# Ready for the island Surprisingly, this was our first vacation together where the only/main purpose was relaxation rather than activities, adventure, or exploration, and so we had great expectations for this trip to Hawaii. Did it hold up to our expectations? Are we ever coming back? Will we go back to jam-packed vacation itineraries with zero wiggle room for adjustments? Keep reading to find out. ## Sipping Mai Tais by the pool Our first half of the vacation took us to Oahu, where we stayed at the Sheraton Waikiki Beach hotel. The views of Diamond Head Volcano and the beach were simply stunning, and the weather was ideal – warm enough for swimming but not too hot. ![[photos/2DB4F11F-28BC-483C-8711-4E611C214C45_1_105_c.jpeg]] ![[photos/07001538-1DC5-401A-9CF0-367AAFEFE045_1_105_c.jpeg]] We spent our days lounging on the beach, soaking up the sun, and enjoying cocktails by the pool. Manu's love for Mai Tais was well-represented during this leg of the trip, and he made a point of trying one at every location we went to. Sophia on the other hand got to revisit one of the favorite mocktails from her childhood, the Lava Flow - a Pina Colada with a strawberry swirl - which she enjoyed very much. ![[photos/AB7AD675-2C5F-4892-9893-DAAC6AA26D4D_1_105_c.jpeg]]![[photos/880C6DA4-72A3-4A1E-A39B-96A0DEA798A4_1_105_c.jpeg]] While eating breakfast at the Island Vintage Coffee on our first day on the island, the servers there recommended a place called Tane. Eager to try it out, we went there the next day - and what a great recommendation it turned out to be. Tane is a fully vegan izakaya (Japanese pub), with a menu full of every possible Japanese treat you could think of, including an array of creative and interesting sounding sushi rolls. We shared a few appetizers and sushi rolls (though we enjoyed the appetizers the most), but our favorite dish of the day turned out to be the cheesecake. Deliciously creamy and served with various fresh fruit - yum! ![[photos/881BCD14-5FD5-40FE-86C1-ACB8777F2463_1_105_c.jpeg]]![[photos/95E81E9F-3D58-4F2C-8265-7B3BD6D218E9_1_105_c.jpeg]] ![[photos/4FE5C80A-191A-4000-8511-63276FDB0D79_1_105_c.jpeg]] ![[photos/67718BC0-D952-4DE5-90D3-F2D587C54B44_1_105_c.jpeg]] Another highlight of our dining experiences was at Nature Waikiki, where we had an incredible ube (Japanese purple sweet potato) and macadamia nut ice cream sundae. It was truly like nothing we've ever tried before, and we are going to make it our mission to try to recreate it at home! ![[photos/A8957ADD-AE7A-404F-A97D-A4E90915CEF3_1_105_c.jpeg]] ![[photos/2BF0D5D7-9F67-406F-8728-00062E60CE84_1_105_c.jpeg]] ![[photos/FFD5820B-92DD-4966-AEB6-5768316CFF36_1_105_c.jpeg]] On our way home we passed by the Waikiki beach block party, and while the shoulder-to-shoulder crowds were enough not to make us want to join in, it was fun watching the hulu dancers for a moment as we passed by. ![[photos/CE726CB2-1529-4668-B2F0-C9966C22361B_1_105_c.jpeg]] ## Small birds on the big island After a wonderful time on Oahu, we headed to the Big Island for the second half of our vacation. We stayed at the Waikoloa Beach Marriott hotel, which was located on an amazingly beautiful lagoon. The views were breathtaking, and we enjoyed spending our days on the comparatively empty stretch of beach. ![[photos/6F6C4999-2240-445A-88B5-F6815E5B7CC3_1_105_c.jpeg]] ![[photos/D5ABF691-4479-49F8-AE49-42153FC17A9A_1_105_c.jpeg]] ![[photos/015BFE07-69B5-4321-BDF5-277826972F9E_1_105_c.jpeg]] ![[photos/77BF6318-7BC5-47E1-8059-4346952EB2FF_1_102_a.jpeg]] ![[photos/B52E8A13-0BDD-47DC-A82D-EBC83703F460_1_105_c.jpeg]] The hotel also happened to be right next to the Lava Lava Beach Club. As its name suggests, this restaurant is located right on the beach, where we enjoyed the stunning ambience, beautiful sunset views and live music with hulu dancing. It was a truly magical experience. ![[photos/ADCA2738-9054-4CF9-B947-2AEDC0493FD3_1_105_c.jpeg]] ![[photos/A3CACCCD-F1CE-4324-B6AA-B2E54B01D38A_1_105_c.jpeg]]![[photos/76A7240F-018E-4C22-AA8B-2E47E8FD2647_1_105_c.jpeg]] <iframe width="457" height="813" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Wjd0DQ-3CDE" title="Hulu at the Lava Lava Beach Club" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe> <iframe width="801" height="451" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Q3UHbG1xt-Y" title="Hula at Lava Lava Beach Club - 2" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe> ![[photos/12715C55-6DFA-4FB7-94BA-DF5B871766E4_1_105_c.jpeg]] ![[photos/6F3BD34E-5BE1-45C8-BBBF-82497ACB203F_1_105_c.jpeg]] The highlight of our Big Island adventure, however, was our guided birding tour to Hakalau National Wildlife Refuge. This restricted-access forest reserve is renowned for its incredible biodiversity, with many rare and endangered species calling it home. We were incredibly lucky, as we spotted the Pueo owl, 'io hawk, Nene goose, Akiapolaau, 'elepaio, Apapane, and 'i'iwi – quite a list of Hawaiian specialties that cannot be found anywhere else in the world! We were also happy to hear our guide say that many of these endangered species have started to recover in recent years - some they would previously only see every 3-4 trips, which they now encounter on almost every trip. On our trip we ended up seeing 3 out of the 4 "Big 4" critically endangered birds. ![[photos/383F96AD-8C48-4AF2-98CE-2767B49FB027_1_105_c.jpeg]] ![[photos/ADEC9266-65DF-44F8-9071-02791FEFA9DB_1_105_c.jpeg]] ![[photos/C16288A5-6FDC-4C0E-876D-47B71892567E_1_105_c.jpeg]] ![[photos/8E4EB323-4530-454A-B6FE-A790DC04F8CF_1_105_c.jpeg]] ![[photos/9EEF5C7B-7BFA-4A14-91BC-D08B9F248E06_1_105_c.jpeg]] ![[photos/AA983767-4826-4C14-A1E0-84162DD26C60_1_105_c.jpeg]] ![[photos/E24320F5-2E8B-41B5-A050-3B4848BF4B2B_1_105_c.jpeg]] ![[photos/E29674A1-89BD-4944-B6A9-1A3650076BC4_1_105_c.jpeg]] ![[photos/54D8BA2C-3E29-493C-ABE3-022554874BC2_1_105_c.jpeg]] ## Throwing shade One unexpected thing that we didn't enjoy very much about this trip was the lack of shade at both of the hotels that we stayed at. We sort of expected that hotels would have large umbrellas for shade available for most guests - but both only had 3-4 spots (for the hundreds of guests) that included an umbrella. The reason for this peculiar setup became apparent almost immediately - they also had various private cabanas or reserved lounge chairs available for rent at prices north of 100$ per 8 hours. With the already very high prices of the Hawaiian islands, this is quite a tough pill to swallow.