Life is good on the Big Island

So...my sister, Katie, is one of THE most spontaneous girls in the world.  She called me earlier this October to ask if I wanted to come to Hawaii with her.  She was going for a work conference, so I wouldn't have to pay for the car or hotel.  Katie knows me way to well (duh, she's my sister) and knew that I would totally say yes even if it was last minute.  She did the same thing to me when we went together to Europe.  So of course I said yes and thankfully Scott and my parents were on board to help out with Bailey while I was living it up in Hawaii.  Thank you!!!
 We landed in Kona, Hawaii which is on the Big Island and then drove about 20 minutes to Hilton Waikoloa Village.  I'm so glad that Katie's company was paying for it and not me!  Hawaii is a 5 hour time difference, so that took some getting used to.  Pretty much all we did was lounge by the pool and read our first day there.

The view from our room

I kept looking at the clock and was ready to go to bed at 4:00 (Hawaii time), but felt like a loser, so we went to bed at 8:00 instead.  Hey, that's pretty late Texas time (past midnight).  Little did we know there was a tsunami warning that night.  We had no idea; we were dead to the world!

The next day was our ATV tour of Waipio Valley.  It was about an 1 1/2 hour drive to get there and we drove through some pretty breathtaking towns.  One in particular I loved was Waimea.  It was so green and the clouds were low on top of the hills.
 We stopped for lunch and shopping there before heading to Waipio Valley.  I had never been 4-wheeling before.  Scott had one as a kid, so he didn't really think it was such a big deal.  But, I'm sure 4-wheeling in Hawaii is much better than 4-wheeling in Johnson City.  Just sayin', Scott!  Anyway, so we rushed through our safety speech before jumping on our own Honda Rangers.  After a quick little practice circle drive we were off!
I was following Katie and a gal from New Zealand was following me.  Katie should have told them to put her at the front of the pack because she kept tailgating the girl in front of her, while I lagged behind enjoying the gorgeous view.

I loved staring at the eucalyptus trees

 Actually, I liked all the space in front of me, so that I could speed up when I wanted to,especially when it was time to drive through the mud puddles!  This was one of the most amazing things I have ever done in my life!  During the drive up to the top of the mountain we drove through tall eucalyptus trees.  I felt like I was in a scene from Lost minus the smoke monster and random polar bear. At different points in our tour we stopped for some amazing pictures.

Waipio Valley behind us

We also stopped to swim in a waterfall.  Of course Katie was the first to go in and I was going to be a big baby because the water was so cold and it had started to rain slightly, but then I realized that I was in Hawaii and wouldn't have this opportunity ever again.

 

After the waterfall we headed down the mountain to get a better view of Waipio Valley.  It was gorgeous as you can see from the pictures!

 Then, of course, we were exhausted from our 4-wheeling adventure and just relaxed and ate dinner the rest of the night.  Our next day would be spent snorkeling at Hapuna Beach. 

Apparently, Hapuna Beach is rated one of the top 10 beaches in Hawaii and I could see why.  The sand was soft and white.  The water was a gorgeous turquoise and it was perfect for snorkeling.  Katie and I swam out pretty far to a little coral reef to snorkel.  It wasn't very crowded since we were there around 10am, so it was perfect!  After snorkeling we wandered around the beach and found a little cave and rocky area to take pictures, but on the Big Island the rocks are super rough, so it was pretty tough to walk on them barefoot, while putting my camera timer on.  So we finally just set it on the sand.

We continued our snorkeling adventures back at the hotel where they have a salt water lagoon.  The lagoon had much more fish to look at than Hapuna Beach did, so that was nice.  But, the best part were the sea turtles.  I swam right along with 3 of them.  They were huge and so cute!  

We also pool hopped as this place had multiple pools with waterfalls, hot tubs, and waterslides.  And yes, Katie and I went down the waterslides. Katie had to actually work my last day there, but just in the morning.  So, I decided to take a walk along the coast and take some pictures.  The coast on the Big Island is a little different because it's a rocky coast and not a sandy one, so this is what my hike looked like.

Pretty crazy, but they did sort of have a trail for you to follow.  I wasn't exactly climbing over rocks on my hike just walking on smaller ones.  Not your average walk along the beach, but fun and breathtaking none the less! Of course, the rest of the day was spent pool hopping some more before I had to head to the airport that night.  It was a quick, but amazing trip and I'm so glad that I got to go with Katie.  And of course, so very grateful that Scott and my folks helped with Bailey so that I could get this opportunity!