Flower splendor

Dear travel diary

Tuesday, June 22, 2021

The hopefully last bus ride in Hawaii is scheduled for today. So we set off early enough to the bus stop, as we still had to look for it. When we arrived at the bus stop, the wrong bus came first, but assured us that we were at least waiting in the right place. So far, so good...

A few minutes later our bus arrived, which looked exactly like the one from Friday. After just a few minutes, I realized that this bus driver was not helping at all with my nausea. Of course, my motion sickness pills were at home, where they are most useful, and the fact that we had just had breakfast earlier didn't make it any easier.

So Chantal and I changed seats first, so that I could sit by the window and look outside. Not long after, I told her that I needed a bag because I already felt it in my throat. So she went to the driver and asked him for one. He said he didn't have one right now, but would drive to the side of the road to find one. He actually drove to the side of the road, stopped, and produced a huge bag. In addition, he gave us some household paper just in case.

With the bag in hand, we continued and I felt a little better again. I also tried to sleep so that I wouldn't feel the nausea anymore. At the next bus stop, the bus driver came to the back and asked me how I was feeling. He also said that we could possibly get off here and wait for the next bus back to Waimea. However, I assured him that I was already feeling better and that we wanted to continue to Hilo.

Fortunately, due to my half-sleep, the journey was over quickly, and we arrived in the city. When we got off, I thanked him again and apologized for the inconvenience. He just said, "No worries, hope you have a good day."

After a short break, we took an Uber from the bus terminal to the airport to pick up our car for the next few days. The driver was a real character, but because of the draft from all the open windows and the masks, I could only understand half of what he said.

Taking over the car was completed quickly and we could start using our Nissan. First, Chantal drove for a few hundred meters, and then it was my turn again. Our first stop was a store to buy lunch for ourselves.

We continued for just a few minutes to Rainbow Falls, a waterfall where you can often see a rainbow (except today, of course). The waterfall was right next to the parking lot, so I didn't really get the feeling of nature and a waterfall. A bit disappointing, even though the waterfall itself was actually still beautiful.

After our lunch break there, we drove to the Botanical Garden and stopped at a viewpoint on the way. A few minutes' walk downhill, we reached the sea and found ourselves in a small lovely bay that gradually looked secret and undiscovered. Of course, we weren't the only ones, but it was still not overcrowded.

When we arrived at the Botanical Garden, I admired the many beautiful and unique plants and flowers. I also saw wild orchids growing on a foreign tree, shimmering in all colors and shapes. We also saw the brightly green geckos drinking from plant leaves or sunning themselves on a branch. Unfortunately, these were not the only animals, as annoying mosquitoes also accompanied us. So I ended up with a few mosquito bites but still impressed by the diversity of the plant world in the garden.

On the way home, we did some shopping again and then returned to our apartment. Despite not having a very strict schedule, we were both terribly tired.

Wednesday, June 23, 2021

During breakfast, we also prepared our sandwiches for lunch. With the leftovers from yesterday, butternut squash, the sandwich became very exotic but more than delicious.

So we set off to Two Steps and Keone'ele Cove. Apparently, it's a good snorkeling spot, but since we unfortunately didn't have snorkeling gear, it was a bit difficult. In addition, it was rocky and uncomfortable to stay there for long.

Therefore, we drove back a bit and found a nice spot by the water. Here too, it was rocky and difficult to get into the water, but the stones provided some areas to sit on. Chantal dared to jump into the almost painted blue water but had to leave some blood behind when she got out. Due to the sharp stones, crabs, and sea urchins, getting out proved to be more difficult than expected. But she came out with a few scratches.

At lunchtime, we enjoyed our homemade sandwiches, and both of us are fans of the pumpkin sandwich because it adds a certain flavor. We enjoyed the sun for a bit until it said goodbye to us and I slowly started to feel cold.

So we looked for another place and found a small beach near Kona. It felt like the Waikiki of Big Island. Exaggeratedly many people, body and regular surfers, and of course other water lovers.

After a short power nap, we had enough of that too and headed home. Once again, we were caught in pouring rain, to the point where I could hardly see the road for a few seconds. We also saw an unusually high number of dead animals on the side of the road today. Including a cat, several young goats, and various mongooses.

However, I felt the journey home was as beautiful as ever (at least part of it), as the rain had washed down the sky, giving a beautiful view of the landscape all the way down to the sea. Normally, you can also see the ocean, but never as clearly as today.

When we arrived home, we left the door open to let some fresh air in. Suddenly, I heard Dixie sprinting through the garden towards us. She does this every time, and if she's lucky like today, she even comes in through the open door. Unfortunately, I was too late to close the door in time. When I wanted to grab her to throw her out of our studio, she decided to leave her little gift on our carpet. Fortunately, Beverly took care of it when she saw the carpet outside.

For dinner, we treated ourselves to McDonald's and watched a movie on the side. It's a shame that they don't have McFlurry's here. Since we didn't feel full after our respective meals, we went on another drive-thru tour, this time at Burger King, right next to McDonald's.

Thursday, June 24, 2021

I devoted the morning to my office affairs. Filling out documents for my studies, reading minutes, and answering emails.

Later, we went to the disposal site to dispose of our garbage bag, cardboard, glassware, and whatever else needed to be thrown away. Then to the laundromat to have fresh clothes again.

However, when we turned into the parking lot, I realized that we didn't have any detergent. The detergent dispenser in the building didn't work for some reason, or we were too stupid to operate it. So we had to go to the store to buy detergent.

So we came back with a bag full of detergent pods and did our laundry and then the drying afterwards.

When we arrived home, we folded the laundry and finally had lunch at 2:15 p.m., which we had been longing for.

After a nap in the afternoon, as I slept terribly again last night, we went to the store again and did our final weekly shopping.

In the evening, Beverly gave us a huge watermelon, which will last us for several days.