Big Island

Poke, Kalua Pig, Lomilomi!

~ tanlandia ~ 1 Comment

Hawaii definitely has it’s good eats on the island. I was more up to venturing off our hotel to get a little more of the local cuisine. We found a fantastic little caffe in a neighboring town to where we stayed which we went to more than once! We just stumbled upon Waimea Coffee Company on our own, and it was the best ever. The pour over was so smooth, and the acai bowls and smoothies we had were also excellent. What we liked most about this place was it was a very “locals only” joint, and even had some musicians playing inside on a Sunday morning – I loved that! Clearly it was the place to be. We also noticed what looked like to be a very popular Hawaiian breakfast spot across the street, Hawaiian Style Cafe, it was too heavy for us Tans, but would recommend it to anyone looking for a comforting morning meal.

Me diving into my acai bowl and Nick enjoying breakfast at the Mauna Kea. Surprisingly only dined at the restaurant one morning.

One day we were on the beach, we noticed two couples who, from what it seemed, met at the hotel in the previous day and were exchanging restaurant recommendations. My ears perked up and I listened intently to what they had to say. From what I gathered, “Merriman’s” was the place to go. Checking it out online, it looked great! The Chef, Peter Merriman, originally from Pennsylvania, came out to the Big Island for what he thought was just a few months to work in the kitchen of the Mauna Lani Bay Hotel, and hasn’t left since. He is one of the 12 famous chefs to help create and popularize what is “Hawaiian Regional Cuisine” and has opened several restaurants throughout Hawaii. After dining at Merriman’s on this past trip, I would definitely say it was the best meal I have had in Hawaii to date.

Dinner at Merriman’s. Best poke I have ever had in my life, and warm chocolate dessert – need I say more?!?! I love me a chocolate purse.

The last (but not least) dining experience that I will note was the LUAU we went to!!! It was my first time going to a Luau (and 4th trip to Hawaii!) and it was sensational!!! The Mauna Kea Beach Hotel has the best luau on the island and I was very impressed! The hula dancers, flame twirlers, food, music, Mai-Tai’s, it was all great!!! Nick and I had a wonderful time with lots of great food, plus I got my fill of that Hawaiian macaroni salad we all know and luck (but hate to admit!)

The Hawaiian feast!!!! Yumm!

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Such a beautiful place!!

*mere*

Lava Flow – to the Volcano we go!

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Lava flows. Nicks favorite drink when we are in Hawaii. I however mean it more in the literal sense, and our next stop was to Volcano National Park! It was quite the adventure to get there, a 3 hour trek by car (Jeep Wrangler, thanks Dollar Rental) with a few stops along the way to break up the drive.

First we went to Waipio Valley, which is absolutely breathtaking! I love the big cliff formations along the coast and we were all geared up to go for a hike down to the black sand beach, however this was closed due to Dengue fever, so stayed out of there, took a pic from the top, and were on our way!

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Next we stopped off to see Akaka Falls. There is a nice manicured footpath through what feels like the jungle to get to a nice viewing spot to see the falls. At 422 ft, it was quite impressive!

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We got caught in some rain so a bit misty in the pic!

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Volcano National Park. We made it! And I loved it! The park was huge ($15 to enter at the time), so the best way to get around is to drive throughout the park, stopping off at different points along the road of tour to learn and see more about the volcanoes and geology of the area. There are also hiking trails scattered throughout the park. You could really spend days there! See some pictures below!

 

At the Caldera, where this is still lava flowing as this is an ACTIVE VOLCANO. We live on the edge.

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Hiking through the lava rocks!

Nick photo shoot

Mere photo shoot

More shots of the park

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*mere*

Mauna Kea

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Aloha! Driving up along the Kohala coast, we made it to our hotel and were greeted with lei’s by the Mauna Kea staff. The Mauna Kea Beach Hotel is classic Hawaii. Being built in 1965 by Laurance S. Rockefeller (HI became a U.S. state in 1959), it was at the time the grandest, most exclusive, and expensive hotel in its day. It was fun to be there during its 50th year of being open, albeit with renovations, expansions, and rebuilding from an earthquake in 2006, it still resembles much of what it was on opening day.

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In the open aired lobby!

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Our room was spectacular. Sunset views of the beach with an endless ocean and palm trees wafting in the breeze. This feels like vacation. We have the obligatory drink of Champagne and our holiday was off to a fantastic start.

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Nick with some bubbly, vacation mode ON.

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Sunset from our room – unreal!

The beach at the Mauna Kea is what stands out most to me. A true white sand beach with corals to snorkel, but just around the edges of the coves. It was perfect for swimming, and I even got my “handstand” in the water done, which is always a must do for me, sadly, no picture to prove it. One day I even saw a sea turtle paddling along through the water, it was so neat!

 

 Beach pics! Isn’t it magical!

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Had to post this one of Nick – vacation has started! Aloha!

*mere*

 

Big Island, Big Adventure. Coffee first.

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We just arrived back from a fantastic 5 days on the island of Hawaii. Nick had been several times and surprised me with a visit for a “belated” Birthday celebration. I was always intrigued to visit the Big Island and the mystical places, mostly, the volcanoes!

As soon as we landed we were off. Instead of checking into our hotel, we went straight into Kona to take a visit to the coffee plantations. It was much needed and perfect stop off to start our trip with a quick and “local” way to perk up! Having picked up a few travel books from my local library (which I am a huge fan of!!), Greenwell Farms was recommended as a great spot and luckily it wasn’t too far off the beaten path and it was free!

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Here I am (ignore me post-flight mess) tasting and checking out the Kona coffee – so smooth! And the coffee plants with the beans growing on them! Learned a lot with the little tour we had around the plantation. Very neat and recommended!

*mere*