Entries from July 29th, 2009

Cubs vs. Astros (again!)

July 31st, 2009 · 4 Comments

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The band played Happy Birthday for someone :: Wrigley Field, Wrigleyville, Chicago

Brian and Jill invited us to go to the Cubs game on Monday night. Dallas is travelling for work, so I brought Paul Baker with me. I say vs. Astros “again” because I have seen the Cubs play the Astros at least 3 times (1, 2, 3) and even saw the Mets vs. Astros when I lived in NY. The first Cubs game I ever went to was against the Astros. Kind of strange, I think, since I don’t even go to that many Cubs games each season. This was my first game this season. I had fun. I hadn’t seen Paul Baker for a while. And I hadn’t seen Jill and Brian since we found out they were expecting and now Jill is about 7 months along. She looks great! Kind of bummed I’m going to miss her baby shower this weekend. The Cubs won in the 13th inning, we all sang the song, then went home and went to bed.

Oh, and outside the stadium. Do I even need to say anything about this? Some of these shirts are so offensive, and not just because they are slamming the Packers. Who buys these?

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Wrigleyville, Chicago

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The Original Jo Jo’s Anueanue Shave Ice

July 30th, 2009 · No Comments

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The Original Jo Jo’s Anueanue Shave Ice, Waimea, Kauai

Finally, at the end of our day, Aunty Cathy took me to The Original Jo Jo’s Anueanue Shave Ice on Pokole Rd, not to be confused with Jo Jo’s Shave Ice on Kaumualii Highway, which is the one we usually visit, since it’s right at the end of the road to Dallas’s house. Supposedly, the owner of Jo Jo’s on the highway sold her business 7-8 years ago and the new owner kept running the shop with the Jo Jo’s name. Then the original owner opened this new place but called it “The Original.” I don’t know the whole story, but I’m sure it’s full of drama and competition.

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Aunty Cathy waving in front of The Original Jo Jo’s Anueanue Shave Ice, Waimea, Kauai

We had shave ice. It was good. We had to wait in line. It was worth the wait. This is the same story at every shave ice place I’ve been: Jo Jo’s, The Original Jo Jo’s, Matsumoto’s, etc.

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POG and Lemon Shave Ices :: The Original Jo Jo’s Anueanue Shave Ice, Waimea, Kauai

When we got back to the house Dallas and I took a nap. Then we packed, had leftover Portuegese meat for dinner and flew to Oahu. We stayed overnight at a hotel near the airport and early the next morning flew back to the mainland.

Vacation over. Wah!

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Shopping in Poipu & Lounging at Salt Pond Beach

July 30th, 2009 · No Comments

After checking out the Russian fort and Kauai Coffee, we drove to Poipu to go shopping at the Poipu Shopping Village. I’ve been shopping there a lot before, it’s mostly the same. I got Billy and Ging a baby gift for their first son, Damien, who was born a couple weeks ago. It was good to go down to Poipu, though, because even if the shopping village has not changed, Poipu has. There is a ton of development.. and a lot of it only half complete because of the poor economy. And, get this: There’s a roundabout in Poipu now. It’s kind of neat to see all this, but I can’t help but feel a bit nostalgic over seeing the small town blow up.

After shopping we had lunch at Joe’s on the Green (at the Kiahuna Golf Course).

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Joe’s on the Green, Koloa, Kauai

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Kalua Pig Sandwich :: Joe’s on the Green, Koloa, Kauai

And then after lunch, we headed back towards Waimea, but stopped off at Salt Pond Beach in Hanapepe. Again, a place I’d always wanted to check out, but never did. Aunty Cathy told me this is a popular beach for locals and not many tourists were there, and she was right. So we just lounged around and walked on the beach, swam out in the water for a couple of hours.

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Salt Pond Beach, Hanapepe, Kauai

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Salt Pond Beach, Hanapepe, Kauai

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Salt Pond Beach, Hanapepe, Kauai

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Salt Pond Beach, Hanapepe, Kauai

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Salt Pond Beach, Hanapepe, Kauai

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Russian Fort Elizabeth & Kauai Coffee

July 30th, 2009 · 2 Comments

On our last day in Kauai, Dallas went golfing with Uncle Dee, so I hung out with Aunty Cathy. I had a few sights I wanted to check out and Aunty Cathy wanted to go shopping, so we just decided to do it all together and then go to the beach afterward.

First stop: Russian Fort Elizabeth. I’d always seen the signs for the Russian fort on the side of the road just before Waimea town, so I wanted to check it out. Surprisingly, Aunty Cathy had never been there, even though it’s only a half mile away from where she lives. Verdict: There’s a reason why she hadn’t been there, I think. There’s nothing to see really. It’s just an overgrown site. There’s one sign with a map by the parking lot, but you can’t take it with you, so when you’re on the ruins, you can’t identify anything. Major letdown.

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Kauai Coffee, Kalaheo, Kauai

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Coffee Plants :: Kauai Coffee, Kalaheo, Kauai

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Roasting Room :: Kauai Coffee, Kalaheo, Kauai

Next stop: Kauai Coffee. Again, a sign I’d passed by a lot and wanted to finally check out. This was a bit of a let down because I thought there would be actual tours or you’d be able to see how they harvest and make their coffee and there wasn’t any of that. Still, you could taste all the coffee you wanted, see the coffee plants, and learn more about the coffee-making process. There was a cute store and I bought a few bags of coffee to bring home with me.

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Roasting Room :: Kauai Coffee, Kalaheo, Kauai

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Tasting Room :: Kauai Coffee, Kalaheo, Kauai

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Kauai Coffee, Kalaheo, Kauai

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Aunty Lilikoi

July 29th, 2009 · No Comments

Aunty Lilikoi is a brand of products made from lilikoi (also known as passion fruit). You can buy their stuff in a lot of stores in Hawaii, but everything is made in Waimea. I’ve sampled their goods, even bought them before, and I’ve driven past their store many times, but never stopped. So, this time I did.

I talked for a while with the owner. I don’t know her real name, but she is the one who founded Aunty Lilikoi. All of the products are made right in Waimea. They have a small display shelf on the side where you can purchase everything. You can also try samples of whatever you’d like. You can order all Aunty Lilikoi products online and they ship a lot out of the store.

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I ended up buying a mix and match Aunty Lilikoi sampler pack so that I could give little gifts to people when we got home. I also got some of the Passion Wasabi Mustard. It’s so delicious. Sweet, but with a kick. Oh, and I’m not alone in liking this mustard. Aunty Lilikoi’s Passion Wasabi Mustard was the 2005 Grand Champion of the Annual Napa Valley Mustard Festival’s Worldwide Mustard Competition in California. It beat out 303 mustards from 19 states and 4 countries, and included entries from some mustard makers you may have heard of: Grey Poupon? Beat it! Gulden’s? Beat it!

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The owner also told me about a business her sister started called Salty Wahine. As the name might suggest, they make products using Hawaiian sea salt, and sell them at Aunty Lilikoi’s shop. I decided to try out a Hawaiian Rub, which we have already used and really liked.

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