I don't really know where to start . . . so much to tell about our wonderful week away. I think I wrote about 5 different intros for this blog, but nothing seems quite right. It was such an awesome week, I just can't put it into words.
I guess I'll start with . . . Aloha -- we are back from our tropical vacation.
Jim and I had such a fabulous time experiencing the islands of Kauai and Oahu on our 'parents only' trip to the Pacific. We lounged. We sipped cocktails by the pool. We ate wonderful meals. We soaked up the sun. We went for lots of long drives. We tried to sleep in . . . but the 6 hour time change didn't really allow for that much. We did all kinds of things together that we had not done in what seemed like forever. It was amazing.
To sum in up into something you can read in about a 5-7 minute blog . . .
Friday -- traveled all day, arriving in Lihue, Kauai at 4:50pm their time, 10:50pm EST. We pushed through and stayed up as late as we could . . . which was only 9:00pm. We crashed early and loved sleeping in our great big bed as long as we wanted to.
I guess I'll start with . . . Aloha -- we are back from our tropical vacation.
Jim and I had such a fabulous time experiencing the islands of Kauai and Oahu on our 'parents only' trip to the Pacific. We lounged. We sipped cocktails by the pool. We ate wonderful meals. We soaked up the sun. We went for lots of long drives. We tried to sleep in . . . but the 6 hour time change didn't really allow for that much. We did all kinds of things together that we had not done in what seemed like forever. It was amazing.
To sum in up into something you can read in about a 5-7 minute blog . . .
Friday -- traveled all day, arriving in Lihue, Kauai at 4:50pm their time, 10:50pm EST. We pushed through and stayed up as late as we could . . . which was only 9:00pm. We crashed early and loved sleeping in our great big bed as long as we wanted to.
Our view from our balcony in KauaiSaturday -- we were up very early, 5am. We drove up to the east coast of Kauai and had breakfast. Off roaded out to a few beaches, just checking the place out. Back to the hotel, a quick change into swimsuits, then out to the pool/beach for the rest of the day. Dinner about an hour's drive from Lihue, up to Hannelai. Awesome seafood dinner, then back to bed kinda early. (The time change was really pretty brutal -- that plus a day of sun really wiped us out.)
On the beach bright and early Saturday morning 
Our resort beach on Saturday afternoon
Sunset in Hanneleai
Sunday -- a (self guided) tour of the west coast of Kauai, including Waimeia Canyon. We off roaded again, but this time I was really scared we were going to get stuck. The road was really bad and very steep at times. Jim swore we'd be OK, so I gritted my teeth and trusted him. In the end, we were fine . . . but even JIM will tell you he was a little worried at times. We wrapped up our west side adventures and headed back to Lihue for our helicopter tour mid afternoon. The one hour tour by air was nothing short of unbelievable (and I couldn't help but think of our little garage sale as I boarded the tiny aircraft). After our day of touring, we went back to the pool for a few hours, then just stuck around the resort for dinner.
Waimeia Canyon (crazy) Road
View from the top of Waimeia Canyon rd -- complete with rainbow
View from my seat on the helicopter, viewing the Na'Pali Coast of KauaiMonday -- We were going to go hiking on the north end of Kauai, but we decided instead to 'beach hop' all day. The hike we passed up was amazing when we saw it from the air . . . and we really wanted to do it . . . but there just wasn't enough time to do it all. I voted for a day of beaches and shopping, and Jim was willing to oblige. We went to a few beaches and really got a kick out of watching people surf and jump off of crazy-high rocks at the edge of the ocean. Monday night was our Luau experience -- which we loved. It was a perfect mix of authentic (delicious) Hawaiian foods and amazing dancing. Our luau totally rocked.
Shipwreck Beach -- YES, we saw several people jump!
At the luau with Jim -- see how tan he got on our vacation?
Ok, seriously . . . a self portrait at the luauTuesday -- up early (which was still not a problem, even 3 days into the trip), the off to fly Hawaiian Airlines over to Honolulu. Moving from a 'country' island like Kauai to the big city that is Honolulu was quite a change. Honolulu reminded me a lot of LA . . . big buildings, high end shopping, and the beach right across the street from it all. We stayed in a huge and fantastic resort right at the end of Waikiki beach, which was not only a cool resort but a perfect location. On that day we arrived, an old friend of mine that now lives in Honolulu met up with Jim and I, and we walked all the way down Waikiki with her. We spent some more quality time at the pool, then we showered and had a great dinner with my friend and her family. We even managed to cram a little shopping in when we returned to the resort . . . by Tuesday we were finally adjusting to the time change and found ourselves able to stay up past 10pm.
At the end of Waikiki Beach (you know you wanted to see me in a bathing suit, admit it.)
Wednesday -- up early, off to the North Shore. We ate lunch at a shrimp truck about 2/3 of the way North. We parked ourselves on a couple of beaches and watched the most amazingly HUGE waves crash in front of us. We ate ice cream and walked through some touristy shops at the northern most town, then we went through the inner island back to our resort. We showered and then walked through the strip down Waikiki. We finally stopped for dinner well after 9pm . . . and somehow I ended up singing Karaoke after we ate.
Sunrise over Waikiki from our hotel room
Thursday -- our last day. We got up early and were some of the first in line to see the Pearl Harbor USS Arizona Memorial. This is something that I would say is a CAN'T MISS in Honolulu -- I'm so very happy that we were able to see this on our trip. The National Parks representatives command a lot of respect for the memorial, as it is not only an "attraction" but also the final resting place for over 800 of the 11oo men that died there on Dec 7, 1941. It was really a sight to been see and experienced. Because our red eye left that afternoon, the rest of the day we spent at our resort . . . I was hoping for some last minute sun, but our daily rainfall came mid-morning, meaning that I was not really able to sit out by the pool for long. It didn't really matter . . . we just showered and headed to the airport. At this point in the trip, I was getting really ready to see the girls again. I missed them every day, and knowing we were heading home that night just made me miss them more on Thursday. At 4pm in Hawaii (10pm at home), we boarded our 9 hour flight and traveled back to Atlanta.
On the USS Arizona Memorial
I know I didn't include a whole lot of detail in my description of our week away . . . but that is because I just can't put into words how wonderful everything was. I've already used the words 'awesome' and 'amazing' and 'wonderful' waaaayyy more times than I'd like in this blog, but that is simply because I can't think of any other words to use to convey the fantastic trip we took.
We rented a Jeep Wrangler on both islands so we could enjoy Hawaii with the windows and top down all week. Jim body surfed on Shipwreck Beach in Kauai and cut up his elbow pretty good. There were chickens all over Kauai . . . a result of a 1992 hurricane that displaced the chickens from the farms and left them wild all over the island. It rained every day, but never for long and it didn't ruin a thing. I got a lot of sun -- and my Hawaiian tan is probably my favorite souvenir from the trip. I ate a lot of fish. We bought the girlst Tshirts, Leis, and two Disney Princess dolls with leis and flowers in their hair.
Not only was the place we visited so breathtaking, but just having a week together -- me and Jim -- was totally priceless. We really enjoyed being away from everything. I think we needed it -- I mean, don't we all? We need time as a couple to recharge and reconnect, and Hawaii was perfect for that.
I missed the hell out of the girls. Everything reminded us of them . . . and countless times we were sad they weren't there to experience it with us. According to my dad, that is the way we will feel when we go anywhere without them for the rest of our lives. They would have loved our resort pools and the ocean, and they would have had so much fun at the luau. But they would have hated the looong travel and the vicious jet lag from the trip . . . so they won't be making a Hawaii journey until they are much, much older. And besides -- Mommy and Daddy need a place to retreat once in a while.
Hawaii was really very cool. If you haven't gone, put it at the top of your list. We are already talking about when we can go back. It's a piece of paradise, and it was an awesome place to visit.
We returned to life just as we'd left it . . . neighborhood parties, Halloween, preschool, a trip to the pumpkin patch. The girls had a great week at home with my dad, Nana, and Papa. They went about life as usual while Mom and Dad were away with no complaints at all (from what we heard). It was so nice to be away from our life for a little while, and now that we are back I think the time away helped me appreciate our life a little more. My wonderful girls, my perfect husband. We are a long way from Hawaii, but I think our house is a little piece of paradise right here in Marietta.
I have toooooo many pictures to share, so link on over here to our Picasa album if you are interested . . . I've used the captions to narrate our trip. Enjoy. . . and Mahalo for reading!
At the end of Waikiki Beach (you know you wanted to see me in a bathing suit, admit it.)Wednesday -- up early, off to the North Shore. We ate lunch at a shrimp truck about 2/3 of the way North. We parked ourselves on a couple of beaches and watched the most amazingly HUGE waves crash in front of us. We ate ice cream and walked through some touristy shops at the northern most town, then we went through the inner island back to our resort. We showered and then walked through the strip down Waikiki. We finally stopped for dinner well after 9pm . . . and somehow I ended up singing Karaoke after we ate.
Sunrise over Waikiki from our hotel roomThursday -- our last day. We got up early and were some of the first in line to see the Pearl Harbor USS Arizona Memorial. This is something that I would say is a CAN'T MISS in Honolulu -- I'm so very happy that we were able to see this on our trip. The National Parks representatives command a lot of respect for the memorial, as it is not only an "attraction" but also the final resting place for over 800 of the 11oo men that died there on Dec 7, 1941. It was really a sight to been see and experienced. Because our red eye left that afternoon, the rest of the day we spent at our resort . . . I was hoping for some last minute sun, but our daily rainfall came mid-morning, meaning that I was not really able to sit out by the pool for long. It didn't really matter . . . we just showered and headed to the airport. At this point in the trip, I was getting really ready to see the girls again. I missed them every day, and knowing we were heading home that night just made me miss them more on Thursday. At 4pm in Hawaii (10pm at home), we boarded our 9 hour flight and traveled back to Atlanta.
On the USS Arizona MemorialI know I didn't include a whole lot of detail in my description of our week away . . . but that is because I just can't put into words how wonderful everything was. I've already used the words 'awesome' and 'amazing' and 'wonderful' waaaayyy more times than I'd like in this blog, but that is simply because I can't think of any other words to use to convey the fantastic trip we took.
We rented a Jeep Wrangler on both islands so we could enjoy Hawaii with the windows and top down all week. Jim body surfed on Shipwreck Beach in Kauai and cut up his elbow pretty good. There were chickens all over Kauai . . . a result of a 1992 hurricane that displaced the chickens from the farms and left them wild all over the island. It rained every day, but never for long and it didn't ruin a thing. I got a lot of sun -- and my Hawaiian tan is probably my favorite souvenir from the trip. I ate a lot of fish. We bought the girlst Tshirts, Leis, and two Disney Princess dolls with leis and flowers in their hair.
Not only was the place we visited so breathtaking, but just having a week together -- me and Jim -- was totally priceless. We really enjoyed being away from everything. I think we needed it -- I mean, don't we all? We need time as a couple to recharge and reconnect, and Hawaii was perfect for that.
I missed the hell out of the girls. Everything reminded us of them . . . and countless times we were sad they weren't there to experience it with us. According to my dad, that is the way we will feel when we go anywhere without them for the rest of our lives. They would have loved our resort pools and the ocean, and they would have had so much fun at the luau. But they would have hated the looong travel and the vicious jet lag from the trip . . . so they won't be making a Hawaii journey until they are much, much older. And besides -- Mommy and Daddy need a place to retreat once in a while.
Hawaii was really very cool. If you haven't gone, put it at the top of your list. We are already talking about when we can go back. It's a piece of paradise, and it was an awesome place to visit.
We returned to life just as we'd left it . . . neighborhood parties, Halloween, preschool, a trip to the pumpkin patch. The girls had a great week at home with my dad, Nana, and Papa. They went about life as usual while Mom and Dad were away with no complaints at all (from what we heard). It was so nice to be away from our life for a little while, and now that we are back I think the time away helped me appreciate our life a little more. My wonderful girls, my perfect husband. We are a long way from Hawaii, but I think our house is a little piece of paradise right here in Marietta.
I have toooooo many pictures to share, so link on over here to our Picasa album if you are interested . . . I've used the captions to narrate our trip. Enjoy. . . and Mahalo for reading!
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| Hawaii 2009 |
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2 comments:
What a vacation to remember!! Glad you were able to relax and get away...just the two of you!
~Erica
Gorgeous pictures and a vacation well deserved!
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