Aloha!! Sorry for the long delay!
A certain fat cat broke our computer by sitting on top of it everyday... Since our last post we have been up to quite a bit.
Our end of the summer trip consisted of going to Big Island the last weekend of
August to celebrate our two year marriage anniversary (and 9 years together!)
The Big Island will always have such a special place in our hearts because that's
where we honeymooned and first fell in love with the islands.
We were lucky enough to be able to stay at the same hotel, the Fairmont Orchid on the Kona side of the island. It felt so wonderful to be back where it all
started- and honestly was better than we remember. Somehow we were upgraded and spoiled and stayed in a oceanfront room. It was such a relaxing great
weekend away from our responsibilities and just enjoying the tourist life. It sounds so strange but I am obsessed with the smell of the shampoo and conditioner here. Anytime I smell it I am taken right back to our first trip here! One
reason I love this resort so much is regardless of how busy it may be you can always
find a quiet place away from the crowds- it just feels like Hawaii. Here's a few honeymoon classics..
Our entire day Saturday we spent bouncing between the pool and the ocean. What a hard decision hehe. Looking back two and a half years ago when we were
researching hotels the biggest selling point of this resort was that honu (Hawaiian sea
turtles) came to shore every afternoon to bask in the sunshine. It seemed nothing
had changed because we caught a few everyday onshore and in the water as we were
snorkeling. It will never get old seeing a honu pop his head up for air or
catching one swimming along side us as we are snorkeling. I try to tell myself in
those moments how special it is. The snorkeling was great at the hotel beach even
without us going out to far due to high surf. We had a lot of fun playing around
underwater with our gopro. Underwater photos have come such a long way from those
cheap disposable ones whose pictures never seemed to really turn out without a
watermark in the middle of every photo.
So many memories came back to both of us during our stay at the Fairmont. Not only amazing honeymoon/ wedding memories but also about our decision to move to Hawaii. I talk to so many people at my job who have been coming to my hotel for many years (some since it first opened in 1964!!) and that's a tradition I could see Mark and I having with the Fairmont on Big Island. Hopefully someday we can even bring our kids and make it a family tradition! It's amazing how far we have come together and spending time at our resort again made me so proud that we were able to follow this dream of ours TOGETHER!
to light the torches around the resort. We finished the evening laying in the
hammocks next to the pool and looking at the amazing night sky full of stars. I'm
pretty sure there's no where better than the middle of the Pacific for a viewing of
the night sky.
Big Island is such an amazing Hawaiian island for numerous reasons. When we first landed two years ago on our honeymoon we were shocked. There is beautiful black lavarock everywhere along with farmland as far as you can see. In many parts it
reminds me of Wisconsin, except with the most beautiful mountains towering over the
fields. A little drive to the shore and it's exactly what you think of when you think
Hawaii. Swaying palm trees, beautiful pristine beaches and bright blue/green water.
There are many small country towns throughout the island that have a very laid
back, slow lifestyle. I tell Mark that we should buy a horse and move there but he thinks we'd die of boredom.
The week we spent on our honeymoon all but one day we spent driving around exploring and didn't even begin to scratch the surface of seeing much of the
island. One of the highlights of our honeymoon trip was seeing the summit of
Mauna Kea and having a tour guide show us the different star constellations.
Obviously this past anniversary trip we didn't have enough time to do that again.
The biggest bucket list things we have on the list still are taking a helicopter
tour on the Kona side of the island as well as doing a night boat tour on the Hilo
side to see the bright red glowing lava flow into the ocean on a dark night. I have zero doubts in my mind that we will be back many times to cross all those adventures off our
list. It felt soooo good to be back to the Big Island!!!
Until next time.....
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