Days 14-22

So, after a few more days in Kauai (including a breathtaking sunset at The Beach House, and a sojourn to Hanalei), home we went. And home was there...

Bananas Foster is on one my new favorite things about tropical potassium-rich fruit.

One of the best things about our technically worthless currency is the faces that random strangers draw on them.

Hanalei Bay

A tree with dreams larger than it will ever be.

A frosty that I had a Banana Joe's smoothie stand by Kilauea. PINEAPPLES WERE WHIPPED INTO OBLIVION IN THE MAKING OF THIS FROZEN DELICACY

At yogurtland with Laurel

Dr. WAFELBAKKER, the smile-maker, and my new smile. They look and feel like dentures to me. I've snapped gum in many ears now, only a few hours after my braces were removed.

Days 9-13

Bike riding in Kapa'a. 9 miles of coastal bliss and hair in my face.

The Kauai coffee company. I recommend the iced coffee.

Happy Anniversary to my parents. 22 years.

Chocolate being made. Oh, yes.

I only bought 10. Just 10. (well, I brought 9, but it's not that much!!!)

From top left to bottom: Passionfruit cheesecake, chocolate coconut cake, mango pie. Hanapepe cafe.

Because geckos are awesome.

The home of Lilo and Stitch. Remember them? Ok, maybe I just dated myself as a late '90s child.

Days 4-8

We went to the end of the highway on the north-east end of the island. Hanalei Bay was sublime, and we kept getting caught in rainstorms. The humidity was absolute. At Buchon's, the sushi was... mouthwatering? Exquisite? It was as sushi should be. The chocolate suicide cake was murderous. Heart-stoppin' good cake. Katie and Joe came over from Oahu for the weekend, and we went to a lighthouse (under renovation) and Brennecke's. But the boogie boarding (called spongers by the totally cool surfer brahs) was rather, um, awesome.

Day 3: Malasadas

Today was cloudy. But we had malasadas.

They're a Portuguese deep-fried dough sphere covered in sugar.

Kind of like a giant donut hole from the seventh circle of heaven.

Day 1

Today I started what I can only describe as a journey. This summer, I will travel over ten thousand miles, venturing from one end of the Pacific to the edges of the continental Atlantic. However, for you to be even remotely interested in my travels this summer, I must tell who I am, and where I'm going and what I will do once I get there.

Poipu Beach

My name is Avery. I am an English major, college student from the San Francisco bay area. Rabid reader. Avid foodie. I am a daughter, sister, cousin, niece, friend, tutor, and now, a blogger. Since I'm linking up people that I know in reality (there is still something surreal about the relationships that form over a glossy screen on a computing device), many of you might already know these things. I was taught at home for eleven years by my mother. I will digress now, I think...

Homeschooling students usually fall into 2 categories in outsiders eyes: Religious conservatives or hippies. Once I was called something mildly derogatory that encompassed both groups: a prairie child. I personally do not find this overtly enraging, but I was, under no circumstances, a bumpkin, country or otherwise. But, I suppose, being blessed with brains has been a divine anti-comeuppance, because now I'm stereotyped as the crazy-ambitious ex-homeschool student who is a few (You can thank my older sister; we always studied at the same level. I couldn't let her beat me in annual book reading capacity, either.) So, insanely religious or forlornly intelligent, I have dabbled in stereotypes, and am hay to say that they have made me stronger, wiser, and equipped with a plethora of snappy comebacks.I am gladly a nerd, fitting the stereotype to a T. I threw out my back once because my load of books from the library was a bit too heavy.

Kevin (father) Deb (mother)

(Meanwhile, in another, less dorky place:) This summer blog is mainly for my family and friends. I want them to be apart of my adventures, even if we are separated by many miles. If you are one who is represented to me as pixels on a screen, welcome. I'm glad for the company. If there are any glitches in the system, I'll sort them out (first day, remember). 

I start in an airport, but now I'm listening to the ocean pull on the shore, the humid air unfamiliar after a long, chilly spring. I'll keep you updated on my acclimation.