First day on the Big Island

After we ate and packed, we flew to the Big Island of Hawaii today. Unfortunately, we had to make a connection in Honolulu, so it took a while. We decided the upgrade to a 4WD vehicle given our plans to go to lava viewing and up a mountain. Once we got to Hilo, we stopped for lunch at a local place to eat.

Our bright, yellow 4WD jeep

We then went to our bed and breakfast (I didn’t find any good hotels and this place looked good). Once we got there, we were going over our plans with the owner. We were originally going to go down the coast, stop at a few places and then end up at the Lava Viewing place in the evening after sunset. He talked with us and explained that the Lava Viewing platform operated by the county was over a mile away from the lava and that you couldn’t see very much. Steve (the owner) mentioned that a friend of his was a guide and took people out on the lava field itself to get a close-up view. Since the main reason we went to the Big Island WAS to see the lava, we discussed it and decided to go ahead and do that.

We called Chris (the guide) and set up for a 4:00 AM-8:00 AM tour. We spent the rest of the afternoon (once we got situated) going around the coast around Hilo.

Our first stop was the Lava Trees state park. It was a beautiful drive getting there and the park was almost like a garden. The lava would come so quickly that they would surround the tree and leave a form of it.

The road to the coast

You gotta love warning signs like this in a park!

Some of the cool flowers

I love these trees. Hard to believe that lava came through here.

More pictures of the park

We really liked this road on the coast.

We then went to the point furthest east in the Hawaiian islands. They have an air monitoring station there because it is (supposedly) the freshest air anywhere. It doesn’t have any other habitated places for thousands of miles, so there is no human activity in the air (i.e., no pollution). Well, to me it smelled dusty, but it was still neat and the coastline is all lava. A huge flow came through there about 20-25 years ago and the road is literally on top of the lava.

We continued down the Puna coast and stopped a few times to view the shoreline. This area has been devastated by lava quite a few times and it shows. Yet, people still live in the area because it is so beautiful. We took the road all the way to the end (literally). It stops at one of the more recent flows and has a new black sand beach. The locals have planted palm and coconut trees to try and bring it back to what they used to have. The area that was destroyed 20 years ago was one of the most beautiful in the island (supposedly).

The new black sand beach

Knowing that we had to wake up at 2:30 AM, we decided to head back early. We had dinner at a Mexican restaurant in Pahoa. Pahoa is the hippie part of the Big Island and they had a lot of interesting characters in the restaurant.

We were very excited about the next morning and did our best to get to sleep so we wouldn’t be dead in the morning!

Race day is finally here!

Race day is here! After months of training, another rainy night and waking up every hour just making sure that I hadn’t overslept, we made it to the start line. Rachael is a trooper and was there with me every step of the way, even with a 4:20 AM wake up call! We made it to parking with no issues and found our way to the start line. They had a nice setup and had it was well organized (except there are never enough port a pots, so the line for the bathrooms are always long…).

While waiting in line for the race to begin, I ran into someone I worked with at Andersen and BearingPoint (Burke Willis). I thought I had seen him on the plane to Hawaii, but wasn’t sure and didn’t want to interrupt people. Small world!

The race started on time (always nice), but had started raining just before we began. For those that don’t know, I hate getting rained on. So, that wasn’t a good omen. Plus, wet feet make for blisters. Regardless, it stopped raining before the start gun fired. I was able to get more towards the front of the pack and got a great start to the race. The first three miles were at a fairly easy uphill grade, so I planned to take it easy and not burn out. Miles 4-6 were the killers on this race – the grade (at least to me) was very steep – steep enough that the car had to downshift to make it up when we drove the course the day before.

It was an early morning. I am still not awake before the race started.

Rachael (my own personal photographer) got a shot of me in the corral before the race started)

Rachael took a lot of shots while she was waiting for me. She thought the snail was funny because we were racing.

Nice scenery at the race finish

Naturally, it started raining really hard at the 4 mile marker, right before the ascent started. I pushed through and by the time we got to the Tunnel of Trees (mile 6) it had stopped (or the trees stopped it). I made it past the big hills unscathed and still had energy. Once people started to pass me on the downhills, I realized I still had energy so I started to pick up the pace and was able to get back on track to what my goals were. Once we hit the stretch where you see the ocean, I knew the finish line was close and made a final push. Rachael was there waiting for me at about ¼ mile before the finish. She was my own personal cheering section to get me to the end of the race!

Nearing the finish

I finished the half-marathon in 1 hour and 46 minutes, way better than what I had expected. I am really glad now we went outside of Houston for some training on hills before the race! Only one minor injury – a blister on one of my toes. Very happy with the race!

Greeters at the finish line

The view at the finish area

I thought the race was very well done by the organizers. If anyone wants a great race for next year, the Kauai Marathon is being run next year on September 5.


After we made it back and I got a shower, we went to eat at our favorite breakfast place in Kauai, the Tip Top café. Great banana and pineapple pancakes.

We wanted to spend the rest of the day at the beach, so we made our way around the island to find a good one. Unfortunately, it kept looking like it was going to rain (a constant theme the entire trip). After stopping at Wailua Falls for some pictures, we found a great beach. I spent most of the afternoon sleeping in the sun.

For those that are old enough, Wailua Falls is what you see at the beginning of Fantasy Island. I always think that Tattoo is running around there. That little dude was kind of creepy.

Unfortunately, we had to pack up that night because we are headed to the Big Island tomorrow. We had a great stay at Kahili Park. If you are interested in a quiet place to stay in the mountains on Kauai, we recommend it!

Sabbath in Kauai

After a very rainy night, we slept in a little and got up for church. We visited the Adventist church in Lawai. We had a great service and the congregation was very welcoming. After church, we went into Poipu to pick up my race packet for the half marathon. Once we picked it up, we drove the entire course (which is very helpful and something I will do for all future races…..) The course is beautiful, but hilly. The course ends with ocean views starting at about mile 10 and is downhill from there.




Part of the scenery on the course - mile 1

The famous "Tunnel of Trees" at about the 6 mile mark

Nice tree along the course at about mile 9

This is the view around mile 11 - getting close to the end!

After lunch and an afternoon nap (getting ready for the race!), we went back into Poipu to visit some beaches. We had a fabulous sunset on the beach. We went to bed early because the race starts at 6:00 am on Sunday.

Friday - first day in Kauai

Friday was our first full day on Kauai. We started our day early by taking a boat trip to the only part of the island we hadn’t visited before – the Na Pali coast. The northern part of Kauai is steep cliffs and only accessible by boat or a long hike. We started the morning at 8:30 with the trip in a pretty heavy rainstorm. We passed some dolphins and other fish as we crossed the western side of the island.

We got a chance to see the Barking Sands Missile Range as we made our way. The Navy has a base on Kauai that they use to test the Aegis Missile system. We both decided that if we are in the military, we would request to be stationed there. It is set on a beautiful area and is literally right on the beach.

The Na Pali coast was beautiful. Hard to believe that the Hawaiians were able to get into the steep valleys and live there for hundreds of years. The water is so blue and the beaches are beautiful. The wind was pretty strong that day, so when we got on the north side, the waves were pretty rough. We turned back and stopped for lunch and snorkeling along the way. The water was very clear and there was really bright yellow fish and Rachael briefly saw a sea turtle.

Once we ended our boat trip, we decided to drive up Waimea Canyon for a hike. Unfortunately, I misread the book and the hike was MUCH harder than we wanted to do. It was all downhill to start and all uphill to end. We didn’t go all the way because we realized how far we had to go back up. Needless to say, we were very tired at the end of the hike, which wasn’t part of the plan!

Last day in sydney

We had a great last day in sydney. We had a great breakfast at a cafe, walked through the park and did a guided tour of the sydney opera house.

The opera house is truly fantastic! We only wish we would have been able to hear a concert. The music hall is more majestic than the opera hall. One of the highlights of the trip for sure.

We then packed up and headed to the airport. The flight is going to be full, so we will not have any empty seats next to us. Bummer.

We got something to eat and are on the waiting area. We had a brush with celebrity in the waiting area. Ice Cube is on our flight. I got a picture of him, but it wasn't that great. Hey, maybe I'm sitting next to Mr. Cube on the plane! Unlikely.

We have a long 13 hour flight ahead of us so we are praying for sleep!
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Sydney whirlwind part 1

What a day! We saw a lot of sydney in 1 day and we are tired.

We started out by going to our hotel. I love Marriott because they take care of you. We were actually able to get our room at 9 am in the morning!

We decided to see the city by taking a hop on hop off bus tour. We went the entire way around and saw some great sites,

We stopped at the end of the botanical gardens and got the picture I posted. We then walked through the gardens and went to a free art museum.

Our other stop was in darling harbour for the aquarium.

We got a little something to eat after changing into our swim gear and caught a bus to Bondi Beach to get in the water. We got there and the water was FREEZING but we got in anyway. Too cold to really have fun or bodysurf, but we were in nonetheless.

We made our way back to the hotel and headed for our night bridgeclimb. We spent the next 3 hours prepping for and climbing to the top of the Sydney Harbour Bridge. No pictures yet because we couldn't bring our camera for obvious reasons. It was a real highlight of the trip, but it is late and we are tired.

One more short day in sydney and we head home.

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Koalas, kangaroos and platypus--oh my!

Today we visited the Healesville Sanctuary outside of Melbourne. It was one of the highlights of the trip so far.

We took a tram, train and bus to get there (we didn't want to face Melbourne traffic.....). We arrived safely and on time and the very first animal we saw were Koalas!

After that, we had good timing to see the kangaroos with the keepers and got to feed and pet them! They had a baby roo (a "joey") and he was SUPER cute! Very soft.

We then got to see wallabies, wombats, dingoes (one of my favorites) and a platypus. It was a wonderful place and would love to return. We will post the best pics we got when we return.

We are headed to Melbourne now to spend a bit of time before we leave.

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Tasmania

We were expecting a cold rainy day in Tasmania but were greeted by a beautiful, sunny day.

Once we finally got off the boat, we found our rental car and headed to Cradle Mountain and Dove Lake, a world biosphere preserve. It was a great 1.5 hour drive. We were greeted with the gorgeous view of the picture attached. We took off for a 3.5 mile hike around Dove Lake and loved it! It was one of our favorite walks--and as an added bonus, we were greeted by two wallabies as we did our walk!. we could have stayed there for a week!

We went to the visitor center and did another short walk and then went to a Tasmanian Devil center where they protect them. Their growl lives up to the name-i ill post some video of them fighting when we get back.

We had to leave all to soon. We would love to return someday. On our way back to town, we stopped at a paper mill that sells "roo poo" paper. They recycle kangaroo poop into paper. I'm not making this up. Of course we had to get some!

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Dunedin

We had a great day in Dunedin. It is on the soth coast of the south Island and was settled by Scottish immigrants so it has a totally different feel than the other places we have visited.

We first visited the Cadbury chocolate factory. Interesting and fattening!

The railway station was a must visit due to the floors alone. They had very intricate tile patterns and some beautiful stained glass. Very classic.

We then rented our car and started our journey down the Otago Peninsula along the shoreline. Our fist stop was the only Castle in New Zealand--Larnach Castle. Some scottish guy decided he wanted a castle and built it in the 1800s. He went through 3 wives, shot himself and then his children fought over it. It was abandoned and then bought and restored in 1967. Pretty cool place.

We drove to the end of the road to try and visit the Albatross center. If you don't know, Albatross are huge birds. Their wingspan can be over 10 feet long! Unfortunately it is nesting season and they don't allow visitors as to not disturb the birds. So we looked around and saw other birds and a couple of seals.

The highlight was our next stop-Penguin Place. It was a refuge for the rarest penguin-the yellow eyed penguin. We got there just in time for a tour-and we were the only people on it! We got to see the yellow eyed and the tiny Blue penguin. Along the way we ran across a couple of seals-real close up. They actually smell pretty foul...

It was a great tour-one of the best we had on the trip. We then headed back into town to drop the car off.

We made it back to the center of town and had some time left. We got a taxi driver to take us to the worlds steepest street-Baldwin Street. It was crazy-very steep. Very cool.

Once we left Dunedin, we passed the Albatross center, we saw some in the air-very cool!
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The train trip that wasn't

We were in Christchurch today. I had been looking forward to this day a lot because we were going to take a beautiful train ride up the mountains and stop at Arthurs Pass and do some hiking there.

The train was scheduled to leave from Christchurch at 8:15 and we were supposed to dock at 7 am when I had scheduled our trip. Well, last night they announced a schedule change that we were to dock at 7:30. A little tight for the 25 minute taxi ride to the station we had scheduled, but we would be ok.

Unfortunately, we didn't dock and get off the ship till after 8 am. We got to the station at 8:30 and the train had left. We wouldn't be quick enough to catch at the next stop, so we got a partial refund.

This was VERY dissapointing and frustrating. We thought about renting a car and driving but didn't want to be driving all day for 3 hours of hiking, so we decided to just spend the day in Christchurch.

It was a nice town and we enjoyed the gardens, the river and the gondola. We made the best of it, but I am still going to complain to the ship for the ever changing schedule.
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A walk in picton

We docked in picton and headed out for a day of walking. There was a series of walks around the bay and the islands. We walked about 6 miles among some great views of the bay.

After we were done, we got a snack (deep fried corn!) And looked in some of the shops. We were pretty wiped out from the day before so we headed back early. A nice quiet day!

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Rest of Wellington

After Victoria Mountain, we grabbed something to eat. We then went up a cable car to the botanical gardens. We walked down to the city through the gardens. they were fantastic-not just visually, but the smells were wonderful!

Once we got done with that, we had about an hour, so we went to the Te Papa museum. We saw some great art. We then got some indian food and headed for our last item of the day. We barely caught the bus-it was actually early.

Our visit was a night tour of Karori Sanctuary. Karori is a wildlife sanctuary in the middle of Wellington. They put up a predator fence and are returning native birds to the area. We had a two hour tour in dusk and dark.

We saw a lot of birds, but heard a lot more. We heard five Kiwi birds but didn't see any (unfortunately). We did see hundreds of glowworms--that was the highlight for me! It was a very unique experience-something we won't likely do again.

It was a great day, but very tiring. Our feet are sore but we are very pleased and blessed by the day.
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Windy wellington

We were told that it would be windy here, but nothing prepared us for the howling wind we encountered.

Once we left the ship, we walked to the bus depot and caught the bus to Island Bay. Our first activity for the day was a walk along the coast to a seal colony. We arrived and walked to the end of the road. The book made it seem like it was just a short walk from there.

Unfortunately, it was about 2 miles along beautiful, but very windy coastline. Mutliple times we were almost blown off our feet by the force of the wind. To add to that, it would pick up rocks and sand and pelt our backs. We were not looking forward to walking back with the wind scouring our faces with sand!

We finally made it to where the seals were purported to hang out. We saw three of them sunning themselves on rocks and got some great shots of them.

As we were getting our photos, a large jeep-type vehicle came over the ridge and had a tour group from our boat. As they got out, Rachael and I pointed out the seals to the driver. We then asked if we could hitch a ride back!!! We really didn't want to walk it!

He said he had room in the front seat if we would help him navigate our way through a stretch of trail that had fallen rock. Of course we said we would help and were on our way and said a few prayers of thanks!

We made it back to the start of the trail and then caught a bus to the top of victoria mountain that provides views over the entire city. Very cool, but also windy!
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Another picture from napier

Redwood forest
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Napier

We docked in Napier today. We rented a car again and our first stop was a mountain called Te Mata Peak. Once we got there, we went to the top for the lookout over the entire valley. Truly wonderful views!

We then went for a hike for a couple of hours. Unfortunately, they didn't have maps, so we couldn't plan where we went. We took the trail that we knew went to a stand of redwood trees and went that way. The redwoods were spectacular! My cellphone camera won't do them justice.

From there, we weren't quite sure how to get back to the car. After a couple of false starts, we made it back to the car.

We then went to a strawberry farm. It was huge-plants as far as you could see. After we had strawberries and ice cream, we went to a winery. Unfortunately, it was closed.

So, we went back into town and did a walking tour of downtown. It was destroyed in 1931 by an earthquake and rebuilt all in Art Deco style. Very cool.

After an adventure getting gas, we made it back to the ship safely. It was a beautiful weather day and a great day all around.

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Tauranga / Rotorua

We had our first day of excursions. We docked in Tauranga and our rental car was waiting for us.

Our first adventure was simply adjusting to driving on a different side of the road and to the controls being on the left side.

The driving went fine during the day--no accident so wrong turns. We brought our gps with us and Rachael was a great navigator!

Our first stop was at Te Puia. It is a Maori institute and a geothermal area. We got a guided tour of the area and a demonstration of weaving and ropemaking. They also showed a Maori welcoming ritual and dances. Rachael got up on stage and did one of the dances (I have proof!).

We also got to see a Kiwi bird. It was dark and we didn't see it clearly, but we are going to say we saw one!

From there we were going to go Zorbing. For those who don't know, it is getting inside a large plastic ball and rolling downhill. Unfortunately, it was too windy and they weren't running the Zorbs at the time. So we decided to go have lunch and wait it out. They were only running the water Zorb, which means I would get soaked.

We had lunch a great place called the Fat Dog Cafe. It was very cool.

After that we went to a waterfall that wasn't as great as it was supposed to be. Not even picture-worthy.

We called the Zorb place and it was still too windy for the dry zorb. We went to a few shops to try and find a pair of shorts since I would get soaked. We didnt find any but we went back anyway.

We went and they weren't running anything due to the wind. We waited 20 minutes and they decided to run them. I had to buy a pair of shorts and got in. Rachael got some great pictures and video we will post later. It was awesome!

We then came back to the ship. It was a great first day!
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Day at sea

Our first day was a sea. In addition to getting to our first port, they spent time cruising around some islands in the bay.

We also stopped at an active volcane called White Island. It isn't spewing a bunch of stuff but has steam and other actively venting. Pretty interesting.

It was a relaxing day and prepared us for our first port.
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Last entry from Auckland

After we boarded the ship and checked in, we went back out for one more trip. We finally found the bus we needed to take to One Tree Hill. It is an extinct volcano that the Maori used for a citadel.

Once we arrived, it was in the middle of a nice park. It had quite a few childrens play items including a zip line! We were joking that you could never have anything like that in a playground in the US because of liability. Even though it would be fun, someone would sue as soon as someone fell.

I was going to take a ride myself, but it had a line of kids every time we went by. I didn't want to be the bully so I didn't go.

We took the path up, but missed our turn to the summit. So we walked through the sheep (they were everywhere!) And thought we were close. We then asked a guard and he said we needed to go all the way back.

Well, that wasn't pleasant so we decided to go straight up to the summit. We did and it was a great (and windy) view.

We walked back and waited forever for the return bus but finally made it. We got something to eat and then went to sleep after a long couple of days.
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