Maui Day 1 and 2

Wow, Maui is kind of a nightmare - really long line that we could see for security (there is only one security line for the whole airport) and it took forever to get the rental car.  Ryan was very frustrated because people were just being stupid like the couple in front of him that needed the "return the gas tank empty and pay $7 per gallon or fill it up yourself" options explained three times with various scenarios.  Hopefully security won't be too bad when we leave at 1030 at night.  We got to appreciate the wonderful customer service of Hawaiian Airlines again.  Right after we picked up our luggage and Ryan had disappeared to get the car (for an hour) I asked Drew where her baseball hat was.  Apparently still in row 21 on flight 126.  Just like the time we drove to Volcano from Kona (2 hours) and had forgotten the pack n play (7 years ago), Hawaiian came through for us and hand delivered the hat to us.  One little girl was very happy.

The resort in Maui is nice.  Our room wasn't ready so we went out to the pool.  Very crowded as in only 2 chairs in the whole place that were available.  They seem to have lots of complimentary activities which is nice and the prices are a little cheaper (like $6.50 for a kiddie smoothie at the bar instead of $10).

We went to the E Ho-onanea which they describe as the Hawaiian torch lighting ceremony (although Trevor was quick to point out that absolutely no torches are lit).

Pretty dancer

Singer guy

D &T posing with the hula dancers

Cute kids in a banyan (?) tree

The pool is pretty cool here and is definitely about the warmest pool that we've ever been in.  The beach is really shallow but has good waves.  It is really shallow for quite a while.  They just installed some balance equipment around the pool and this really fun game called Neos Playworld System that requires you to jump around and hit various lights. There are about 8 games to choose from and you can have 1-3 players.  It is pretty fun and Trevor and I worked up a sweat playing a little.  Here are some action shots:

One weird thing about this resort is that they have kitchenettes with a full size dishwasher, a microwave, a sink (without disposal) and a mini-fridge.  Last night we had a rotisserie chicken and some very unhealthy sides that can be heated in a microwave (like mashed potatoes and a cheesy broccoli rice thing) and tonight we had steak (on the grill) and baked potatoes.  It does allow us to eat breakfast and lunch in.  Ryan is having flashbacks to childhood cooking scrambled eggs in the microwave and I discovered that you can make real oatmeal in the microwave too.  It is a little runny but it works.  I went for a run today on the sidewalk that runs up Ka-anapali beach.  People are kind of clueless here too.  When you are running toward them, all the way over to the right, they won't move over and you have to awkwardly twist your shoulders to the side so you don't hit them as you run past. Coming up from behind they have no clue you are there - even if you shout (coming up on your left).  People are just wandering around - stopping suddenly to get sand from their shoes, taking pictures, looking at menus posted at restaurants...  Maybe I'll hit the gym tomorrow - I'm not sure I can take another day like that - it must be like trying to run in Manhattan.

Trevor snorkeling

Tomorrow morning we are going to do some surfing.  Hopefully another adventure that is expensive but worth it.  Drew is already a little nervous and not expecting to do well.  I'm sure both kids will do better than their mom.  We were going to do Haleakala for sunset tonight but decided not to.  My only regret is all the super warm clothes I packed which took up a ton of room in the suitcases!  Ugh.

Last Two Days on Oahu

Sad to have our last couple of days on Oahu.  I love Hawaii and Ryan always asks why.  People are so friendly and I love that they have the coolness of a different culture and yet, it is still part of the US.  They are also always trying to preserve and teach us that culture - by using Hawaiian words and entertaining with song and dance.  Ko-Olina feels like our Marriott home.

We met some cool people this time around - Betsy Liberty and Lou (not sure what his last name is) and Theo and Melody Gekas (and all their kids).  The kids played together and the parents enjoyed some cocktails.

Christy, Melody, and Betsy - the bathing beauties!

The men are holding court (and doing some serious drinking around a trash can!

 Last day on Oahu was just for us and Betsy and Theo (the Gekas had gone home).  Trevor and Ryan finally hit the beach past the JW Marriott to see the monk seal that has been beaching there for 14 days and molting.  I saw it several days but it was always when I was out for a run without the camera.  Her name is Pohoku.

That looks like a totally kissable snout!

Here are some pretty pictures from their walk back

This is some sort of pretty fruit (?) that just falls from the trees here.

View walking toward the JW Marriott Ihilani

Drew had too much fun in the sun and actually had a little siesta by the pool

Relaxing on a pool float that someone gave us when they left the resort.

That night we were invited to share food with Lou, Betsy, Charlotte, and Lucas in their room.  We brought a little pasta and a horrible bottle of wine (for some reason Ryan thought Fancy Pants would be a good blend) but they had made two kinds of fish, burgers, and an excellent salad.  We bailed on them pretty quickly for a showing of Happy Feet 2 on the lawn that started at sunset.  Maybe our vacations will bring us together again...

Relaxing in Oahu

The pace of blogging slows down at this point because there isn't that much to report - we are just hanging out at the pool.

Day #5 – Fun in the sun

Kids slept until 730 today, which was great.  I fed the kids breakfast then headed out for a run while Ryan went to the pool with the kids.  At 1100 we went inside to build Tamiya racecars.  It was too complicated for Drew and almost too complicated for me.  Poor girl just sat there for an hour while the instructor guy and I tried to figure out why our car wouldn’t work.  Ryan finally fixed it for us.

Trevor's cool car

Drew's cool car

 Then Ryan brought lunch down for us and the kids asked when we were going to do something else.   What do you mean, something else?  This lounging by the pool thing is all that is on the agenda for the next several days!  Had steak for dinner and then went for ice cream.  I’ll leave you with two quotes for the day:

#1 – Trevor swims over to his dad in the pool and says, “Drew won’t listen to me and I didn’t hurt her and I am telling you.  That’s what you always tell me to do so make her listen.”

#2 – Ryan asks, “Drew how was dinner?”  “It is as good as a goat running away which means – excellent!”  What?????

Day #6 – Kids got up around 730 again.  After breakfast Mom went for a run and Dad took the kids over to the JW Marriott to see sharks get fed.  They didn’t do the shark feeding but the kids got to see the sharks in the pool – they were all baby hammerheads.  Then they went to walk through the Disney Aulani Resort.  Trevor thinks their pool is way cooler than ours – it has a lazy river.  After that we went to a kid golf thing.  They were using giant plastic clubs to hit tennis balls off tees toward a Velcro target.  Trevor did pretty well.  Drew was trying left-handed and it was her first time.  They got some cool schwag – Trevor got a Ko Olina golf hat and Drew got a ladybug luggage tag and notepad. 

 After that we headed back to the pool where we made friends with two couples from California (one from the Bay Area and one from Huntington Beach in Orange County.  Dinner was pasta with salad and some good bread.  Mommy finished up the third Ivy and Bean chapter book on the folded out foldout couch between the two kiddos and then promptly fell asleep at 800.  I’m blaming it on the jet lag but maybe it was all the afternoon drinks…

Day #7 – Drew woke everyone up at 630.  Daddy got up to get the kids breakfast and Mom got to sleep until 830.  Drew and Mommy headed out to a 9:00 hula lesson.  It was a pretty entertaining hour.  A little embarrassing to be learning hula in the middle of the great lawn at the resort with 5 other people but oh well.  

Doing the hula on the lawn

Towards the end Drew was getting bored – especially after some of her “friends” from yesterday (like 12 year old girls in bikinis) were like “Hey Drew, we’re going to be at the pool – see you in a little while”. 

We then headed over to the pool for a little swimming before the all-important Tamiya car race.   It was a double elimination and the kids were in different brackets because Drew’s model is the slower one. 

Waiting for the race to begin!

Drew ended up winning first place (she was only competing with one other kid) and Trevor came in second.  It was rough for him because his car was going so fast that it flipped off the track and whizzed through the lobby.  When that had happened in previous heats the ref called a “do over” and Trevor felt he was cheated. 

Happy Drew with her prizes - 2 hot wheels, a ribbon, a certificate, and a plastic trophy.

After that we came back to the pool before heading up to make ice cream in a bag.  That was pretty cool and I may try to do it at Drew’s friend party this year.  After that we went to an “owners only” activity where someone cut up pineapple, papaya , and mango for us to eat.  It wasn’t nearly as cool and the brochure made it sound.  Back to the pool until it was time for dinner and that was it for day #7.

Ahhh the view

 

Going to Oahu on Monday

Of course Drew woke up at 600 complaining of being hungry and woke either her Dad or I up every 15 minutes until 700 when I finally got up with her and ran to the ABC store to get her some cereal.  I then dropped her off back at the room and ran to a free yoga session.  After that we went out to breakfast, returned the wetsuits and ran back to the hotel to pack. 

This was the view from breakfast

 Then it was off to the airport for our flight to Oahu.  At the airport Trevor had a great time inspecting a bird that had an injured leg. Drew had a great time on the plane talking to a woman from Japan.  We arrived in Oahu at about 1:00 and headed toward Ko-Olina.  Drew fell asleep in the car for about 20 minutes.  We stopped at Costco to do a little shopping and eat some lunch and then hit the resort.  We are staying in the same tower that we always have which is the one farthest away from all the activities.  Ryan hit the grocery store since we have a kitchen.  We hit the Welina Mai show - a free welcome show about Polynesian Culture.  Drew got to get up and dance in front of everyone (with about 30 other kids) so she was happy. 

Posing on a rock

Drew getting ready to hula for everyone.

The Chief blowing his conch

Enjoying some fresh coconut water (neither one enjoyed it!)

Big Island Day 2

Great 2-hour drive back to Kona.  Both kids have on headphones – Trevor is playing his DS and Drew is listening to music on her I-Touch.  We are getting a concert from Drew singing along – it is pretty entertaining.  We made it to Aloha Kayak right on time at 8:00.  Checked in and got fitted for gear.  It was our family and then a very unusual family – a Japanese woman who probably weighed 95 pounds and had a shockingly dark thatch of hair under each armpit.  The husband was originally from Canada but now they live in Palo Alto.  He was the total package – a dead tooth in front, a lisp, had a nasty rash on his legs, weighed about 105 lbs and was wearing a Speedo!  They had two very cute girls.  When they came to the kayaks they didn’t have swimming suits on and had all kinds of unnecessary stuff like towels and stuff.  I think they were sent back to their car 2-3 times before we took off.  It was Trevor and Mommy in one kayak and Ryan and Drew in the other.  There were two guides taking us – Kian and Boo.

Just about ready to take off

Drew looking pretty in her kayak

Trevor and Mom in our camo kayak

Kealakekua Bay

Ryan dipped his hand in the water from his kayak and got this shot

 We paddled for about 45 minutes through Kealakekua Bay to the Captain Cook Monument.  Along the way we stopped and watched several groups of sleeping spinner dolphins cruise through the water right by us.  Spinner dolphins are cool and when they are in coves like this they are sleeping.  They tend to travel in pairs and they turn one half of their brain off (the inside portion when they are swimming next to another dolphin).  After a while they will switch sides and let the other side of their brain sleep.

Once we got to the monument we got our kayaks up and went snorkeling.  The fish were awesome and the coral was beautiful.  The kids got cold pretty quickly and spent some time out in the sun.  Then we got to paddle back 45 minutes.  I was shocked that Trevor did as well as he did – he paddled almost the whole time.  Drew spent most of the time holding her paddle and Ryan had a much harder time.





 

This is the Captain Cook monument.  It is technically British soil.  It commemorates the discovery of the Hawaiian Islands by the British in 1778.  According to our guides, the Spanish had been using the Hawaiian Islands for some time before the Brits discovered them.  He was also killed very close to here on February 14, 1779 when the Hawaiians figured out that he was trying to exploit them (big shocker).

Here is Kian and the other family.  That dad is money, I tell you.

Taking a break from snorkeling

We had a great lunch at a Japanese place – Drew and Trevor both enjoyed their chicken teriyaki.  After that adventure we went to check in to our hotel - the Courtyard King Kamehameha.  The hotel is pretty nice – very nice room with 2 queen beds, pretty beach area and a nice pool at the end of the strip in Kona.  The kids and Ryan enjoyed a little bit of time in the pool while I tried to find a place that we could rent wetsuits for our night snorkel with the manta rays.  We then picked up our wetsuits and ate sushi for dinner.  Very proud of Trevor for trying things he hasn’t tried before.

At 700 we checked in for our night kayak and snorkel.  It was raining but when we got down to our put-in spot it was not, thankfully.  It was just our family and a guide named Spencer who was from Kirkwood of all places!  Drew wanted to go with Mommy so we did that since it was only a 5-minute paddle.  It was really dark which was kind of creepy.  We paddled out to an area near the Sheraton hotel (which shines a big light that attracts the plankton that attracts the manta rays.  Paddling with the wetsuits on was a little more challenging.  We then waited for Spencer to anchor our kayaks (while Trevor and Ryan almost tossed their cookies overboard) and we jumped overboard with our snorkel gear and flashlights.  Then we had the most amazing experience.  There were about 5 manta rays that were swimming gracefully in this cove right underneath us.  The biggest was about 6-8 feet in wingspan and they swam within 6 inches of us.  It was so cool and they were so graceful.  I have to say that when a wild animal that big is swimming close to you it can be a little scary.  The wetsuits were definitely worth the $40 – a Mommy that isn’t cold is a happy Mommy.  We then hauled ourselves back up on our kayaks and paddled for shore.   

Getting ready to snorkel with mantas

Drew was so tuckered that she actually fell asleep on the row back and stayed asleep while Spencer drug the kayak up the boat launch!  Unfortunately there are no pictures of the mantas because Ryan forgot to take the camera off the kayak with him!  It would have been hard to get pictures in the dark and hold the flashlight and make sure Trevor didn’t drown.  Everyone fell asleep pretty quickly when we got back to the hotel.  However, Drew was hungry when she went to bed, which didn’t bode well for the night…

One tired girl

The Big Island Day 1

Mom and Dad woke up around 645 this morning and Drew got up at 700.  We ate a breakfast of banana, mac nut-raisin-cinnamon bread, pineapple, papaya (no one is a fan) and eggs.  After that Ryan went to ask Garrett for more information about where to snorkel.  He enjoyed staring at the curly grey hairs that covered his velour jogging suit (same one as last night) while chatting.  I’m not sure how many times “brah” was used this morning because I wasn’t present.  We then headed back down toward Hilo for what was described as Barrier Reef quality snorkeling by our host.  The Kapoho Tide Pools took about 45 minutes to get to and when we arrived a little rain was starting to fall and it was overcast enough that we didn’t need to bother with sunscreen.  We stripped down to our suits and began the treacherous walk across the lava to the pools.  It was low tide (extremely low) so we had to walk quite far.  The kids and I all had on sandals (flip flops in Drew’s case) that weren’t quite appropriate for the terrain and it was cold and windy and started to really rain, as we got further out.  I was freezing to death.  We did see some cool little crabs including one that had lots of gold on it but there was absolutely no way we were getting in that water.  We high-tailed it back in and a nice couple who are building a house let us come on their upper porch out of the rain and gave the kids some candy.  The wife explained that the pools are much cooler during high tide (at 4:30 when we won’t be there).  She did recommend a pool (Ahalanui) that is heated by Kilauea to a balmy 90 degrees.  We drove down the road to Ahalanui which was an awesome pool lined with lava rock (had originally been some fat cat’s private pool but then he gave it to the public).  We had some issues with the rough bottom surface and Trevor’s feet but once you got out pretty far the bottom was sandy.  We snorkeled here for a bit.  There were a few colorful fish but mostly little grey guys.

Snorkeling at Ahalanui

We stayed until the kids started to complain and then we got back in the car and drove to the end of Highway 130 where an eruption by Kilauea in 1990 wiped out the town of Kalapana and closed a big section of the highway.  We got out of the car and were able to see where a massive lava flow completed obliterated a black sand beach. 

Lava has completely obliterated this black sand beach.

What I had wanted to see but we ran out of time and patience was some subdivisions where houses had been buried right next to houses that still have people living in them.  In Hawaii you can claim insurance if your house is buried in lava but not if the access to your house is buried in lava.  So there are some brave (or crazy souls) that live in houses completely surrounded by lava with no electricity and no water.  This lava is from the Pu’u O’o vent that started erupting in 1983.  Here are some interesting volcano facts:

4,600,000,000 cubic yards of lava have come out since 1983 and this would fill 300 million dump trucks. It has created 475 new acres of land, covered 8.5 miles of highway, and destroyed 213 structures.

We then headed back up the side of Kilauea to Volcano Village to eat lunch and change clothes.  After that we headed to Volcano National Park.  We went to Thurston Lava Tube first, and then took a 1-mile hike (there and back) to the Kilauea Iki crater overlook.  It overlooks a huge now-cooled lava lake that was the result of an eruption in 1959.  

Getting ready to go inside the Thurston Lava Tube

Overlooking Kilauea Iki - a giant lava lake that has since cooled but still steams.  Behind her you can see the new eruption.

After that we headed to the Visitor’s Center and caught a ranger-led tour through the rain forest.  The ranger was a high school girl and for being as young as she was she did a great job.  She was really young though.  We learned about the native and invasive plants that we saw along the way.  It was a 1.5-mile hike and, surprisingly to me, Drew did fine.  

Waiting for the tour to start

We were able to see lots of steam vents, earth cracks, and we went by the Sulphur Banks where sulphur deposits have colored the ground yellow and it reeks of eggs.  

A fiddlehead fern

Steam vent

Sulphur Banks

After the park we went to dinner at Kiawe Kitchen and the kids had some pasta and Ryan and I had pizza.  Amazing how exhausted you can feel at 530 in the evening – hope the jet lag clears soon.  Leaving early in the morning to head to Kona for kayaking and snorkeling.  Interested to see how the kids handle a 45-minute paddle to our open ocean snorkeling site!

A good local beer

The Hawaii 2012 Adventure Begins

The morning started with a panic attack as the cab that I had ordered to pick me up in the ER patient parking lot at Mercy was nowhere to be found 10 minutes after it was scheduled to be there.  The driver called and asked where I was and I told him the medical center and he said dispatch gave him the wrong address – the one for the Sisters of Mercy Convent on Geyer.  I tell him I will go through the hospital to get to the front entrance to make life easier.  Dispatch calls while I am on my way to tell me that my driver is there but can’t find me.  When I reach the front entrance he is still not there.  Turns out dispatch still had no idea what they were doing.  Driver finally made it and by the time I met Ryan and the kids at the airport they had boarding passes printed and the bags checked.  Left Lambert at 730 after eating some airport food.  I was post-call so I slept with my head nodding and bobbing for ¾ of the first leg of our flight to Phoenix – roughly a 4-hour flight.  In Phoenix we grabbed some pizza, even though it was only 1045 local time, which we ate on the next flight.  The kids begged me to sit next to them so I watched a movie with Drew and then dozed off again to be intermittently woken up to change the movie or get an I-touch or break up an argument. 

 Look at that enormous backpack!

Arrive in Kona at 230 (730 our time) with some very hungry kids and a plan to drive the 2 hours to Volcano with a stop at a grocery store along the way.   The airport in Kona is like a bunch of tiki huts connected with walkways and you descend the plane right onto the ground – no jet bridge.  The kids thought this was pretty cool.

Have been having regret over planning to stay all three nights in Volcano since it is a 2 hour drive back to Kona and our original plan was to drive back to Kona on Saturday for an afternoon snorkel trip and an evening Manta Ray snorkel and then drive back to Volcano to spend the night.  While we were leaving the airport we decided to eat the $148 we are paying for the house in Volcano and booked a Marriott in Kailua-Kona and called to change our snorkel tours to Sunday.  Adding to the pain of the day is the fact that GPS had us go North on 11 instead of South so we drove all the way around the island the long way!  It turned the 2 hours trip into a 2 ½ hour trip!  We showed up to Artist’s House in Volcano Village and it is a cute little retreat.  The caretaker is a very granola dude with long grey hair pulled back in a ponytail and wearing burgundy velour sweats and flip flops.  We were with him for about 10-15 minutes and he managed to work in the word “brah” like 4 times carefully explaining that many people think it means “bro” but actually means “dude”.  He is originally from Michigan.  He showed us around a little (although we deferred the grand tour of the 3 acres and gardens) and when we told him what our plans were he acted like we were crazy for doing the tourist thing in Kona.  He has all these great little snorkel spots on the North Side by Hilo that he recommends (and they do sound really cool) but we’ve already booked our two snorkel things in Kona and they can’t be canceled. 

 Got Thai take-out for dinner and then drove to the Jagger Museum to see the glow from the new eruption at Halema’uma’u.  Amazing that this huge glowing crater was not here in 2005 when we were.  It started with an explosion on March 19, 2008.  Trevor is of course very intrigued with the whole volcano thing and I am looking forward to learning more with him tomorrow.  It is a little after 900 here.  I got the kids tucked in to bed at 845 and Ryan went to bed around the same time.

Check out that glow from the crater!