I began my first visit to Hawaiʻi with a few day stay in the southeast coastal enclave of Kapaʻa. I stayed in an Airbnb right near the beach as well as some decent restaurants and tourist shops. The island of Kauaʻi really is quite lush and beautiful, and I understand why it is called the garden island. Leaving Livermore in the chilly rain it was nice to arrive in the quite mild tropical weather.
I didn’t have a car, but I was able to do some local exploring by foot, and I walked the beach and even waded in and felt the relatively warm sea water. The area I was in was clearly a tourist nook, and it seemed like a good place to just come, relax, eat, and enjoy the views. A few days before I left for the island, I had some soreness in my lower back, which wasn’t bad, but which wasn’t helped by sitting on a plane for 6 hours. It didn’t bother me terribly, but after hiking around, and hiking the thick sand beach, on Friday night just as I was about to ascend the stairs to my apartment, my back seized up (I think sacroiliac). At least I was able to see a beautiful Hawaiian sunset. 
It was touch and go just getting up the stairs, and I ended up basically spending the next day in bed, trying to relax my back, managing the pain, and trying to get it recovered enough to be able to survive the upcoming workshop. By the time Sunday rolled around and I met up with the workshop folks, I could move around, but still wasn’t feeling great. It was a challenge just rolling out of the bed. Nevertheless, I was glad I came to this beautiful spot.