Lihue is not a big city. Indeed, it’s not a city at all but just a town, albeit the largest on the island. So there was no delay catching the rental shuttle and renting a car and driving from the airport to our condo in Kapaa.
When we got to the room, day was almost done.
We walked down to the steep, sandy beach. Kapaa looks east, so the sun had already sunk behind the mountains. There was no orange globe descending into the distant water. That would have to wait for another day. But the trade winds were blowing out of the east. Coconut trees were swaying in the breeze. Tiki lamps were burning on the lawn. Waves were crashing on the beach.
We took off our shoes and waded in the surf.
The air was warm yet cool. We had twelve days ahead of us. It felt like infinity.