Hilo, Hawaii
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The first view of our room - at least we had a big window
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Jean gets in an early morning work out
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Our first look at Hilo
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Jean enjoys breakfast outside
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The grounds at the Mauna Loa factory in Hilo
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Yummy macadamia nuts!!
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Steam vents around the Kilauea volcano
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More steam vents
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A close up look at one of the steam vents
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Jean at Kilauea (are you sure we're in Hawaii?)
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Brian at Kilauea (where is the sun, sand, and palm trees?)
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Mauna Loa volcano sits under those clouds
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Mauna Loa - there is actually snow under those clouds with great skiing
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A view of Pele's crater at Kilauea
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A closer view of Pele's crater
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Brian and Jean at Kilauea
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Nene is the state bird of Hawaii and very protected
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A rift formed by earthquakes...this one extends many miles down to the coast
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Another view of the rift
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We are no in the caldera watching the steam rise (nasty smell of sulfur)
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The walking was a rough and the fence in the distance rimmed Pele's crater
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We walked past the ropes and near the edge of the crater
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Brian in Kilauea - no flowing lava here
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A close view of Pele's crater
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This shows the quick drop into the crater
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Jean would get close to the edge but was very nervous
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There were several fruit offerings that were ceremonial tributes to Pele
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Pele was the goddess of fire and ruled the volcanos
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Another of the craters near the top of Kilauea
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The tropical rain forest leading to the Thurston Lava Tube
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Jean posing next to the "snail" tree (doesn't it look like a snail?)
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Jean gets a closer view of the rain forest
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Brian's looking for the lava tube
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Finally...the entrance to the lava tube
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You can see the ripples of the lava that came through here
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The staff decorated towels each night and this was our first display
Maui
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Lava formed this profile along the road in the Iao Valley
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They used to call it Kennedy's profile until the family complained (see it?)
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Ioa Needle at the Iao Valley State Park
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One of four rivers that formed the Iao Valley
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Another view of the river
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Brian and Jean with the Iao Valley in the background and Kahului in the distance
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Brian getting some video tape
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Strong rapids coming down from the mountains
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Another view of the rapids
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Palm frawns are drying in this hut
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Doesn't this look like a catalog pose?
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Jean with the Ioa Needle in the background
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A close up of the drying frawns
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Looking down at some of the gardens at the Ioa Valley State Park
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A look at our shipping sitting in the Kahului harbor
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The south side of the island appeared soon as we headed out of Kahului
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A view of the ocean with Kaho'olawe in the background
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Jean takes her first dip into the Pacific Ocean
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Doesn't she look good?
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She's lost almost 50 pounds in the past year!
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Brian's losing too but not as much...
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Looking south along the beach at Kannapali
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Kids playing in the sand
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Volcanos were a backdrop to everything in Hawaii
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The resort near our beach at Kannapali, an area full of resorts and golf courses
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The beach was nice although there was some greenery..it was VERY windy
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We enjoyed the convertible and our first Hawaiian rainbow
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You can see the ocean through these homes near Kannapali
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Brian shows the Hawaiian greeting known as a "shaka"
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We had dinner at Bubba Gumps Shrimp in Lahaina
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Another towel decoration...
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...side view of the snake
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Jean starts to get a little color after her first day on the beach
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The very colorful bow of the Pride of Hawaii
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From the dock looking toward Kahului. The "V" in the middle is Iao Valley
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Showing the "beautiful" dock area we went through after leaving the ship
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This looks more like Gary, Indiana!
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Haleakala Volcano from our whale watching boat
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The west side of Maui and the beautiful blue ocean
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A lighthouse protecting the Maui coast
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A view back to the Ocean Center where our whale boat left Maui
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An ocean view of Lana'i
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Our captain, Doug, and naturalist, Kim
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Jean is enjoying the sun but fighting the wind (did I saw it was windy?)
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A beautiful view looking up the west coast of Maui toward Lahaina
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The first exhalation...
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Here you see 2 whales sticking out of the water
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The first flute appears
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What a beautiful site...
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...as the whale heads back into the ocean
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Notice the white coloring under the flute
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Another exhalation
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Baby whales have to surface ever 2-3 minutes, adults can go up to 15 minutes
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We took about 80 pictures here and are only posting a few
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A good view of the back of the whale
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Two whales appear in this photo...mom and baby swim together with a male escort
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Another good back shot
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Only a few more whale photos
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Another good flute siting
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Would you believe the whale watchers the day before saw nothing?
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The flute descends
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We love Maui!
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Another whale disappears
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I'm not quite sure what I captured sticking out here
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Two more whales with another boat in the distance
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One of our "postcard shots" with the mountains, ocean, and a rainbow
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No, Jean did not stick her finger in a light socket...I told you it was windy!
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Her hair died down a little for this shot
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Some sea turtles swam near the boat as we headed back to the dock
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Two sea turtles in this picture
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The turtle appeared to float in this very rocky water
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A picture of our whale watching boat
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More towel art
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The lovely, class decor leading to the theater
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We dressed up for dinner the last night in Maui and enjoyed a great steak dinner
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The first night was New Year's Eve although we didn't make it to midnight
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This was the formal photo taken by the ship's photographer
Kona, Hawaii
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In Kona we had to drop anchor in the bay and tender to shore
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They used life boats for tenders...each one held about 60 people!
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Looking slightly south on the Kona coast and many of the water sports
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Jet skiing was one of the excursions we considered
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A vew back to the ship from the port (you can see the tenders next to the ship)
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We took a shuttle to Turtle Bay for sun and snorkling - you can see the ship
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You can see the mix of sand and lava rock on the beach
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Another view of the beach at Turtle Bay with the open air restaurant
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We LOVE Hawaii - swimsuits in January!!
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A view off the front of the ship at sunset - pool is captain's private pool
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The pool deck is lit up at night and very colorful
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Another towel art
Kauai - Helicopter Ride
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Brian awaits his helicopter ride
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This is our helicopter arriving with the previous group
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The instrument panel of our helicopter...I have no idea what any of it says
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The videographer on the right is filming out take-off for the video we purchased
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Jean was initially nervous but she got very excited once we took off
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A resort and golf course on the east coast of Kauai near the airport
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An aerial view of the Pride of Hawaii...it looked much smaller from the air
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Harrison Ford flew over this mountain in the opening scene of Indiana Jones
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Looking west near the peak of the mountain range
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The river below is where Harrison Ford took escaped in Indiana Jones
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This area was a large farm in the valley near Lihue
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It was an overcast day with lots of rain in the mountains
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This was a lake near the top of one mountain that fed many of the waterfalls
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One of many waterfalls
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A river winds through the the valley
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The views from the helicopter were incredible
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Brian had the window seat and was the photographer for the ride
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Flying with the waterfalls
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We had never seen a waterfall curve like this...
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We really like the difference in colors and shadows with the waterfall
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We start to approach Waimea Canyon
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We took over 100 photos during the ride because it was so beautiful
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Somewhere up there is Mount Waialeale, the wettest spot on earth
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The top of the volcano gets 480 inches or rain every year
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Waimea Canyon is nearby but it only gets 20 inches of rain per year
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Waimea Canyon was tabbed by Mark Twain as "The Grand Canyon of the Pacific"
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He was right
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Everywhere we looked was beautiful scenery
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The variety of terains and climates in Kauai was amazing
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Although much smaller, the setting for Waimea was more beautiful than Grand Canyon
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Some areas of rock had a mixture of rock and vegetation
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How can you not fall in love with this island?
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People gather at the observation deck for Waimea Canyon
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Next stop...the Na Pali Coastline
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This area is only accessible by helicopter or boat
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There is a hiking path but it is ranked 8 on a scale of 10 by the Sierra Club
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Our pilot thought that was a soft ranking
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Hang gliding into one of the valleys would be an incredible experience
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The sharp ridges of the coastline make this area very distinctive
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Kauai is known as the "Garden Island" and lived up to that reputation
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We came very close to many of the peaks as we flew in and out of some valleys
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Many waterfalls were just rivers flowing down the side of the cliffs
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I'm running out of things to say about the Na Pali coast
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This is actually one of the first areas of Kauai that was settled
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I thought this was a neat shot through the front of the helicopter as we turned
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The waves crash against the edge of the steep shore
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I believe this was the largest valley carved into the Na Pali coastline
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Someone asked how many waterfalls we saw...we lost count
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A final look at the coastline
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The helicopter ride was the highlight of our entire vacation
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We begin to leave the Na Pali coast and head for the North Shore of Kauai...
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...where we saw the only lagoon in Hawaii
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Even at 1500 feet, we could clearly see the coral at the bottom near Princeville
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We headed back toward the valleys surrounding Mount Waialeale
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This area was covered by rich vegetation and tropical rain forests
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I think this was the Wailua River
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Four waterfalls in one picture
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Did I mention this is the Garden Island?
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Looking back toward Lihue under the clouds
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These forests are common movie sets...Jurassic Park is one example
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They refer to this as the "plains" area of the island...Lihue is in the background
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Wailua Falls...featured in opening of Fantasy Island
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Another view of Wailua Falls
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As opposed to the Honlulu Airport, the Lihue Airport looks Hawaiian and tropical
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Brian and Jean successfully completed their first helicopter ride!
Kauai - On our Own
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The Tunnel Highway created by a line of Eucalyptus trees on the way to Poipu
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Poipu Beach on the south shore of Kauai
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The south shore of Kauai has beautiful resorts and beaches
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The real "Chicken of the Sea"
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Brian now loves to snorkel
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This chicken kept walking around our beach spot and even walked over our towels
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This is now the wallpaper on our computer
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We took several photos at sunset at Poipu Beach
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Beaches dotted with various palms trees create interesting lines
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Here's another post card photo
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Jeaned loved living in a swim suit
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A sailboat is framed by two trees and the lifeguard stand
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The sun shines on the roof of the a playset near the beach
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Brian fashions in his "real" Hawaiian shirt
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Jean poses again on Poipu Beach in Kauai
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Jean had a permanent grin on our face all week
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Brian holds up one of the palm trees
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The sun starts to disappear
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Picnic shelters near the beach
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A beautiful variety of colors are a backdrop to this tree
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One final sunset picture
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Surfboard rental anyone?
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The yellow hibiscus is Hawaii's state flower
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A white swan swims through the pond a the Marriott resort at Poipu
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This "puppy" must have wanted to watch TV
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Sunrise from the ship at Kauai
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The beginning of our last full day in Hawaii
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A closer view of Wailua Falls
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In addition to Fantasy Island, these falls have been used in several movie and TV shows
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We attended mass Sunday morning at Immaculate Conception in Lihue
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Jean behind Immaculate Conception
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We aren't sure if these bushes are naturally shaped or carved but we found a seal
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The reception desk on the ship called this church the "Immaculate Consumption"
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The church provided free shuttles from the ship
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Brian in front of a banana tree
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We may be buying these bananas at Kroger
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The next several photos were taken at the Olson Family Farm - a colorful rooster
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The real "Ugly Duckling"
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The Olson Family Farm had several peacocks
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We unfortunately never saw one open its feathers
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A replica of the Easter Island Statue - "Gum Gum" as the boys call him
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Brian digs for a little gold
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Another peacock
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Another postcard photo
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As Erik would call this...Panda heaven with lots of bamboo!
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Another interesting chicken
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A white swan
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One of the few butterlies that stopped long enough for a photo
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The male peacocks have the long feathers and they are used to attract mates
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Bird of Paradise
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Surfboarding near Kapaa on the east coast
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These are relatively small waves for Hawaii but they looked big enough
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"Catch a wave and your sitting on top of the world"
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The Sleeping Giant
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Aloha...welcome to Kauai
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Brian enjoys a tropical drink...a pineapple smoothie
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Sunbathers gather on the sun deck on the Pride of Hawaii
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The Lihue lighthouse and a sailboat
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We leave the port at Lihue
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Lihue is over the trees and you can see the lights from the HS football field
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The ship sailed around the Na Pali coast after leaving Lihue
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A helicopter similar to our flies along the Na Pali coast
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Several gather on the sun deck to view the Na Pali coast
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More beautiful views
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The east end of the Na Pali coast was transformed via movie magic into an island in the movie South Pacific
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We enjoyed
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Jean models one of her new dresses
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This photo was taken in the atrium of the ship
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We enjoyed a formal Japanese dinner on the last night of the cruise
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With the beautiful weather, it was hard to remember it was Christmas-time
Honolulu
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The resorts of Waikiki Beach can be seen beyond these buildings
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Honolulu's twin towers
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Honolulu Tower is a popular landmark and the tallest building in Honolulu at one time
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The pink palace is one of the main hospitals in Honolulu
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A view of downtown from the Punchbowl
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National Memorial Cemetary of the Pacific at the Punchbowl
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Another cemetary photo
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The Hawaii capital building was definitely unique
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The only palace in the United States
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There were some amazing climbing trees in Hawaii...Erik would have loved it
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The Indian Banyan tree has roots connected directly to branches
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A side view of the palace
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Aliilani Hale, formerly seat of government for the kingdom of Hawaii, now the Hawaii Supreme Court
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King Kamehameha was the leader who united the Hawaiian Islands
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Brian and Jean in front of the Kamehameha Statue
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Aloha Stadium, site of the annual NFL Pro Bowl
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A mural of the USS Arizona at the visitor's center
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North Dakota native Jerome Hagen was signing his book at the bookstore
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On the USS Arizona Memorial, the names of the 1177 soldiers who lost their lives
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The buoy shows the stearn of the USS Arizona
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Some of the ship can be seen below the base of the 3rd gun turret
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This starboard side of the ship can be seen below the USS Arizona Memorial
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The USS Missouri was one of the other battleships and this buoy shows the bow location
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Part of the USS Arizona rises above the water
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This picture shows the oil that is still slowly leaking from the ship
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USS Arizona
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The memorial was very moving
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The US Flag flies over the memorial
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A view from the shuttle back to the visitor's center
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A submarine that was part of the Pearl Harbor attacks
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A view of the memorial from the visitor's center
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A model of the the USS Arizona in the visitor center museum
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The people help show the scale of an actual anchor from the USS Arizona
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Jean talks to Grandpa Dave at the Honolulu Airport
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The outdoor walkways behind security gave us one last bit of sun before we left
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A view from the airport back toward the cruise piers
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The Honolulu Airport was very unimpressive
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Kristofer was excited to get his actual Hawaiian pineapple