July 27th

Took a pontoon boat for a quick trip out to Molokini to snorkel. It's the remains of a volcanic cone just a short distance from Maui, where the water is clear and the fish quite plentiful. The coral was beautiful, and although we didn't see as huge a variety of fish as we'd hoped to, the fish we did see were in rather large groups, and would swim very close to you. Unfortunately, although the ocean was fairly calm, the ride was bumpy, and the driver thought it would be fun to take some extra spins. Because I get nauseous easily, my stomach wasn't very happy, and it took a few hours after getting back before I felt well again.

Had dinner at the most popular restaurant on the island - the only place where you even have to make a reservation for lunch! Quite a few famous people have eaten there. It's located right on the beach, with lots of lush plants to walk past on the way in. The food was amazing - a good way to finish off our stay in Hawaii.

Tomorrow we fly home, but not until late, so we won't actually be back until Friday at noon. We plan to spend most of the day at Iao Valley Park and see the Iao Needle, which is the most photographed place on the island. We may make another stop at a glass-making place, depending on weather and how much time we have to kill. There's also a place not far from the airport which is known to have beautiful sunsets, and since the sun goes down about 7:15, we should just be able to catch it before leaving for our flight home. Michael has taken some amazing photos, which we have been editing, but there's still too many to post. After we get home we'll put up a selection of some of the better ones. Currently we have over 600, but I guess for a 3-week holiday that's really not too outrageous. Still, I'm sure you don't want to see that many!

It's been a great trip, but it feels like time to come home. Hopefully we'll see or at least talk to you soon!

July 26th

Drove into Haleakalā National Park from the north end, and up as far as the summit, which is just over 10,000 feet above sea level. The road has the highest climb in the shortest distance of any mountain in the world! It was neat to be driving through the clouds on the way up, but we couldn't see much.At the top the view of the crater was amazing - more colorful than the one on the Big Island, although this one isn't erupting like Mauna Loa is. The hike to the crater is quite strenuous on the return, so instead we went on a one-hour hike to another part of the crater, which was also an amazing view. After the hike there were less clouds, so we decided to drive back to the summit and another lookout that earlier in the day didn't have great visibility, and it was much better the second time. We could even see the Big Island from the summit! Although there were switch-backs up the mountain of course, they were longer and the road was wider and easier to drive than the Road to Hana.

Tomorrow we are taking a short boat trip off the coast to Molokini, which is supposed to have the best snorkelling on the island.

July 25th

Drove the famous 'Road to Hana' today. It's a winding stretch of road starting at the north central coast of Maui and heading towards the south eastern part of the island. It's especially known for it's many waterfalls. Although it's only 39 miles long, it takes 1 1/2 hours to drive one way if you don't make any stops, and I read that it has over 600 switchbacks! It also has many single-track bridges, where traffic must yield in one or both directions. Because it's not an easy drive, one would hope for spectacular scenery to make up for it, and although that's what the books promise, we didn't find it to be the case. It was pretty, but we've driven lots prettier roads in Scotland and Ireland. Also, the 'Going to the Sun Road' in Montana is more scenic than the Road to Hana. And actually we saw some sights beyond Hana and into the southern entrance to Haleakalā National Park that we thought were more scenic. Tomorrow we will go into that park from it's northern entrance and up to the crater. It's supposed to be the steepest climb in the shortest distance anywhere in the world!

July 24th

Yesterday we tried snorkelling at a beach close to our cottage that had come highly recommended. Unfortunately there was no protected area and the waves kept knocking us into the coral. We didn't see as many fish there as we did on the Big Island either, but the beach itself was nice.

Saw the Maui Ocean Centre, and while it's quite a good aquarium, it's not as good as the one we saw in Monterrey, California a few years ago. It was neat to see some of the fish that we've seen while snorkelling. The coolest part was the tunnel tank which had manta rays and sharks. Had a great ribs dinner next to the 'Dog and Duck' Irish pub. For those who don't know, we've played Celtic music in a pub by that name in Calgary. Had a beautiful sunset walk and took many pictures!

Headed for Ha'iku today so that we will be ready to drive the long but beautiful road to Hana tomorrow. Our 'cottage' here is up high and looks out over the ocean, so we will see the sun rise. What a beautiful spot to spend our last few days, and only slightly more expensive than our other places!

July 22nd

Drove to Lahaina on the western coast of Maui and did some shopping along the waterfront. Believe it or not, Michael bought 2 Hawaiian shirts! From there we went to the Whaler's Museum, which told what life was like for the men who went out to sea to catch whales in the mid 1800's. They were at sea for 3-5 years, and living conditions were pretty bad. Sometimes they waited months before spotting a whale, and then had to work very hard to bring it in to the ship. When oil was discovered in the ground, whale oil was no longer preferred, and the industry eventually died. We found the whole story quite interesting.

We had just enough time before our Luau to drive up to the northern tip of the island. The land is quite rugged and pretty, but beyond the tip we were warned that the road becomes scary and treacherous, so headed back to Lahaina. The luau here is known to be the most authentic and sells out weeks ahead of time. Michael booked the tickets before our trip, as we never would have been able to go otherwise. It's in a beautiful spot right on the ocean, so we were able to watch the sun go down during dinner. The meal was buffet style, and included a pig that was cooked in a pit covered with leaves and sand. We were able to watch them lift it out of the pit before dinner. Also saw demonstrations of wood carvings, jewelry, animals made from palm fronds and a humorous narrative about traditional Hawaiian life. The meal was amazing, and we were told not to eat until we were full, but rather to eat until we were tired! Upon arriving we were presented with a beautiful lei made of real flowers, and offered a drink. The bar was open, and they had a good selection of drinks. The meal was amazing, and I made myself try bits of things I wasn't sure I'd like (including poi, which I didn't care for.) After the meal there was a show mostly made up of traditional dancing, music and chants. There was also dancing from Tahiti, as these people were the first settlers in Hawaii. It was very interesting to watch, as the dancers changed frequently, and they talked about some of the history that went along with it. As for costumes, they all had head adornments, and skirts made from leaves and cloth. The women appeared to have bras made of cocoanut shells (ouch!) Sometimes they danced with shakers or some type of straw bound together which they clapped with. Young fellows wearing sarongs and no shirts waited on our table and were quite amusing. During dinner we listened to music from a band made up of a stand up bass, steel guitar and regular guitar (no ukes!) Altogether it was a very enjoyable event.

July 21st

Headed for Hilo, the rainiest part of the island, where we toured the Lyman house and museum. The museum had much of the island's history, describing life of the ancient Hawaiians, as well as that of the immigrants who came to work on the sugar plantations. There was also an excellent collection of shells, gems and crystals. The house next door was built by two missionaries who were very influential on the Big Island, and it has many of the original furnishings from about 1830, including cane chairs almost identical to 2 that I have at home that belonged to relatives of my mom!

Nest we saw the Hawaiian Tropical Botanical Gardens. These were the most beautiful that we've seen so far on the trip. Unlike others, these included flowers, and the tropical plants towered high above our heads. At times we could see the ocean crashing up against the rocks.

And finally we had our helicopter tour above the volcano. We had planned to go in a chopper without doors, but that one had broken down that morning, so instead went in a closed chopper. We both had window seats though, and the view of the crater was amazing, especially since the volcano was somewhat active. We also saw some waterfalls and the coastline, as well as a town that had been wiped out by a volcano, and was in the precess of being rebuilt.

Drove back to Kailua-Kona for one last night before leaving today for Maui. Had spectacular views of Mauna Kea at sunset, and because we were so high we were actually driving into the clouds part of the time.

July 19th

Left our B&B in Kailua-Kona and drove along the southern coast to the town of Volcano. Our host was an older fellow who has written books about the island, and was extremely helpful with information on what to do in Volcano National Park, as well as the surrounding area. You could tell that this part of the island is very special  to him, and that he wanted to make sure that we would make the most of our time here. We started with what he thought was the most important hike - down and through the Kilauea Iki Crater. There were several spots along the crater floor where steam was coming up and in some places the ground was noticeably warm to the touch, even though the last eruption at this spot was in 1959. Most of this area consisted of lava rock, but there were a few plants growing through the rock. The Crater Rim Drive close by has been partically closed because of recent volcanic activity, meaning that some trails are currently inaccessible. After dark we watched the active part of Kilauea, which was belching smoke and glowing a brilliant mix of red and orange from the lava.

Our host suggested we get up at 6:00 am to take a short hike to the steam vents and the sulphur banks. The steam vents can only be seen really well as the sun is rising. The steam comes from the rain seeping into the cracks and meeting the hot ground below. It was cool to see this steam blowing along the cliffs. Kilauea also looked quite different in the daylight, although not as spectacular. The sulphur banks had a mixture of white, green and black rock, and the sulphur smell was quite strong. Signs posted warned that the sulphur dioxide could be harmful to people with respiratory problems, and although we both have asthma, it didn't bother us. We later walked through a lava tube, where hot lava had previously run. It's now like walking through a cave. We then hiked up a cinder cone to see the Mauna Ulu crater, which again involved walking on lava rock, but there was more vegetation growning on this one.

The weather took a turn for the worse, and we were tired from hiking anyway, so drove along a scenic drive in the extreme SE corner of the island. Saw an area where the lava had gone straight into the ocean, and run along both sides of a lighthouse. Although the lighthouse was spared, a nearby town had been completely destroyed by the volcano.

Tomorrow is our last day on the Big Island. We're going to spend a bit of time in the town of Hilo, which is the largest on the island, and then weather-permiting we will take an open-doors helicopter ride over the volcanoes and the coastline - should be pretty neat!

July 17th

Hi folks! Still on the Big Island. We've got a couple of days to catch up on.

Karen's last post was just before our Mauna Kea tour. It was a spectacular adventure, lasting about eight hours. Our guide was excellent and had all kinds of information about the natural history of the island. The climb up Mauna Kea is pretty intense (from near sea level to over 13,500 feet!) so we stopped at about 9000 feet for dinner and to get partially acclimated.

We saw interesting volcanic features all the way up, but it was truly amazing to be at the top, well above the clouds. This is the largest mountain in the world. It was cold and very windy, but the views of the observatories and the setting sun were unbelievable! We watched the sun set behind the clouds in the west, and then we watched a nearly full moon rise in the east. I was really pleased that my asthma didn't act up at the top, and neither of us was headache-y, dizzy or nauseous from the altitude. We then descended partway down the mountain where the guide set up a telescope and gave us a bit of a star show. The very bright moon made it difficult to see some celestial objects, but we were able to see some cool stuff, including Saturn with two of its moons.

Yesterday we drove up to the north of the island and down the eastern coast to Hilo, the biggest town on the island. Along the way we saw spectacular deep coastal valleys, scenic drives and lots of waterfalls. Hilo is a really nice town, and we had a good seafood dinner before heading back across the island to our B&B.

This morning we headed off early to a nearby beach to do some more snorkelling. It was bright but cloudy, which meant that it wasn't nearly as hot as the last time we were at the beach. We saw lots of fish; some of the same ones we saw last time, but some new ones as well. There were some neat sea urchins at this beach, including orange pencil urchins with thick, blunt spines.

When we were tired of swimming, we walked down into Kailua-Kona where they block off part of the main drag to make a street fair. On the way I stopped to try a couple of regional specialities: kava (a mild intoxicant) and poi (fermented taro paste). Kava tastes kind of muddy and it didn't give me much of a buzz - single-malt Scotch has it beat all hollow! Poi wasn't very pleasant either, so I struck out on both my treats! Karen did better with a sugar-free shave ice. It's vaguely reminiscent of a sno-cone, but much bigger, with finer ice (shaved off a block, so it's fluffy rather than grainy) and industrial-strength syrups in exotic flavours. We spent a long time talking with a photographer who has hiked into areas of volcanic activity and taken some amazing photographs. We were trying to decide how we could bring one home, but it turns out that we can order a print online after we get home.

Tomorrow we drive over to Hilo again, and then stay overnight in Volcano which, strangely enough is right outside the Volcanos National Park. That will set us up to have a full day in the park on Tuesday.

July 15th

Aloha from the Big Island! What a different place this is from O'ahu! The airport is right on the water, and the area around it is like no man's land - barren and largely covered with lava rock. We are currently staying on the west side, where they get about 10 inches of rain per year. Contrast that with the SE side, where they can get as much as 300 inches per year! Spent the afternoon in some shops along the waterfront, and later drove to see some cool petroglyphs. No one knows what the significance of them is, but there are over 3,000 of them! Fell asleep to the sounds of about 150 frogs chirping, as well as some peeping sounds from a gecko on our wall - makes you feel as though you are in the jungle!

Yesterday we toured the Kona Coffee Living History Farm. Besides seeing the coffee trees, as well as many fruit trees (banana, papaya, orange) they had equipment used during the early 1900's to harvest coffee. There was also a Japanese hut typical of one that would have been lived in by the people who came to work on the farm. A Japanese lady demonstrated cooking and living conditions, and told interesting stories.

After lunch we walked around the Pu'uhonua o Honaunau historic park. This is a sacred area where commoners who broke rules, defeated warriors and deserters could seek refuge, provided that they could swim through the ocean currents and avoid the sharks to get there. This settlement dates back to the 15th century, so was very primitive.

Last night was our chance to snorkel with the Manta Rays. The rays feed on plankton which is attracted by the lights from the nearby hotel which shine into the ocean. After getting fitted with wet suits a boat takes you out, and while they wait for darkness a photographer tells you about the pictures he shoots, as well as talking about the characteristics of the rays. We then entered the water, held onto a metal beam and waited. We only saw one ray, and she was fairly young, but she put on a good show for us, doing lots of flips, which Michael was able to capture on video. I was actually glad that she didn't get too close, because sometimes they get close enough to actually bump into you! The one that we saw was about 6 feet across, but sometimes they can be as big as 15 feet across. Michael will post some video after we get home. Unfortunately he'll have to post other pictures then as well, since he hasn't been able to figure out how to post from his iPad here.

This morning we are getting caught up on laundry while waiting for our Mauna Kea tour this afternoon. We will be watching the sunset from an elevation of nearly 14,000 feet, as well as seeing the stars - should be pretty cool! Apparently the temperature will also be cool, as they will be loaning us parkas and mitts!

Hawaii July 12/11

Yesterday we saw the Waikiki aquarium - rather small, but it has a Nautilus, which Michael especially wanted to see. Saw the fish with the very long name that I told you about last time. Apparently it is the State fish, and because it is revered, people don't catch it or eat it. It has a blue mouth and is also yellow, white and grey. It's name means "fish that makes a noise like a pig." People joke that it's name is longer than the fish itself!

Next we drove to Diamond Head where we climbed 1.3 km (560 ft.) to see a crater that was caused by a volcanic explosion. It was a very hot climb, but the view of the mountains, ocean and Honolulu was amazing! Unfortunately I had blood sugar troubles again. Despite turning off my pump and eating lots of sugar, I watched my levels drop alarmingly fast. Afterwards they climbed almost as fast, and I didn't feel right for the rest of the day. We walked through another garden full of unusual tress (Sausage Tree and Cannonball Tree) but I mostly sat on a bench while Michael took photos. I felt somewhat better after laying on my back in our pool while staring up at the palm trees!

Today we saw the Hawaiian Plantain Village, the only one on the islands. It was a guided tour of the buildings that could be found on many sugar plantations in the early 1900's. The guide told us of how people came from different lands to work in the sugar fields. He was an elderly Japanese man with a great ability to tell the stories, and for whom this was part of his ancestry. (his mother's trunk was in one of the houses.) She was also a "picture bride," having sent her photo to a man that she never met, in hopes that he would marry her. They did indeed marry and had eight children, so our guide figures that his parents must have liked each other a least a bit! As was typical of the times, the women had to work much harder than the men, for they worked 10 hours on the plantation as well as caring for the children and doing the household tasks. When a baby was only 3 months old the mother had to tie it on her back and go to work. And not all people were paid the same, as some ethic groups got the better jobs and more money. I could have listened to this man all day, as his stories were fascinating, and you could see how much he enjoyed telling them. At the end he told us that most of his stories were true, but that some of it was probably a bit of BS!

Had hoped to see the Bishop museum but it was closed because of roadwork in the area, so instead walked around Chinatown. Saw some interesting fruits and fish (and chicken feet!) and drank some delicious lychee and cocoanut drinks to help stave off the heat. I don't remember sweating this much since the last time we were in Ontario - maybe there's a plus side to the cold dry climate in Calgary after all!

Tried boogie boarding in the ocean at the beach by our cottage - what fun! Reminds me of my days as a kid riding the waves in Lake Huron, except these ones are bigger, but then so am I!

Tomorrow morning we fly to the Big Island, so our next blog will be from there.

July 10/11

Hi folks,

Didn't write yesterday as there wasn't much to tell. We did see a really nice Buddhist temple, had a couple of scenic drives overlooking Honolulu and the ocean, but gave up on a hike to the Falls because of rain. Went to the Pali lookout which had great views of the mountains, which have trees right up to the top. Saw a small part of a botanical garden but couldn't find most of it, and a Maritime museum that Michael wanted to see was closed indefinitely. By then it was too late to see anything else, so did some shopping in a marketplace close by.

Today we drove to the north shore and back down along the eastern coast, as this area is well known for nice beaches and snorkeling. On the way we stopped at the Wahiawa botanical gardens. We are finding that gardens here have very few flowers - mostly trees and green plants. This garden has very few native trees, mostly from Asia, Panama, Australia, Africa, Jamaica, Central America, Madagascar and Japan. It has cinnamon, allspice and gum trees, as well as a rainbow tree (with a multicolored trunk) and a beautiful grove of bamboo. Down a few steps from this is an amazing jungle-like part.

At Shark's Cove we tried snorkeling for the first time - what a cool experience - I can't wait to go again!! (thanks Margaret for telling us to try it early in the trip, so that hopefully we will get lots more opportunities). Michael had a friendly encounter with a sea turtle and took lots of photos. I tried to follow a big fish, but alas he was faster and skinnier than me! We think we saw a fish with the longest Hawaiian name I've seen so far - Humuhumunukunukuapua'a! Reminds me of Alex's song "let's talk dirty in Hawaiian!" That song's even funnier now that I've been more exposed to the language. Anyway, I could feel my blood sugar going low while in the water, and felt shaky trying to climb over the rocks to get some sugar, but other than that it was great! On the way home we got to try some fresh shrimp from a roadside wagon where they farm shrimp and cook it right there - yum!

Hawaii July 8/11

Hi folks,

The holiday has officially begun as of noon today! Arrived in Maui late last night, then flew to O'ahu this morning. We will be returning to Maui for the last week, but thought we would do the more touristy island first. Flights were uneventful except that on the second one I was tested for explosives! I have to get the pat-down because of not wanting to expose my insulin pump to the metal detector and they had me touch the pump and then swabbed my hand with a device that would sense any contact with explosives that I might have had! On the wall up above the secured area were pictures of 9/11.......

On the way to our cottage in Kailua (east side) we drove through Honolulu and Waikiki, and then followed the coastline with some nice views of the ocean. My favorite was Halona Blowhole, where the waves crashed against the rocks and parts of them spouted up through a hole in the rock. Michael is going to try to post a photo of this.

We are in a quiet suburban area about a ten minute walk to the beach. The temperature is in the 80's and it is somewhat muggy, but fairly windy so the heat isn't too bad. The roads are lined with palm trees, in fact our patio has a roof made out of them! It's odd that the climate is so mild that some buildings, including part of the airport, are open to the air. I guess that bugs and bad weather are non-existent here!