Hawaii Trip April 2009 Weds, Apr. 1 April fool’s day! I kind of got fooled this day. Set out to go south from Kailua (We’re actually staying in Kailua, not Kona. There is a Kona, but Kona is a designation of the area, as well as a town. The island was divided by the natives into mokus, or districts. Kona was one of those districts. The larger town into which everyone flies and in which most visitors reside is actually Kailua. Anyway, got a bit of a late start, heading south on the Hawaii Island beltway, HI hwy 11. Passed through [View Full Entry]

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Day 10-The saying goes, all good things come to an end, and that's where we found ourselves reflecting of the wonderful days we've spent as a family on the island of Oahu. Kids grow up fast, so one needs to take advantage of times like these we have together. We chose to stick around Pat's at Punaluu on Day 10 (a separate review of Pat's at Punaluu Condo's is on Travel Advisor) and be one with the sand and surf, that is, beach bums. We swam after elusive sea turtles that poked their wary heads above the surf not 10 feet [View Full Entry]

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Jenny and I slept in which was really nice and got all our stuff together before checking out. We stored our bags at the hostel and then took a bus over to the Ala Moana Center. Did some souvenir shopping and I found a sarong I wanted, a necklace, a surfboard keychain and a hawaiian dress (it’s blue and brown..love it!!!) Had a traditional Hawaiian plate lunch for lunch. BBQ chicken, 2 scoops of rice, and a scoop of macaroni salad. Was really good and very filling. Didn’t finish it actually. Then we caught the bus over to the Hilton Hawaiian [View Full Entry]

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It was "Ground hogs Day" as in the Bill Murray movie, a return to Waimea Bay. Again, Ted's Bakery (make those chocolate eclairs illegal!) and we finally got a parking spot within the parking lot, at 7:45am. The kids wanted to return to this beach as the rock jumping was just too tempting for brave souls. Peer pressure got to me and I had to jump as well. I had to plug my nose as I hate salt water going the wrong direction in my sinus cavities. The rock was busy today so I only did two jumps, but the kids [View Full Entry]

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We were up early to go to Hanauma bay to go snorkeling. We got free snorkel gear from the hostel and then caught the bus up to the bay. We had to wait in a bit of a line and then watch a safety video so you dont wreck any of the reef or disturb any of the marine life. We found a shady spot to sit and threw on some sunscreen and then walked down to the beach. It took us a while to get all our gear on and get it on right haha. The waves were really strong. [View Full Entry]

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Today started with another beautiful sunrise on the windward side of the island, bringing with it the light of day and transluscent blue waters that dance around the island we call Oahu. We made another attempt at Waimea Bay as parking here is an issue. We stopped for a 2nd time at Ted's Bakery for a post-breakfast fat pill and I made comment to the lady behind the counter that the Barvarian Creme Eclair should be made illegal as they are most definately addicting! Arriving at Waimea Bay parking area at 8:45am, we were still too late for a prime parking [View Full Entry]

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Finally dragged my butt out of bed around 8:30 am after that crazy night. I got dressed and then caught a bus over to diamond head. It’s a bit of a walk from the bus stop to the start of the actual hike. I paid my $1 entry fee into the park and then ate my breakfast. It was SO HOT on the hike. I was just drenched in sweat. It’s not a very hard hike, takes about 1.5 hours round trip. There are switchbacks all the way up the crater. You have to climb a ton of stairs and then [View Full Entry]

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This was the first day I actually slept past 6am (Which is 9am my time). The day started with breakfast at Keona's just 3 blocks from the Outrigger for under $30.00 for all 4 of us with one coupon. The kids finally had an opportunity to swim in the Outrigger pool (the pool was reserved the night before for a private party) and I took the opportunity to take some photos around Waikiki. After checking out at 9:45am, we headed up Hwy 72 to take in some sites such as the blow hole, Sandy Beach, Makapu'u beach and finally settled on [View Full Entry]

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Getting super excited! Leaving on Sunday night for Guatemala if all goes well, meaning there is space available for us on the planes! I think I am more nervous flying stand-by this time than I was went we went to Brazil last year, not sure why since Brazil was such a huge trip!! It will be fine I'm sure! Everyone do a little prayer and hope that all goes well, that theres no major rain and that Otto can make it up the volcano with me without falling too far behind hehe! Much love to everyone and check out our blog [View Full Entry]

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A new girl in our room from Vancouver decided to come with me to the Polynesian Culture Center today. Our bus came and picked us up at 10:30 am. We had the weirdest driver ever. She told us her whole life story and didnt stop talking the entire way up to the center (about an hour and a half). As soon as you walk into the centre they put a lei on you and then you get your picture taken with 2 polynesians. Of course getting the picture costs about $18!!! It was super hot out by the time we got [View Full Entry]

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