Day 1 was LOOOONNNGGG. The best way to look at it is this--We woke up at 10pm Hawaii time to leave for the airport and arrived at our hotel at 7:30pm the NEXT day. Most of the day was fine. Even the 9 hour flight from Chicago to Honolulu was pretty darn good. Connor slept about 5 hours of it and I slept about 4. It didn't get dodgy until the 3 hour layover in Honolulu. We were all pretty cranky by then and Connor definitely did not have his "listening ears" on, as they say in preschool. In fact, I think he took his listening ears off and put them in a shredder. For some unknown reason he developed a compulstion to roll his wheelie bag over on its side every 10 seconds and then drag it, trip, cry, repeat. Needless to say, his father did not react well do this and for some unknown reason developed a complementary compulsion to yell, take wheelie bag away, trip, cry and repeat. Ah, the joys of long haul travel with a 5 year old!
Landed just before sunset, jammed our stuff in the rental car and headed to the north side. Took about 35 minutes to get to the hotel but it was a nice drive. http://www.princevillehotelhawaii.com/ Lobby, as reported on TripAdvisor, is breathtaking. We're using points and got a bargain point rate and a free 5th night. The hotel is closing in September for a total refurb after which it will be rebranded a St. Regis and we'll never be able to afford to stay here again. It is beautiful. There were some "so-so" reviews on TA--glad we ignored them. Our room is very big and we have an ocean view out onto Hanalei Bay.
Ordered room service (Thanks, Nana!!!), showered, and went to bed around 9pm at which point we were all bumbling idiots. At midnight, the alarm clock went off. ARRGGHHH. I was very confused and had a hard time turning it off so I just turned down the volume of the Hanalei Moon CD that had begun to play.
Day 2 so far has been great. Woke up around 5 am and headed into Hanalei for our boat tour up the Na'Pali Coast. Grabbed some coffee at a cute little place called Java Kai and sat on their lanai until check in time at 7:15am. I had a Maui Mocha (coconut) and it was scrumptious. We'll probably eat in town since no one needs a $30 dollar breakfast at the hotel. Hanalei is a cute little area with juice huts and restaurants galore.
After reading tons of reviews we decided to take our tour with Na'Pali Catamaran. http://www.napalicatamaran.com/ The shuttle ride left at 7:30 am and took us about 5 minutes away to the beach at Hanalei Bay. We waded out and piled into a motorized outrigger canoe and they shuttled us to the boat. There were fourteen passengers on board. Our captains, Nick and Sam, were about 20 years old (if that) but they were clearly experienced and we felt confident in their hands. They were super nice to Connor and as the only little kid on board, he felt special. We headed up the coast and saw some breathtaking scenery. Conditions were perfect (low swell) to allow us to take our small boat directly into one of the sea caves. AWESOME. We backed right in and bobbed around there in the dark for a few minutes. This, however, Connor did not like one tiny bit. He had a mini freak out right there in the cave. But, he sucked it up and it was fine. He did continue to tell us for about an hour after ward that we'd "better not do that again".
Made it to a snorkel spot (forget the name of it but it is the only reef on the Na'Pali Coast) around 9:30. Moored just off a long, wide, inaccessible beach. We let Connor decide if he wanted to try snorkeling or not (no pressure, bra) and one of us was willing to stay on board with him. He decided he wanted to go in and they had big flat, wide swimming noodles (great idea!) for anyone who wanted one (me! me!) and of course he was wearing is life vest, too. So, Bob geared up and swam off and I geared up and got in. The water temp was brisk, but nothing you weren't used to in a minute or two. Connor jumped in to me and his little face looked like he had been slapped. His eyes were like saucers and he said "OH MY GOD THIS I COLD" in the most slow and measured tone I have ever heard him use. I had to convince him that it would get better in few seconds and it did. I then splashed around with him for a few before getting his snorkel on. He's been practicing in the tub at home for the past 4 weeks so he knows the breathing, etc. Once he was situated next to me and we were noodled up, I stuck my face in the water. Wow. Wow. Not a ton of remarkable stuff to see (some of the usual Dorys and Nemos) but DAMN were we in deep water. The deepest water I've ever snorkeled in. Usually I've been in 10-15 feet. This water was 30-40 feet deep and clear through to the bottom. It was interesting to me because you really felt like you were flying above the earth, versus swimming, the distance was so large. So, there I am still thinking "DAMN are we in deep water" and Connor says he's ready. He puts his face in. He turns his head left, then right. He pulls his face out of the water. He rips his snorkel off his face. He looks at me and says "OUT. I want to get out." He was not joking and I understood. I was a little freaked out, too. So, my regular date and I got back in the boat. Bob came back about 10 minutes later and then I went in on my own for about 15 minutes. Nice once you got used to it. When I got back on board, the boys were having a great time feeding tons of fish tons of Cheetos. According to Sam and Nick, Cheetos are the snack food of choice of the reef fish. Nick got in and dove down about 25 feet and popped a bag on the bottom. The feeding frenzy was terrific.
The other fun thing that happened was that we were met by two Mermen on the way back to Hanalei. Apparently, two friends of Sam and Nick had hiked in on the Kalalau Trail (11 miles each way) and were roughing it. As we were returning, Sam and Nick kept an eye out for them. They had swum out past the breakers to meet us and Sam and Nick gave them chips, cookies, sandwiches, and drinks in a dry bag. One of them swam back in to shore with one hand holding the back over his head out of the water. These boys are fit!! The whole thing was too funny. Clearly good friends taking good care of each other. I loved it. It added a personal flavor to the whole morning. By the way, parts of that trail are 1 foot wide on a cliff face. We saw a couple walking that section and the girl was going REALLY slowly and REALLY carefully. You fall, you die. And these people have massive packs on their back.
Came back to the hotel around noon and spent a few hours at the pool. The boys are napping now, and I am not far behind them. Don't know what we're doing for dinner yet, but we'll "figga" it out, as they say.
Landed just before sunset, jammed our stuff in the rental car and headed to the north side. Took about 35 minutes to get to the hotel but it was a nice drive. http://www.princevillehotelhawaii.com/ Lobby, as reported on TripAdvisor, is breathtaking. We're using points and got a bargain point rate and a free 5th night. The hotel is closing in September for a total refurb after which it will be rebranded a St. Regis and we'll never be able to afford to stay here again. It is beautiful. There were some "so-so" reviews on TA--glad we ignored them. Our room is very big and we have an ocean view out onto Hanalei Bay.
Ordered room service (Thanks, Nana!!!), showered, and went to bed around 9pm at which point we were all bumbling idiots. At midnight, the alarm clock went off. ARRGGHHH. I was very confused and had a hard time turning it off so I just turned down the volume of the Hanalei Moon CD that had begun to play.
Day 2 so far has been great. Woke up around 5 am and headed into Hanalei for our boat tour up the Na'Pali Coast. Grabbed some coffee at a cute little place called Java Kai and sat on their lanai until check in time at 7:15am. I had a Maui Mocha (coconut) and it was scrumptious. We'll probably eat in town since no one needs a $30 dollar breakfast at the hotel. Hanalei is a cute little area with juice huts and restaurants galore.
After reading tons of reviews we decided to take our tour with Na'Pali Catamaran. http://www.napalicatamaran.com/ The shuttle ride left at 7:30 am and took us about 5 minutes away to the beach at Hanalei Bay. We waded out and piled into a motorized outrigger canoe and they shuttled us to the boat. There were fourteen passengers on board. Our captains, Nick and Sam, were about 20 years old (if that) but they were clearly experienced and we felt confident in their hands. They were super nice to Connor and as the only little kid on board, he felt special. We headed up the coast and saw some breathtaking scenery. Conditions were perfect (low swell) to allow us to take our small boat directly into one of the sea caves. AWESOME. We backed right in and bobbed around there in the dark for a few minutes. This, however, Connor did not like one tiny bit. He had a mini freak out right there in the cave. But, he sucked it up and it was fine. He did continue to tell us for about an hour after ward that we'd "better not do that again".
Made it to a snorkel spot (forget the name of it but it is the only reef on the Na'Pali Coast) around 9:30. Moored just off a long, wide, inaccessible beach. We let Connor decide if he wanted to try snorkeling or not (no pressure, bra) and one of us was willing to stay on board with him. He decided he wanted to go in and they had big flat, wide swimming noodles (great idea!) for anyone who wanted one (me! me!) and of course he was wearing is life vest, too. So, Bob geared up and swam off and I geared up and got in. The water temp was brisk, but nothing you weren't used to in a minute or two. Connor jumped in to me and his little face looked like he had been slapped. His eyes were like saucers and he said "OH MY GOD THIS I COLD" in the most slow and measured tone I have ever heard him use. I had to convince him that it would get better in few seconds and it did. I then splashed around with him for a few before getting his snorkel on. He's been practicing in the tub at home for the past 4 weeks so he knows the breathing, etc. Once he was situated next to me and we were noodled up, I stuck my face in the water. Wow. Wow. Not a ton of remarkable stuff to see (some of the usual Dorys and Nemos) but DAMN were we in deep water. The deepest water I've ever snorkeled in. Usually I've been in 10-15 feet. This water was 30-40 feet deep and clear through to the bottom. It was interesting to me because you really felt like you were flying above the earth, versus swimming, the distance was so large. So, there I am still thinking "DAMN are we in deep water" and Connor says he's ready. He puts his face in. He turns his head left, then right. He pulls his face out of the water. He rips his snorkel off his face. He looks at me and says "OUT. I want to get out." He was not joking and I understood. I was a little freaked out, too. So, my regular date and I got back in the boat. Bob came back about 10 minutes later and then I went in on my own for about 15 minutes. Nice once you got used to it. When I got back on board, the boys were having a great time feeding tons of fish tons of Cheetos. According to Sam and Nick, Cheetos are the snack food of choice of the reef fish. Nick got in and dove down about 25 feet and popped a bag on the bottom. The feeding frenzy was terrific.
The other fun thing that happened was that we were met by two Mermen on the way back to Hanalei. Apparently, two friends of Sam and Nick had hiked in on the Kalalau Trail (11 miles each way) and were roughing it. As we were returning, Sam and Nick kept an eye out for them. They had swum out past the breakers to meet us and Sam and Nick gave them chips, cookies, sandwiches, and drinks in a dry bag. One of them swam back in to shore with one hand holding the back over his head out of the water. These boys are fit!! The whole thing was too funny. Clearly good friends taking good care of each other. I loved it. It added a personal flavor to the whole morning. By the way, parts of that trail are 1 foot wide on a cliff face. We saw a couple walking that section and the girl was going REALLY slowly and REALLY carefully. You fall, you die. And these people have massive packs on their back.
Came back to the hotel around noon and spent a few hours at the pool. The boys are napping now, and I am not far behind them. Don't know what we're doing for dinner yet, but we'll "figga" it out, as they say.
1 comment:
How cool to get to read about your vacation as its happening! Enjoy every moment. Next time I'm coming with you!
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