Kauai with Li Seniors

My sister, Amy, moved to Kauai in July, 2022. Jessie and I helped her move back then so we got a first hand taste of Kauai together with Amy. We wanted to take our elderly parents to visit her as well so they can see how Amy is doing and check out her new living situation. Amy is in her last year of graduate school finishing her PhD in Child Psychology. She is working at a local high school in Kauai interning, while completing her dissertation. I commend her for her discipline. I don’t think I know how to study anymore. 

I found a deal on Southwest Airlines back in Feb, so my sister and I booked tickets for us and our parents to visit in April. Since this was Southwest Airlines, we waited to hit the check-in button exactly 24 hours before departure to try to score a queue spot. On the morning of departure, we ordered a lyft to head out to PDX. Jessie had already put a hold on our mail and she set up a randomized flickering light in the kitchen. 

My coworker friend, Yun, provided sage advice in regards to traveling with elderly parents. She said make sure they are well-hydrated and provide frequent bathroom breaks. I tried to be mindful of not walking too much. I know their feet often get swollen ( so do mine for longer flights) but they refused the compression socks I got them. I made sure to buy lunch at PDX before we boarded since it was a 5-6 hour flight with transit in SJC. My dad had forgotten his water bottle and then said why didn’t we remind him. So I bought him a bottle of water to carry around. Another learning is that next time I need to request a medical labeled container for my mom’s insulin as she kept getting stopped by TSA. Learned from last time, we had to remind my parents to bring all of their medication because during our last cruise trip, my dad miscounted and didn’t bring enough blood pressure medicine which created a scare. They sometimes go rogue with their decisions. 

My father was confused that we had to line up for first-come first-serve seating. We tried to come up with a game plan and find a row to make sure my dad and mom each got aisle seats so they had easy access to visit the bathroom. My mom also was trying to figure out the best way to administer her insulin shots. We had a brief layover in SJC so she did them there in the bathroom.  

I rented a Honda CR-V hybrid car through Turo  because Amy drove a tiny Honda fit that would have felt tight for the parents. When we finally arrived in Kauai, she picked me up first so I could  pick up the car and went back to the airport to pick up Jessie, my parents, and our luggage. Felt very fortunate that our flights were on-time and smooth.

It was getting late and we booked a nice dinner spot at 7:30 pm. Since we got there on time, we tried to move up the dinner reservation by an hour but they didn’t have openings. It was 7:00 PM local time which translates to 10:00 PM PST and the parents were hungry and sleepy. The change in timing probably threw off my mom’s sugar levels as well. We also had to make sure to carry candy and snacks in case her sugar goes too low. Amy is on a tight budget so it was nice to spoil her and the family with a nice meal. My dad wanted seafood and Amy wanted prime rib. The prime rib was juicy and tender. The ahi and ono fish were all nicely seared and adorned with butterfly pea flowers. 

Amy had to work on Friday, so I booked a free tour of Noni farm. We went last year and we enjoyed the insightful 2.5 hour tour of Steve’s Noni farm. They do upsell their noni fruit skincare and leather fruit products but they aren’t pushy at all. We all found their products do work well so it’s a win-win situation. I recorded my parents trying out the raw noni fruit knowing the outcome because I experienced it last year. When you bite into it, it produces a spicy, bleu cheese flavor that is very unpleasant. It generated some ❤ from friends when I posted them on IG stories. 

Halfway through, I started to get stomach cramps and felt a strong need for the toilet. We were on the elevated side of the noni tree farm where he was talking about worms and compost. I had to interrupt him to ask if there were toilets. The pang of fear hit me when he pondered for a minute because there were no visitor bathrooms but then he offered up that I could use the facility bathroom. I had to walk a few minutes and then another tourist and my father were following me. I don’t know if it was diarrhea or constipation all mixed in one. I tried to drive us back but pulled off to the side and asked Jessie to take over cause I was not feeling well. I sat in the back and my mom rubbed my belly with white flower oil (the Chinese cure-all) and she watched me wither in pain and I was perspiring cold sweat. I crawled into bed and napped for a few hours. I have no idea to this day if it was something I ate or what triggered it. I also downed a few mini tubes of Bo Chai Yuen, the miracle Chinese meds for stomach issues. 

I felt better that evening and well enough that I went to Costco with the family before dinner. I wandered the aisle in a zombie-like state but all the amazing snacks piqued my interest. The selection seemed to be less compared to last July. I love checking out their seafood section and all the fresh poke. They had a robust sushi station. We bought a pack of raw local Kauai shrimp to cook over the weekend. As I perused the local snack aisles, I plotted what I wanted to take home. Costco is also a great spot to get Maui Jims especially since they offered the “Asian fit.” 

Costco is a must when in Hawaii when buying gift items, but the farmer markets are top of my list for the fresh fruits you can’t take back to the mainland. Find out more in part two.