Costa Rica - Day 4

Travel time!  The plan - to go from Tabacon/Arenal (kind of the center of the country) to Tamarindo, on the west coast.  About a three and a half hour drive.  We weren't really looking forward to the road around the lake but it turned out to not be so bad.

We stopped at the German Bakery for breakfast and this part is a little blurry to me, as I was severely suffering from a sinus infection.  But there were pastries and coffee and I remember some cats roaming around.

Our final destination was Captain Suizo.  A beautiful beachside getaway at the far edge of town.  I felt like when we told people we were staying there, they seemed impressed and I couldn't have imagined a better place to stay.  I'm grateful for the recomendations from everyone who suggested it.  The rooms are airy, split-level, clean and sans TV.  The owners are Swedish and have a big ol' philosphy on why things are they way they are at the place.  Everyone was friendly and I am so happy we decided to stay here.

We headed to the beach and I was not expecting to water to be hot.  I got right in!  It was low tide so we got out pretty far too.  The beach is so big during low tide!   The sky got grey pretty fast and it was about dinner time so we walked over to where the restaurants in town were.  The road wasn't paved so it was a muddy, slippery walk and I kinda wish I had brought rain boots. We cut across to the beach and walked along there until we came closer to town.

A beachside restaurant was the first place we saw and there were a lot of people there.   Since we really didnt plan where we were going and the rain wasnt letting up, we settled into a patio seat at Naugi's and enjoyed watching our neighboring table get wasted and teach each other how to surf, on the floor of the restaurant.  (They had just met that day.)  After fish tacos and pork chops, we walked into town and these two dogs were kinda like, "Oh hey, follow us!" so we did and ended up in front of Mato's Surf Shop.  This surfer dude was out there and introduced himself as Eric.  Turns out Bon Ton the dog is Eric's.  The universe could not have been any more obvious to an animal lover looking for a surf lesson!  :)  We talked for a bit and Eric told us to come by at 9AM tomorrow for our lesson. We headed back on the beach in the pitch black and used my phone's flashlight app to guide the way.

Arenal - Day 2

We woke up early again and headed to La Fortuna, the main town in the Arenal area.  It's about a 10 minute drive around the volcano from Tabacon.  I thought it was a small town but actually compared to the other "towns", it's fairly large.

Arenal from the main road in La Fortuna.  

After a small panic attack about how and where to park (and realizing we drove through town the wrong way), we went over to the Rainforest Cafe for a traditional Costa Rican breakfast with the best cup of coffee/latte of the entire trip.  The food was good; rice and beans and tortillas with two eggs over easy and the place overall was kind of super cute.  The guy next to us special ordered plantain pancakes.  That made me smile.

It was still fairly early so we walked around town to check it out and the sun was already beaming.  We were warned about it's strength but seriously, I have never felt anything so strong in my life.  It was almost unbearable and hindered our walk a bit.  We walked into the church (iglesia), around the town center, decided we saw enough and got in the car to road trip a bit.

We drove the countryside, through the towns.  They are all the same.  Church, school, run down "soda", stray dogs.  Then it was time for the thing I was most excited for...monkeys!  We arrived at Proyecto Asis a little early and chilled in the front area with the best greeting committee ever, three super friendly, domestic dogs.  I knew I was in the right place.  :)

I had read about Proyecto Asis on tripadvisor.com, and with some further research, I knew I had to go.  It is a rehab facility for Costa Rican wildlife that opened in 1994.  They have a couple of options for their place when you visit.  You can go for a regular visit to tour the place, go for a volunteer program for a few hours where you interact with the animals more, or go for weeks at a time as an educational program to learn Spanish and work with the animals.  We did the volunteer option.

It was just us and this other couple.  Our guide, Carlos, was so great; just a really good energy, very happy and passionate about what he was doing.  Being in a rescue world, I could tell this was a good place.  Yes, dogs and cats are different to jungle animals but I just knew, these people were the real deal.  The facilities were well maintained and the employees there knew their stuff.  It was an extremely impressive experience for me.  I said if I were to move here, this is where I would work.

Carlos and his girlfriend, Daniela.  

We got the tour first. Ideally, they hope to vet the injured animals and then get them back in the wild.  But sometimes that just isn't an option so they are a sanctuary as well, which means the pets that can't be released back into the wild will stay there and be cared for for the remainder of their lives.

We saw some hogs, a baby boa, an aggressive Huron (like a ferret), lots of birds like parrots, a rainbow toucan, a sloth mommy and her baby (who actually just lives free and happened to decide to swing from the electrical wires that morning and needed rescue, we saw the video!) and of coarse the monkeys.  Costa Rica only has four native species of monkeys. Howler, Spider, Capuchin and Squirrel.

He kept doing this to make me laugh.  It worked. 

What happens when birds are kept as pets and get too stressed.  

                                                               

After our tour, we got some fruit and coffee and then cut up the rest of the fruit for the animals.  I was all prepared to clean up poop and stuff but we threw the fruit in some baskets and began feeding which was our "job".  It was so fun!  We came at a time that there happened to be four male, Capuchin baby monkeys.  They were all about four months old and orphaned for one reason or another.  We got to go inside their cage to pet them and feed them and I seriously had to make an effort not to lose my shit because I was so excited about this moment.  It was my dream come true.  (Side note for the ladies, wear your hair UP.  Monkeys LOVE yanking hair, as the other lady on our tour can attest to.)

This is one of the most exciting moments of my life. 

When we were done, David basically dragged me out of there and when we got to sit in the car I realized how badly my legs were bit up.  Despite literally bathing in bug spray, I counted a total of 47 bug bites.  Every single one was worth it.  But if I return, I'll be wearing pants.  And if you go, wear pants.

We continued our evening with a little R & R at the thermal pools, got caught in a crazy rain storm, and then headed to dinner at Benedictus, our first night venturing out of the hotel.  David looked on tripadvisor (Tabacon has free wifi by the way and as you can see, tripadvisor was a huge help) and did not tell me anything about it but had me drive.  I'm the better driver so I should have known something was up.

Benedictus is on the way to La Fortuna from Tabacon so we pulled in and then I realized why I was driving.  I laughed the entire winding, very uphill, pitch black, cow blocked, dirt road way up.  We got to this house at the top of the hill and I can only imagine what the view would have been in the daytime.  You could spend a while there on their porch and playing pool in the living room.  There were only a couple of tables at this converted cabin and the one waiter there was so nice and the food was AMAZING.  Best meal of the trip.  I had talapia with avocado sauce (aka guac).  I wish I could cook fish like this!  I was told the avocados were literally picked from their tree that day.  Everything is from their land which I theoretically loved yet actually struggled with when it came to the meat.  When I actually saw the cows/chickens, I just couldnt get myself to order any it.  I ended up avoiding it the entire trip.  Despite the fact, Benedictus really cares about their establishment and the quality of their food which is the point I was trying to make.

The couple we randomly were on the hiking trip with the day before happened to be there and we chatted with them to give us some ideas for what to do the next day because we had nothing planned.  Side Note: The only problem I had about the dinner was that the entire time I had heard this puppy crying and on our way out, the CUTEST puppy was chillin with our waiter.  It was his new little pup and whenever he was in the dining room, he cried.  Once again, David had to drag me away from an animal.

Pinterest Fail

That time I tried to make my favorite "flourless chocolate cookies" that Whole Foods stopped making, and I not only almost mysteriously somehow burnt the apartment down but the goo just stuck to the paper and I couldn't even eat it in pieces.

On the left is what it should look like and on the right is what mine looked like.  

Washington D.C. Wedding Weekend

A very good friend of ours was getting married in Washington D.C. so we took the train down there on Friday afternoon.  It was actually really easy to take the train, I would definitely do that again.  We smuggled the dog for the ride (shhh, don't tell) and arrived at our dog-friendly hotel, The Fairmont; also where the wedding was going to be (so convenient!).

We went out to dinner at Farmers, Fishers, Bakers and then we went to right next door to The Sequoia, a beautiful room where we had drinks and dessert with the out-of-towners.  It was a really cute spot right on the water.  There was an ice-skating rink and pretty lights.  Apparently this is where the couple had gotten engaged and I could see why.  

On Saturday we went to brunch at the newly re-opened Art and Soul.  I got the BLT Benedict which was great but even greater was the scones before the meal.  O.M.G. !!!!    

After that meal, we thought it would be best to walk it off a bit.  It really sucked that it was so cold so after we made it to the Capitol, we beelined for the first place we could find which happened to be the National Gallery of Art.  Then we decided to head a little further down the Mall to the Smithsonian American History Museum.  I wanted to stick around but my college roommate C. picked me up as soon as we got there so I'll have to return to see Dorothy's Ruby Red slippers!  

We went and got Gabriel and attempted to go to the dog park right outside her house in Adams Morgan but it was too cold and we only stayed 10 minutes.  I found that D.C. is a pretty dog-friendly city.  All along Rock Creek Park (which runs from the Potomic River, 12 miles to Maryland - even the National Zoo is along the path!) there are cool trails and dog parks.  I'd love to go back in warmer weather to really explore - it's very neat to see this thing run all along the middle of the city.  C. did however get a great shot of Gabriel which later ran in a local blog!  Check him out on popville.com!  

It was time to get ready for the wedding and I was really excited because I used Renttherunway.com and ordered a dress and earring combo.  I have never gotten so many compliments on a dress in my life!  Here I am in my Mark & James by Badgley Mischka Sapphire Star Dress and Dannijo Cecile earrings.  

I thought about making a separate blog entry for what a great experience I had with RTR.  It was so easy and saying I am impressed with the company as a whole is an understatement.  Really glad I rented!  

The wedding was absolutely beautiful.  The space at the Fairmont was unique with its elevated dance floor.  It was also really nice to be at a wedding and just be guests.  The last wedding we were at was our own and the past couple, either one of us were in the wedding.  And just a side note, it's heartwarming when you see how happy the couple is to be getting married.  Both the families were just awesome and we were really happy to see them all happy.  OK corny part over, :) 

Day 11 - Hawaii Honeymoon

We woke up around 8AM and walked about a mile along the beach to Queens Surf Cafe. It's this hidden little breakfast nook on the water that David's aunt told us about. 

Then we sat on the famous Waikiki Beach for one last time and took it all in. 

 On the way to the airport, we happened to pass Leonard's, a place famous for their malasadas, fried dough balls, and stopped for some treats for the plane.  

At the airport, the excitement wasn't over.  I haven't mentioned yet about how slow Hawaiians are.  The security line was out the door.  Literally out the door.  And while we waited outside that door, we watched two women being arrested.  It looked like a smuggle job gone wrong but we can't be sure.  

When we got on the plane, we popped some melatonin to prepare for the redeye flight.  David was out like a light but I couldn't sleep because the stewardess was laughing so loud and talking to the other attendent the ENTIRE time.  I watched multiple people complain to her and she never stopped.  Just another disappointment on Hawaiian Air.  But hey, if there's no such thing as a perfect vacation and that was one of the biggest complaints - I guess it wasn't too bad.  And on another plus side, I finished an amazing book called The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. 

So that my friends, was #drmthehoneymoon.   We are really looking forward to returning on an anniversary trip!  

Day 10, Hawaii Honeymoon

It was depressing to leave the Four Seasons.  What an incredible hotel!  We got on our little Go! Airlines 18 minute flight and returned to Oahu. 

We finished the road trip we started in the beginning of the trip and swung by the east/south side of the island, by Koko Head, Halona Blowhole and then Diamond Head Crater for a quick hike. 

The Blowhole 

From the top of Diamond Head 

For a late lunch, we raced to Hanks Haute Dogs and made it just in time.  They close at 4PM!  We got the Andouille, Chicago and Chili dogs. We then checked into Aqua Bamboo and went for a walk to exchange a shirt at the Stupid Factory, my new favorite store, and watched our last Hawaiian sunset.

Diamond head in the back - the place we were standing on top of in the previous photo.

Dinner was at Sansei, a highly recommended sushi spot.    

Day 9 - Hawaii Honeymoon

Of all days to wake up before the crack of dawn and get on a boat, the one after having food poisoning was it for me. I contemplated not going but I spent so much time researching and I was really looking forward to it and didn't want David to miss out either.  

We drove in the dark, in silence, all the way there.  We watched the sunrise as we boarded the Trilogy catamaran with 45 other people.  Despite the fact that I probably looked alarmingly scary, the crew was so welcoming, serving us "Mama's famous cinnamon rolls", fruit and coffee.

We were on the boat for no more then 10 minutes, making our way to our first location, before our first dolphin sighting, a pod of Spinners. I've never seen a wild pod like that.  The boat stopped and they came right up to say hi. Once they got bored we continued on to Molokini. 

Molokini is a cresent shaped island of volcanic rock and now a bird preserve that you can see from the plane and at many points from Maui.  It used to also be something for the military so when you snorkel, you can see bullets on the ocean floor.  We were assured that all the mines were gone by now however, a 4carat ring was still somewhere down there.  

I took my ring off and snorkeled for about 10 minutes and then had to quit, David took the full hour.  This is the point I fell asleep, hence the lack of fun snorkelface photos.  We moved on to the next spot, Turtle Town - an underwater cave known for being a hangout for the Honus, which I skipped but David said he saw one. 

The Trilogy crew was super friendly and attentive and made me feel better even though I wasn't yet.  I sat up by the steering wheel in the shade and had a conversation with the Captain about the Maui Humane Society & his dog among other things.  I feel like you can just chat with locals about anything and they just seem so happy.   

After they served lunch, I started to wake up and feel a little better and it was sailing time. The catamaran is a gorgeous custom made sailboat as well and we sailed for about an hour along the coast.  It was pretty cool but also exciting to see how excited the crew got from sailing.  I steered for a little too!   

Naturally as we docked, I was feeling better.  We said farewell to Trilogy and relaxed at the regular pool at the hotel where I took a very much needed nap. I still felt really guilty about ruining dinner last night so I called Mama's Fishhouse and arranged a retry. Thankfully, they were sympathetic and very helpful in rearranging the night!  

I'm so grateful they did, it was one of the best meals ever; not just on this trip.  They start off serving you a tomato ginger bisque amuse bouche sipper.  We then had the wasabi crusted calamari, David had crab filled lobster tail and I had a fish that is similar to snapper but I can't remember it's name now and wish I did.  This place is so fresh they even credit the name of the fisherman who catches it that morning!  Everyone says you have to go here when you go to Maui and I couldn't agree more.  

Wasabi Crusted Calamari 

It was the perfect way to end our stay in Maui.

Day 8 - Hawaii Honeymoon

After the amazing/exhausting driving adventure my husband and I experienced yesterday, we deserved a spa day. We relaxed at the beach in the morning until our spa appointment.  I was super excited to head over to the Grand Wailea's Spa Grande. Particularly excited to try their Terme baths. You immerse yourself in five different kinds of aromatic salt baths.  

So when you get to the spa, you sign in and go your separate ways.  There is a male and female spa.  You do your own thing for an hour and then meet up for a couples massage.  There were only a handful of people in there and I went straight for the baths, which were unoccupied.  It was really cool.  I wanted to purchase the salts of the black one which I think is magical because when I got in it, I almost immediately wanted to sleep.  But they were all relaxing and interesting to try.  There are also a couple other forms of Japanese baths and showers that I wasn't really in to trying. 

The spa itself though really needs updating.  The spa amenities themselves are OK but the decor is just atrocious for a world class spa.  For example, I was sitting in a bath and staring at this decrepit flower pot.  It was just so gross for the amount of money they have coming in.  And the lounge chair cushions were just not exactly screaming "relax on me!".  Yucky.   

Oh!  And I can't forget, they also give you this loofah scrub down. They take you into a private room with water everywhere and you lay on a table and they literally shower you down with a loofah and scrub.  It was one of the weirdest things I have ever experienced.  Then they take you up to the lanai to get some fresh air and wait for your treatment.  David and I sat together for a couple of minutes and then got taken to our 50 minutes of heaven.  

After our treatment, we took a walk to the lobby. My grandparents had taken their photo there over 10 years ago and we wanted to do the same. We couldn't remember the exact spot and this place is massive but we got one in the vicinity. 

Now this part is hard for me to even think about again.  David went to the room to nap and eat some leftovers and I went to the Serenity Pool for a chicken quesadilla and pina colada. Finally, my first tropical drink poolside!  I chatted with the bartender and this drunk newlywed couple that just arrived.

In hindsight, I should have never ate something like that so late in the afternoon with our Mama's Fish House reservation soon after. But when you're hungry, you're hungry. I didn't feel great when we left for dinner and when we got to the most beautiful/cool restaurant I have ever seen, I was full fledged sick and freaking out. 

The gorgeous table set up at Mama's overlooking the beachfront property.  

What could be worse then being sick at a restaurant?  How about being escorted to the VIP table our friend arranged as a gift, brought out a bottle of champagne and then deciding you had to leave? I've never been more embarrassed and upset. I'll leave the details of the rest of the night out but really Becca, you eat random Thai food from the side of the road and you get food poisoning from the Four Seasons?!  I hate my body.  Do you think I make it to our 5AM sailboat trip the next day? Stay tuned...

Day 7 - Hawaii Honeymoon

There are a couple of things that are associated with Maui.  One of those things is the Road to Hana.  Everyone says "It's not about Hana, it's about the ride there."  Basically, there is a ton of really amazing things to see along this absolutely ridiculous road...and we were pumped!  

Part of the Road to Hana

A very cool perspective of what the majority of the road looks like.  Blind turns for 80 miles. 

We were out by 8:30AM and tried to be prepared as best we could.  We filled up our gas tank, stupidly chose not to get a picnic for the road, and headed to mile marker...well we got lost within the first couple minutes, haha! Apparently the miles restart a little up the road so we were searching for a waterfall in the wrong place.  If you don't count that little mishap, our first official stop was to watch some surfing right next to the uber-cute surf town of Paia at Ho’okipa Beach Park.  

Next up was Twin Falls. We parked and hiked for about 20 minutes and made it to what is the epitome of Hawaii in my opinion, swimming in a waterfall in the jungle.  

David behind Twin Falls. 

After that we tried Waimea Falls again, which was a bust, again (the first mentioned earlier). An OK hike but there were no falls so it was really disappointing when that is why we hiked for an hour.  I would have rather done something else if I knew they weren't visible.  Wasn't meant to be.  

Anywho, we continued on down the road. OMG winding and turning over and over. I've never done anything like it. Just madness.  It got to the point that it was funny because it was so absurd.  David did a really great job navigating.  We passed gorgeous beaches and cliffs and valleys and a bunch of other falls we could see on the side of the road and finally stopped halfway for the famous banana bread.

After the scrumptious snack, we hit up  Wai'anapanapa aka the black sand beach. I was really looking forward to this specific stop but I didn't know why.  The weather was perfect and the second we parked and got there, it began to downpour.  Not a good sign but only a slight delay.  We tried to get to the beach but took a wrong turn and ended up in these awesome caves.  A great five minute detour hike.  

Then we got down to the beach.  It was magical.  I can't explain the sound the water makes when it washes back into the ocean on the black pebbles but something about it was just so special.  It is such a beautiful and unique place.  I bottled up a very small amount of sand and wish I had brought a proper bottle even though I am sure it's illegal.  There were also other things to see there like a blowhole and an ancient, sacred burial ground.  The weather was still not great and we were starting to get really hungry so we didn't stay as long as I would have liked and I was sad to leave.  This is my new favorite place in the world. I loved it. 

A view from the path heading to the beach. 

Beach level. 

Just past Wai'anapanapa is finally the town of Hana.  We were starving and I was panicked because there was nothing.  But then we saw this sign for Thai food.  It was a shack like structure off the main road called Thai by Prawnees.  With a very nice blonde local greeting us and "Mama", a little Thai (I think) lady cooking on the side and a hippy couple just leaving, this could have gone one of two ways.  Go figure, it was the best Pad Thai I have ever had in my life!  We spoke with the waitress/owner a bit who explained she moved up to Hana a couple years back because it is the only place left for authentic Hawaiians to live, however people like Oprah have started to infiltrate.  She was originally from Wailea, where all the big hotels are now.  She also let us know that the road we were contemplating taking home, which was stated as "illegal and against rental contracts" to take, was actually fine.  More on that later but if you ever find yourself in Hana, make sure you go see Mama and her crew for some delicious Thai.  

Although we passed a couple of things on the road that we said we would hit up on the way back, the thought of going back the way we came was horrifying and there was a little more we wanted to see just past Hana.  So with a little convincing by our waitress, we continued on our path and decided to take the forbidden road. We passed a red sand beach and literally drive right by the Sacred Pools without realizing.  I was bummed about it but was concerned about getting home before it got dark so we just kept driving.  The road was pretty similar to what we took but at least there was far less traffic.  And then it got weird.  

The road was not completely paved, as promised by the waitress.  Thankfully we had 4-wheel drive (and really no other choice).  It was like Mars meets the Golan Heights. I've never seen anything like it.  (Fast forward a day and we were speaking to a local who explained it like "driving on the moon.  It's like another planet out there.  But totally safe, you guys were smart to take that.  But also pretty courageous!")  It was a cool feeling though to know that we took the road less travelled and saw another beautiful side of Maui a lot of people don't get to see.  

We made it home just as the sun set and took a breather before our strategically placed rewarding steak dinner at Duo, our breakfast joint turned steakhouse at the hotel.  Just as I was stuffing my face with the complimentary COTTON CANDY (sour apple flavor!!!) dessert that comes with the bill, we saw Rob Riggle.  See a celebrity at the Four Seasons, check.  

Day 5 - Hawaii Honeymoon

Today was relax day. We got up early to get seats by the adult pool. Apparently it gets pretty competitive and people literally line up at 7am to claim territory. Naturally when I got there at 6:55am, I was one of three people there.

We set up shop and went to oceanside yoga. The sand on Wailea beach is so soft and clean. The resort is much more manicured then any human I know!

The hotel has a  breakfast buffet we enjoyed every morning (courtesy of booking with Stacy Small at Elite Travel International).  In addition to a customized feast, there were also gluten free options, a different complimentary smoothie shot every morning and a load of greedy/courageous birds joining us.

We spent the morning reading (finished Aleph by Paulo Coelho) and relaxing at the Serenity infinity pool...

and then it started to rain. As most island weather goes, we thought it would pass and then we could continue with our plan to hit the driving range but it never did.  It rained for several more hours, apparently a rare thing. 

Our late lunch was at a place "known for their hawaiian pizza" called Round Table. I cracked up when we got there because it was like a Pizza Hut meets Medieval Times meets a bootleg Chuckie Cheese. Oh well, its hit or miss out in Wailea I guess. David then went for a run and I relaxed cuz I hadn't been sleeping well. Hooked myself up with a great face mask from the concierge too!  

The rain stopped just in time for a spectacular sunset.  The best one of the entire trip. 

Sunset from our room. 

Sunset from the Serenity Pool. 

We walked the grounds and found the game room a couple hours too late, as well as a Missoni designed lounge area.  One of the many awesome partnerships in the hotel is the Missoni one. They also designed two cabanas here.

One of the two Missoni cabanas at the Serenity Pool.

And then it was dinner. So much eating!  We went to Capische? A decent and extremely overpriced place where I ate shrimp carbonara and husband ate the lamb. It was a really dark and quiet place but for some reason I was just not feeling the vibe.  Rainy day blues perhaps.  But a rainy day in Hawaii is still better then a rainy day anywhere else.  

Day 4 - Hawaii Honeymoon

We woke up and said our goodbyes to our beautiful hotel, got some Coffee Bean (conveniently located just outside the hotel) and headed to the airport for Maui.

The plane ride took maybe 20 minutes. The flight attendant was taking drink orders and we were joking that if anyone got anything, they had no time to finish.

We were starving and someone recommended Da Kitchen. Super delish.  We had our first Spam dish! It was deep fried and rolled in seaweed and rice, like sushi.

Deep Fried Spam Musubi at Da Kitchen.

After being energized from lunch, we drove to the the Four Seasons and were greeted with a glorious welcome of lei's & cool towelettes. Our room wasn't quite ready so we hung out in a hut on the grounds and they texted us when our room was ready.  Entering the room was as exciting as Christmas morning; a champagne and chocolate fondue welcome set up surrounded by the sickest suite. This was the most beautiful hotel room(s) I have ever stayed in.  

Once we got settled in, we headed next door to the Grand Wailea to book our spa day for later in the week. Then we came back and sat for a drink and watched the hula entertainment. There is a man who blows a conch shell and runs around the entire property lighting all the torches. This happens every night here.

For dinner we went to a place up the road called Monkeypod. We got their fire-roasted garlic, chili and rosemary chicken wings that came with tzatziki sauce. This was hands down the best I've ever had. It was so fresh and so good. I practically started drinking it! I got poke tacos (raw and crispy and hit the spot) with garlic truffle oil fries (good enough). David got the fish tacos, a combo of butterfish, ahi and mahi. He devoured that and the banana cream pie.

Day 3, Hawaii Honeymoon

I woke up before sunrise again but today was surfing day and I was too excited to go back to bed. I watched the sunrise from my hotel room - I've definitely got my share of sunrises to last me for a couple of years.  

We headed out and stopped at a couple of spots along the way. First the Dole Plantation, where we got the pineapple ice cream.  It was real good. 

Getting his ice cream.

Then we drove through the surfing town of Hale'iwa on the North Shore. We didnt want to be late for the lesson so we parked like a local right on the side of the road and chilled for a bit.

Chun's Reef, where we surfed.

At noon, we started our lesson with Carol, from North Shore Surf Girls. I've never surfed, always wanted to, and decided if I was going, it would be on the North Shore. I did massive amounts of research and found NSSG. So glad I did. Carol and her assistant, Erin, were amazing. They gave us a lesson on sand and then headed into the water.

David stood up and ran a great wave his very first time. Mine wasnt as good but I did get up!  This went on for another hour and a half. I had to give up a little early because the paddling was just too exhausting. But all we could talk about on the ride home was how freaking awesome it was and started planning our next surfing trip.

We took a long route home and stopped at Giovanni's Shrimp Truck for lunch.  It was the best shrimp scampi I have ever had (sorry mom).  We also spotted a green sea turtle a.k.a. a Honu, on one of the beaches and got to see some of the mountains on the east side we normally would have never passed.  It's always nice to take an alternative route because the scenery was so beautiful.  

Signing the truck #drmthehoneymoon

Claudette, the Honu on the beach of Laniakea.

We got home just in time to see a crazy rainbow out of our room and then we went upstairs to the VIP club to catch the sunset. It was a nice change from the windy, loud, crowded beach.

I was too exhausted to go anywhere after that so my husband went to eat and I passed out.

Next up, Maui!