Day 31: Kona: We're Outta Here (not so fast)

February 10, 2016

Our flight home is a red eye that only leaves near midnight, so in principle we could have cycled today. But we would have been nervous flitting around and not knowing that everything was packed and squared away.

These are all the parts that have to come off one bike before it can be folded and fitted into its case. No wonder we are concerned to see the bikes packed sooner than later.

So we actually disassembled the bikes and mostly packed last night. Now we are lying around, watching CNN and FOX News about the US presidential campaigns, until we need to check out of our room.

Wanting to be all ready still allowed for me to take one more turn in the sea this morning. Where we live, it is remarkable that you can get on a little boat and in an hour or so see killer whales. That is very close to the developed, urbanized centres. But here, wild nature is even closer. I crossed the road in front of Splashers, waded through the crowds of tourists by the Marriott hotel, and walked into the sea. In seconds I was in a world of multi-coloured fish, corals, and anemones. It really is quite something. Then I re-crossed the street and swam through the cool freshwater pool of the Seaside and strolled into our room. Predictably this resulted in "Go drip in the washroom!", but it was still a great switch from our possibilities at home. One of the reasons, I suppose, that we are down here.

Back home, I guess we are just as able to watch 24/7 American political coverage, but it seems more vital and to the point when viewed from inside the country. What we have been watching has been really dramatic. We have Trump - way, way, out on the Right, bragging that America is going to whip the rest of the world, including minorities even inside the country. Really scary. Then we have Sanders, declaring that this is the Revolution, with free health care and education for all, make the rich pay, and so forth.

What an amazing cracking apart of the political system here. But then Barack Obama comes on - reasoned, intelligent, insightful. The contrasts are so shocking. There is no need to flick the channels, because truth really is stranger than fiction.

Eventually, though, we will get tired of following the coverage. Plus, it turns out that the waves are not big enough today at Waimea Bay on the Oahu north shore. So the Quicksilver big wave surf competition has been postponed. If we can not watch surfing and are tired of politics, we are going to have to go out and actually do something!

About Quicksilver:

"HALEIWA, Hawaii (AP) — "Eddie would go." That's the mantra of the Quiksilver big wave surf competition in memory of Eddie Aikau, a Native Hawaiian surfer famous for riding monster waves and saving hundreds of lives as Waimea Bay's first official lifeguard.

For the first time in six years, the surf conditions on the North Shore of Oahu are expected to meet the organizers' strict minimum requirements on Wednesday, with waves of around 40-feet tall.

By 5:30 a.m. Wednesday, the two lane road that snakes along Oahu's North Shore was backed up with traffic as eager spectators rode bikes or walked to the venue. Parking was nearly impossible to come by for miles from the beach.

The Quiksilver In Memory of Eddie Aikau event began in 1984, but there have only been eight times conditions have been ripe for the competition."

We are just back from having walked a few kilometers down Alii and back. We bagan by strolling through the Kamehameha Hotel, where we found extensive displays about the Hawaiian royal family. It is shocking at what early ages most of them died, including two that went to visit England and promptly died of measles.

Some of thecformer Hawaiian royal family

A really long canoe on display at the hotel.

One of (obviously) three paintings about the Ironman

The 2/3 size replica of Kamehameha's heiau, beside the pier

The bicycles are so fast, we had earlier missed most of the dozens and dozens of tourist shops that populate the stretch from the hotel and towards the south. To boot, a cruise ship arrived this morning, so the area near the pier was very overloaded with new pilgrims.

Hawaii, as we have established, is an Island of amazing contrasts, such as from the jungles of Hilo to the grasslands of Waimea. So today we were fully immersed in the tourist ecosystem, the land of plastic plumeria but also of excellent art and photography.

Lots of tourist goods waiting for the cruisecship people

We found a couple of ukelele shops, but had to admit to ourselves that we are not really ready to invest in an instrument, no matter how gorgeous the wood. In one shop the lady was very sweetly persistent in trying to sell us something, playing and singing on a couple of instruments and even giving Dodie a short lesson. Sadly, for us and her, no sale was made.

We found other vendors along the way also sweetly but persistently trying to make a sale. We were a frustration to them, I'm sure, but we saw other tourists who generally look the same as us dropping hundreds of dollars without blinking.

Some nice ukeleles. Second from left is pineapple shape with highly figured KOA

Very small bird. What is he? (Ok, it's a common waxbill. Came to Hawaii in the 1970's from Africa. Now found on all islands of Hawaii. On the big island it is mainly around Kona and Hilo. ) Thanks Bill Shaneyfelt!

Now we are back in the Seaside lobby, having had enough fun and sun for the day. Unfortunately, the next "paradise island" we wake up on will likely be drenched with cold rain. Grrr.

Grandma has completed the tour (so the Nenes are safe).

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