is going to equal parts wild and sure. Jet-lag felt inconsequential to us now— after our encounter with Vivian, we found ourselves wide-eyed and ready to seize the day.
*Identifying details have been altered to respect the sacred confidence of airport acquaintance