- a week on the Big Island of Hawaii with Babe
- a solo mileage run to Singapore (staying there for 2 full days versus a few hours)
- another mileage run to Singapore, staying 4 full days but accompanied by my friend Karen
- a week in Las Vegas (I know what you're thinking...too long)
- half a week in Scottsdale, AZ with Babe
- 9 day trip with Babe to see Peru and hike the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu
The first week of sabbatical was for relaxing and forgetting about work. I even turned off work email to my iPhone. However, I managed to dream about work the first few days, ugh! Interestingly enough, the stock price went up since I went on sabbatical. They must not need me around.
Our trip to Hawaii had arrived...this was Babe's first visit to the Big Island, and it would be my first time seeing the volcano at night. I planned the trip differently than the last couple times I had been to Hawaii. I had usually stayed in one place the whole trip, but this time, I broke up the lodging into different places, as the Big Island is very large and I didn't want to spend so much time driving back and forth between home and attractions.
Thanks to "UDU" (Unlimited Domestic Upgrades) on United, Babe and I were upgraded to first class on the leg from Los Angeles to Kona, which made for a more comfortable trip. (we were unable to get upgraded on the puddle jumper to Los Angeles, not that I cared, as the flight was short) Breakfast was served, but it was the same blah turkey sausage/potato/egg plate with croissant and fruit. We landed in Kona around noon...and I did not forget my iPod and iPhone on the plane like last February! :) I got a Hertz rental car from Priceline, which saved $50 from booking direct. The rental counter agent told us there was a special on full-sized sedans and Jeep Wranglers...then he looked at my reservation and said, "Oh, you have a full-size...well, we have a special on Jeep Wranglers..." I declined all offers, and we were on our way in our Mazda 6 with 29k miles on it. We thought we had marked all damage on the car on the form to turn in to the exit gate agent, however, the agent noticed that the left front wheel panel was jutting slightly open (at an angle which was hard for us to see) and he marked it down for us, sweet!
As usual, our first stop was to Costco for lunch and groceries, but since we didn't have a condo (our first hotel offered only a small refrigerator in the room), we only bought pre-cut papaya and pineapple. We also stopped by Safeway to get beer, poke, and Hawaiian bread.
Our home for the next couple of nights would be the Mauna Lani Bay Hotel. I originally booked the Four Seasons Hualalai, but the tsunami triggered by the Japan earthquake hit the Big Island and damaged the Four Seasons as well as the resort next door, the Kona Village. The Four Seasons website claimed that the resort would re-open three weeks later, but after seeing damage footage on YouTube, I doubted that would be the case, and I was right, as I received an email a few days later from Four Seasons apologizing for canceling my reservation as the re-opening would be delayed until April 30. I was bummed as I was hoping to treat myself to a couple of nights there as I had always wanted to stay there, plus I found a deal that included breakfast every morning plus one lunch. Plan B would be to stay at the 2nd highest rated hotel on TripAdvisor, which was the Mauna Lani. I got a great price of $209 a night plus tax on Hotwire after researching that the Mauna Lani was the "mystery 4.5 star Kohala coast hotel" on betterbidding.com. Regular room rate was $395. This was way less expensive than my original plans to stay at the Four Seasons. Incidentally, the Four Seasons mailed me an apology for the resort closure and included a coupon for one free night, good until April of next year, and combinable with any offers, yay! I'll need to make another trip to the Big Island before then...I don't think I will be able to find a better discount than this, unless someday I meet some rich friends who will invite me to stay in a villa there. ;)
The Mauna Lani was like an oasis sprouting up from the black lava desert of the Kohala coast. The hotel had free valet parking, and the bags were unloaded by the bell hop to take to the room. We were seated at one of several individual desks, where we were met by a greeter, who asked for our names, and gave us fresh orchid leis, a cool towel, and a refreshing guava beverage garnished with pineapple. She disappeared, then an agent came with the materials to check us in and describe the amenities offered by the hotel. Very classy.
We were offered the opportunity to upgrade to an ocean view room for an additional $25 a night. Since the difference between a standard room and an ocean view room was $250 a night, the $25 was a bargain! (in addition to the low Hotwire rate) Our room was on the top floor, facing the turtle pond (denoted as the "quiet side"). It was nice to be on the top floor as there was no noise from "people above", and most of the roof of the lanai was open to the sky.
The hotel grounds were beautiful, with lots of water features and lush landscaping. There was even a shark pond! At 6pm every night, a "warrior" sounded the conch horn and ran around to light all of the gas torches in the resort. It was funny to watch children chase after him. There was live Hawaiian music in the atrium that evening.
We ate dinner in our room (poke, papaya and beer!) and crashed as we were so tired from being up since 3:30am.
Sunday was Easter, and it was a gorgeous sunny day. We spent the entire day at the beach. There were many cabanas with padded loungers to choose from, as well as hammocks. Servers would visit the guests every hour or so to see if anything was needed from the bar or grill, which was very convenient.
We took a stroll of the grounds later in the evening. Sunsets are spectacular on this side of the island.
We only spent two nights at the Mauna Lani, so we did not have a chance to enjoy other complimentary amenities such as one hour of tennis every day, snorkel rental for four hours every day, coffee/tea in the lobby, guided nature walks, or riding bicycles to roam the grounds. Staying at the Mauna Lani was very relaxing and carefree, though I was definitely looking forward to our next accommodations - a treehouse located next to Hawaii Volcanoes National Park!
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