Our last day on the Islands

Well today was the last day of our Hawaiian vacation and what a day it was. We started early this morning with a snorkeling cruise out to the Molikini crater and then on to "Turtle Town" to swim with the sea turtles. It was an amazing time and certainly the best snorkeling we did here in the Islands.

After we left the marina Marcie and Matthew got an idea that we should take surfing lessons. We went to Royal Hawaiian Surf School for our lessons and then out to the waves with the "Big Kahuna" himself. Our instructor has been surfing since he was in second grade and was fairly patient with us as we learned to "hang 10". Everyone had a great time and we all were able to get up (and stay up for the most part). We then returned home for our last Hawaiian sunset of the trip.

Tomorrow we leave Maui at about 8:45 with a flight to Honolulu. We then depart Honolulu at about 1:10 for Los Angeles. We depart LAX at around 11pm (their time) and hope to arrive in Milwaukee at 5am central time. We have had a great trip but are looking forward to coming home as well!

The Road to Hana..

Today we got up around 5am to drive the road to Hana. It was a "memorable experience" to say the least. We drove all the way to the end and back which was a very long 12 hour day. We saw some amazing sights including a red sand beach. Fortunately we made it back without incident and got to experience yet another Maui sunset.

Haleakala and a Luau

Today we got up before sunrise and drove up to the top Haleakala. Unfortunately we didn't make sunrise and it was raining quite a bit on the drive up. When we got to the top (a little over 10,000 feet) we noticed the weather clearing and we were able to get some great pictures of the crater. Later that evening we were treated to our first Luau. We had another great day!

On to Maui!

We arrived on Maui today (7.14.07) and once again experienced a new island. We checked into our condo and drove up the road to Kapalua beach for a bit of snorkeling. The waves were awesome and we had a great time. Tomorrow we plan to take a trip up to Haleakala at sunrise!

Another Day in Hawaii!

Today we drove back up the coast to see the spot that Captain Cook came ashore as well as checkout some of the coffee plantations. After that we just headed back home to cook out, snorkel with the sea turtles and were able to see a couple of very large eels. They have larger teeth than you would think!

We then sat back and enjoyed yet another awesome sunset. It seems each one is more spectacular than the last! Tomorrow(Friday) we drive back to the Hilo side of the island and fly out early the next day to Maui. Hopefully we can continue blogging from there!

Hapuna Beach

Today we went to Hapuna Beach. The whitesand beaches were in contrast to the beaches elsewhere on the big island. We snorkeled quite a bit in deeper water and saw some interesting fish. We ended the day with another beautiful sunset.

Big Island Sunset

Another great thing about our current location is the opportunity to see some awesome sunsets every night. In fact the locals actually "do sunset" around here. We have found that this means stopping what you are doing and going to some good spot to view the sunset. So far we have seen two very beautiful and different sunsets. It is hard to imagine that the same sun sets in Wisconsin 5 hours earlier. Just a little tidbit of info....sunset in Hawaii right now is about 7:15pm.

Big Island Life

Some of the best things about the place we are staying at now is that we are about 100 yards away from one of the best snorkel spots in Hawaii. We snorkeled for a couple of hours yesterday and saw sea turtles and about two dozen species of tropical fish....some were VERY large. We hope to see lava tubes that exit into the sea via water as we continue to explore the reef. But seeing ocean life isn't our only experience. We have found numerous little gekko's (I think they are gekko's) running around the condo. They are very colorful and stay out of our condo which is appreciated by all.

The Big Island

Today is our first full day at the Big Island (Hawaii). We arrived in Hilo (rainy side) last night and drove up the coast to see some of the rain forest and the Akaka Falls. The flora and fauna was very interesting for a former Biology teacher!

We then spent the rest of the day driving around the island and stopping at Volcano National Park. We were unable to see live lava flows as the Volcano is erupting quite a bit right now and they don't want visitors getting close to unpredictable areas.

We were still able to see some amazing sites including recent lava flows and lava tubes. It reminded me a lot of Yellowstone but without the water and the color. We have some interesting pictures of life starting to come to the volcano area. Always amazing how life can come from such a desolate place.

Day Three: Diamondhead and Surf's up!

On day three we took our rental car and drove up the shoreline to diamondhead where we snapped the picture of Waikiki/Honolulu that was on the first post. The hike up diamondhead was long but well worth the time.

We then proceeded up the coast past Hanamua bay and found some big surf. Marcie and Matt decided to wade in to the waves to cool off. We headed back to our hotel and took the shuttle to the airport where we are waiting to fly over to the Big Island. Tomorrow is the Volcano National Park.

Hopefully we can find some wifi internet there to continue these posts. We hope you like coming along on our trip with us. Wish you were here!

Aloha!

Day Two: Polynesian Culture Center

On our second day we headed up the coast to the Polynesian Cultural Center in a convertible (definitely the way to travel). We stopped at one of the beaches along the way and tried snorkeling. We were all shocked at how salty the water actually was! We were happy to find a fresh water shower to clean off and move on to the Polynesian Cultural Center.

The center was awesome and we learned a great deal about the Polynesian culture. The night show was the highlight and well worth the long drive back to Waikiki in the dark. Thanks to Matthew's excellent navigation we made it home and were ready to get some sleep.

First Day in Hawaii

Our first day in Hawaii came early (6:30am). We went to the Arizona Memorial in Pearl Harbor and got a chance to tour the USS Missouri...a very BIG Battleship! You really do have to see those 16" guns to get a sense of how powerful a ship like this is.

The USS Arizona was also cool....a very powerful experience given that over 1,100 people are entombed there. By the end of this day we were ready to get some sleep. See you tomorrow!

Hawaii Vacation

Well we made it to Hawaii. Leaving Milwaukee about 2pm Central and arriving in Honolulu at about 9:40 Hawaii time (that was 2:40am Central time). We were all pretty tired but excited. Here is a picture we took at the top of Diamond Head crater of Waikiki. A long hike but some very cool views! We will try to post more pictures and info as time permits but wireless access is spotty at best. That is why all of these posts are within about 20 minutes of each other. We are basically waiting at the Honolulu airport for our flight to Hawaii (big island).

Oh...by the way. You can see the full size images just by clicking on them!