The rest of the Big Island

After finishing up at the Volcanoes National Park, we drove the rest of the way around the island with Outback Steakhouse in mind. We stopped here and there to get out and check out the scenery, but we figured we'd seen enough waterfalls and beaches on Kauai to skip to the notable stops. One such was an actual black sand beach. Why is this special, you ask? The ocean has worn away at the solidified lava to make black sand. The south side of Hawai'i looked pretty familiar--a lot like Kauai. We kept driving until we hit Kona where we ate at Outback. Mmm. On the way back to the hotel Saturday night we passed some Ironman competitors that were still running their marathon (that equals non-stop exercise for more than 12 hours!!). Saturday was a long day and we crashed hard.
Sunday we relaxed, bummed around and shopped. Spent the morning in the pool--it had a slide and an infinity pool, a pool with a beach in it and 3 jacuzzies. Nice restaurant and bar too.
The Kona side is very desolate. Nothing grows here since it's on the wrong side of the mountains. All of the rain falls on the east side and the west side has the mountain effect. It was weird to be surrounded by dead land--Kauai is so green everywhere.
As we were driving along, we noticed 'rock graffiti'--white rocks placed on the lava fields to spell out something. Kinda cool.
We had a good time, even though we got really sunburned (I'm still peeling). Met a few Ironman finishers and got to see something new. But I think Kauai is the best place to visit...

This week has been pretty dull. Work, last sailing race of the season was on Thursday, and I'm trying to get things in order at work so things will go well until I am replaced. Rummaging through things trying to decide what to get rid of and what to keep, trying to have everything in place before Theresa comes. Sold the car for $500 (that's when you know you own a piece of crap) just before my insurance, registration, and safety check were up for renewal. And now it's just another lazy Sunday...