Things to do in Hawaii (besides drink on the beach)

I definitely think the Big Island was my favorite of the three I visited. Oahu, more specifically Waikiki, was so busy. It felt like Vegas on an island. Maui was similar, but to a much lesser extent. Obviously part of this is a product of where I stayed. But Kona was so much more laid back. The locals I talked to were so nice and helpful. And the drive from the western coast to south point and then back through the middle of the island was so diverse. You go from beach to lava fields to rainforest and then back through brown rolling plains. I'd never done a drive like it.

 

When we bought them, they were fresh, like minutes out of the oven. It was like eating a delicious cloud.

Yes, I'm trying to piss you off more. But now I'm pissed because it's all gone.

 

Kono was so much more laid-back, too.

 

I had the same reaction to Kona. Honolulu was much too busy to be "paradise," and it felt inauthentic. Kona just has a great vibe that I really connected with. It reminded me in some ways of the area where I grew up, which is odd considering how far away and different it is in many respects.

And, yes, that drive - and the diversity of environments - is amazing.

I arrived there about 10 p.m. my first night and pretty much went right to bed. Had a beer or two at the hotel bar. Woke up and went outside around sunrise and, at a bar across the street was a snowman. I blinked six or seven times and wondered if someone had drugged my beer the night before. Turned out the bar owner drove up Mauna Kea, filled the bed of his pickup with snow and brought it down to build a snowman. Not many places you'll see a snowman standing in 80-degree weather.

 

The Maui downhill was awesome. They basically drive you to the top of this mountain near the telescope and put you in these windsuits because it's high up and cold, and then you ride down the mountain on a bike on big switchbacks. Great scenery and you can really haul ass if you want to.

 

This is a great book and pretty much a must-have for what to do in Hawaii: