Anybody up for some vacation photos?

We've been home for a week and I'm finally back on California time. Normally I don't adjust to Hawaii time and I'm up at the crack of dawn on vacation, this time I adjusted just fine and continued to sleep in at home.

I spent a couple of busy days at Lawn Fawn HQ and now I can get to the task of sorting through photos to share our little adventure with you.

We did a lot of the Kona Coffee Festival events while making time to relax and visit with our hosts, long time friends, Don and Karen Ellison. We took a 2 day road trip around the island, spending a night in Hilo before heading on back to Kona.

I created photo collages to keep my vacation posts manageable using PicMonkey.com

Our first day in Kona I captured this gorgeous sunset from the lanai of our friend's condo, it had the most perfect view of the ocean.

We did some relaxing on Thursday; walked on the beach across from the condo complex, the guys made us a fabulous spaghetti dinner (complete with homemade pasta). Then on Friday we took a tour of a chocolate company, got to sample some tasty confections too!

Saturday was a busy day! We started out in the little town Holualoa for the Coffee and Art Stroll. My friend Karen was one of the artists displaying and selling her photography and original art. Her booth was at Inaba's Kona Hotel (calling it a hotel is quite a stretch, it was very rustic and Pepto Bismol pink). Al and Don and I wandered through the town tasting the coffee, checking out the ukulele shop and sampling the best carrot cake ever (well, it was almost as good as my own). Our favorite coffee was from Kona Blue Sky Coffee and we bought some to enjoy at home.

(Just a note for those who follow Dancing with the Stars; judge Carrie Ann Inaba is from the family that runs the rustic little hotel in Holualoa. I had another DWTS encounter on my return when I saw Sabrina Bryan at my favorite little cafe in downtown Orange last Saturday.  She was fresh off her elimination but looked in great spirits. Just a little aside, Sabrina's parents were the real estate brokers who helped Al and I buy our house 32 years ago.)

Saturday night we had a buffet seafood dinner at the King Kamehameha Hotel then headed south to the Sheraton to check out the Rays on the Bay. You can watch the Manta Rays from the balcony at the hotel, it was fascinating but too dark to get any good photos. The photo above is a mural. Then we sneaked in to see Miss Kona Coffee crowned in a very "folksy" pageant.

Sunday was another busy day. I took photos while Don, Karen and Al participated in the Coffee Picking Contest. They didn't win but we had a great time and the view was amazing! We even visited with the newly crowned queens, Miss Kona Coffee-Teen and Miss Aloha Hawaii and Miss Kona Coffee, who will be competing in the Miss Hawaii pageant next summer.
I included a pic (top right) of a coffee bean just removed from the hull, ready to roast. As a fan of coffee I found it very interesting.
Sunday night we took in the music of LT Smooth at Huggos on the Rocks. We enjoyed the requisite "frozen beverage with umbrella", these were Lava Flows and were very yummy and light on the alcohol.

I hope you enjoyed part one of my Big Island vacation, I'll take you on our road trip in the next installment.

"Praise the Lord! Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good!

For His Mercy endures forever."

Psalm 106:1

blessings,
nancy