Postcards from Summer: Hawai'i, part I

I have a confession:  Two weeks ago, I played hookey from school (okay, fine, I did tell my professors) and took one last summer hurrah! on an escape to the Big Island of Hawai'i.  I had never been before, and it. was. awesome.  There's by far too much to fit into one post, so instead, here's Part I (already, in and of itself, too big and long).  Click on the top photo to launch a gallery, full-screen view!

[mauna ulu]

The Big Island of Hawai'i was definitely not what I had expected.  From stereotypes and the movies, I thought Hawai'i was going to be nothing but white sand beach after beach after beach.  Before we left, I complained to my travel companion, "But I'm going to be so bored sitting on the beach all day doing nothing!"  (Yes, I know I'm ridiculous, complaining about going on vacation.)  But, suffice it to say, I was very pleasantly surprised.

Our first stop was Volcano (for some reason, I couldn't get this movie out of my head while I was there).  Rocks, steam vents, volcanic fog (aka: 'vog'), pāhoehoe and 'a'ā lava flows, barren black earth.  It was a reminder of how terrifying but amazing the natural world is.  And it was a geology-enthusiast's dream. Yay for the Roadside Geology of Hawai'i!-- and Yes, I'm a geek who vacations with a geology book. So what?

Then, there were the rainforests.  Mosquito-filled, yes.  But beautiful and lush nonetheless.  I don't think I have ever seen so much green growing upon green growing upon green in my life.... and then suddenly, the green would open up to reveal dramatic waterfalls, with little magic rainbows reflected off of them in the mornings.  One of the places we stayed, too, was tucked away right smack dab in the middle of the rainforest, perched on the hillside of the Volcano.  You must stay here.  It is unspeakably amazing.  Oh, and then there were these wonderful and wise-looking  banyan trees whose majesty just couldn't fit in the 24mm frame of my camera.  And the drives to the ocean through the forests!  *sigh!*

[akaka falls]

[to Kapoho Bay]

Stay tuned next time for the Ocean and what we ate (because this is a foodie journal, of course!).

more Postcards from Summer:

the French Laundry, Yountville, California

Hakone Gardens, California

Yosemite Valley, California

Edinburgh, Scotland