There’s a simple way to forget the stress of horse shopping and the TWO (geldings) who got away, the Irish Sport Horse and the Chestnut TB: go on a family vacation to Hawaii for a week! We set off two Fridays ago and returned this past Friday.
My husband has had a love affair with Kauai for as long as I’ve known him. He’s been treasuring and judiciously using the little handmade soaps that smell like coconut and ginger shampoo samples from his most recent trip to the Garden Island (which was before he met me, several years ago).
http://https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KrqC7z_Z_rc
Based on our trip last week, I now believe he is part fish. He told me that when he has to wear a wetsuit he does not feel “one with the ocean.” He revels in not showering for days on end, the sea and then swimming pool apparently clean him up just fine. The morning we flew back to LA I overheard him telling the kids he went down to the water and lay there letting the waves gently roll over him, half in, half out of the water. I can picture this image and I don’t know if it’s wildly romantic or downright strange.
As a Midwestern horse girl, I like the ocean and enjoy its magnificence, but I don’t LOVE the ocean. I snorkeled several times and I truly enjoy it (when the waves aren’t crashing over me and I’m not in too close to the rocks which I might bash into). And, of course, the water temperature has to be just right. Otherwise it’s too cold. I hate being cold.
Paradise for me is somewhere green with lots of flat land or rolling hills, dotted by grazing horses. Which interestingly enough, Kauai had that too! We got to do some riding (even trotting and cantering). That ride warrants its own post as the guide was a character with a capital C and we saw some extremely interesting sites.
But it’s getting late and this teacher must retire for the evening. Summer is over and I will be back to the grind. My alarm will be set for 5:15 a.m. Monday. Which is okay. I love my job and the people with whom I work. I would have enjoyed more time on the island, but there are lessons to prepare, students to engage, and more horses to try.
Happy end of summer, friends. Hope you enjoyed the Kauai sunrise from August 22. I’m not a trained videographer, but I did the best I could on my Samsung. Sorry about all the wind in the background. 🙂
What vacation spot in the world is your “happy place?” Or do you prefer staycations?
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I'm Susan and this is my horse Knight. We have been a blogging team since 2015 and we're glad you're here. Tally ho!
Staycationer, me. I’m happy to park in front of my own TV when I’m tired, and I don’t think there’s anywhere more beautiful than my home. My favourite tonic is walking through the horse or cattle herds, breathing their smells and watching them move.
Then again, I live on a gorgeous farm in Africa, so who needs vacations 😉
We camp in our travel trailer. It’s like bringing your home wherever you go!
Love Hawaii tho! My dad lives on Oahu. Haven’t visited tho. .. evil stepmother lives there also. ..
Oh no! Not evil stepmother. I’m a stepmother and I always worry I’ll be described that way if I’m having a bad day. But check out a different island where you won’t have to see her.
It would be so cool to have a travel trailer. My husband talks about it frequently. In fact, he wants to sell the house when we retire and travel the country in an RV. I am not sure I’m ready for that lifestyle.
Not all step mom’s are evil. .. just this one is!
I wish I could sell the house tomorrow and hit the road. I spend too much time taking care of ‘stuff’. Less stuff, less chores!
I’m a staycation girl myself 🙂
Staycations are very underrated! 🙂
For vacation, I want to be in the middle of the busiest, noisiest city I can reach: New York definately, Chicago maybe. Otherwise London, Rome, Paris, etc. Never been to Tokyo but I think I’d love it. My holodeck fantasy is a 10-acre farm in Central Park.
That is so interesting. I lived in Chicago (both suburbs and city itself). I like the hustle and bustle, but it stresses me out after a while. The last time I was in New York I thought, “Too noisy!” I literally remember not being able to find a quiet spot to make a call on my cell phone. But I do have a soft spot for Paris (too long of a story to tell here, but let’s just say it involves swing dancing on the Seine and a handsome violinmaker!). I have never been to Rome, but am dying to go!
We were in Kauai for our late honeymoon in April. Wonderful place, I want to go back so badly!
Oh my gosh! On what part of the island did you stay? Did you have fun!
My perfect vacation happy place is traveling somewhere entirely new – past trips include eastern Europe and well… other parts of Europe!
I’m like you, Lauren. I loved Kauai. I would like to go again, but I feel like I’d rather go to other places I’ve never been–like Rome or Florence. Maybe Belize.
How funny! Coming from the midwest I CRAVE the ocean! We make it a mission to get there 1-2 times a year, and I cannot get enough of it. That said, there isn’t much prettier than a flint hills sunset or rolling green hills!
Which ocean do you like best? The Great Lakes don’t count. 🙂