Hawaiian Island Escape

 Craig and I had the opportunity to head to the big island of Hawaii at the end of January.  Every year there is an optometry continuing education conference on one of the islands.  We had never been before, but have friends that go every year.  We decided that it was finally time to try it out.  It was really the perfect way to do Hawaii.  Because we were part of the conference we got to stay at this awesome resort for way cheaper than normal.  Craig signed up to do three days of the classes.  He would have class in the morning and would be done by lunch time so we could explore in the afternoon.  I spent the morning exercising, reading by the pool and walking along the beach.  We flew out of Boise bright and early Sunday morning and made it into Kona by early afternoon.  We spent Sunday afternoon exploring the resort, stopping by the grocery store to grab a little bit of food and getting settled into our room.  That evening there was a welcome dinner for the conference right on the beach.  Because of the time change I was ready to head to bed by like 8:00, which also meant that we were up bright and early Monday morning, like 4:30 am. 

 We were able to head to the gym before Craig had to be to his 7:00 am meeting. Craig snuck me some yummy breakfast and then I hung out around the resort until Craig finished around lunch time.  That afternoon we were supposed to go snorkeling, but the surf was too high and so we had to postpone until Wednesday.  So we ended up just relaxing by the pool and reading a lot, swimming and trying out the ocean.  That evening we drove about 30 minutes to tryout a place for dinner that we found online called the Fish and the Hog.  Super yummy and definitely worth the drive.  I really enjoyed the Kalua Pork that they have all over the islands. I even got a huge slice of banana cream pie to take back to the hotel to eat later.  That evening we were back in bed again by about 8:30.

Tuesday morning we were up early again and at the gym by 5:00 am.  Craig was off to class and I was back out by the pool and beach.  After Craig finished classes and we had a quick lunch we headed out with Ashly and Hans (another doc from Craig's office) to check out an under water cave that was made from a lava flow that was filled with freshwater.  It was kind of off the beaten path and we had the place to ourselves.  After checking out the cave we stopped by a different beach that had some huge waves that we attempted to body surf, but ended up getting beat up but still had fun.  After the beach they took us to a fun spot for dinner before we headed to snorkel with the manta rays.  I was a little nervous to get into the dark creepy water with the ginormous manta rays, but it ended up being really cool.  The plankton are attracted by lights and the manta rays eat the plankton, so when the manta rays see that the lights are on in this particular bay they know that there will be food.  Once we had our gear on and they got us in the water we had about 10 manta rays circling right underneath us and they would get within inches of us.  It was a little freaky at first because they are so big, like 14-16 feet wide, but after a few minutes I realized they weren't going to eat me and it became enjoyable.  After about 20 minutes in the water Craig was shivering and I was starting to get cold too, so we headed back to the boat.  The ride back was a little chilly, but totally worth it.  I am glad that we did it, but it is something that I don't really need to do again.  By the time we got back to the hotel is was about 11:00 pm and I was starving because we had eaten at like 5:00 so I grabbed my banana cream pie out of fridge and took a few bites before climbing in the shower and getting ready for bed.  A couple hours later I woke up super nauseous and ended up in the bathroom for a while.  The only thing we could attribute it to was the pie.  The fridge must not have kept the cream cold enough.  It ended up being a long night and I was pretty exhausted the next morning, so I slept in and took the morning slow (aka skipped the gym).

After a quiet morning we were off to our snorkeling that had been rescheduled from Monday.  We took a catamaran to a quiet bay to snorkel.  We ended up having the whole bay to ourselves and had about 45 minutes to swim around.  It was so beautiful, the fish and the coral, it was all amazing.  The boat ride was beautiful too, right along the coast.  It was a really fun afternoon and luckily I was feeling better by that point.  We grabbed a quick dinner afterwards and then headed back to the hotel.

 

Thursday morning we were up early again, but this time for our helicopter tour.  Luckily we only had to drive about 5 minutes to get to the tours.  We were supposed to do a 3 hour tour around the island and stop at a waterfall, but because of some storms on another part of the island we had to shorten the helicopter ride and mainly focus on the volcano.  It might not have been what we were expecting, but it was still totally worth it.  It was amazing seeing the volcano that was active and even seeing some lava shoot up.  We also saw snow which is crazy to me.  It was very interesting seeing all the different flows and how they can tell which eruption they are from.  Craig and I got to sit up front with the pilot and got great views the whole time.  We got back to the hotel earlier than expected and I was able to get a run in and then we just hung by the pool and watched whales, read books and took a couple power naps (that was just me of course).  That evening we headed out to dinner with the two other docs from the office and their wives to a super fun restaurant right on the beach.  We timed it perfectly and even got to see the sunset. After playing a little cornhole we headed back to the hotel because we were going to be up early the next morning to fly to Honolulu.

Friday morning we were up bright and early and back to the Kona airport.  We were on our way to Honolulu.  We arrived in Honolulu and caught an Uber to our hotel and quickly dropped our bags off before we caught a tour bus that would take us to the Polynesian Cultural Center on the other side of the island.  The bus ride was about an hour, but as we drove further away from the city and high rises and homeless people, we gradually made our way to the beautiful green and lush side of the island.  I may have fallen asleep for part of the ride, but I was awake to see the ginormous seal on a beach just off the side of the road.  Once we got to the center we grabbed a quick lunch from a food truck and then headed in.  We had paid to be a part of a small tour group, I am so glad we did.  They timed everything perfectly so that we could see as much as possible while we were there. The tour guide, who was a student at BYU-H and earning his education through the Cultural Center, was so knowledgeable and really made the experience so much more enjoyable.  We visited all of the "islands" and learned about each and saw demonstrations that really allowed us to be immersed in their cultural. Craig even won a stick game at the New Zealand area. I now want to visit all of the places, especially New Zealand since part of my Dad's family are from their.  After 5 hours of touring it was now time for the Luau.  As they sat us down they gave us a pineapple filled with a delicious pina colada, I may have drank mine and most of Craig's.  As we were waiting for the luau to start I got one of my crazy waves of nausea and sadly I did not have my medicine with me, but it was bad enough that none of the amazing food looked remotely appetizing. Craig loaded his plate up and said that it was really good.  The entertainment was great as well, they told a story through song and dance, it really was quite beautiful.  After the luau we then went and bought a few gifts for the kids before heading into the Fire show.  By this point I was starting to feel a little bit better so I was able to really enjoy the show.  Each of the 5 Polynesian cultures had dances that told a story and it finished with an amazing fire twirling, throwing, etc. show.  It really was quite amazing, I wish they would have let us take pictures of it.  I can't even imagine how much effort goes in to producing a show like that.  When that was over we then caught our bus back to Honolulu and then back to the hotel and crashed for the night.

Saturday morning we got up and got a quick workout in before grabbing some breakfast at the hotel.  We then walked along the beach for a little bit before catching an Uber to Pearl Harbor.  We both love history and couldn't pass up the opportunity to visited Pearl Harbor.  We caught the ferry over to the USS Arizona after watching a film that explained all the history behind it.  Being there over top of the The USS Arizona, where so many men are still buried was really quite an emotional and sacred moment.  It really brought to live all the sacrifices that were and still are made to keep our country free.  One of the things that I thought was quite cool was that men from the Arizona that survived the attack on Pearl Harbor could choose to be cremated and then have their remains taken down and buried in the Arizona.  What a testament to their love of their brothers in arms.  After the Arizona we then walked through a bunch of museums that they had with more information on the attack on Pearl Harbor and WWII in general.  It was all a really cool experience and right up mine and Craig's alley.  When we were done there we caught an Uber and had them drop us off at one of their favorite restaurant right on the water and then took another Uber back to our hotel.  We then waled around for a while and check out some expensive stores along the beach before heading back to our hotel for a rest, well I took a nap and Craig read.  We then walked to a quick dinner and walked along the beach some more and caught one last sunset before heading back to our hotel to pack up one last time.

Sunday we were back at the airport and making our way back to Boise.  We did not luck out this time with an empty seat beside us, but the flights were still really easy.  We were excited to get back home and get back to the kids.  The kids had been great the whole time but they were definitely ready to be back home and in their own beds too.  This was the longest we had ever been away from the kids, 7 nights, but luckily we have a great support system whenever we leave out of town.  Craig's parents watched the kids 2 nights, then they came home and we had our babysitter stay with them for 2 nights so they could sleep in their own beds, and then they stayed at Mark (Craig's brother) and Paige's for 3 nights.  The kids had fun with their cousin and grandparents and we are so grateful for everyone that helped make this trip possible.  I told Craig he might regret taking me on this trip, because now I'm going to want to go somewhere warm every January now.  The kids were a little sad to miss out on the trip, but we have already talked about taking them with us in a few years when the conference is on the island of Maui.  It was a wonderful trip, we were able to relax, explore and just enjoy one another's company.  I look forward to many more trips like this in our future.