Kailua-Kona - a small town with a big heart; the 'Aloha spirit' truly lives here, in the friendliness of the people and the simple, casual beauty of the place. Restaurants of every ethnic type, gift shops, coffee shops, LOTS of art galleries, the first church in Hawaii (built of lava rock), the huge banyan tree in the center of town, providing welcome shade and always full of birds; the sea promenade along the water, watching boats come and go, or just sitting, sipping a cup of Kona coffee and watching the world go by...
Sunsets - always deep orange or blood red, very quick, an event every evening, as people look for the 'green flash' - we saw it twice!
Birds - colors like jewels, every song imaginable...the morning 'concert' starts at sunrise - no need for an alarm clock...
Flowers - hibiscus, plumeria (there's nothing like the scent of a lei around your neck made up of plumeria!), orchids, anthuriums...we always made sure we had a vase full of these exotic beauties in our condo
Tide pools - formed by lava flows, circles of jagged black rock full of interesting marine life, and particularly the large sea turtles who seem to like basking in the shallow waters of the pools; each morning, we visit the pools, and each morning there are 3 or 4 turtles in the same spot as on the previous day...
Whales & Dolphins - at this time of the year, the humpback whales have migrated to Hawaii, and there is rarely a day you don't see a pod of them, first their spouts, and, if you're lucky, jumping clear out of the water. Dolphins pass the shoreline every day, sometimes 30-40 of them in a pod, and if you're a good swimmer/snorkeller, chances are you'll find a bay where you can swim with them.
Kilauea Volcano - Volcano National Park - first impression, total devastation and unrelieved blackness; look closer and you see new plants and flowers growing out of the lava rock, and the ever-present birds...it's cold up there (4000 foot elevation), but there are steam vents everywhere - you can warm your hands on some of them if you're *really* careful... the smell of sulphur is in the air, and bright yellow sulphur deposits dot the landscape.
Waterfalls/Rain Forest - the rainy north-east coast of the island provides the necessary moisture for tangled rain forests inhabited by a myriad of birds - you don't see them in the dense canopy, but their song follows you everywhere...huge bamboo forests, exotic flowers, and stepping out of the gloomy, moist jungle, a waterfall thunders down a rock face, its mist cooling you down.
Paniolo Country - a huge area of ranch land (owned by Parker Ranch - the largest ranch in the U.S.), lovely rolling hills, cows, horses and sheep, sometimes even the occasional wild donkey...the road winding in and out of forests, all at a cool 1000 - 2500 foot elevation...
There is so much more to this beautiful place - you'll just have to go and see for yourself! :-)
