Living aloha in Hawai'i

Melanie and I just got back from celebrating our 4th anniversary in Hawai'i - tanned, relaxed and ready to greet the regular world with a smile once again. The trip was everything you would expect from a tropical paradise. A few days on O'ahu and a week on Kaua'i gave us a much needed break from the rat-race of school, work and other responsibilities. My work mates have noted that I've maintained the beach bum look, which I am secretly pleased about.There are many stories to tell, which I will detail in further writings of our adventure. For now, allow me to give some highlights of the experience.

O'ahu

On O'ahu, we stayed at the Papaya Paradise B&B in Kailua Bay (about 30 minutes drive on Hwy 68 from Honolulu/Waikiki). We find that it is really nice to have local hosts when traveling, as they have great insights to the world we will be exploring and can give us good tips.

Our first day was spent around Waikiki and the Eastern shore. I don't even want to talk about Waikiki because it is everything that i wanted to get away from on vacation. I will say this, we had a fabulous lunch at Ono Hawai'an Foods followed by a great hike up Diamond Head Crater. We also drove up to the Coco Head Crater Botanical Gardens for a stroll through the heady fragrances of their Plumeria grove and a visit to the exotic Baobab trees. That evening we met up with our friend Lynette and her family for a performance from the Society of Seven, a variety act in which her son-in-law is a key player.

The next day, we got a big breakfast at Boots & Kimo's and spent a liesurely day driving the loop up to the North shore, down to Honolulu, and back to Kailua. We started up the coast, stopping in at the Byodo-in Temple, taking a swim at one of the many state park beaches, tasting the famous Matsumoto's Shave Ice and visiting Trippler Army Medical Center. We finished the day by visiting the King Kamehameha statue in downtown Honolulu and browsing the Ward Center.

We made a point of stopping in at the Pali lookout on our final day, right before heading to the airport to take in an amazing view and learn of the horrific battle that took place there. With that, we said our final alohas to O'ahu and set out for another week in Kaua'i.

Kaua'i

The flight from O'ahu to Kaua'i was about 30 minutes. Enough time to suck down a half cup of passion-guava juice and get the empty container back to the attendant. I had arranged for Melanie and myself to be greeted with a lei, which was great fun considering that the 4th anniversary gift is fruit and flowers.

After picking up our rental Jeep, we made our from Lihu'e to our own cottage on the Wailua river. We were feeling lucky to be right near the river's edge, a block from the beach and a short hike to Secret Falls and ancient Hawai'ian archaeological sites. We picked up some supplies from the grocery store, then back home to enjoy a home-cooked meal and make our own pina coladas.

It is difficult to sum up this leg of the trip, as there are many many details, and frankly, its all sort of a blur anyway. Beyond the snorkeling, tattoos, buying a Ukelele, biking down the Waimea Canyon, hiking into the Waimea Canyon, visiting the Kai Guava Plantation and the Kiluea Lighthouse & Natural Wildlife Preserve, there was one lovely night that I can remember distinctly. On our anniversary night, June 21st, Melanie and I made reservations at the Blossoming Lotus restaurant in Kapa'a and had a wonderful meal as the sun faded and we dined by twilight.

Other notes

One thing I have to warn the other tourists about is that road signs in Hawai'i, on all the islands I've visited, are generally confusing or conflicting. Stop and ask a local to give you meaningful directions. Many times we'd see a sign for the destination we were going to, but then we'd miss the final turn-off since there wasn't a sign. After turning around to back-track, we'd see that the follow-up sign was always there, only facing the opposite direction. In any case, hang loose, you're on vacation!