Hawaii – Kona Day 14

Posted on November 30, 2020 by jmatie22

Last day in Hawaii, which was pretty packed with small stops.

Started the day going to Green Flash Coffee. Here are the details:

http://food.johnmatienzo.com/2020/11/30/green-flash/

Then headed to Kahalu’u beach to get in some last minute snorkeling. I gotta say I liked the diversity of fishes here better than Captain cook monument (but the corals at captain cook were much better, and there were dolphins there). NJ did mention though he saw a turtle in the water while snorkeling.

After the beach, we cleared out our AirBnb (will always have the memories of watching season 28 of survivor there). We then dropped our bags of at Janie’s new place which is near Da poke shack.

From there, we headed to Kona Coffee and Tea to pick up some souvenirs (got some medium roast coffee. I also wanted to get the chocolate covered espresso macadamia nuts, but they ran out :().

We then headed to Kona Brewery, where we had a late lunch. Details can be found here:

http://food.johnmatienzo.com/2020/11/30/kona-brewery/

After the brewery, we stopped by a small chocolate shop called Puna (had an art exhibition in the upstairs). Got a chocolate covered stroopwafel, which was pretty good.

We then headed to HiCo, where I got an iced mocha plus a spam musubi. Here are the details: http://food.johnmatienzo.com/2020/11/25/hico/

After, we went to costco to grab some additional souvenirs (macadamia nuts plus Kona account Crunch coffee).

After Costco, we quickly rushed to Pine Trees Beach to see a glimpse of the sunset. Afterwards, headed to ABC to get some souvenirs (a shot glass, a coaster, some chocolate covered macadamia nuts, and a shirt).

The last stop before heading to the airport was Janie’s place to eat a Sushi dinner (ordered from Sushi Cocoro & Udon, which details can be found here: http://food.johnmatienzo.com/2020/11/30/sushi-cocoro-udon/).

We then dropped off our Jeep at Hertz, and boarded our flight. Till next time Hawaii!!!

Some things to check out next time I visit Big Island:

-Narnia

-Resort area 25 miles north of Kona (where there is other types of nightlife)

Hawaii – Kona Day 13

Posted on November 29, 2020 by jmatie22

We started off this day by traveling along Alii drive. We went into town first, where I was able to try an açaí bowl at Kona Wave Cafe (recommended by several of our friends). I thought it was was really good. Here are the details:

http://food.johnmatienzo.com/2020/11/29/kona-wave-cafe/

We then meandered to this beach in Kaloko-Honokōhau national park. We were promised several turtles by the park ranger, but only found one (see the pic below).

After the beach, we headed back to Keck, to see the sun set below the clouds, and the telescopes. Some tips about getting to the summit. First, you should drive to the visitor center and stay there for 15 minutes to acclimatize to the altitude. Second, the summit is like 1 degree Celsius, so wear winter clothes if possible. Third, you need a 4×4 to go past the visitor center. Four, park your Jeep facing the telescopes and sunset (so you can hop in and out of the car).

After Keck, we drove to Ola brewery to have dinner, and then stopped by MyBar for a quick drink. Updated Ola Brewery comments are in here: http://food.johnmatienzo.com/2020/11/22/ola-brewery/

We then headed to Dersu and Elsa’s to end the night with more drinking 🙂

Hawaii – Kona Day 12

Posted on November 28, 2020 by jmatie22

We spent this day on the east side of the Big Island, Hilo.

Started off the day driving through the two highways that cuts through the center of the island (190 and 200). Great scenic drive, where you can see the volcano mountain, and where the solidified lava stopped flowing, and the mountain where the Keck is on.

First stop when we approached Hilo was Rainbow Falls. This was an easy attraction (just needed to drive up to it). Unfortunately no rainbow as found at the falls 🙁

We then made our way to Akaka falls. There was a $5 fee per person at the entrance, but definitely worth it. The trail to the falls was a tropical rainforest. It was awesome to see so much biodiversity. It was like being in Animal Kingdom in Disney land, but it’s actually the real thing!

After the falls, we drove by the main part of town, and even saw the statue of the last King of Hawaii. We then drove along Kamehameha street (it was along the perimeter of water at Hilo and it’s actually the word used in Dragon Ball Z), leading up to the place where we had a late lunch near Carlsmith beach at a place called the ponds. Here is the info:

http://food.johnmatienzo.com/2020/11/28/ponds-hilo/

(On a side note, I definitely see how Kona is a more developed and richer part than Hilo. Also, Hilo’s older part of town is really run down).

After eating, quickly made our way to Carlsmith beaches we didn’t really get into, but the water looked pretty clean, with really no rocks or coral or waves. Would have been great to take a dip at this easy beach. Also, the greenery leading up to the beach was different.

We then headed over to the adjacent beach, Richardson. The greenery leading up to the beach was amazing. We also saw several (large) turtles, and the waves at the beach were pretty awesome.

After the beach, we quickly swung by University of Hawaii. It’s not that big, was looked like a typical University. To end the night, we quickly checked out the Keck (visitor’s center). Temperature was pretty chilly, but it was definitely noticeable you were closer to the stars. Hot chocolate plus looking through binoculars made a difference.

Hawaii – Kona Day 11

Posted on November 27, 2020 by jmatie22

This day was mainly focused on Thanksgiving.

Started off the day by going to KTA to buy groceries and alcohol for Thanksgiving dinner. Also grabbed poke for lunch / snack from KTA. You can find the details here: http://food.johnmatienzo.com/?p=1156

After KTA, we spent a couple of hours at On the Rocks, since Ben has not been before, and I definitely wanted him to check out the view. Here are the details: http://food.johnmatienzo.com/2020/11/25/on-the-rocks/

We then got back to our AirBnB to make the food for Thanksgiving dinner. I made bacon Mac and cheese, plus regular Mac and cheese (both from the “deluxe” version of Kraft Dinner). Ben made meatballs (and regular meatballs) plus spaghetti.

For Thanksgiving dinner, we headed to Brittany’s place. Pictures can speak for themselves 🙂

http://travel.johnmatienzo.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/img_7272-1.mov