Trip 2 to Hawaii - The Big Island

Days: Dec 24 - Dec 28

Day 1 - Dec 24 - Starting journey from Mineta San Jose International airport - South West Airlines Flight 795 departing at 8:35 AM 

First COVID flight journey, masked up and face shielded, felt like the new normal. Thanks to Lajju for dropping us. We were slightly early and our friends were fashionably late(Thanks to Venkat, we followed his footsteps for our return journey)

We got some muffins at the airport to start the trip along with some homemade overnight oats. The flight was not crowded and we could pick individual seats. There were a few good aerial views of the Bay. We tried to keep the mask on as much as possible during the flight except for the occasional water and the slight munchies.  The flight was uneventful (as it should always be). 

12:30 Noon, landing at Hawaii. The change in weather was stark. All of a sudden, our San Jose winter clothes felt too warm  and everybody tried to change at the rental. We rented a car and tried to grab lunch as soon as possible. I forgot what I ate, already :-| We went for a drive nearby to kill time before our first event of the trip.  

An evening of Snorkeling: We got fitted into our wetsuits and headed into the ocean for our Manta Ray snorkel. Even the small ship had a captain and we could definitely sense the responsibilities that came with the job. The cruise had designated puking areas which were subject to adequate use during our voyage. The first surprise was that the back of the boat tilted to an angle like in the movies when we first started and man, was the ocean wavy(duh). The obvious things feel so different when you experience it firsthand. 

We sailed for about 45 minutes into the ocean and stopped close to the coast on one side. The second in command offered some pineapples(Yay!) and started setting things up for the sighting. The rocky boat had already cradled two of us into its seasick victims. In spite of the collective reassurances, the safety of the boat, the expertise of the instructors, there was a healthy apprehension to jump into the ocean. Never the less, we came here for an adventure and we were getting one.  After actually wet suiting up, the rest of us jumped(I would like to say dived but we didn't) into the ocean one by one. The life jacket felt flimsy but it did do its job. 

There was a big violetish light with a glow radius of about 7 ft on the surface and a 10 ft depth to attract the Manta Rays. The entire tour group was holding on to a big board with the help of a swimming noodle and that excuse of a life jacket. Getting used to the snorkel was difficult enough and I was always missing something in the routine(either my legs were not on the surface, there was salt water in my nose or my mouth or if everything worked out, I couldn't see well enough). This might be due to the fact that humans have been perennial land creatures since time immemorial and has nothing to do with my snorkeling skills. 

We saw a lot of fish swimming up close(don't fish bite?) but our promised sighting of the Manta Ray was getting elusive by the minute. Neither Bertha or Vicki blessed us with an appearance. When the instructor finally spotted a Manta Ray and by the time I summoned my oceanic skills, all I could spot was a tail and an illusion of  a huge shadow that passed by. The second Manta Ray sighting was similar but it did feel like I spotted something. One by one we were dragged back into the boat and given the best hot shower of the year. We did not see anything like what the pictures promised and Manta Rays don't stick to the same schedule as us but the experience was a win. But wait, there was an unhatched egg all along. Suddenly, the little girl in the boat spotted a glowing Manta Ray and we ran to the curb to spot it and there it was !!! Our trip was salvaged. This was the exact moment in which my wife decided to puke on the Manta Ray and probably became the only person in the world to do so. 

The ride back was smooth enough. When distraught and hungry, the unanimous choice was to eat Indian food. We had malai kofta, garlic naan etc etc at Kamana's kitchen with a surprising and a soothing ocean view. 

 Day 2 - The one with the volcanoes 

Did I mention? The Big Island is host to the Kilauea volcano. It is an active volcano that erupted in 2018 and as recently as Dec 20 about 4 days before our trip. I was relieved to know this wasn't a serious eruption and it was just the volcano strutting its hot stuff. No damage done. Looking at Kilauea's volcanic landscape felt surreal and other worldly. 

When we reached, the volcano was still huffing fumes from its recent eruption. It did not sink in that there was boiling magma so close to us.  As a bonus, you can also stick your face in any of the nearby steam vents for a dangerous facial that is sure to open up your pores. After multiple solo and couple pictures capturing the same boring us and the majestic volcano we decided to proceed with our next activity. 

We hiked the Halema'uma'mu trial which took us closer to the crater through some lush greenery . From this point, the daredevils among us could just walk straight to the edge of the crater to peer into the fiery depths of hell. I would do no such thing. 

About 1.5 kms behind us is the Caldera itself

 

It would be amiss to not mention our lunch. We had packed biryani dabbas for our hike. This would put us in a separate echelon of people who ate Biryani closest to a volcanic crater. After this high point in our lives, we hiked back and drove to view the other caldera of Kilauea volcano and then back home. 

Once we were home, all of us rushed to the bathroom before Venkat could make it his personal paradise for 45 minutes. After an hour long wait with rumbling volcanic noises from our stomachs, Saravanan and Ranjani came to relieve us with bags of Thai food. 

Around 11 PM, we  drove again to the Volcanoes National Park to see a sight that could only be called  'terrifyingly beautiful'. I will let you see for yourself. 

 

This is a picture of the Kilauea caldera at night. The colour of the fumes were far more prominent and anymore activity would make it just terrifying instead of terrifyingly beautiful. Every time the smoke increased ever so slightly, I wanted to put a healthy distance between myself and this force that shaped worlds. 

Day - 3 Mauna Kea, I eat Mt Everest for breakfast

Mauna Kea is another volcano in the Big Island. Thankfully, Mauna Kea is a dormant volcano and was last active about 5000 years ago, just like me when writing this blog. Two thirds of Mauna Kea(~6000m) lies under water and about 4000m above sea level. This makes it the tallest mountain the world(suck it Everest). 

We had to rent a Jeep to drive up to the summit of Mauna Kea. There was a park ranger blocking the road to the summit, inspecting cars and forcing everybody to get down for 30 mins to get acclimated to the heights. Half the road to the summit is unpaved and I learnt the difference between all wheel drives and 4-wheels drive by necessity. 

The drive to the summit offered some great vistas. On the way up, you gradually climb above the clouds and suddenly you are above them. It was pretty dope. When we reached the summit, the sun and the moon were in opposite directions facing each other. Some of us experienced altitude sickness and others did not. Personally, my palm was getting ice cold inspite of being home inside my pockets. My powerful paunch managed to keep to my upper body warm and that was that. 

The highlight of Mauna Kea other than its beauty and towering height, are the telescopes. Apparently, the summit above the clouds, with its accessibility offers very favorable conditions for astronomical observations. You can read more about it here(Obseravtories)

Mauna Kea observatories

At the summit of Mauna Kea

 

As has been the usual for this trip, we had Taro-Quinoa veggie burgers from Hilo Bay Cafe for lunch at the summit. 

Day - 4 Akaka falls and Hapuna beach

Breakfast was among the highlights of the day. We found a place called Pele's Kitchen in Pahoa. The highlight was a dish called Mango Blintz which had sprinkled coconut on top of a crepe with mango and cream cheese filling along with some exotic looking Hawaiian fruits added to the mix.

This is a picture of me enjoying some delicious Mango Blitz. As you can see, 2020 has been a weird year. The cafe people were also kind enough to give us a box of complimentary muffins, some fresh coconuts and chocolates !! 

On the way to Akaka falls, we found a cafe that offered fresh coconut water. To our dismay, the coconut water was chilled :-( Why does everything have to be chilled to the bone in this place? Advice to the weary traveller: Do not buy chilled fresh coconut water. It is priceier, has no taste and you are better off buying the packaged ones.

It was a 50 minute drive to Akaka falls state park. There was a simple designated route which everyone followed. It was basically a walking tour through a jungle without the anxiety of wild animals mauling you. It astounds me anytime when such exquisite natural beauty is so easily accessible. 

After Akaka falls, we drove to Waipio valley view point, where we had to endure the irritable buzz of a noisy drone to enjoy the view. 

Waipio valley overlook

The trip was on it's last legs and we still hadn't been to a beach. It was Hawaii for heavens sake. It goes to show how much natural beauty the island has to offer even without stepping into its famed attractions. We made our way to Hapuna Beach which is a white sand beach located on the west coast of the island. The water was smooth and just the right amount of cold. We could see why it was one of the best beaches in the US. After finally getting our beach itch scratched, we watched a beautiful beach sunset and topped off our trip with a Domino's pizza. 

Well, the lady and I still had 3 days of vacation left and that is a story for another time.