"Treasures of Cruising the World" with Bill & Mary Ann: Report #18 Kona, Hawaii October 11, 2016 Tuesday Partly sunny & 88 degrees Part # 1 of 3 84 Pictures

Our last port of call in the state of Hawaii was Kona, situated on the southwest coast of the big island. The population is around 12,000. Actually for the size of the state, only 150,000 people live here. The mountain range in the backdrop of the city is Hualalai with the elevation of 8275 feet. It is the 3^rd most historically active volcano on the island. It is on these slopes that the famous Kona coffee plantations exist. Also grown here macadamia nuts, avocados, and assorted citrus.

The Amsterdam dropped anchor right outside the town, then we used the tender boats to go ashore. Usually, it is very dry and comfortable on this side of the island. But today was different, because it was humid and very warm.

We waited to go ashore, since getting there too early, you find little opened. So leaving by 11am, the boat was not crowded for 15 minute ride to the pier. The drop off is right on Alii Drive, the main shopping and dining avenue.

This was the last chance for a Walmart stop, as there was a free shuttle ride there. Our tablemates from England made a point to go there today, and take advantage of the terrific prices. As for us, we have not been to this particular store in Kona, but if we needed anything, we would have gone.

We heard that we just missed the annual Ironman World Championship Triathlon, which took place in Kona just last weekend. The locals told us that it was a crazy week for all that work here. Business was booming. But so was the traffic, which slowed to a crawl. There were a lot of souvenir t-shirts still being sold in the shops.

The first landmark we came across was the Hulihee Palace, the former vacation home for Hawaiian royalty. These days, the house has been transformed into a museum. It is the backyard that is interesting, because there is a seawall below the grass where you can watch for green turtles. We were not disappointed, because the turtles were there, trying to eat algae on the rocks. At high tide, the waves roll right against the volcanic rocks, and they are filled with tropical fish. No need to snorkel, because they are right off shore in the clear, clean water. You have to watch, however, because at any given time, a wave will send spray to soak you.

Directly across the road from this house is the oldest Hawaiian Christian church Mokuaikaua. It is built with rock and coral.

Continuing on, we passed by several souvenir shops, cafes, restaurants, and eventually hotels. One place we never miss is the fruit and veggie market. There are tents set up with island treasures like jewelry, shell art, as well as every exotic fruit that you can find in Hawaii. Everything is reasonably-priced here.

Further up the road, we came across Bubba Gumps and decided it was a good time to have lunch. Ice cold soda sure sounded good at this point. Not too crowded yet, we got a table right on the patio over the surf. The breeze was priceless. And the food was good.

We continued our walk to the largest hotel, the Royal Kona Resort. This looked like a nice place to spend a week or so. It had everything such as a huge restaurant and bar, shops, even a place for a small wedding, and a nice swimming pool. We did not see any beachfront, because there are no big long stretches of beach here.

On the way back, we took a look into the Catholic church, St. Michael, the Archangel. It looked fairly new to us. Besides Protestant, the other popular religion here is Mormon.

We had to stop at Scandi's, the shave ice shop. This was our last chance to indulge. Ordering a medium one, we ended up with a huge one to share. It's fun just watching them make it. A scoop of ice cream is in the middle, then surrounded by fine ice shavings, and packed tightly. The syrups (three flavors) were added over the top. We tried root beer, orange, and pina colada. It looked like a really good Halloween treat with the fall colors.

Time to go back, we found that some folks were coming back from the tours. They may have taken the progressive brunch tour for 4 hours at $160. Or perhaps the Atlantis submarine dive for 1 ¼ hours for $130. The glass bottom boat might have been a better deal for $40 for one hour.

If you missed seeing Volcanoes National Park yesterday, you could have done it from this side of the island. A 7 hour tour ran about $110 with a lunch. A different type of excursion was the progressive brunch, where you go to three different locations for a three-course meal.

Many years ago, we snorkeled at the Captain Cook monument a bit down the coast from Kona. That is the spot where he landed in 1778, and unfortunately, later died there. Something we will never forget, was being joined by several spinner dolphins, a protected species. We were summoned out of the water and back into the boat. Thinking that it was dangerous to be in the water with them, we now know that there is a law that we have to keep a specific distance from them. Of course, they are capable of ramming and injuring sharks, so who knows?

It was most uncomfortable sitting in the tender boat, waiting to leave. It would be a far better idea to keep the group on shore, under the tent, until the correct number of passengers were there to fill the boat. But what do we know? Most all of us were happy to get back to the air-conditioning.

Sail away was at 5:30pm. Although it was not advertised, location guide, Kainoa, gave a farewell send-off ceremony for all of us. A new location team from Polynesia joined us, and even passed around shell necklaces and bracelets to all who attended. The traditional tiare and plumeria flowers were handed to all as well.

The sun went down rapidly right after 6pm. The horizon was fairly clear, but there were just enough clouds to prevent that green flash. By the time we got a few kilometers out to sea, the winds picked up, and the folks scattered. Time to get ready for dinner. We wondered if we might be sailing near the lava flow, but that was not going to happen. Apparently, some passengers began a rumor yesterday that we were going to see the lava flow on our way to Kona last night. However, we sailed around the top of the island. Guess there were a lot of grumpy disappointed folks today. We have been lucky enough to have seen this lava flow at night on another cruise line years ago. It was unannounced, and done spur-of-the-moment. Never expected to do that on the Amsterdam, since we are now headed directly south towards Fanning Island.

There were five of us at dinner tonight. We understand that the other couple have not been feeling well, so have eaten in the Lido every day. Bet they all show up tomorrow, the next Gala night. Once again, the food was good with a shrimp Caesar salad, and beef tenderloin. One of us had the Asian noodle entrée, which was light for a change. Having had a taste of the beef, that may have been a better choice. Oh well, maybe next time.

The entertainment tonight was Pete Neighbour, a clarinet player. He played swing era jazz for the crowd.

We must have hit some strong winds and currents, because the ship began to rock and roll around 10pm.

Looking forward to two days at sea………

Bill & Mary Ann

Coming into Kona, Hawaii