Day 51-53 Big Island

17.1. Our bus to the airport is only 10 minutes late, but the fat driver appears clueless, stopping at hotels where no one gets on, and after 45 minutes, we are still in Waikiki. But then the ride goes relatively fast and we arrive at the airport 30 minutes before boarding.

Big Island welcomes us in Hilo with dark clouds. Check-in here is really only at 3pm.🙄 We pass the time at the hotel cafe. We quickly buy something at 'Uncle Billy' next door and end the day at the hotel.

18.1. Finally, slept longer again. It's already 10 o'clock and there's no more breakfast in the hotel. So we make our way to the city. Hilo doesn't look particularly beautiful to us. The city center is small and run-down. Only one or two streets are quite nice. We spend the afternoon by the pool in the sun. Tomorrow we're going to see the manta rays.

19.1. We pick up the car at 10 o'clock. No thanks, no Jeep. And no more insurances either. Everything as ordered please. Ok! We get a Dodge minivan with 8 miles on the odometer. Lucky us.😎 Off we go towards the north. We turn onto a scenic route and after a few meters we are in the deepest rainforest with vines, rivers, and a great view of the cliffs. We visit several parks and beaches and arrive in Kona at 3 p.m. A beautiful place with many restaurants and shops. At 4 p.m. we are at the harbor and board the boat. Only 14 people on board. After sunset, we go into the water. Unfortunately, there are still 15 other boats floating around here. Surfboards with lights are put into the water. The light causes plankton to rise. After a few minutes, they come. 3 to 4 manta rays swim beneath us and do a backflip to filter the plankton out of the water. Simply awesome!🤠 However, there are too many screaming American women in the water. The mantas don't seem to mind. The largest one has a wingspan of 3.5 meters. Totally beautiful to watch. After 1 hour, the spectacle is over. We're back at the harbor at 7:30 p.m. A quick stop at Walmart (Hawaiian shirt for $12.99😄) and then we drive across the island back to Hilo. The drive along Mauna Kea is great and the highway is super easy to drive on. At the top, it's only 7 degrees Celsius. Many stars can be seen, but unfortunately, the view is not clear. The descent to Hilo is rapid. There are no switchbacks, it just goes straight down.🙂 It's fun! After 2 hours of driving, we're back at the hotel. Overall, an amazing day!

20.1. Check-in for the helicopter flight is at 11:30 a.m. We are weighed and have to empty all bags. We fly with the doors open over the volcano. Unfortunately, there is no lava flowing at the moment. The flight is still great. We fly over the lava fields and circle above a steaming, stinking crater. We also visit some waterfalls and then the 50 minutes are already over. It becomes cloudy again in the afternoon and we drive south to Volcano. But it's not as volcanic as expected. After a short walk through a lava field with a smell of sulfur, we return. Tomorrow we're going to Kauai.