We've been enjoying our short Hawaiian stay, playing tourist most of the time. A couple days after we arrived, Connie and I caught another short flight to the "Big Island" (Hawaii). We were here to visit Connie's cousin, Jack Lane and his wife Sandy. They moved here a few years ago and have a beautiful home overlooking the ocean. They're living the paradise life many people dream about.
We spent the day on a road trip seeing various local sights. This included a small honey/coffee farm, views of a couple scenic beaches and bays, a delicious donut shop, and Hikiau Heiau. The Hikiau Heiau is an ancient Hawaiian temple site that was built by King Kalani'opu'u. It is a luakini (human sacrifice) heiau. This historic landmark is a great spot to view the Captain Cook monument on the Kealakekua Bay. This is where Captain Cook was killed.
We also visited "South Point", the Southernmost point of the United States and the Pu'uhonua O Honaunau National Historical Park. Imagine you had just broken the sacred laws, the kapu, and the only punishment was death. Your only chance of survival is to elude your pursuers and reach the Puʻuhonua, a place of refuge. The Puʻuhonua protected the kapu breaker, defeated warriors, as well as civilians during the time of battle. No physical harm could come to those who reached the boundaries of the Puʻuhonua.
Our final destination was Hawaii Volcanoes National Park where we viewed inside a steaming volcano. It was a great trip. It was nice to see some of the "real" Hawaii, compared to the overpopulated and built-up Honolulu. That evening, we sat out on their Lanai watching the sunset. Connie enjoyed feeding the birds. After staying a couple nights, it was time to return to the island of Oahu. On our return to the airport, we made one last stop at "Kona Joes", a coffee shop. Kona coffee is expensive! It was $50 for an 8oz bag. It was great seeing Jack and Sandy again. They were great hosts!
Back on Oahu, we had a quick get together with old RVers friends, Jack & Jeanne Albers. We then continued playing tourist and spent the afternoon at Pearl Harbor. Visiting the USS Arizona monument is free, but reservations are recommended. We had our reservations, but they weren't busy and let us go out earlier than planned. We enjoyed visiting the USS Arizona monument and viewing the museum explaining the attack on Pearl Harbor.
The next day was spent driving to the North Shore of Oahu. We stopped at the Dole Pineapple Plantation. We viewed various demonstrations and sampled pineapple. The next stop was to the North Shore, where we enjoyed a great Shrimp lunch. The rest of the drive was around the island, taking in scenic views of surfers and the ocean coast.
Yesterday, Connie and I met up with my nephew Jason and his son JJ. It had been quite a few years since we've seen him. Afterwards, we headed out to view a couple military recreation areas. I needed to get updated information, photos, and videos for my website on U.S. Military Campgrounds and RV Parks.
Today, we're heading out to a couple more military recreation areas. Tomorrow is our last day in Hawaii, and for our "Epic" Adventure 2022. We're catching a late-night red-eye flight back to Phoenix, Arizona. But this trip isn't over with yet!