About once a year, I hijack my corgis' blog to post a few photos from my vacation. This year, with a milestone birthday to celebrate, I decided to join a tour to Hawaii. For someone who is used to tent camping and shared bathrooms, this was truly a luxury vacation. We spent three days on Oahu, two on Kauai, and four on Maui. Each island has it's own charm, and it would be hard to pick a favorite. We began our trip at the Hyatt Regency Waikiki where we saw the Honolulu Festival Parade, toured Pearl Harbor and the USS Arizona Memorial, enjoyed lunch at the Aloha Tower and had a guided tour of the city, including Iolani Palace and Hanauma Bay. The next day I walked to Diamond Head (volcanic tuff cone), spent several hours at the Polynesian Cultural Center and walked around the upscale shopping district of Waikiki (my credit card safely back in my hotel room!)
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| Waikiki |
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| The Aloha Tower |
Highlights of Kauai (aka The Garden Island) included a kona coffee plantation and Waimea Canyon, formed by the collapse of a volcano. I chose to use our free day here to do nothing but explore the beach, swim in the pool and sip Mai Tais on the balcony.
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| Relaxing at our ocean beach resort on Kauai |
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| Waimea Canyon |
The last four days were spent on Maui, and I could easily have spent two weeks there. Maui has everything. We had a wonderful lunch (I ordered fish whenever possible!) at the Maui Ocean Center, which is well worth the time to see. That evening, a group of us walked from the hotel to Whaler's Village. The surf was high throughout our trip (remnants of Cyclone Winston that hit Fiji a few weeks earlier), and that evening, in particular, the waves were
huge. With the sun going down on the horizon and live music wafting from the bars on Kaanapali Beach, the night was magical and proved to be the highlight of the entire trip for me. The next day I joined a small group for the infamous "Road to Hana", a 52 mile stretch of narrow highway that boasts 617 hair pin turns, blind curves and 56 one-land bridges! My Scopolamine patch served me well, and I survived the trip
to Hana without difficulty. The trip
back to Lahaina turned out to be much more treacherous, as you hug the edge of a steep cliff; a glance out the window revealing
only the ocean far below. Guardrails are few, and much of the road is
gravel, making it truly a white-knuckle experience. The reward for it all? Bamboo forests, spectacular cliffs, breathtaking waterfalls and panoramic overviews of Maui's coastline and black sand beach. The backside of the mountain takes you through
the volcanic summit of Haleakala National Park. If I am ever so fortunate as to go back to Maui, I will be sure to take in a sunrise from the top of this peak.
With a large northwest swell eroding the ocean beaches, I did not venture in much past my knees, limiting my ocean experience to a day of snorkeling with Trilogy Tours. I was fortunate enough to see starfish, turtles and sea urchin, as well as a beautiful coral reef. After a lunch of barbeque chicken on the catamaran we sailed off in search of humpback whales and were not disappointed. That night, I attended Drums of the Pacific Luau at our hotel. A spread of ethnic food and an evening of Hawaiian entertainment made it a wonderful cultural experience. Our final day in Maui took us to a tropical plantation, through the lush Iao Valley and to the exquisite Iao Needle, which rises 1200 feet from the valley floor. Our guide, Joan, was warm, professional and devoted to making the trip a memorable experience for all of us. I look forward to traveling with
www.holidayvacations.net again.
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| The Road to Hana |
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| Black Sand Beach along the Road to Hana |
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| One of the many waterfalls along the Road to Hana |
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| Humpback whales |
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| Drums of the Pacific Hawaiian Luau |
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| Hyatt Regency Hotel - Lahaina, Maui |
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| Banyan Tree - Lahaina |
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| Coconut peeling demonstration |
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| Iao Needle |
You see
some dogs in Hawaii, but not a lot. Property is
expensive and people live in small multi-generational homes or
efficiency apartments. Beaches are busy and activities not conducive
to traveling with pets. Scarlett and Zak stayed at Yuppy Puppy Dog
Hotel again this year and reportedly had a great time. I missed them
terribly and was happy to be reunited with them. We had a quiet Easter weekend going to the park and hanging out together.
The days are noticeably shorter now, so we try to get out for a good walk as soon as I get home from work each day. Last night we were down at Gooseberry Park where a local church was having their Fall kickoff with a worship band, games and food. The food is what drew us in! Pulled pork, burgers, brats .... yum! Scarlett and Zak made off like bandits - not only in the bits of pork dropped on the ground or the 1/2 of a brat that someone tossed their way - but in all the attention they received. They never lack for it, but enjoy it especially from children. Zak thought he'd died and gone to heaven as clearly shows in these photos. He is a charmer. And Miss Scarlett - who turned 4 years old a few days ago - no longer lets him have all the attention. After a few minutes of watching him drink it all in, she makes her move. She is such a sweet and funny girl and has some gestures and sounds that are unique just to her. It's been a hard summer for me. A few friends have rallied around me and seen me through. But I cannot understate the role that these two fur-babies have played in my survival. I don't know what I would do without them. 
The days are noticeably shorter now, so we try to get out for a good walk as soon as I get home from work each day. Last night we were down at Gooseberry Park where a local church was having their Fall kickoff with a worship band, games and food. The food is what drew us in! Pulled pork, burgers, brats .... yum! Scarlett and Zak made off like bandits - not only in the bits of pork dropped on the ground or the 1/2 of a brat that someone tossed their way - but in all the attention they received. They never lack for it, but enjoy it especially from children. Zak thought he'd died and gone to heaven as clearly shows in these photos. He is a charmer. And Miss Scarlett - who turned 4 years old a few days ago - no longer lets him have all the attention. After a few minutes of watching him drink it all in, she makes her move. She is such a sweet and funny girl and has some gestures and sounds that are unique just to her. It's been a hard summer for me. A few friends have rallied around me and seen me through. But I cannot understate the role that these two fur-babies have played in my survival. I don't know what I would do without them. 
