Well, I am officially in love with Hawaii! I tried to play
hard to get but it’s so difficult… everywhere you look, there is something
beautiful to see, do or eat!
Tuesday, we headed out to Hilo on the east side of the Big
Island for our helicopter ride over the Kilauea volcano eruption. It was
awesome getting into the helicopter and taking off – quick and a little
topsy-turvy! But it was incredible to see the lava fields as we approached the
water: there were patches of land peeking through, sections of road that were
surrounded by lava and destroyed homes. But then we got to the coast and saw
the steam from the lava hitting the cold water – it was incredible! And then we
saw hot magma erupting from the lava fields. What an incredible sight! A once
in a lifetime experience and we felt so honoured to be able to see this
activity as the lava field has been slow for a while but has picked up activity
in the last month.
After the heli ride, we went shopping at Hilo Hattie’s,
Hawaii’s main shop for everything Hawaiian. A girl could go broke walking in
there… Then we made it back to the ship in time for departure. We had a
wonderful dinner and for the first time since boarding, we were treated to the
full cruise experience. Prior to our cruise, the norovirus broke out so the
boat went into some serious preventative safety measures. Plastic wrap over all
food areas, staff had to handle all food and beverages, disinfectant spray on
the hands before and after every meal. They didn’t even put salt and pepper shakers
on the tables. It wasn’t that bad but I really appreciated the dedication and
work of the staff. They all had to pull double and even triple shifts so the
ship could be disinfected repeatedly throughout the day. But because of the
safety measures they implemented so early on, we are back to normal (with no outbreak
on this week’s cruise!). Tuesday night, we danced to disco and ABBA on the pool
deck and just had a great time.
Wednesday morning, I was up early so I could watch us pull
into port in Kona on the west side of the Big Island (and see the sunrise).
This also happens to be the best time to see whales and we were witness to a
whale breaking the water and jumping clear out of the water. What a sight! We
saw more whales while we ate breakfast. Then we were off to Kona. We went to
the Ocean Rider Seahorse Farm, a remarkable facility where learned about
seahorses, preservation and conservation efforts and most amazingly, we got to
hold a seahorse. Mine was a female named Sunshine and she was awesome! What a
great place. After we got back to port, we had lunch along the beach front and
then I had a few minutes to hop into the water to snorkel. Even in the small
bay beside the pier, there were some amazing fish. After a few minutes in the
water, we had to hustle to get to our next excursion. Now, Mom didn’t
participate because we went parasailing! It was so incredibly awesome. Dad and
I went up together and it was like we were kids all over again – we couldn’t
stop giggling! It was a stunning 12 minute flight over the Kona coast: we saw a
few whales in the distance and then a pod of around 50 dolphins right
underneath us. And before we landed back on the boat, we dragged our feet in
the water. It was so much fun!
Once back on board, we went to the third lei making class of
the week. The first class was with kukui nuts, the second was with orchid
flowers and the third was a weaving class. It was a lot of fun and now I have
some leis to bring home with me (along with some mad skills). After our class,
we went for dinner before we just chilled for a few hours. And then last night
was the main event – the White Hot Party! Everyone is encouraged to wear white
and the party lasts until the wee hours. It was a lot of fun – and I love to
dance so I was out there for quite a bit. Later, after the cruise dancers left,
I had the honour to lead a group in Gangnam Style. Now, I only know a few of
the moves but because there wasn’t anybody else there who knew it, I got up
front and led the party! Does this make me a full-blown celebrity!? (I’m
kidding…. but it was a lot of fun!)
So this morning, despite a late night, we were up early
(7am) so we could watch the boat come into port. We are now in Nawiliwili on
the island of Kauai. The harbour in Nawiliwili is the second hardest port to
navigate with a cruise ship in the world. It was designed for a 700ft ship but
the Pride of America is over 900 feet. It involves coming into the far right of
the harbour (along a lava rock cliff), a sharp turn to the left (90 degrees)
and then another sharp turn to the right (back another 180 degrees). It takes
some mad skills to navigate the cruise boat in and they did a perfect job this
morning. And Kauai is so lush… mountains of green jungle. If you have seen
Jurassic Park, you have seen Kauai (the movie was filmed here). So after
breakfast on the lanai, I headed to the hula class before hopping into the
saunas in the boat’s spa. I also had a wonderful pedicure and manicure and then
relaxed pool side. And that is where I am now.
We are well into our week in paradise and I don’t want to
think about leaving. Hawaii is so spectacular and I love everything about it.
Tonight we are going to a luau which I am so excited for. And tomorrow is a
full day of snorkelling before I perform my hula songs on stage.
Aloha from me and mahalo!
Lisa
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