Highlights: a photo postcard

After being to Oahu in 1988, Kauai in 1997, Maui in 2000, Theresa and I thought it's time to check out the Big Island for some Big Adventures. We wanted go to The Big Island of Hawaii for some serious active relaxation, or is it relaxed activities? Prior to the trip I read this guidebook: Hawaii The Big Island Revealed and also explore their on-line links. On my book shelf I have a collection of over 40 travel guidebooks. This guidebook is my favorite because it's informative, personal, and humorous. I am very impressed by this guidebook and will be looking forward to get its companion books on Kauai and Maui when we make our return visits to Hawaii in the coming years. I also did some on-line research on the Internet, such as Expedia.

I must mention that the very special part of this vacation was that we were able to find a great Bed and Breakfast Inn called Hawaiian Oasis (Official Web). It was a special treat to be in the Gardenia Cottage and enjoyed a special gourmet continental breakfast every morning. The most special part of this B&B was the inn keepers Carol and Mike. They were such gracious hosts. Prior to the trip they were extremely helpful in answering our questions. They were extremely accommodating. They made our Big Island  vacation an extremely pleasant experience. Having stayed at over 30 B&B over the last 17 years all over the U.S., Theresa and I can honestly said that this is the best B&B that we have ever stayed. I highly recommend this place for your very own Big Island vacation. If you are looking for a place to stay on the Big Island, look no further. Hawaiian Oasis is the place. 

After a six-hour direct flight from Oakland to Kona on Aloha Airline, we arrived at the airport around noon on Saturday. By the way, any airline that serves hot chocolate chip cookie and cold milk as part of the snack service is high on my list of recommended airlines :-) I surprised Theresa with a flower lei. I was delighted that the weather is just what the Yahoo Weather has predicted for Kailua Kona: sunny! 

After checking into the bed and breakfast inn and had a pleasant conversation with Carol--it's exciting to finally have met her face-to-face after all our e-mail exchanges, we decided to go to Kailua-Kona to explore. We decided to get lunch first. We happened to walk into Kona Inn Restaurant because it was close to the water. As Theresa and I were debating whether to eat there or not, we heard our names being called! We turned around and was pleasantly surprised by Mary and Jerry, our friends from California. Mary and I have known each other for over 17 years at Intel. I used to play golf with Jerry regularly. What a BIG surprise! We regretted that we did not synchronize our vacation plans better. We had a nice lunch of sashimi and shrimp cocktail. Theresa and I renewed our tradition at Hawaii by toasting the start of our vacation with a Mai-tai for her and a Lava Flow (pina colada and strawberry daiquiri) for me. We don't usually drink alcohol during lunch. However, we were on vacation! After a few hours of pleasant conversation, we reluctantly said good-bye but vowed to go on the 2-week hiking trip at Switzerland with them in 2003. 

We then explored Kailua-Kona by walking down Alii Drive, which has an interesting collection of restaurants and shops. I know it's kind of touristy. However, we are tourists! We did a little bit of shopping and began our treasure hunting. You see, usually when Theresa and I go to a new place, we always keep our eyes open for two important landmarks: Hot Rock Cafe and Starbucks. We struck gold right away as found Hot Rock Cafe after walking just a few blocks. Theresa and I walked out with a satisfied smile as we bought several tee-shirts. Theresa even got a free Halloween shot glass. Carol was generous enough to lend us some of her snorkel gear, so all we  needed was to rent two shortie jackets at Snorkel Bob. As it's tradition on my travel photo journal that you would have now been expecting to see a picture of the dinner that I had on Saturday evening. What did we have? Some interesting local seafood or an exotic pan-Asian cuisine? Nope. Theresa and I were so jet lagged that we ate a bowl of granola cereal and went to bed by 8pm!

Sunday morning was a delightful trip down the coast along Kailua-Kona. Mike was the captain, and Carol was the first-mate and chef. Snorkeling at Kealakekua Bay in front of the Captain Cook Monument was great. The water was extremely calm and clear. The fish is on the smallish side. However, that was more than made up by the lunch that Carol prepared. We wolfed down her specially prepared hot Thai chicken wrap and her famous sassy tropical salsa. Delicious. I was also delighted that I did not get sea sickness this time. We then continued to explore the many interesting caves and lava tubes along the coast. We were disappointed that the spinner dolphins were not home thus did not get a chance to observe and swim with them. Well, we have to leave a few things to do so that we will not be bored on our next trip back to the Big Island. Maybe I'll call that trip "Big Island, Big Anticipation!"

Sunday afternoon we decided to visit a few of the resorts prior to dinner. Even though the guidebook touted highly the grounds at Mauna Lani Bay Hotel, we were not that impressed--probably because we did not go visit the secret pond. Nevertheless, we were impressed by Orchid at Mauna Lani. The hotel was impressive. We especially enjoyed ourselves by having a sunset cocktail at the Ocean Bar at Orchid at Mauna Lani. Yes, Theresa had another Mai-tai :-)

A week prior to coming to the Big Island, we happened to find out that part of the Kelley family would also be vacationing here. We could not pass up the chance of meeting them for dinner. We had a most pleasant meal with the Kelley's at the Canoe House at Mauna Lani Bay. Thus began our " Big Island, Big Eats" series of memorable meals. I love seafood and especially salmon. However, I can get salmon back home. So I did not pass up the chance to try Opakapaka, also known as pink snapper. Wow. It was delicious.

Theresa loves coffee. I must admit that even though we both enjoy specialty coffee drinks at Starbucks, our first and only love continues to be Peet's because their roast is consistently full-body and robust. Nevertheless, I thought it would be fun to visit an actual Kona coffee plantation. On Monday heading south from Kailua-Kona on highway 11 we visited Greenwell. It was fun. You probably know that at most places regular Kona coffee is about $25 a pound . Peet's sometimes sells theirs at $50 a pound! Therefore we were shocked to see the wholesale price of Kona coffee is only 90 cents a pound!

We then continue our exploration by visiting Pu'uhonua O Honaunau (formerly Place of Refuge) and then the Painted Church.

On Monday evening we decided to do something unusual: snorkel at night to see the manta ray. Click on the left image to see if we saw any manta ray and whether Theresa will be fortunate enough to live through the experience!

One Tuesday after having a leisurely gourmet breakfast and playing an hour of tennis at our bed and breakfast we drove north-east on 190. I was impressed by the barren moonscape, though Theresa was still saying that she liked all the lush and green landscape at Kauai. We had a most delightful lunch at Aioli. In addition to having a tuna wrap, I also bought a pair of most colorful surfer pants with a horse theme. We were in cowboy country near Parker Ranch. However, I don't think any Hawaiian cowboy would be caught dead wearing my pants! After heading east on 19 and then 240 north, we began our horseback ridding trip at Waipio Valley with the Waipi`o Na`alapa Trail Ride (808-775-0419). Theresa stated that this was her highlight on this vacation. The Waipio Valley is very cozy and verdant. I think anything that's planted here would grow. The only regret that I had was that I was not able to take a picture of Roxy the dog finding and then holding on to this giant 1-pound avocado. She was so proud of herself! 

On our way back we stopped at the Hapuna Beach where Theresa finally got to take off her shoes, rolled up her pants, and walked along the beach. She loves the sound of the ocean because she claims it energizes her!

On our way back we also explored the Hilton Waikoloa Village. What a resort! It's like Disneyland. We could not pass the chance to ride the monorail and the boat that goes around the resort. After much deliberation we ended up having dinner at this upscale Italian restaurant. I had a very decedent and extravagant chocolate dessert.

When we woke up on Wednesday we were delighted that we did not get saddle sore from yesterday's horseback riding. We drove up north along highway 19 to the Kohala area. We visited the Mauna Kea Beach because this is also the same parking lot that is shared with the Mauna Kea Hotel and Golf course. What a great beach! I also finally got to fulfill the fantasy that I had for the past several months: I got to do yoga on the beach, while the tropical sun warmed my body, the nice ocean breeze embraced my face, and the ocean's sound soothed my ears. It was a very relaxing and gratifying experience!

After having a simple lunch right on the beach we checked in at the Mauna Kea Golf Course (tee-time: (808)882-7222). I was lucky that they have a men's shower. I took a quick and refresher shower. Theresa was not so lucky as they removed the women's shower recently. Theresa and I practically had the golf course all to ourselves. Playing Mauna Kea was my favorite golf outing in my memory as I got to enjoy this very scenic course, play with Theresa, and even got 4 pars in the whole round. Sure I teed off from the women's tee since I was playing with Theresa, but 4 pars are 4 pars for such a novice player like myself. I was very satisfied with my play. In fact several of my approach shots were straight and high but landed 10-15 yards beyond the green much to my surprise and dismay. I think it's time for me to buy a new set of golf clubs--as soon as Intel stock is over $100--maybe within this decade :-)  After this nice round of golf we enjoyed a sunset cocktail at Mauna Kea. We walked around King's Shops a little bit and even bought a few colorful Aloha shirts that I just could not resist. 

Thursday was our big driving day as we visited the Volcano National Park. It took us about 2 hours on highway 11 around the southern part of the Island. It was pretty desolate. However, the trip was worth it since we eventually made our way to Volcano National Park. It was interesting to observe all the strange landscape, steam vents, and lava field as we drove on the Crate Rim Drive (National Park Service web). 

After having a closer look at the Halemaumau Crater, we visited the Thurston Lava Tube. I was also impressed by the lush tropical rain forest right outside the Thurston Lava Tube. 

The highlight of the day was the 2-hour, 4-mile hike around and inside Kilauea Iki. Theresa still claimed that at one point the ground rumbled. I was pretty sure that the Kilauea Iki volcano has been extinct since 1959, but we did not want to take any chances so we quickly hiked out of the crater. It was an exhilarating hike. 

Upon Jerry and Mary's high recommendation we decided to press on at 5pm and drive to the Kapalana lava flow. Jerry gave a "glowing" recommendation about what a spectacle it is to see red and glowing lava going into the ocean. Was our experience a big success or big bust? Please read the complete story by clicking the left image. Also read about "Big Island, Big Scare" and why eating outside a TrueValue hardware store was part of our "Big Island, Big Eats" dining adventure :-)

Friday was our last full day on the island. We wanted a full day to relax and enjoy. When I first woke up I was worried that it was going to be raining. Fortunately I was delighted by the sunny sky. Out of all our snorkeling outings at Kauai, Maui, and the Big Island, I think Kahaluu Beach Park is the best places that we have snorkeled because it's extremely safe and easy (protected by a barrier reef), the water is clear, and the abundance of relatively large fish. The best part was that I got to swim with four turtles!  I went out there three times. I almost did not want to get out of the water. 

After having lunch in front of the beach at a hotel restaurant next to Kahaluu Beach Park, we drove to Mauna Kea Beach. Yes, I did my yoga again. We also snorkeled and was enchanted by a jelly fish! We then strolled along the ocean and enjoyed one more glorious sunset!

We ended our last full time on the Big Island by having a great meal at Huggo's at Kailua-Kona. We were not even that disappointed when we did not see any manta ray's in the ocean right in front of the restaurant as we certainly wanted to leave a few things to do and a few places to visit on our return visit to this great island!

You know there is a common saying about tourists should "leave only footprints; take only pictures." The sentence that's left out is "buy only trinkets" :-) Here is a small sampling of some goodies that we bought. Yes, we did find our Starbucks mug that said "Hawaii." Nope, there are no pictures of dark chocolate covered macadamia nuts--they got consumed at home before I remember to take a picture. I assure you that they were delicious :-)

Aloha from "Aloha Swoo and Hula Twoo :-)"

p.s.

If you are in Hawaii, remember to have a Mai-Tai or a Lava Flow for us :-)

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