Aloha Christmas: Part 2

After a few days in Honolulu, Oahu, we traveled to Kona, Hawaii (the big island). We arrived and had just enough time to drive to our condo, get groceries, change, and head back to the airport to pick up Justin and Zach, who were flying in together. Mari and I got dressed up to give them a proper Hawaiian greeting. We received many strange looks from travelers at the airport, but we didn't care.

Reunited!

Right away I was surprised at the contrast in nature on the big island. A lot of parts are still completely covered in black lava with no vegetation at all.
And other places are lush and beautiful.

One afternoon we drove to a beautiful hotel where we got to see dolphins in training. We enjoyed eating pupus (appetizers) while watching them swim and practice their tricks.

We went for a boat ride around the hotel which was a lot of fun. And I am pretty sure this is the same hotel where a "Saved by the Bell" episode was filmed (the one where Jessie's dad gets married).


While shopping one afternoon we decided to stop for smoothies. We found a sweet little place with a beautiful view. While gazing out appreciating the view, we spotted dolphins!

After dinner one night I decided to order a piece of mud slide pie for dessert. My jaw dropped when I saw the size of this thing...Oh yeah! Between the seven of us, we managed to take care of this bad boy. Dad was pretty excited.

Watch out- sneak hug attack!

We drove to Mt Kilauea (an active volcano) and spent the day sight seeing. We toured a museum, and drove to different parts of the volcano. Below is a picture of Mom, Mari and me in front of a the crater on Mount Kilauea (you can see the gas rising from it).

We walked around and saw the many steam vents- too cool!

Here we are inside a lava tube.

Another picture of Mount Kilauea.

One rainy afternoon we decided to go to a coffee plantation and we ended up at Mountain Thunder Coffee Plantation which turned out to be a pretty famous one! They have been featured on the show "Dirty Jobs." We took an interesting tour and learned all about how coffee is made. The owner talked with Dad and Justin so Mari snuck in the back ground for a quick picture with the famous coffee plantation owner. (She's so funny!)

Another neat spot was Punalu'u Black Sand Beach.

Turtle!

We spent an afternoon visiting Pu'uhonua o Honaunau National Historic Park which translates to Place of Refuge at Honaunau. It is a 420 acre religious sanctuary. Up until the 19th century, Hawaiians who broke a kapu (an ancient law) could flee to this place to avoid punishment or death for their crime. Once the offender reached the refuge, he was safe from punishment and would be absolved by a priest and freed to leave.




When we weren't out sightseeing, we spent our time relaxing by the pool and hanging out in the condo.

Zach even made a new little friend!

It wouldn't be a true Mallekoote vacation without Scrabble. Daniel was my teammate.

Zach and "D" chill'n.

On Christmas Eve, we ate at a nice restaurant with a gorgeous view of the sunset.


Christmas Day was a traveling day for us. So we enjoyed a delicious Christmas lunch at McDonald's.

This is a picture of our gate at the airport- I love Hawaiian airports!