Big Island: Saturday, December 12, 2009
This morning we woke and enjoyed the continental breakfast in the Gold Lounge again. The ladies that work at the concierge desk there are so nice. In fact, everyone at the hotel is extremely nice. You truly feel welcome and appreciated as a guest here. This morning's hot breakfast dish was apple crepes and they were fabulous!
After getting our fill of breakfast, we took off down the road a few short miles to the Hilton Waikoloa Village where my sales contact left some pool passes for me. After way too much walking around, we ended up at the hotel's lagoon for a short swim. We decided that the property would be great for people with young kids given the waterslide and all, but for us, not so much.
We jumped back in the car and headed to Waikoloa Town to do a little exploring. Well, come to find out Waikoloa doesn't really have much other than residences and one gas station. We were about to make our way back when I noticed a little area where there were a few shops. We were sad to see a lot of vacancy signs, but there was one restaurant called Anthony's Irish and Italian Bistro & Pub. Interesting combination so we decided to try it out. I had some wonderful potato soup and Terry had his favorite sandwich the Reuben. We chatted with a couple of locals and then were on our way back to the hotel.
Terry wanted some pool time but I was still in the mood to explore. I dropped him off and continued down Queen Kaahumanu Highway up until it intersected with 270. I continued up a while until I reached the North Kohala sign, and after not seeing much other than a small marina and a few little seaside shops I decided to turn around and get back onto Route 19.
I drove up about 10 miles into Waimea. What a cute little town! I stopped in to a cute little shopping area where they had lots of locally made arts and crafts. There were nice paintings, beautiful jewelry and loads of other wares. I stopped into the little coffee shop and ordered a Tahitian vanilla malted milkshake, got back into the car and drove back.
As I said, Waimea is a cute little town, but part of its charm lies in its beautiful countryside. The gorgeous, rolling green hills are dotted with cattle. The road is also lined with adorable little cottages and bed & breakfasts. Of course the twisty road was also lots of fun to drive on with the Mustang's top down.
On the way back to the Fairmont, I decided to make a quick stop at Hapuna Beach State Park just to check it out. It was perfect - a large, sandy beach and great waves. I quickly hopped back in the car and called Terry to have him grab some beach towels and hop in the car. We made our way back but I accidentally made a wrong turn and ended up at Puako Beach instead. We decided to check it out and spent a little time there. The beach was much smaller, very busy and had lots of rocks as well. After a short time, the screeching kids got to us, so we decided to try once more to find Hapuna.
As I thought, only a short distance down the highway was the park. We found a great parking spot and made our way out onto the sand. The waves were great for boogie boarding (though we didn't have one) and the water was the perfect temperature - warm enough to swim in but cool enough to refresh us. We ended up enjoying our final Hawaiian sunset on Hapuna Beach, and it was a beauty. I got tons of pictures and now just have to sort through them for the best of the best.
Back to the hotel for pupus and a relaxing shower. I've gotten so comfortable there's no way I want to go anywhere for dinner so I'll either have to bite the bullet and get some overpriced room service food or just survive on taro chips and Diet Coke.
Tomorrow morning we leave for the mainland. Oh how we will miss Hawaii! It's truly one of the most beautiful places on Earth.
After getting our fill of breakfast, we took off down the road a few short miles to the Hilton Waikoloa Village where my sales contact left some pool passes for me. After way too much walking around, we ended up at the hotel's lagoon for a short swim. We decided that the property would be great for people with young kids given the waterslide and all, but for us, not so much.
We jumped back in the car and headed to Waikoloa Town to do a little exploring. Well, come to find out Waikoloa doesn't really have much other than residences and one gas station. We were about to make our way back when I noticed a little area where there were a few shops. We were sad to see a lot of vacancy signs, but there was one restaurant called Anthony's Irish and Italian Bistro & Pub. Interesting combination so we decided to try it out. I had some wonderful potato soup and Terry had his favorite sandwich the Reuben. We chatted with a couple of locals and then were on our way back to the hotel.
Terry wanted some pool time but I was still in the mood to explore. I dropped him off and continued down Queen Kaahumanu Highway up until it intersected with 270. I continued up a while until I reached the North Kohala sign, and after not seeing much other than a small marina and a few little seaside shops I decided to turn around and get back onto Route 19.
I drove up about 10 miles into Waimea. What a cute little town! I stopped in to a cute little shopping area where they had lots of locally made arts and crafts. There were nice paintings, beautiful jewelry and loads of other wares. I stopped into the little coffee shop and ordered a Tahitian vanilla malted milkshake, got back into the car and drove back.
As I said, Waimea is a cute little town, but part of its charm lies in its beautiful countryside. The gorgeous, rolling green hills are dotted with cattle. The road is also lined with adorable little cottages and bed & breakfasts. Of course the twisty road was also lots of fun to drive on with the Mustang's top down.
On the way back to the Fairmont, I decided to make a quick stop at Hapuna Beach State Park just to check it out. It was perfect - a large, sandy beach and great waves. I quickly hopped back in the car and called Terry to have him grab some beach towels and hop in the car. We made our way back but I accidentally made a wrong turn and ended up at Puako Beach instead. We decided to check it out and spent a little time there. The beach was much smaller, very busy and had lots of rocks as well. After a short time, the screeching kids got to us, so we decided to try once more to find Hapuna.
As I thought, only a short distance down the highway was the park. We found a great parking spot and made our way out onto the sand. The waves were great for boogie boarding (though we didn't have one) and the water was the perfect temperature - warm enough to swim in but cool enough to refresh us. We ended up enjoying our final Hawaiian sunset on Hapuna Beach, and it was a beauty. I got tons of pictures and now just have to sort through them for the best of the best.
Back to the hotel for pupus and a relaxing shower. I've gotten so comfortable there's no way I want to go anywhere for dinner so I'll either have to bite the bullet and get some overpriced room service food or just survive on taro chips and Diet Coke.
Tomorrow morning we leave for the mainland. Oh how we will miss Hawaii! It's truly one of the most beautiful places on Earth.
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