When you grow up in a place like Kaua`i, it does something to you. The island's enchantment ruins everywhere else. I call it being corrupted by beauty.
I got to the beach early to pick up kehelelani shells and God blew my mind with this view and rainbow.
This can be difficult, because ever after you try to find a way to live in a place people visit on vacation, and few but millionaires own homes. When I grew up here on Kaua`i and started life as a young married, I worked in hotels and restaurants, and cleaned houses for Charo, Bette Midler, Billie Jean King and Guns’ n Roses. (Yeah, they really did throw some crazy parties, as least back in the eighties. It wasn’t fun being the maid.) My husband and I had to leave Hawaii for college, to scrape our way into middle class by education—only to find there weren’t jobs on Kaua`i when we tried to return.
So we settled on Maui. What a hardship, right?
Many people think Maui is “no ka oi” and yes, it’s very nice. But Kaua`i is just hands-down the prettiest island in my opinion. Returning to the place I grew up is rich in memory, legend and lore. I’ve been fact-checking locations for my sequel, Torch Ginger, against my memory of the places and so far, so good.
- Polihale, that swath of dunes, kiawe and rugged cliffs- just as remote and peopled by peripatetic characters.
- Hanalei Valley and the river, so recently flooded—now a green-skinned eel snaking through lush green banks, spinning with golden hau blossoms.
- Hanalei Bay, where Lei goes on a canoe-paddling date—yes, as gorgeous as I wrote it, and paddlers criss-crossing it in sync in the bright red and yellow traditional canoes.
- Kapa`a—a utilitarian town of Laundromats and auto shops, taken over by cutesy shrimp and shell stands. It’s barely dolled up for a few blocks before the seediness of old town re-emerges. I grin at the cinder block Church of Latter Day Saints that I reinvented into the “urban ugly” Kapa`a Police Station in my novel.
- Rainswept, overgrown Wainiha Valley, isolated and always a little spooky—yep, just the same as the 1970’s.
- But some areas are so gorgeous words can’t really describe them.
Maybe my books will do so well I can afford to come home and live here. A girl can dream, right?
What are some of the vacation places you’ve visited that made such an impression you wish you could live there?
Italy. Hands down. If anything happens to my husband (who won’t move anywhere else, ever), I’m uprooting my kids and pulling an Under the Tuscan Sun.
Okay, yeah. Italy is a must-return too!
The Great Smoky Mountains.
My wife and I used to drive through East Tennessee every year on our way to visit relatives in North Carolina and were always impressed by the deep, gentle beauty of these mountains. We planned to move there when we retired.
11 years ago we got sick of life in the big city (St. Louis) and decided, why wait? We sold or gave away almost everything we owned packed the rest into a U-Haul trailer and headed for the mountains.
We’ve never regretted that decision. I know well the wonder of living in a place where others pay big bucks to vacation for a week. (Maybe not quite on the scale Kaua’i, but close enough to understand) Just walking out onto our front porch each morning and drinking in the majestic views of the Smoky Mountains and the clean mountain air makes me glad to be alive. It’s like being on vacation every day – except I work.
Thanks for sharing your experience, Toby. Snippets of our adventures are offered on my personal blog Simple Life Prattle (link above). Pop over for a tall lemonade and oatmeal cookies sometime. You’re always welcome!
Allan, I love it that you did your dream! Kudos, and let our writing be our wings.
Did I know you grew up on Kaua‘i? If so, I forgot. And you’re right. It’s the prettiest. I’ve always wanted to do a photo tour there. Guess it’s a bucket list thing now. 🙂
I’ve only been to Kaua’i once and I was totally in love with how gorgeous it is. My favorite place is Hanalei. It just took my breath away. We shouldʻve honeymooned there, but we were stupid and didnʻt. I LOVE your descriptions of different areas youʻre using in your book. It just makes me so much more excited for your next book!
Strangely (or not) I love to imagine myself living in NYC. I’m not a city girl AT ALL but a part of me loves the grittiness and the creativity and the passion and art and music and fashion. I visited once and loved it. Of course I stayed mostly on Times Square so that’s not really an accurate idea of NYC. I’ve got zero street smarts so I’d probably die within a week but boy do I love that city. I probably watch too many chic flicks that take place there.
Fantastic, I love that about you Ihilani, and there’s a story in those things you said!
Hawaii. I went there many years ago, and it was such an incredible place! I’ve wanted to go back since.
DO IT !life is too short to have any missed dreams.
Thank you so much for bringing back some of the most wonderful memories of our lives. It is as close to heaven on earth that one can get, and you could feel and touch the beauty and serenity, as well as be overwhelmed by the sights seen. I will look for your book in the hopes that you are able to get back there as is your dream.. Nothing is impossible, remember. Elaine
I love it, and so true. Yes, Heaven is going to be a lot like Kauai in my opinion too! Thanks for popping by the blog!
Thanks for sharing your love affair with Kauai!
It’s a beautiful island indeed.
I have visited two places where I wanted to move. Hawaii and Colorado. I ended up living in both places. Life is too short to live in a boring place.