Island Hopper - Hawaii – 08/2015
We took a trip in August, 2015 doing the island hopping in Hawaii. We’ve been to Maui and Oahu before, but have always wanted to see the Big Island with its fiery volcanoes, and the peace and quiet of the Garden Isle of Kauai.
Maui Island:
We started in Maui Island first. We rented a car and did what tourists must do; drove the Hana Highway. We experienced its hundreds of sharp twists and turns, its spectacular overlooks, its majestic waterfalls, its lust forest, the mystical black sand beach, and of course the roadside stands that sell wonderful homemade Apple Banana bread. It took us a day to stop, see and sample everything along the way.
At night, we tried the Luau near Kaanapali beach. The sunset view of the pacific, the gentle breeze caressed your face, a Mai Tai in your hand…what a wonderful, romantic, and lay-back evening for us.
The next morning, we went snorkeling in Kaanapali beach looking for turtles. We were not disappointed.
Maui Island:
We started in Maui Island first. We rented a car and did what tourists must do; drove the Hana Highway. We experienced its hundreds of sharp twists and turns, its spectacular overlooks, its majestic waterfalls, its lust forest, the mystical black sand beach, and of course the roadside stands that sell wonderful homemade Apple Banana bread. It took us a day to stop, see and sample everything along the way.
At night, we tried the Luau near Kaanapali beach. The sunset view of the pacific, the gentle breeze caressed your face, a Mai Tai in your hand…what a wonderful, romantic, and lay-back evening for us.
The next morning, we went snorkeling in Kaanapali beach looking for turtles. We were not disappointed.
Big Island:
We then flew to the big island and stayed at a bed and breakfast. The elderly couple who own the place was a great host. They took care of us as their own family. In the morning, we drove up to mount Kilauea to see the volcano steaming up. We also hiked on a trail near the volcano look out. In the afternoon, we flew on a helicopter over the area and saw the active volcano oozing out its grayish lava and burning trees along the edge of the tree forest. In some area, we actually saw the red glow of the hot lava. It was an awesome experience. After the helicopter excursion we came back to the area at night to see the night view of the volcano. With darkness, you can actually see the bight red ball of fire from the mouth of the volcano.
We then flew to the big island and stayed at a bed and breakfast. The elderly couple who own the place was a great host. They took care of us as their own family. In the morning, we drove up to mount Kilauea to see the volcano steaming up. We also hiked on a trail near the volcano look out. In the afternoon, we flew on a helicopter over the area and saw the active volcano oozing out its grayish lava and burning trees along the edge of the tree forest. In some area, we actually saw the red glow of the hot lava. It was an awesome experience. After the helicopter excursion we came back to the area at night to see the night view of the volcano. With darkness, you can actually see the bight red ball of fire from the mouth of the volcano.
Kauai Island:
After two nights in the Big Island, we got the early morning flight out of the Big Island and got to Kauai in the morning. We had plenty of time for sightseeing before checking in the resort.
Kauai is a small, quiet island. It is the only island in Hawaii that is free from volcanic activities. We rented a car for two days wandering all over the island. We saw the Grand Canyon of the Pacific as Mark Twain described it at Waimea Canyon State park, on the west side of the island. We drove along the Kuhio coastal highway on the eastern side of the island to see the light house in the Kilauea Bay up at the northern part of the island and saw the Spouting Horn in Koloa city, in the southern part of the island. There was quite a lot of interesting relics from the Chinese, Japanese who immigrated to this island long ago as laborers for sugar cane plantations.
After two nights in the Big Island, we got the early morning flight out of the Big Island and got to Kauai in the morning. We had plenty of time for sightseeing before checking in the resort.
Kauai is a small, quiet island. It is the only island in Hawaii that is free from volcanic activities. We rented a car for two days wandering all over the island. We saw the Grand Canyon of the Pacific as Mark Twain described it at Waimea Canyon State park, on the west side of the island. We drove along the Kuhio coastal highway on the eastern side of the island to see the light house in the Kilauea Bay up at the northern part of the island and saw the Spouting Horn in Koloa city, in the southern part of the island. There was quite a lot of interesting relics from the Chinese, Japanese who immigrated to this island long ago as laborers for sugar cane plantations.
Oahu Island:
We ended our trip with four nights in Honolulu. We hiked the Diamond Head volcano in the morning on the first day then chilled out in Waikiki beach in the afternoon. We rode the outrigger in Waikiki beach and it was quite a lot of fun. The outrigger can really go once it caught the tide at the right moment. There were quite a lot of oriental tourists in Honolulu with buying power. As a matter of fact, they name a stretch of Kalakaua Street along the Waikiki beach with expensive shops as “Luxury Row”. The shops were packed with people and many open till 11PM at night. I felt like I were in Las Vegas' strip without the ringing sound of casinos' slot machines, but the cash register's noise...heheh.
The next day, we visited the Pearl Harbor Memorial. We were there early at around 7:30AM to compete for the free entrance ticket. There was already a long line forming when we got there. It's a popular place to visit in Honolulu and they only pass out a limited number of tickets per day. Later on, we swung by the china town for a quick visit.
We ended our trip with four nights in Honolulu. We hiked the Diamond Head volcano in the morning on the first day then chilled out in Waikiki beach in the afternoon. We rode the outrigger in Waikiki beach and it was quite a lot of fun. The outrigger can really go once it caught the tide at the right moment. There were quite a lot of oriental tourists in Honolulu with buying power. As a matter of fact, they name a stretch of Kalakaua Street along the Waikiki beach with expensive shops as “Luxury Row”. The shops were packed with people and many open till 11PM at night. I felt like I were in Las Vegas' strip without the ringing sound of casinos' slot machines, but the cash register's noise...heheh.
The next day, we visited the Pearl Harbor Memorial. We were there early at around 7:30AM to compete for the free entrance ticket. There was already a long line forming when we got there. It's a popular place to visit in Honolulu and they only pass out a limited number of tickets per day. Later on, we swung by the china town for a quick visit.
We spent a portion of the last day in Honolulu visiting our friends. They gave us a royal Hawaiian welcome...:), showed us around the area of Hanauma Bay, world famous spot for snorkeling and we had a delicious home-cooked meal at their house. I had never have such a wonderful golden mango called Pirie mango ever before.
What a paradise!
What a paradise!