Our trip started out on the Big Island, where we stayed at the Royal Kona Resort. (We thoroughly enjoyed our ocean view. :) While we were there I turned 28 and added another adventure to my post-champagne-birthday list: night snorkeling with giant manta rays! (Years ago I made a vow to do something amazing on my birthday every year, starting with my champagne birthday in 2008 - appropriately, it was spent in Paris. Since then, I celebrated 26 while skydiving on O`ahu's North Shore, 27 while completing the Sky Walk in Auckland, New Zealand, and now 28 snorkeling amongst the most beautiful sea creatures on earth.)
In a word, our manta experience was amazing. Everywhere we looked there were giant, ghostly mantas swooping around, gobbling up unsuspecting plankton. It was a bit of a "double rainbow" type of moment (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQSNhk5ICTI), really.
We also did a massive 13-hour circle-island tour which included a stop at Volcano National Park:
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| Lava tube |
On our final morning, we did a two-hour helicopter tour of the Big Island's five (above sea level) volcanoes: Mauna Kea, Mauna Loa, Kohala, Kilauea and Hualalai.
We were also fortunate enough to fly into Waipio Valley:
Next, Steph, Sandy and I headed off to Maui while Court flew back to Honolulu...
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