Back From Paradise

Aloha! Five days in paradise sure went by quickly! Did you miss me?? Do you know what I miss? The views from our hotel…

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We stayed at the Fairmont Orchid in Kona and had a great room with a balcony overlooking the ocean. I will never get tired of watching the sun set each night.

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The first couple of days were spent mainly by the pool. We bought snorkel equipment and went into the ocean near our hotel. We were able to see huge turtles and an eel. The eel freaked me out. I swear he was looking at me….I got the heck out of dodge.

One of the amazing experiences we had was a night snorkel with manta rays. Everyone got to wear a wet suit and away we went out to sea at sunset.

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Sexy huh? :)

Once the sun went down, the company had a float area with flashlights pointing into the water to attract plankton which is what manta rays eat. We only got to see one manta ray (they are HUGE!) but it was awesome nonetheless!

On another day we did a day snorkel trip to a remote area of Kona that was seriously amazing. Beautiful clear water, tons of colorful fish and some dolphins on the boat ride over! The boat had a high dive and a slide right into the ocean. My husband loved the high dive.

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In action:

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Thursday we decided to drive around the entire island (about 6-8 hours without stops) and to check out the volcano near Hilo.

Even though you cannot currently see lava from the volcano, it was still amazing to see! Check out the steam vents coming out the ground!

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I walked into the steam for a picture and was blown away by how hot is was!

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Here is a photo of the crater where steam is coming out. Apparently if you take a helicopter over it you can see the lava.

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More steam vents:

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We walked through the lava tubes where lava used to flow.

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Another view of the steam coming out of the crater:

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We ended up that night at our favorite restaurant of the trip: Huggo’s in Kona. I didn’t take a picture of anything I ate except for our dessert that night. Mud pie!

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It was HUGE!!!! Macadamia nut ice cream, Oreo cookie crust, fudge, whipped cream and more macadamia nuts. It was HEAVEN!

The view from the restaurant at sunset wasn’t so bad either. :)

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Friday we spent the day at the pool and then headed to Kona for dinner at Huggo’s AGAIN (we had the Mud pie again) and then we were off to the airport for our red eye flight to Los Angeles. We had a three hour layover there so we went to the Delta lounge. Mind you, we got there at 5AM. Ugh. We did have a couple of celebrity sightings in there: Juliette Lewis and Eliot Spitzer. That’s a lot of excitement at 5AM! :)

Our flight to San Diego arrived at 9:30AM and we were home by 11AM. Since then I’ve been playing with the kiddos, doing laundry and unpacking. Sleep is going to be FABULOUS tonight!

What’s the longest you’ve gone without sleep?

Are you able to sleep on planes? Me: Nope! :(

Comments

  1. I'm so jealous! Well, kind of. I just got back from Hawaii 3 weeks ago. I did NOT want to come back home! haha. The night my family and I came home from Hawaii we took a night flight. It was really uncomfortable to sleep on the plane but I did end up sleeping the whole time (thank goodness). Though, I woke up with the worst neck ache! lol

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  2. Oh my goodness it sounds like a fabulous time! That mud pie looks to die for! When coming back from Germany I didn't sleep for 25 hours, although I had about 2 30 min naps so I'm not sure if that counts? I can usually sleep on planes but only if I can get comfy and that day I couldn't.

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  3. WOW... must have been a superb experience!!! hawaii... wish to be there someday..great post... cool pics...

    Apurva
    http://ajstates.blogspot.com

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  4. What amazing pictures! Makes me want to go to Hawaii so bad.

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  5. Beautiful pictures! I lived in Kona for 10 years, it's such a great place. Was the boat you went on the Fairwinds? Looks like it from the picture--I used to work for them part time in High School--too funny to think about after so long!
    :)

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  6. These pictures are amazing! I've always wanted to swim with animals (dolphins, especially) but I always chicken out. I need to force myself.

    And I'm terrified of planes, so I've never once fallen asleep on one. I'm too busy visualizing everything that could go wrong, haha

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  7. I just realized that the entire comment I just wrote makes me sound like a huge wuss.

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  8. Wow, what a great trip! And had it been me, I would also have deemed the mud pie insulin worthy two nights in a row.

    Glad you are home safe!

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  9. Such gorgeous pictures! I always wanted to see the volcanos there. And I'm craving the mud pie right now! Nope, can't sleep on planes either, not even red-eyes.

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  10. Vanessa: Yes it was the Fairwinds boat! How funny! The staff was excellent on it! :)

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  11. Sounds like a fantastic trip! That pie looks pretty incredible too.

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  12. I happen to be married to a helicopter pilot... I'll volunteer his skills if y'all take me on vacation with you =) pretty please?

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  13. What a fun trip!! Love it - i'm so jealous!! And yes - super sexy wetsuit! LOL

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  14. Sounds like you guys had a ton of fun! I can't sleep on planes either, ugh!

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  15. FUN!! the pics are great. sounds like a blast :)

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