February 18 - Waikoloa, Kona Hawaii

Today I visited with my Brother, Brian and Sister-in-Law, Lisa. We, surprisingly, arrived an hour early into port, so I did a little sightseeing while waiting to be picked up by my brother. It was a beautiful day and the trade winds had started to blow two days ago so the humidity was quite comfortable.




I visited Hulihe'e Palace. The Palace itself was first home to High Chief John Adams Kuakini, brother of Ka‘ahumanu the favorite wife of Kamehameha, and later home to more members of Hawaiian royalty than any other residence in Hawai‘i.


I also saw the Mokuaikaua Church, which is the oldest Christian church in the Hawaiian Islands. And a really cool tree.    

On the drive to my brother's place he pointed out Mauna Kea. At over 33,000 feet, Mauna Kea reigns supreme as the biggest mountain on Earth as measured from base to top. 

And the lava flow variations. Each color was a different eruption

We made it to my brother's neighborhood and this is their landmark. No one knows what it supposedly stands for, or represents.

Brian, Lisa and I had a great lunch at their favorite restaurant. To say it was a little windy was an understatement.

    

And then after a little more visiting it was back to the ship, via a different road, a little sightseeing and more extinct lava fields. See how shiny the lava rocks are.

Good-bye Kona, next stop Honolulu





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