Ke'e Beach on Kauai

On our last day in Hawaii, we drove along the northern coast of Kauai. We cruised to the end of the road and stopped at the beautiful Ke'e Beach. This beach is said to be one of the most visited beaches on Kauai and is known for amazing snorkeling when the water is calm.

We decided to give one last toast to Hawaii, so as they say - Cheers!
Enjoy this short video of our trip to Ke'e Beach...

Waimea Canyon Hike

Located on the west side of Kauai, the Waimea Canyon is known as the largest canyon in the Pacific. It is often called the "Grand Canyon of the Pacific". It spans 10 miles long, 1 mile wide and over 3,000 feet deep.

Now knowing these stats, you'll understand why if you are a little afraid of heights, the thought of hiking in a place like this might make someone a little nervous. Lucky for me, I didn't know these stats *before* our hike and I managed to make it through our 5 mile hike along the Canyon Trail.

I used the word managed because it was quite challenging for me. The hike is 2.5 miles, all down hill to end up mid way down the canyon to see some of the most beautiful waterfalls and valley views of this amazing landmark. After you make the trek down and observe the wonder of the canyon, you turn around and hike the same 2.5 miles up to make it back out of the canyon. There were several points along the hike up that I wasn't sure if I could make it. I definitely stopped several times along the way and my face turned a rosy shade of red from being exhausted and super hot. But in the end, I finally finished the hike and felt a huge accomplishment.






Check out this video that JJ captured along our hike on the Canyon Trail. I made sure to stay as far away from the edge of the trail as I could and of course, JJ has no fear and practically stands at the very edge of the cliff as he recorded this clip!

Watching the Sunrise...

We woke up in the middle of the night to make the trek up to the top of the Haleakala Crater to watch the sunrise above the clouds one morning while we were on our honeymoon in Maui. The area where people gather to watch the sunrise is around 10,000 feet above sea level. According to the website gohawaii.com, Haleakala means "House of the Sun" in Hawaiian, and from these pictures you can see why.







It was a breath taking experience, full of awe and wonder. Watching the sun as it peaks through the clouds, each ray getting brighter, lighting up the sky. Being present in that moment is something that some people will never get to experience. I found it very emotional and really moving, I'd highly recommend it if you ever visit Maui.

Maui Sunset

This was our view from Fred's Mexican Cafe in Kihei.
One of the best ways to spend a relaxing evening in Hawaii....

Jo Jo's Shave Ice

One of my favorite stops while we were in Kauai was Jo Jo's Shave Ice in Waimea. This place came highly recommended from my "Hawaii travel bible", also know as a book called Kauai Revealed. Now, my love for shaved ice runs deep, so I was really excited to check this place out - and it did not disappoint, it was da 'bomb!

I made it one of my missions while on vacation to test several shaved ice stands and none of them even came close to Jo Jo's. What gave it the edge for me was how tightly packed they got that ice. Must have been the old school shaving machine Jo Jo's uses to shave the huge chunk of ice. They also have to sharpen that blade several times a day to keep up with all the people who stand in line for this fun treat. Enjoy the "tour" of this Kauai gem!
There's nothing special about the building, in fact, it looks kinds scary from the outside, but don't let that stop you if you're ever in the area. This place has a crazy amount of syrup flavors, over 60 to be exact and they've also created some specialty combinations. Some of the flavors that caught my eye were: butterscotch, cinnamon, coffee, mai thi, papaya, and root beer.
In the end, JJ and I ended up going with some simple flavors considering all that they offered. I ordered Strawberry and Passion Orange, and JJ decided on Cherry and Grape, a combo Jo Jo's calls, the plain and simple!
The aftermath....That's right, I even drank the syrup once the ice was gone, that's how good this shaved ice was from Jo Jo's! I tried to convince JJ to drive back to Jo Jo's for one more time before we flew out, but it was a little out of the way, so I guess I'll have to wait until we go back to Kauai, and believe me, we're going back, for sure!

Mr. & Mrs.

It's official...we got married...
And then we went to Hawaii...

Updates coming soon!!!

Maui Honeymoon...

Last night we booked our plane tickets for the honeymoon! I have already posted about the second stop we'll be making in Kauai. So I thought I'd update everyone on our first stop, Maui. We've booked a room at the Westin on Ka'anapali beach.

I feel completely blessed to be going back to Hawaii. I'm really looking forward to exploring Maui and all the wonderful things it has to offer. We are staying in the more "touristy" area, but we've rented a car (convertible, of course!), so I know we'll be taking some road trips throughout the island while we are there.

A few things to do that are on the top of our list include driving the Road to Hana, checking out Haleakala National Park for a hike or bike ride, and eating at some good local restaurants. (Suggestions welcomed!)

We've also talked about taking a day trip to Lana‘i, Molokini, or Molokai island, we've heard good things about Trilogy tours. These sailing trips look cool because most of them offer the chance to snorkel once your reach the destination island. (Now, I'm not to big on snorkeling because the only time I tried it I had a really hard time relaxing and getting my breathing under control. I basically freaked out, gave up and spent the day laying on the beach while the rest of the group snorkeled and said it was a wonderful experience. I'm not going to let that bad experience hold me back though, I am going to try it again and I'm prepared to let myself relax in the water and enjoy the moment!!!)

So, the tickets are purchased, the cars are rented, the rooms are booked. Now all we need to do it pack our bags, get married and head off to those wonderful Hawaiian islands for 11 days of bliss!

Kauai Honeymoon...

Hello dear blog readers! I am very excited to share with you that we have booked our 2nd stop on our honeymoon to Hawaii. We'll be staying at the Islander on the Beach in Kapaa, Kauai. I'm totally jazzed about the condo I found and think it will be a great fit for our 3 day stay in Kauai. The photo below is a picture from the balcony of our room.
It looks to die for, right!!! We booked it through a website called HomeAway, where individual owners of condos/vacation homes rent out their properties. The website is a great way to price compare places and helpful at finding vacation spots that are not part of a huge hotel chain. I recommend checking it out if you're looking for your next vacation get-a-way. (They have rentals all over the world.)

I'm looking forward to checking out the island of Kauai. I know several friends who've traveled to the wettest spot in the world (Mount Waialeale) and have rave reviews of the island with the beautiful coastline. A few things I'd like to do while on Kauai are take a catamaran boat out to see the Na Pali Coast, take a hike at Waimea Canyon, maybe splurge and take a helicopter tour of this heavenly place (I hear it's the best way to see the island!). Let me know you're thoughts if you've been to Kauai, I'd love to get some recommendations of restaurants, things to do and the names of any tours/activities you enjoyed while on Kauai.

We are still working out some detail for our stay in Maui. We'll be there for about 7 days, so any tips or recommendations you have on this beautiful vacation spot are welcomed too!