Destination: Hawaii

About 4 years ago, Rob told me that the American Association of Orthodontist was going to have their annual meeting in Hawaii in 2012. And 4 years ago, I told him that he's taking me.

He kept his word. 

 View of Diamondhead Volcano from the rooftop of our condo/hotel.

Sunset Beach on North Shore Oahu

Secret Beach on Kauai

Sunset Beach on North Shore Oahu

The best thing about Hawaii: the beaches and the temperature of the water. Both can't be beat. Our favorite activity: snorkeling. We snorkeled in Lanikai, Shark's Cove (aka no sharks but schools and schools of fish), a beach near Shark's Cove, and Tunnels. We loved snorkeling because it's peaceful and enjoyable to see the fish and sea turtles in their natural habitats.

Rob was the drummer king at the Polynesian Cultural Center. We learned a lot about several different polynesian cultures while we were there. At the Luau, the announcer invited those who were celebrating anniversaries to come up and dance in front of the crowd. We did! This trip, aside from being a business trip (we did attend classes at the seminar), we celebrated 10 years of marriage! I'm such a lucky woman! I sure love my man! After dinner, we watched an amazing fire show.

After 6 nights in Oahu, we went to Kauai. One side of Kauai doesn't have any roads going to it, so the only access is by hiking, boating, or helicopter rides. It's a beautiful jungle land. Here is one alcove that we could see from the top of one of the mountains. Near here is one of the consistently wettest places on earth. It did rain often and periodically on Kauai!

After we snorkeled at Tunnels in Kauai, we kayaked up and down a river. We really enjoyed ourselves.

Rob's brother, Joe, told us about this awesome hike that we had to try...a hike to the Secret Tunnels. We read about it online and looked up the trail info in a book and thought we were ready to go. Then we started the hike...and we tried to keep our shoes dry until we got to the tunnels. About 1/4 mile into the hike, we quickly realized that was impossible. We were hiking in a jungle. It kept raining sporadically. The sun never reached the dirt. It was muddy. It was hard for me to walk in the mud at first, so I would tell myself, "embrace the mud." It took us about 3 hours to go about 1 1/2 miles. Every step required deliberation and mental concentration so you wouldn't slip or slide down the side of the mountain. We were often hunched over because the plants were overgrown on the trail. From the sound of the website and trail book, we hadn't expected so much mud and slipperiness. After a while, I mentioned out loud that I couldn't remember seeing the trail markers for awhile. Doubt. It began to rain some more. We didn't know if we were on the right trail, the muddy trail was getting muddier and slipperier, and our mental game was slipping. We decided to turn back (after some thought and prayer). The jungle beat us. So we never did get to the Secret Tunnels. But we did hike for 5 hours in the jungle. And it really is tough.

10 days in Hawaii with the love of my life. It was an experience I'll cherish forever!