Long time no write! I haven't written on this blog for a little while, but I have since been on another great trip. I was able to visit my friend in Hawaii and explore all around the Big Island.
I flew into Kailua-Kona on Friday and had a nice, but long, travel day. I was absolutely flabbergasted when I showed up and the whole airport was outside! We got off the plane using a ramp and then walked into the waiting area that had coverings but was otherwise entirely open! It was the first time I had seen anything like it (that's going to be a theme in this post).
My friend greeted me with three beautifully handmade lei that smelled wonderful. I stayed at my friend's house, which was very nice and had a pool. The next morning, I woke up very early because of the jet lag, so I decided to start the day with a walk around the neighborhood. The morning was sooo nice. It wasn't too hot, the sun was shining, and it was fascinating to see all of the different plants and trees. It was my first time in a tropical climate, and if you know me, you know I love trees, so I loved seeing all the pretty, new vegetation. There were wild neighborhood chickens about that would cluck away, hidden in the trees. I would come to learn during my stay at my friend's house that in her neighbor's yard is a rooster who can't tell what time of day it is. He would cock a doodle do all day long!
After some breakfast and some amazing Kona coffee, I started my sightseeing in downtown Kona. There was a farmers market and I bought a handmade bracelet made from lauhala. To get different shades from the leaf, it is first boiled, then the lighter lauhala is achieved by soaking the leaves in the ocean. The darker lauhala is achieved by burying the leaves in the earth.
After an AC brake in the car because it was very hot, I headed to Hulihe'e Palace. The palace included many historical artifacts and went into depth about the history and story of the Hawaiian royal family following King Kamehameha I. I hadn't learned much about Hawaiian culture or history up until this point, so I was eager to learn all I could while on the island.
I then headed to find Kamakahonu National Historic Landmark. Google Maps was not my friend here but I realize it wasn't entirely Google Maps fault. It led me around this hotel building, through their parking lot, what felt like breaking and entering the back staff area to finally come upon my destination. The recreation of King Kamehamea's personal place of worship was on the grounds of a hotel resort, so it was surrounded by people swimming, a barbecue space, and the hotel building. It felt a little wrong to know that it was once a historic and meaningful sight that has now been changed. It turns out I actually saw it from the other side of the water before my long trek, but didn't recognize it from the photos because of how out of place its surroundings were.
Now, it may not seem like I did a lot on day 1, but there was a lot of walking outside, so I was hot and tired very quickly. I returned to my friend's place and cooled down by sticking my legs and arms in the pool. We made a nice dinner, chatted, and then went to bed early. The sounds of frogs stirred throughout the evening. I thought it was birds at first but it turns out it is a certain type of invasive frog and has a very high-pitched croak.
On Sunday, I was off to see more historic sights. I visited Pu'uhonua O Honaunau National Historical Park and Kaloko-Honokohau National Historical Park. I had a beautiful drive to Pu'uhonua, full of lush vegetation and small towns. On the way, I noticed some signs pointing to a farmers' market, so I of course went to check it out. This one was even bigger and better than the one the day before, full of homemade crafts and delicious-looking food. I bought a beautiful hand-painted magnet as another souvenir for myself before heading the rest of the way to the park.
Pu'uhonua O Honaunau National Historical Park was a beautiful park and had many areas with different historical replicas. Pu'uhonua was a place of refuge for anyone who entered. No harm could come to those who had reached the boundaries of the place. It was not only a very informative park, but also very peaceful. There was one stretch that was lined with palm trees by the coast and it felt like I had jumped right into a movie!
The next park I went to was Kaloko-Honokohau National Historical Park. This place had rock walls crafted to create fishing ponds. I learned a lot more about the daily life, traditional practices, and the structure of Hawaiian society. Each park offers so much great information, even if it is a smaller national park.
I then returned to the house early to call my dad for Father's Day and go to bed early, since the next morning I would be waking up early to go to work with my friend.
On Monday, I woke up before the sun rose and was able to watch the sun rise following the coast on the drive to work. It was so fascinating that driving north versus south resulted in very different scenery. When I drove south to the national park, the vegetation became very thick and lush, but when I headed north, the scenery turned into rolling hills, plains, and volcanic rocks. Both were beautiful, but it was especially beautiful driving north and following the sea and sun. While my friend was at work, you may have guessed it, but I visited more national parks ๐.
The first one I went to may have been my favorite of them all, Puako Petroglyph Park. Since I started my day very early, I entered the park when it first opened at 6:30am, which was perfect. It wasn't too hot yet, and they recommend going early in the morning while the sun is still low. This park featured ancient petroglyphs carved into the rocks, and if you know me, you know I love rocks. The park and the walk to the carvings were so peaceful in the early morning, and I was the only one there.
I enjoyed a peaceful morning there and once it started to get a little hot, I headed back to the car for an AC break. My next stop was a black sand beach. I had always wanted to visit a black sand beach before and it was fascinating to see the sand particles that make up the beach up close. The black sand particles are made up of eroded volcanic rock and the white sand particles are tiny shell particles. The beach actually ended up looking more dark grey than black, but it was still very cool (not literally though the sand was smoldering!).
The next stop before meeting back up with my friend was the Pu'ukohola Heiau National Historic Site. At this national park, I learned a lot more about how King Kamehameha came to lead the island of Hawaii and the fierce battles he fought against his cousin, who sought the same thing. A priest prophesied that if we were to build this temple honoring the war god and sacrifice a human, he would win over his cousin. The cousin knew that it was his fate to sacrifice himself and to be killed at the temple, leading to Kamehameha becoming the leader of Hawaii.
After meeting up with my friend, we went to see some dolphins and then had a poke bowl lunch.
Now the day was not over yet. Her work was hosting a sunset dinner cruise and I got to be her plus one! I was so grateful to be able to attend for free and enjoy such a classic tropical island experience. Luckily, it was a bit cloudy, so I wasn't smoldering and it provided a very beautiful sunset. I was able to enjoy snorkeling for the first time by the boat, eat delicious food, and enjoy a most spectacular sunset.
But the day was alas not over yet! After the sun had set and it was nice and dark, I went to swim with the manta rays! In Kona, there is a very unique experience where you can snorkel with manta rays. You don't swim around, but instead float while holding onto a platform and the manta rays come to you. They enjoy the squeals and sounds humans make and will come up outside your peripheral and swim right in front of you to startle you. It was so fun and cool! I, of course, don't have any photos of the experience, but it was definitely a highlight of the trip.
The next morning started with a delicious ube malasada and coffee. We then stopped by the beach for a little while, enjoying the morning sun. I saw a turtle and some small crabs!
Next, we visited a garden that was selling plumeria, used to make lei. It turns out you can make lei out of many different flowers and they grew a number of them in the garden.
After a hearty breakfast of loco moco, we visited another garden, but it was so different from any other I've been to! This outdoor garden/park featured primarily succulents, cacti, and other tropical plants. Nearly everything I saw was something completely new to me, so it was extremely fascinating! For example, this crazy cactus tree had the root of a tree, but instead of leaves, cactus stems grew out of it. Cray cray ๐ฑ
We grabbed some bingsu after getting a pedicure together, then headed home to rest before dinner. My friend's husband arrived from the airport, and then we all went out for my birthday dinner. We went to an incredible seafood restaurant, and I had the best Ahi katsu meal. I also got a slice of birthday cheesecake that I split with the table. In addition to the cheesecake, we also had an entire ice cream cake to eat when we got home. So to walk off a little of the cheesecake, we went to watch the sunset on the beach. After watching a beautiful sunset, we went home to enjoy the ice cream cake. It was overall a great day.
The following day started with a splendid morning at the beach. We went early, so there weren't many people there and we swam and lounged and swam some more and lounged some more, just like paradise. The sand was the softest I'd ever felt and it was such a good time.
After the beach, I partook in some agritourism with a tour of a salt farm. This farm pipes in deep-sea water and then dries it to get sea salt. Since the water comes from deep under the surface, it contains a lot of great minerals. I learned about the process of drying the seawater and even got to taste some ๐ One fun fact I learned was that the temperature the salt water is dried in will determine how it crystallizes. Sea water dried at high temperatures will result in flaky salt, whereas sea water dried at a lower temperature will result in coarse salt. After tasting the salty salt, I bought some as a great souvenir for my family.
After lunch, I went and died in my friend's hot pilates class that she was teaching. It was the first class she had ever taught, so she wanted me to go and support. However, it was hot pilates, so it was extremely difficult and my body was sore for days haha. It's okay though, I had some nice ramen after to refuel my energy.
The next day, Friday, started the same as the previous, at the beach! After a few lovely hours at the beach, I made my next agritourism stop at a local coffee farm. Originally, I wanted to visit a historic replica of a coffee farm from the 1920s, but it was closed for the week for a summer youth camp (darn youth). Instead, I visited a coffee farm that grows coffee and roasts it on the property as well. I took a free guided tour and he was able to introduce all of the different fruit trees on the property, the coffee trees, and the entire coffee-making process from cherry to roasted bean. I learned that harvesting and producing coffee is actually a very low-yielding process. He also went into the damage the property got when a bad storm came through earlier that year.
For my lunch, I had the biggest plate of poke nachos I had ever seen. I only went for an appetizer to tide me over but the plate came out looking like a volcano! It was nonetheless extremely delicious in the end. I spent the afternoon and evening with my friend and we went to some food trucks for dinner. I was very jealous of the selection and thought we need some of these food trucks where I am too ๐
My last day in Hawaii was a full and fun one. I went on a day trip to Hilo with my friend, which is on the other side of the island. It was a two-hour drive, but it went by quickly because the views were spectacular.
We started the Hilo day trip by visiting the Japanese garden in town, which had very beautiful trees and a peaceful atmosphere by the water. ใกใใฃใจใชใคใใใใฃใใงใ。
Next, we went to the farmers' market happening in town. I purchased some fresh fruit and some more souvenirs. I even bought a fresh coconut to try the coconut water, but it turns out I do not like fresh coconut water all that much haha. One fruit I was surprised to see an abundance of was strawberry papaya. I, of course, did buy some and tried it and it was yummy.
After some refreshing fruit, we went to our first waterfall of the day, Rainbow Falls. It was a very pretty waterfall with very easy access from the road. AND EVEN MORE SPECTACULAR TREES. In case you haven't heard me mention it enough times, this island has awesome trees. They are so big but are made up of so many smaller roots and trunks. For lunch, we enjoyed some very fresh and yummy sushi.
Our next stop was the highlight of the day, the Panaewa Rainforest Zoo and Gardens. At this zoo was my favorite animal, the white tiger! I had never seen a white tiger in person before, so I was absolutely starstruck and didn't want to see any other animals (I did do a lap of course before returning to the tigers). The white tiger's name is Tzaziki, and the tiger he came with is named Siracha, very fun names aren't they? Since it was a little rainy and cool, the tigers were out and about doing stuff and we even caught the staff giving them a snack, which they did so by chucking it over the wall and down into the pen ๐.
Our last stop before heading to dinner was another waterfall. We visited Akaka Falls, where I was once again amazed by the lush vegetation. Not only that, the waterfall was so tall! I couldn't even see the bottom of it when I first approached! It was the tallest waterfall I'd ever seen. There was another smaller waterfall hidden in the shrubbery a little walk away that we also saw. This one was very fast and powerful.
After a splendid day of touristing around, we went to have dinner at a nice Italian spot on the way back to Kona. This Italian restaurant had a room full of unique and one-of-a-kind antiques all on display as decor and for sale. Walking around looking at all of the knick-knacks and art was a fun way to pass the time while waiting for our meal.
Sadly, at last my trip had to come to an end. I had a nighttime flight out of Kona and said goodbye to my friend to depart home. My trip to Hawaii was so much fun! I learned so many new things and also experienced all the new scenery. It reminded me once again of why I love traveling so much and exploring all of the wonderful places in the world. I hope you enjoyed reading about my trip to Hawaii and stay tuned for my next trip to South Africa ๐!
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