Thursday, January 31, 2008

From rainbows to Elk, with yummy food in between

Before I start a new adventure I thought I'd wrap up the last two.

My last full day in Kauai was very nice. It managed to rain all morning conveniently enough for me to mess around on my uke and then finish my book, a Japanese crime thriller called Out. The double rainbow ending in the ocean behind Sue and Irv's condo was fabulous (as evidenced here). Then the skies cleared and we first lounged by the pool and then by the beach, and I may have actually gotten a tad of a tan-line (but only if you're in the right lighting).

As promised, I'm posting here a pic of the awesome Shave Ice I had in Hanalei. Really, really fine shaved ice (but no D, officially), almost like snow. then its totally drenched in tropical flavored syrup (of your choice) with (get this!) rich, creamy ice cream (also of your choice) on the bottom. That's right, folks, this is waaaay better than your usual beach-side crushed ice SnoCone. In fact, SnoCones everywhere should be ashamed, because obviously there is an opportunity to explode your tastebuds and make you writhe in ice-cream headache joy if only the SnoCone it would instead be Shave Ice. *sigh*

On the flight home I read nearly the entire book Life of Pi, which I thought was excellent. My layover at the Honolulu airport was spent reading and playing my ukulele in the sun. A good last horrah before back to birthing babies. (Me, floating in ocean at left)

The last adventure was this past weekend. The "R1 Retreat". We have two retreats in the year.Each class of residents gets their own and then we have a mandatory whole class retreat. the mandatory one has more structured activity. The class retreat is unscheduled, mostly because we're too tired to plan anything and we have no budget. But we can get the days off if we are scheduled to work that weekend (which I was). Basically it's two days where we eat, sleep, and eat some more (note copious amounts of food in cabin's fridge, below). Very relaxing.

We went to a cabin in a place called Packwood. It's near a ski slope called White Pass and in the mountains. We had Elk running around our yard daily and on Saturday most of the folks went out sledding, snow-shoeing, skiing or snowboarding. Me, I spent most the weekend lounging in the outdoor hottub, reading and, of course, eating.



On the trip, however, one of the interns (shrouded in darkness at left, with the retreat's fab view behind him... and Liza) made an announcement that he was leaving to pursue internal medicine. He obviously initially thought FP was the career path for him but realized at some point he was meant to be an internist and is actually starting over (Egads! I can't even imagine being an intern again!) in Portland next year. He will finish out most of his year here and, actually, we only have to find coverage for one of his calls in his last month here. We will miss him as he adds not only another Y chromosome to the residency (we are very XX-heavy), but he also is a pretty cool guy. Additionally, the concern is raised about how we replace him because, being a rather small program where each class of 8 essentially runs Tacoma General, we can't really function a resident short for very long. The Program Director will put out the word and we will interview applicants. I'm crossing my fingers for a cute, single, hard working lesbian derby-girl-turned-doctor but you know what they say about beggars and choosers...

Now, better get out of my jammies and into my flight suit (er, jeans and sweatshirt) because I'm off to San Diego!

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Wednesday, January 23, 2008

SoCal Bound

It's official. I'm headed to San Diego for my urban underserved rotation. Woo-hoo! [ insert Happy Dance here]. I leave the 31st and come back the 28th of Feb (on call here at TG on the 29th -- boo).

I haven't yet had the chance to upload pics from my last day(s) in Hawaii. Heck, my suitcase is still fully packed in the hallway. The joys of the 80 hour work week, eh?

And on a completely unrelated note, here is a hilarious video about Tacoma:



And if you liked it... there's a sequel on YouTube called South 5: True Grit. Very funny. Maybe even funnier? Oh... what the heck. I'll put it on here. Don't say I never gave you nothin':


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Sunday, January 20, 2008

Island adventures

The last three days have been pretty adventurous. On Wednesday we started with some whale sightings out the window. I got out the binoculars and watched them flip, flop, dive and smack various flippery parts on the water. We spent an appropriate amount of time sitting around doing nothing, reading, Then Sue and I hit up the lighthouse in Kilauea (view from lighthouse walk at left) as well as checked out the little shops in the area.

For lunch we returned to our favorite Fish Taco place and enjoyed ourselves (Irv as well) another yummy beachside meal (see right).

After that we vegged at home (I may have skipped out for a run, taken a nap, or both) and then made sure to head to the beach to see the sunset where Sue reports having seen the famous green flash once. The rotation of the earth meant the sun was a bit off center and given the cloudy weather we have been having it was hopeful to even see the sun but its rays were cooperative and lit the sky pinks, oranges and purples before it melted away into the pacific.

Thursday was our Big Adventure. We got up early and piled in the car to see the rest of Kauai. Kauai is inhabited mostly on the shorelines as mountains make up most the interior of the island. There is really only one main road and it makes a horseshoe shape around most the island (map at left, click on it to see detail). Sue and Irv live in Princeville, one almost the end of the eastern part of the U, our trip was to go all the way to the other side, where you can wind your way into the mountains enough to see the untouched wilderness. On the way out, near Hanapepe, we stopped at the tiniest little shack with the door ajar. Sue was excited to get her potato chips, I was a bit nervous she had the wrong place, but we slipped in the kitchen and there was a grumpy middle aged guy cooking up all sorts of yummy snacks, bagging them, and watching the soap operas. For myself, I got sweet potato chips, sliced as thin as paper, spiced with garlic.

On our journey we drove past two lovely waterfalls, each spectacular in their own way and many hours later we found ourselves at the end of the road where we turned off to admire Waimea Canyon. The drive was a bit treacherous and wound up and around the mountains. We explored the various nooks, crannies and outlooks there much to Irv’s dismay (“Once you’ve seen one waterfall you’ve seen them all. What’s the big deal?” Irv laughed). But he was good-natured and humored both me and Sue who agreed (since we did spend the numerous hours driving out there, and up the mountain) we’d make the most of it. There were a number of tourists at each stop and people found the wild chickens and roosters cute. Sue, however, likened them to rats. They used to be on farms until hurricane Iniki wiped out the entire island and freed them to procreate, cluck and crow to their heart’s content. Now they are everywhere. Literally. Even, we noted, at the local Costco.

On the way back from the canyon we stopped at a lovely music store where I bought a soprano ukulele. I had gotten a baritone uke for my mom way back in the day and taught myself to play it. I thought, since I do fancy musical instruments from around the world, a uke from Hawaii would be appropriate to add to my collection. We also stopped at a coffee plantation and on Poipu beach, a busier and more tourist friendly beach – probably because of its location on the sunnier side of the island and it’s protected shallow waters where toddlers are safe to wade. (pic at right taken while driving around the island).

We also stopped at a shopping center in the area that served Puka Dogs (click on picture at left to see the menu). These are hotdogs made in a special Kauai way (though it appears they now have a store on Waikiki beach in Honolulu). The buns are roasted on spires – the spires make holes for the dugs. The dogs are dressed in various spicy “secret sauces” and then dressed with exotic relishes like coconut, mango, and papaya. It was delicious and I ate mine while watching a staged Tahitian/Polynesian cultural show.

On the way home we saw one last sight – spouting horn. Where the waves crash under a lava shore and then growl like an animal before they spout up to tens of feet in the air.

Friday was much less structured. My goal was to populate my freckle colony with some sun exposure. Unfortunately a rain cloud seemed to be following me around the island. I did get up before dawn and go with sue to find some seashells - found some spectacular ones that I’ll be bringing back with me. Aside from that, my productivity was resigned to pool sitting, beach bumming (albeit mostly in my sweatshirt) and exploring a bit of Hanalei’s shops after a yummy dinner out (goat cheese and fried eggplant salad – yum!). Oh! And I can't forget Shave Ice! The best place (according to Sue) is in Hanalei. I, of course, got a picture of that treat but you'll have to wait until the next entry to see that delight.

Today is my last day. As I look out the window it is again rather cloudy with a low ceiling and some scattered rain. I can’t remember, but I feel like low ceilings are the ones that burn off easier. I can only hope. Either way, it is still nice to be on vacation and away from the rigors of internship. And it’s been great traveling to a new place. All I can do is think about when I can do it again and where on earth will I head to next? (photo at left of late evening sun at Spouting Horn lookout).


Stayed tuned for a last entry on Kauai in the next few days.... now I'm off to see if I can spot a rainbow and drink my toasted coconut Kona coffee!

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Thursday, January 17, 2008

Kauai

It’s hard to believe it’s been more than 7 months since my last traveling adventure. No wonder I was starting to get antsy.

Here I am now, in Hawaii for seven nights. I’m on the rainier of the islands, Kauai, just a hop skip and a jump from the supposedly wettest place on earth. It’s been overcast mostly, with a few sun breaks, definitely not shorts and tank top weather and certainly not sunbathing weather. But it’s been nice to relax, read my book and watch waves crash. The best part of the wintery weather is that it makes the sea very volatile and actually fun watch. It also makes it harder to spot whales coming up for air since they make a whitecap and the choppy water masks them. But I still sit on the balcony and watch, read and watch some more (view from my bedroom above - on a rare partly clear evening... no whales).

The first day I arrived was uneventful. I arrived late in the day, ate too much, and was asleep by 8:30 (two hour time difference from WA). I slept well to the sound of crashing waves (at right) and was rarely awake enough to appreciate the ripping sound of the 30 mph winds assaulting the house. I was up by 6:30 the next morning and went to a nearby grocery to pick up some toasted coconut Kona Coffee. Yum. I’ve never been a fan of flavored coffee but something about coconut makes me a little crazy. That day it was rainy and bleak so Irv, Sue and I were homebodies. I did manage to get a run in, heading to the Princeville hotel (a huge behemoth on the shore with fountains and excess everywhere).

After the run it was too rainy for much else so we pretty much sat around and read. I took a humongous power nap and read some more. I also played with the dogs from the condo next door, Champ and Peanut (at left).

The next day (yesterday) involved a bit more adventure since the clouds were less threatening and we even had some sunny breaks. First Sue and I went to see Anini, one of many beaches close by (with Champ in tow). There we had marvelous fish tacos, spicy carrots and mediocre beans. We then drove the length of the beach (and pointed out what is rumored to be Cameron Diaz’s new cliff-side house). Sue also showed me some of the more rural properties (one large lot owned by the neighbors – Champ’s parents). Reminded me a lot of the mountains north of Chiang Mai.

Later that day Irv and I hit up two beaches, Hanalei (where Puff the Magic Dragon frolicked in the autumn mist and rock stars make their homes) and Lumahai (where rip tides claim swimmers and unsuspecting tourists). Hanalei had a few surfers and a gorgeous view with very nice walk-able sand (many barefoot runners passed us by). Lumahai, on the other hand, had ginormous violent waves and the sand was deep and foot-sucking! I took a couple videos of the waves (if only my videos had sound) and we ogled at the area where Detroiter, Mitzi Gaynor washed that man right out of her hair in South Pacific. We also stumbled upon a local farmer’s market (left) and picked up some yummy coconut and Rambutan (lychee-like) fruit at my request and bought apple bananas, Irv’s favorite. On the way home we stopped by to admire the Taro fields (below).

After all that trudging through the sand I thought I’d be beat, but I ran again, this time in the opposite direction and toward the taro fields. After that we all had a delicious meal of avocado veggie salad (pictured) and steak and mushrooms. I crashed early once again.
Today I anticipate numerous adventures. Perhaps a return to Hanalei to shop, or to the lighthouse in Kilauea. Hard to believe it’s half over already! I'm hoping for at least one sunny day to add to my freckle collection, but the R&R alone is pretty damn nice.

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