paul_and_mandy's TravelStream™ — Recent TravelPod.com entries TravelStream™ news feed for member paul_and_mandy on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/paul_and_mandy en-us Copyright ©2012 TravelPod.com Mon, 17 May 2010 23:23:44 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com Happy Birthday Mandy - A Glowing Sunset — Volcano, HI http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/paul_and_mandy/3/1211061600/tpod.html http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/paul_and_mandy/3/1211061600/tpod.html#comment Travel Blogs http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/paul_and_mandy/3/1211061600/tpod.html Tue, 18 May 2010 03:23:44 +0000 Hawaii
Volcano, HI

So with a big day behind us and still a few hours ahead we headed into the little village of Volcano to find food.

Passing the first place, we discovered Lava Rock Cafe. Feeling the need for a good hearty meal we tried this spot. And it did the job nicely. If you are ever in the area and looking for a slice of Americana then we think this place suits the bill nicely.

Sated and with sunset approaching we headed back to the Jagger Museum to see the vent's glow after sunset. And boy we weren't disappointed.

The below photos say it all. Finally we headed home (long drive back at night!)


]]> Honolulu — Honolulu, HI http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/paul_and_mandy/3/1211353380/tpod.html http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/paul_and_mandy/3/1211353380/tpod.html#comment Travel Blogs http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/paul_and_mandy/3/1211353380/tpod.html Tue, 18 May 2010 03:19:04 +0000 Hawaii
Honolulu, HI

(Honolulu hotels)


up quite early for a holiday but had breaky on our room.

wandered the shore for a while then back to the hotel for a dip in the pool and spa before checkout and back to the airport for our return flight to Honolulu


we intitally checked intot hte W hotel but on thursday 22nd we checked out and moved intot he sheraton on main beach.

left 10:50am Sun 25th.
]]> Hilo, the waterfalls and north to Waikoloa — Hilo, HI http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/paul_and_mandy/3/1211259840/tpod.html http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/paul_and_mandy/3/1211259840/tpod.html#comment Travel Blogs http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/paul_and_mandy/3/1211259840/tpod.html Tue, 18 May 2010 03:15:49 +0000 Hawaii
Hilo, HI

schecked out about 9am and took these phiotos fo the banyan trees










we drove first to the boiling pots
The Boiling Pots
This area contains 6 potholes "where the raging Wailuku River, which means "waters of destruction "drops from one pool into another. The pots appear like steamy Jacuzzis where the water runs through lava tubes under the ground and then bubbles up to the surface. Look to your right, and you can see Pe'e Pe'e Falls, a wondrous waterfall. There is a path to the right when on the viewing platform that you can take to get a closer look.




back down past the boiling pots to tourism city (we encountered hoardes of tourists streaming on and off buses).


Rainbow Falls
The thundering Wailuku River cascades into the Wailuku gulch. Accessed by a short drive from Naniloa Volcanoes Resort, 93 Banyan Drive Hilo , turn left from Kamehameha Avenue onto Waianuenue Avenue and keep right when the road forks and look for the park on your right hand side.



stopping back in hilo for a quick lunch and internet update we then headed around the coast.



Akaka Falls State Park
Visiting majestic Akaka and Kahuna Falls is a must for all Big Island visitors. Located 25 minutes from Hilo , Akaka Falls can be viewed by traversing a 20-minute trail (that is step in sections) that winds through a beautiful natural display of tropical plants. Cascading 420 feet into Kolokole Stream, Akaka Falls presents an impressive display of natural beauty and power.


The fall is now directly in front of you, glorious in it's cocoon of sheer cliffs. It falls, straight and narrow for 420 feet from the lip of granite, hitting bottom in a green, fern-filled grotto with a blaze of rainbows reflecting in the spray.


The drive back down to Honomu town provides some awesome ocean views. The Pacific is spread out before you in 3 directions and reminds you that you are indeed driving on an island. This fact, seemingly self-evident, is easy to forget since the island is so large. Thee view will bring you back to the reality of your location.



stopped at the town of lay?? for a quick walk and some homemade ice-cream.




at the end of our day we stayed at the Waikoloa Beach Marriott, An Outrigger Resort.

]]> Happy Birthday Mandy - Turtles — Punalu'u, HI http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/paul_and_mandy/3/1205763000/tpod.html http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/paul_and_mandy/3/1205763000/tpod.html#comment Travel Blogs http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/paul_and_mandy/3/1205763000/tpod.html Fri, 02 Jan 2009 00:40:19 +0000 Hawaii
Punalu'u, HI

Since the weather looked bad (really it was just the vog cloud) Mandy thought not a day for the beach so let's go and visit Volcano National Park. We headed south with Paul's list of sights to stop for. Travelling through Captain Cook we half looked for signs for the painted church but the cloud was precipitating so we weren't too active in finding it and thus we missed it. So first real thought of stopping was going to be South Point or more accurately Papakolea or Green Sands Beach. But our readings lead us to believe it was a long walk from the car park and from photos we had seen maybe not really worth the effort. So we pushed on for our first stop at Nā'ālehu where we stretched our legs, did the pleasantries and had our morning refreshment in the company of some rather colourful little birds. Hawaii, in particular Kona, has coffee plantations so Kona Coffee is plentiful. But slightly weak filter coffee seems to be the only option!! Would have loved to have had a long black espresso strength coffee. So after coffee, tea and some Taro bread/cake we zipped a little further along the coast to the famous Punalu'u Beach Park with its Black Sand and Hawaiian green sea turtles. We were there to see the turtles though, not the black sand. And I'm not sure you could even call it sand??? Of course sand is just crushed rock but this beach was probably on the edge of being called Black Pebble Beach! One turtle was making its way up the beach, or sunbathing, or dead. The interesting thing with these turtles is that on land they are very slow and make many stops. So much that when they pause if they close their eyes you would swear they are dead. And that's definitely what Mandy thought when we approached this one. Keeping back the recommended 15 feet it wasn't long before we had movement!! Yay! A head raise, a drag of the forward flippers and another rest. Obviously its friend was a lot more at home in the ocean. Back to the car and something you don't see to often. Weasels. Another introduced animal that backfired on stupid humans! Half the day was gone and we still had a decent drive ahead of us to get to Volcano National Park
]]> Mantas — Kailua-Kona, HI http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/paul_and_mandy/3/1210914780/tpod.html http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/paul_and_mandy/3/1210914780/tpod.html#comment Travel Blogs http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/paul_and_mandy/3/1210914780/tpod.html Fri, 02 Jan 2009 00:38:21 +0000 Hawaii
Kailua-Kona, HI

(Kailua-Kona hotels)


We depart Sydney Friday 16th May @ 19.45 hours (QF3) and due to the incongruity of the dateline we land Friday Morning at Honolulu airport. Following a delayed exit through immigration (some concerns we could miss the next flight) we got to the domestic terminal with time to spare. A short flight from O'ahu to Hawaii (colloquially known as the Big Island to avoid confusion) through the Kona open air terminal and a very depressing view . Well, we thought it was the weather but hindsight leads us to believe it was vog - the accumulation of sulphur dioxide, oxygen, sunlight, and water from the active volcano vents (refer to 5. Hot Rock! also read about it here http://hvo.wr.usgs.gov/volcanowatch/200 8/08_06_05.html). Without the trade winds to clear it, the steam and whatever else attached itself to it just accumulated on the north western side of the island. After picking up our rental we negotiated the left hand drive on the right side of the road and joined the Queen Ka'ahumanu Hwy to head south to Kailua-Kona. Having been on the go for too many hours to remember we enjoyed the stretch and the opportunity to eat non-airpane food. A bacon cheese burger for Paul and noodles for Mandy. Sated we ducked through Kailua to the shorefront and continued the last few miles to our resort. A top floor balcony had us overlooking the carpark and on up the coast line back towards Kailua Kona. We made the effort to get out of the room and headed to the lounge of our hotel to partake in a unique wildlife encounter. Every evening, the resort turns on high-powered lights behind the resort. The brightly illuminated water attracts zooplankton and krill in large numbers which, in turn, attract Manta Rays. These huge, eerie, bat-like creatures swim silently and smoothly back and forth through the illuminated area eating. In the mean time, they turn, glide, flip a wing briefly above the surface, and turn loops in the clear water. My photos aren't the best, unfortunately there was only the one out that night and it didn't come terribly close. You can choose to get a snorkelling or scuba tour, or go to Kailua to do something similar. They take you to a feeding ground, take torches and get wet and hope to get surrounded by the manta while in the water. We chose to pass although you do sometimes look back with regret.
]]> Hot Rock!! — Kalapana, HI http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/paul_and_mandy/3/1211180400/tpod.html http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/paul_and_mandy/3/1211180400/tpod.html#comment Travel Blogs http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/paul_and_mandy/3/1211180400/tpod.html Wed, 31 Dec 2008 01:45:39 +0000 Hawaii
Kalapana, HI

Where I stayed
Hilo Hawaiian Hotel
(Hilo hotels)


Since we had already previously stopped on our volcano park trip the other day we headed as fast as legally possible direct to Hilo. A hotel, a quick bite, some questions to a info guide and we were off again down to The Kalapana viewing site, located at the end of Highway 130 in the Puna District. And wow is it a sight to behold. Firstly reaching the area we then have to drive up and over old lava flows. It amazes to see houses on top of these flows and people reclaim? their land lost in the 80s. Have a look at Mike Cusack's photo to see. Parking up with dozens of cars we then trek for a good 20 minutes to the coastline and the vantage point. We've all seen photos before but to see rock shaped from the movement of its liquid state is just mind blowing. PS mind that step!! We had been noticing the steam plume for a while now but as we walked we started thinking about what it meant. This huge plume was just ahead and to think about the heat required to boil the sea water and send so much of it sky high really gets you thinking. We reach the viewing point with a moderate crowd already there. Initially disappointed that we can't walk closer to the lava flow entering the sea we get comfortable and really look at the sight. It takes a moment and then the breeze parts the steam and wow!! we notice red stripes. Oh-mi-god! You realise that is lava (hot melted ROCK!) flowing into the ocean. As the swell surges in, large quantities of water are instantly turned to steam and more plumes rise to the skies. The crowd ohs and ahs and then exclaim "there's another!" and then "there's a third". Wow 3 rivilets of lava can be seen flowing into the ocean. One is obvious, the second you catch regular glimses but the third you only really notice when the wind gusts, the swell drops and it peaks through. Mandy gets comfortable, Paul just gets clicking. A miniscule selection of the resulting shots and video is below. Pele gives plenty of heat to Namakaokaha`i
]]> The Painted Church — Captain Cook, HI http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/paul_and_mandy/3/1211205600/tpod.html http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/paul_and_mandy/3/1211205600/tpod.html#comment Travel Blogs http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/paul_and_mandy/3/1211205600/tpod.html Wed, 31 Dec 2008 01:07:11 +0000 Hawaii
Captain Cook, HI

We missed this the first time past but made an effort this day to catch the turn off and check it out. St. Benedict's - The Painted Church Painted Church Road off Hwy. 19, after travelling south through Captain Cook. South Kona Quote "In the late 1800s, Father John Berchman Velghe borrowed a page from Michelangelo and painted biblical scenes inside St. Benedict's Catholic Church so the illiterate Hawaiians could visualize the white man's version of creation." This place is worth a look, wish I had thought more about researching it directly before going. This is what I found later when I typed this blog. St. Benedict's Painted Church My first photo gives you an idea of the size and the beauty of the inside. My second shows to the left of this window is "The Handwriting on the Wall at the Feast of King Belshazzar" and to the right is the "Temptation of Jesus" Lastly on the opposite wall we see "Cain and Abel" with great anguish and violence
]]> Happy Birthday Mandy - Volcanoes — Volcano, HI http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/paul_and_mandy/3/1205773200/tpod.html http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/paul_and_mandy/3/1205773200/tpod.html#comment Travel Blogs http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/paul_and_mandy/3/1205773200/tpod.html Wed, 31 Dec 2008 00:59:40 +0000 Hawaii
Volcano, HI

Leaving the beach and turtles behind us we set sail for Volcano National Park. The further east we went the more volcanic rock we encountered until finally that was about all we could see. From the mountain on our left all the way to the ocean on our right was just rock with nature trying to but not quite yet reasserting itself. Reaching Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park our first stop was Kilauea Visitor Center which told us that we wouldn't be able to drive further than the Jaggar Museum. Unfortunately the gases further south were too toxic and doing the full 10.6-mile loop of the Crater Rim Drive or heading down to the coast along the Chain of Craters Road was off the itinerary. Bummer! A quick educational video showing 'blasts from the past' or previous lava flows and eruptions of Mauna Loa (the mountain closest to us, Muana Kea sits further to the north of the island) and then we were in the car again heading to the first escarpment lookout. This is us with Kilauea Caldera behind us and steam rising from the Halema'uma'u Crater to the south west. Next to the car park were some steam vents also, where trails of smoke, once molten lava, rose from within the inner reaches of the earth. Driving further around Kilauea Caldera is the Thomas A. Jaggar Museum and the most impressive view we got of Halema'uma'u Crater. The crater is a 1/2 mile (800m) across and 1,000 feet (305m) deep. They say the crater is sacred and the home of Pele, the volcano goddess. In 1967, this crater was filled with a lake of lava that eventually drained. What a sight that would have been. Some of the photos on the walls of the Museum and in the Volcano House (back near the visitor centre) are just amazing. Also if you are interested here is what has happened this year http://hvo.wr.usgs.gov/kilauea/timeline / The crater had a relatively new (Mar08) fumarole (vent emitting gasses) which enraptured Paul. That was what he had come for. A decision was made to return for sunset. Anyway about an hour later with Mandy dragging Paul, we headed back around to the Volcano House thinking about food. Since breakfast we had only had the bad coffee, tea and taro bread. With the house closing at 5pm we had a quick shop/peruse, decided against returning for dinner and made our way to the Thurston Lava Tube (Nahuku), they say it's the coolest place in the park. We hiked down into a natural bowl in the earth, a forest preserve the lava hadn't touched -- full of birds and giant tree ferns. After a short walk we came across a black hole in the earth. It's a cave, it's a tunnel no its Super-Lava Tube. The tube, about a 1/2 mile (800m) long, is a 500-year old lava cave formed when an underground channel of molten lava drained from its cooled walls forming a massive, hollow chamber. You pop out the other side back into the tropical rainforest. Strange almost. Anyway, enough sightseeing, it was time to eat before returning for sunset.
]]> The Beaches — Hapuna Bay, HI http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/paul_and_mandy/3/1211119200/tpod.html http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/paul_and_mandy/3/1211119200/tpod.html#comment Travel Blogs http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/paul_and_mandy/3/1211119200/tpod.html Wed, 24 Dec 2008 00:45:57 +0000 Hawaii
Hapuna Bay, HI

went looking for a swim
]]> the Art Students — Paris, France http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/paul_and_mandy/aroundtheworld/1190709300/tpod.html http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/paul_and_mandy/aroundtheworld/1190709300/tpod.html#comment Travel Blogs http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/paul_and_mandy/aroundtheworld/1190709300/tpod.html Tue, 15 Apr 2008 05:16:19 +0000 The World Trip (well a short one)
Paris, France

An early arrival in Nimes, and the TGV (fast train doing 700km in 3hrs) to Paris had us checking in to our Paris hotel in time for a late lunch. http://www.mercure.com/mercure/fichehot el/gb/mer/1272/fiche_ hotel.shtml A change of room (first was cramped - it was a hand off) enabled a fantastic view of the "Sacre Bleau" opps I mean The Basilique du Sacré-Coeur. Seriously these were from the room. We had come from the pleasant south with the temps around 28 degrees. Next morning (Wed) we arose to the cold snap that dropped that Paris to around 12-14 degrees. Putting on our unused jeans and jumpers we headed out. Withing 5 minutes we had purchased a couple of travel raincoats and pondered what we wanted to do for the day. Was the day, the weather a one off or was this to be the rest of the trip? Not being in Paris ever other weekend we headed south zagged around the back of the Louvre and came across a church we would normally have missed - St-Germain-l'Auxerrois, the chapel of the Louvre. If it was good enough for Monet to paint 140yrs ago (found that out looking up the name) then it was plenty good enough for us to take a photo or seven.
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