Ramdon Thoughts To Ponder While Relaxing On Poipu Beach April 28, 2009
Posted by Herb in : 1 , 1 comment so farBecause metal was scarce, the Oscars given out during World War II were made of wood.
There are no clocks in Las Vegas gambling casinos.
The name Wendy was made up for the book Peter Pan; there was never a recorded Wendy before!
There are no words in the dictionary rhyming with: orange, purple, and silver!
Leonardo DaVinci invented scissors. Also, it took him 10 years to paint Mona Lisa’s lips.
A tiny amount of liquor on a scorpion will make it instantly go mad and sting itself to death.
The mask used by Michael Myers in the original ‘Halloween’ was a Captain Kirk’s mask painted white.
If you have three quarters, four dimes, and four pennies, you have $1.19. You also have the largest amount of money in coins without being able to make change for a dollar.
By raising your legs slowly and lying on your back, you can’t sink in quicksand (and you thought this list was completely useless.)
The first product Motorola started to develop was a record player for automobiles. At that time, the most known player on the market was the Victrola, so they called themselves Motorola.
Chewing gum while peeling onions will keep you from crying!
Upper and lower case letters are named ‘upper’ and ‘lower’ because when all original print had to be set in individual letters, the ‘upper case’ letters were stored on top of the case that stored the smaller, ‘lower case’ letters.
The glue on Israeli postage stamps is certified kosher.
Guinness Book of Records holds the record for being the book most often stolen from Public Libraries.
KauaiHerb
Neighborhood Kukui’ula Shopping Center Opens This Summer April 27, 2009
Posted by Herb in : 1 , add a commentNew Shopping Center for Poipu Vacation Rentals
Anyone heading down Poipu Road from Koloa to Poipu can’t help but notice the construction underway on 10.5 acres near the new traffic circle. The circle replaced the old junction of Lawai Road with Poipu Road and was built by the developers. They did a terrific job.
The new project is called Kukui’ula Shopping Center and follows the newer mainland trend of building outdoor centers with distinct buildings rather than the traditional shopping center concept, where one large building is divided into individual stores. On Kauai, Kukui Grove and the Safeway and Foodland complexes are good examples of the traditional concept.
Here nine individual buildings are arranged to complement one another, with each having it’s own style and color. The buildings are all tied together with a common Plantation Style theme giving the whole project a decidedly upscale look. If Koloa Town represents the look of basic, unadorned plantation style architecture, and it does, then Kukui’ula is plantation style deluxe. Even the air conditioning system, located in the parking lot, is covered in siding to match the center and lushly landscaped. This is not a center where corners were cut, quite the oppositef, and it shows. Hat’s off to Kukui’ula for a job very well done!
One of the show stoppers in the center will certainly be the new Merriman’s. Merriman is a three time finalist in the James Beard Award for Best Chef in the Pacific Northwest and Hawaii. Peter Merriman is the chef from the Big Island, who opened his restaurant there, also called Merriman’s, with the intention of sourcing all of his food from local vendors. So his beef came from nearby cattle ranches, fresh caught fish came from local fishermen and produce came from local growers. Unlike many other successful restaurateurs such as Roy Yamaguchi, Alan Wong, Beverly Gannon and others, Peter resisted the temptation to duplicate his restaurant elsewhere. Until now, that it.
His restaurant here will really be two restaurants. Upstairs, Merriman’s Kauai, will be a more formal dining atmosphere with a panoramic view from Kalaheo’s foothills to the ocean at Koloa Landing. Expect sensational food with only the freshest ingrediants prepared in Peter’s inimiatable style. Downstairs,Merriman’s Cafe will feature a Mediterranean menu that combines flavors from North Africa to Greece to Italy with products from Hawaii. One would imagine cafe pricing downstairs, opening up the “fresh from the farm” eating concept to a much wider audience.
Also slated to open is a Quiksilver shop brought to us by the successful Miura family, owners of Deja Vu in Kukui Grove and Kapaa. The shop will offer a blend of Quiksilver and Roxy sportsware, accessories, surf boards and skateboards. Unique to the Kukui’ula location will be exclusive Quiksilver and Roxy Poipu T-shirts.
Well know Kauai artist, James Hoyle, will be opening a gallery in the center.
And what would a center be without a coffee and ice cream store? The well known Lapperts brand of coffee and ice cream will expand it’s south shore presence with a new location here. Expect to find more of the great coffee drinks and ice cream that have made this an iconic brand in the Hawaiian Islands.
Bubbas Burgers, which also has restaurants in Kapaa and Hanalei, will make this their third location. Kelas Glass will expand their Kapaa operation to the south shore with their new gallery.
KauaiHerb
Thoughts To Ponder From The Lanai of Your Poipu Vacation Rental April 25, 2009
Posted by Herb in : 1 , 1 comment so farWhen you’re relaxing on the lanai of your Poipu vacation rental, here are some thoughts to ponder.
All that I am or hope to be, I owe to my mother.
Abraham Lincoln
Courage is the price life exacts for granting peace.
Amelia Earhart
A man’s silence is wonderful to listen to.
Thomas Hardy
Be the change you want to see in the world.
Mahatma Gandhi
One of the advantages of being disorderly is that one is constantly making exciting discoveries.
AA Milne
It is a good thing to be rich, and a good thing to be strong, but it is a better thing to be loved by many friends.
Euripides
The one thing that doesn’t abide by majority rule is a person’s conscience.
Harper Lee
Live as if everything you do will eventually be known.
Hugh Prather
The highest reward for man’s toil is not what he gets out of it but what he becomes by it.
John Ruskin
Never look down to test the ground before taking your next step; only he who keeps his eye fixed
on the far horizon will find his right road.
Dag Hammarskjold
KauaiHerb
Five Great Tips To Make Flying More Enjoyable April 24, 2009
Posted by Herb in : 1 , add a comment1. Book on the internet whenever possible. When I call the 800 number for Hawaiian Airlines, one of the first things said is that “lower fares may be available on the internet”. That does not mean you can’t call and ask about availability if you’re having problems with understanding the website. After talking to a live person, go back to the website for the lower price. Be sure and select your seats as part of the booking process. Unless you are booking last minute, or the flight is close to being oversold, this is always possible to do.
2. Plan to arrive at the airport two hours early. Before the days of security check points, you could sidle up to the counter about 45 minutes before the flight and still make it to the gate in time to board your flight. Rest assured, those days are gone. There is absolutely no way to determine with accuracy how long the wait in the security line will be. We’ve waited an hour at five thirty in the morning, had two lines completely empty at other times we expected them to be busy and once encountered a line so long I was sure we were going to miss our flight. I went up to the first class line, which was empty, pleaded with them and they let me through.
I also recently witnessed a very upset person who made it to the gate about 11 minutes before flight time. He never knew that most airlines close their gates 15 to 20 minutes before the plane actually takes off. If you are sitting there listening to the boarding announcements, they make it very clear how much time is left for passengers to board. If you are running toward the gate at the last minute, however, you won’t hear the announcement. This individual ended up sitting at the gate for 9 hours until the next available flight. And it cost him $100 to change his ticket. That’s a heck of a price to pay for not allowing enough time to get to the airport. So be smart. Arrive two hours early and bring a book or magazine to read while you’re waiting at the gate. And don’t make the mistake I once did of not lifting my head out of my book from time to time to check the destination posted on the sign at the gate. Sometimes gates change.
3. Although I notice a lot of people printing out their boarding passes off a computer before going to the airport, the advantage is not clear to me, unless you don’t have any checked baggage. Once at the airport, you still have to wait in line to check your bags, and the boarding passes print at the same time as the luggage tags. Perhaps someone reading this can enlighten me on the advantage and I will add it here. Better yet, avoid the check in lines altogether and use curb side check in (see #4)
4. Use curb side check, particularly if you think your bags may be slightly overweight. The charge is normally $2 to $3 per bag. If we’re checking in two bags and the charge is $3 per bag, we pull out a $10 and have it visible while we’re going through the check in process. Not only does this save the time of waiting inside in a long line, we have never had anyone that we tipped well weigh our bags. Your boarding passes and luggage claim checks will also be given to you on the spot. Paying $10 at curb site is a lot less than paying for over weight baggage.
5. Weigh your bag at home on the bathroom scale before you head to the airport. Allow yourself five pounds flexibility in case your scale at home is not accurate. If you must cram a lot of treasures into those bags and you’re right on the line, weight wise, see #4.
KauaiHerb
The Multitude of New Airline Fees April 22, 2009
Posted by Herb in : 1 , add a commentHaven’t traveled in a while? Get ready for a shocker when it comes to all the new airline fees! Relax, just kidding, they aren’t charging to use the restrooms (yet).
Be knowledgable by first reading the very useful chart found at www.farecompare.com. Look in the upper right hand corner for this gem! This chart gives you all the latest on what airlines are charging for and exactly how much. You can find out the premium for booking by phone rather than on the internet; the charge for the first and second checked bag (that’s right several airlines are currently charging for the first bag); the charge for a premium seat (more on this later); the cost of beverages and snacks (some carriers are now charging for sodas and coffee and some have even eliminated that little bag of peanuts or pretzels.
One airline said eliminating pretzel snacks saved it $4 million a year.); the cost of meal (if available at all) and the cost of alcohol (it’s getting so you won’t even be able to drown your sorrows for $5 any more—count on paying $6 or $7; the cost of oversized baggage (think surf boards, golf clubs, etc) the cost of overweight baggage.
Bottom line on baggage weight, the trend is toward charging to check the first bag and then really socking it to you if it weighs more than 50 pounds. On United, for example, if that checked bag weighs more than 50 pounds, you will be charged $125 EACH WAY, for that extra weight.
The chart also includes the cost of traveling with pets; the cost for an unaccompanied minor; curbside check in fees and the amount you will be charged to change a non-refundable ticket. That fee, which pretty generally was $100, is now becoming pretty generally becoming $150, although you can find some carriers that are still charging less.
KauaiHerb
Which Is The Best Poipu Vacation Rental? April 21, 2009
Posted by Herb in : 1 , add a commentWow, that’s a loaded question, huh? Especially when the writer of this blog owns several vacation rentals in Poipu. How could anyone expect me to give an objective answer free on any bias? Well relax, I’m not going to give you my personal opinion, which, if I didn’t say Hideaway Cove Villas Poipu Beach, you’d suspect I wasn’t doing a very good job marketing my own properties.
The best way to evaluate most anything these days is by checking on the internet. You can start where most people do, with Google. Just enter the name of a particular vacation rental (this also works for restaurants too) you wish to evaluate and up pops a multitude of information. If you don’t know the names of any vacation rentals, enter something generic, like “Poipu Vacation Rentals” and you will instantly have a list.
Once you’ve shortened your list down to three choices, then it’s time to visit the sites where former guests at vacation rentals go to write independent reviews. The granddaddy of these sites is www.tripadvisor.com, as they’ve been around the longest. The site began by posting reviews of hotel stays and has since branched out into reviews of vacation rentals. If fact, they are on the verge on creating another website that will use the guest ratings found on tripadvisor.com to rank hotels and vacation rentals. Look for vacation rentals that have a significant number of reviews and you will definitely get a very good idea of what’s up. If cleanliness doesn’t equate to godliness at some vacation rentals, you’re going to find out right away.
Another great review site that’s been around forever is www.fodors.com. Yes, this is the same company that has published guidebooks forever of many, many different parts of the world. They have leveraged that expertise and now allow guests to post reviews. Fodors then uses the reviews to rate each vacation rental, from one to five stars. I’m not sure what algorymthem Fodors uses to arrive at their star rankings, but all in all the system seems pretty democratic. No matter how many sterling reviews a particular vacation rental receives, be aware that there always will be at least one reviewer that thought this was the worst place on the planet.
Having been a vacation rental owner the past nine years gives me a good perspective on this type of unhappy guest. You know the one– their glass is always half empty and never half full. In short, nothing makes them happy, although is some cases I think meds might be a giant step in the right direction.
Doesn’t Yelp sound like a great name for a review site? Well you can go to www.yelp.com for reviews of hotel and vacation rental stays and a lot more They describe themselves as “User Reviews and Recommendations of Top Restaurants, Shopping, Nightlife, Entertainment, Services and More at Yelp. We’re the fun and easy way to find, review and talk about what’s great – and not so great – in your local area. It’s about real people giving their honest and personal opinions on everything from restaurants and spas to coffee shops and bars.” I couldn’t have said it better myself–check them out!
KauaiHerb
Tips For Using FareCompare To Lower Airline Ticket Costs April 21, 2009
Posted by Herb in : 1 , add a commentThis site is the brain child of Rick Seaney, who also has a travel blog at www.rickseaney.com. The best way to use the site it to enter your departure and destination cities, unclick all the check boxes (you can check these various companies later), then click on the “Find Cheap Airfare” button. You’ll be taken to a screen that shows the next twelve months, with prices for each month.
I entered Los Angeles, Calif for my departure city (you can also enter the airport code—LAX) and Lihue, Kauai (LIH) as my destination city. Fares on this monthly chart vary from $725 to $745. You’ll also notice a yellow star or stars at the bottom of each monthly box. Here’s what they mean:
4 stars—Buy Now!
3 stars—Good rate
2 stars—Average rate
1 star—Review rates or wait to book.
The star ratings are based on 2+ years of historical airfare information for this city pair (Los Angeles, Calif to Lihue, Kauai.) However, unless you see 4 stars, there are still lower fares to be found elsewhere. Just to make sure, I click on the month I wish to travel, in this case November. Prices here vary from $725 to $729. Because these are not 4 star prices (which means to buy immediately) I now go to www.kayak.com to search for lower fares.
Before leaving farecompare.com, there is a great deal of other useful information here. This is especially true if you haven’t traveled in 2008. Most of the changes in air travel costs have gone into effect in 2008, so it pays to review a few things before departing for the airport. Click back on the original www.farecompare.com. Look in the upper right hand corner for the link to the “Airline Fee Chart” as seen on 20/20. I’ll cover the many items that used to be free and no longer are in another blog.
KauaiHerb
Amazingly Simple Home Remedies April 21, 2009
Posted by Herb in : 1 , add a commentIf you are choking on an ice cube simply pour a cup of boiling water down your throat. Presto! The blockage will instantly remove itself.
Avoid cutting yourself slicing vegetables by getting someone else to hold while you chop.
For high blood pressure sufferers: simply cut yourself and bleed for a few minutes, thus reducing the pressure in your veins. Remember to use a timer.
A mouse trap, placed on top of your alarm clock, will prevent you from rolling over and going back to sleep after you hit the snooze button.If you have a bad cough, take a large dose of laxatives, then you will be afraid to cough.
You only need two tools in life – WD-40 and Duct Tape. If it doesn’t move and should, use the WD-40. If it shouldn’t move and does, use the duct tape.
Remember: Everyone seems normal until you get to know them.
KauaiHerb
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Least Expensive Times of Year To Travel To Kauai From The Mainland April 20, 2009
Posted by Herb in : 1 , add a commentSo you’ve decided to spend your vacation on Kauai on the sunny south shore. You’ve narrowed the search even further and have decided on a vacation rental with a full kitchen in Poipu Beach. If you have flexibility in your travel dates and were wondering which are the least expensive times to fly from the mainland to Kauai, read on!
The easiest way to determine low airfare periods is to avoid those times when demand is the highest. Here, in order of popularity, are the highest demand periods in Hawaii.
1. Holiday Season, which is the three weeks from December 15th to January 7th. Accommodation rates and airfares are highest during this period. So if you’re looking for a low cost trip, this would not be the time of year to plan it.
2. For couples traveling alone, the second busiest time of year would be the months of January, February and March.
3. For families traveling with children, summer is highest in demand.
And spring break is also in high demand for everyone, although many schools are switching to a year round schedule which means there isn’t one particular week each year when all school children have spring break.
So where does that leave us as far as the least expensive time to fly to Hawaii? Mid April to mid June and Mid September to December 14th.
KauaiHerb
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