Big Island Day 2: The Highlight Reel

The next morning, we had to wake up this little tyke. That is so unusual for us, it is blog-worthy. The night before, there must have been "7,420" birds (according to Nic) in these trees, chirping away. It was tropical, and while not-so-soothing, it was kind of fun.
From talking with friends and reading up, we were really looking forward to our kayak trip across Kealakekua Bay to the Captain Cook Monument. We left our sunny hotel, and traveled south--straight into rain clouds and vog. We kept to the plan, though, and finally got our kayak into the water.

We were nervous about how Zachary would do in the water, and just as nervous that we wouldn't see any of the spinner dolphins that live in the bay. There were several other kayakers, and no one had seen dolphins yet. 15 minutes in, Zac was whining a bit, we were freezing, and nothing...

Then they were everywhere. We kayaked to them as they swam back and forth across the bay. I jumped out of the kayak first, anxious to get a close-up. I stuck my mask in the water, and was giddy as a schoolgirl to see a pod of at least 30 dolphins straight below me about 50 feet. I could hear their hum/singing sounds so clearly in the water! I was anxious for Brady to see them, so I hopped into the kayak and Brady jumped in.

We didn't need to rush. We swam with them for a good hour or more, as the dolphins went back and forth across the bay. Imagine how excited we were when the pod surfaced as a group, coming right up next to us in the water! A few of them would jump and spin, and it was exhilarating to watch them jump from the water, then stick our heads up to see them spin in the air, and finally watch them splash down right next to us!

Zachary was such a super trooper. He paddled around with us, using his own oar. At one point when I was in the water, he stuck his oar in too far, and followed it overboard. The lifejacket did it's job, and Brady got to him in a second. He coughed for a minute, then said, "BOAT!" and pointed to get back into the kayak. He loved watching the "FISHIES!" jump and perform, and kept pointing them out to us. The rest of the trip, he asked to go on a boat again.

This is our favorite picture from the trip. I'm the swimmer behind the dolphin. We wish we had more pics, but watching a 2 year old on a kayak, and not missing a beat with the "fishies" kept us plenty occupied. (While the water looks gray and dark, it was bright blue as soon as you put your head in, and the visibility was outstanding!)

We estimate that there we saw about 100 dolphins, swimming back and forth in their natural habitat. The "ranker" in me would put this in my top 5 adventures EVER. It was an experience you hope to have sometime in your life, and when it happens, you hope you get to experience it again someday.We docked and had some lunch, before snorkeling at the Captain Cook Monument in what had to be the clearest water we've ever seen (besides possibly the Bahamas, but it's hard to compare so many years apart). Guess what Zac did here? (If you guessed "threw rocks," you are correct.)
There were thousands of bright fish below the surface.

Immediately after getting back to the car, Zac was out cold. He stayed that way for another hour and a half, despite getting moved from the car and put in the stroller. All that paddling tuckered him out.

Next Stop: Pu'uhonua o Honaunau, or "Place of Refuge"

Anciently, the lives of Hawaiians were governed by the "kapu" system--a lengthy list of laws that were all punishable by gruesome death. Commoners could not get close to the chief or even let his shadow reach the palace grounds, women could not eat with men, and many other trivial laws. The belief was if these laws were violated, Pe'e (the volcano goddess) would bring destruction. Other gods could also act violently, bringing about tsunamis, earthquakes or famine.

If the person who broke kapu could reach the Place of Refuge before he was penalized, a priest could take them through ceremonies to absolve them from fault, and the offender could then return home like nothing happened.

There are quite a few Place of Refuge locations throughout the islands, but this is supposed to be the best one.

This wall, built in the 1500s, divided the Place of refuge from the royal palace grounds. It is 1,000 feet long, 10 feet high and 17 feet thick, and built without mortar.
This bay was the royal landing spot, and anyone else caught using it was killed. We think this wood carving is a pretty obvious "No Trespassing" sign.

Brady with the gods:

Konane: a Hawaiian game played on a stone surface with rocks. It looks likc checkers. They had a real, preserved one, and this is the fake, cheesy replication.

We planned to watch Ty and Shay, but instead we all went to dinner together. It turns out the Merriman's on Big Island is far and away better than Merriman's on Kauai. After dinner, we waited to go on the boat that goes around the resort. Zachary loved it.
They have 4 of these African birds, trapped at the resort. Just teasing, I am undecided on this issue. (I think zoos are just fine, for the record, and as long as animals are not being mistreated, I don't see any reason for alarm. Of course, "mistreated" has many different meanings for people, so maybe I'll just leave it alone now.)

Day 2=SUCCESS and memories!