Aloha Travelblog, Days 9 & 10 -- Plus Bonus Link!

Day Nine: Before leaving Hilo (and in doing so, Eddie and Amy), we all had a big breakfast together at Ken's 24-hour diner. During our stay in Hilo, we had driven by the place a few times and it had struck me as a kind of Hawaiiana Denny's or Coco's. But once inside, with a scrumptious Vegetarian Benedict and plate of Macadamia nut pancakes in front of me (it's vacation--why not go big?), I understood why Ed and Amy were such fans (they have coconut, mango and lilikoi--passionfruit--syrup for your pancakes, in addition to the traditional maple, folks!), and why there were cars idling out front, waiting for parking spots to become vacant. MMMmmmmmmmm, a great way to begin our travel day.

After visiting the local farmer's market and buying bags and bags of locally grown fruit for a pittance, we cleared out of our condo and began the trip back to Kona. We wanted to take the northern route out, as we had taken the southern route in, so we would be able to see the whole island (at least from the 11, the island's main highway). So Ed and Amy led the way north, escorting us out of Hilo, first jettisoning our main route for a brief detour on a scenic route overlooking a sheltered bay. The road was a like a miniature version of Maui's Road to Hana (which is the twistiest, jungliest, most lush and spectacular road I've ever been on), except this one was only four miles long. Perfect!

We bid farewell to Ed and Amy at the scenic road's nexus with Highway 11, promising to see them again in Northern California for their July wedding. On the rear windshield of their little car I photographed a small sticker that summed up the ethos of the Hawaiian experience perfectly: No Bad Days. Note the palm trees and fluffy clouds in the sticker's reflection, which somehow underscore the message that, sure, real life still happens to everyone and bills still need to be paid and diapers need to be changed, but life somehow seems a little easier to handle in this type of enchanted atmosphere.

Three hours later and we were once again at La Resort de Olivia in Kona, where we spent our final night in Hawaii. That evening John and I dined on Thai food, while Grandma and Finn ate Chinese food (oh, the convenient choices!). Then we shopped for the requisite chocolate-covered Macadamia nuts and Kona coffee and watched our friend shake her island thang, as she does every Wednesday night just for the love of it, with the rest of the lovely hula troupe. It was a great way to spend our final night in the islands.



Day Ten: Time to head back home. Truth be told, as hard as it was to travel with two small children (much more so than I had anticipated), the hardest part of the trip was coming home. It was a delightful respite and celebration and I'm so grateful we took the opportunity to go. I couldn't imagine a better way to mark John's 40th birthday, except by bringing a nanny, housekeeper, and a cook. Maybe next time. Or in the next lifetime.

Special bonus link: For those of you interested in seeing even more photos of our Big Island 2006 trip, click here.