The Big Island

After Kauai, we flew to the Big Island for a few days at the Volcano House Hotel.  The best part about staying at this hotel is you are right on the rim of the Kilauea crater.  Which would have been much more exciting if it didn't pour with rain the whole time we were there.

But you can't control the weather so who cares?



One night the rain stopped long enough for us to realise we could see the glow of the lava lake from our room, so we put our shoes on and rushed outside to get a photo (of sorts).



We also did a boat trip around the island to see where the lava had been meeting the sea when it was flowing last year.  That was pretty cool and it stopped raining for an hour which made it much more enjoyable.





Here's one last shot of the crater with sulphur dioxide casually pouring out.



After 12 days it was time to come home and that was a shock to the system; when we left Hawaii it was 30C and when we got home to Melbourne it was 5C.

All in all it was a good holiday.  Oh, and we flew Hawaiian Airlines.  Nothing to write home about.

Kauai

Recently we visited Hawai'i for a holiday and it was just lovely.  Rather than do the usual touristy thing, we decided to stay on Kauai instead, neither of us having been there before.

We stayed at the Grand Hyatt Kauai, and while it was a massive hotel, much bigger than we usually stay at, it was really nice and they upgraded us to a deluxe suite which made it even nicer.  This was the view from the lobby when you entered the hotel:



Which you have to admit is not too bad.  This was the view from our room:



Which is a very nice view to wake up to every day.

The weather was really nice and warm (important when you've come from the middle of winter in Australia) and the 27 pools at the hotel just about covered what you needed.

We drove up to see the Kilauea Lighthouse:

And went to the Waimea Canyon:





And we did a helicopter flight over the Na Pali Coast, which is inaccessible by road - you have to go via helicopter or boat. There is a 13 mile hiking trail rated difficult, but that's not my idea of a holiday stroll.





Whilst on our flight we saw the waterfalls used in the movie Jurassic Park, which don't look all that impressive from the air but they are more than 400 feet high.

Canberra

Recently we visited Canberra - our nation's Capital - to visit a couple of exhibitions that weren't coming to Melbourne.

We stayed at the Park Hyatt Canberra, which was excellent, and perfectly located close to all the things we were going to see.  I highly recommend this as an accommodation option if you ever have to stay in Canberra.

Our first visit was to the National Gallery of Australia to see the Gold and the Incas exhibition.  Gold and the Incas showcases the splendour of ancient pre-Hispanic cultures of Peru.  More than 200 objects are included, from gold regalia, intricate jewellery and striking vessels to elaborate embroidered and woven cloths.  It was very good and extremely interesting.

Our second excursion was to the National Library of Australia to see Mapping Our World: Terra Incognita to Australia.  This exhibit shows rare and unique cartographic treasures from around the world. Discover how European explorers unravelled the secrets of the great south land.

Highlights of the exhibition include the magnificent Fra Mauro Map of the World; the remarkable Boke of Idrography presented to Henry VIII; an intricate world map by the Benedictine monk Andreas Walsperger (1448); a fifteenth-century Ptolemy manuscript; magnificent and controversial ‘Dieppe’ charts; one of only four surviving copies of Mercator’s groundbreaking 1569 projection, and original manuscript charts by Pacific navigators including Louis de Freycinet, James Cook and Matthew Flinders.  We came home with three replica maps, they were that good.

Whilst in Canberra we visited Parliament House, which is quite beautiful.  You can go in any time and wander around.

We also went to the Australian War Memorial.  My father is a Vietnam veteran and he was keen for us to see the Vietnam exhibit.  It was fascinating and truly one of the best war memorials we've been to around the world.



This is the view of Parliament House looking straight down Anzac Parade, past the old Parliament House to the new Parliament House.



Canberra is very nice to visit although I wouldn't want to necessarily live there.

New England

Following our week in New York, we caught a train to Boston and then hired a car and drove around the New England region for a week, seeing all the leaves change colour as we went.  The NE region is beautiful and especially at that time of year.

We started in Boston and drove to Portland, Maine as our first stop.  No trees changing colour there, barely saw any trees at all.  Next stop was North Conway, New Hampshire.  The motherload.


The first tree we saw with such amazing colour! Right in the middle of town, actually in someone's front yard.


Saco River, just outside North Conway, in the White Mountains.


Not sure what this stream was called but a fair bit of climbing up and down rocks was required to get to it. Totally worth it in my book.


Willey Pond, in Crawford Notch State Park NH. The boy maintains the hot dogs here were excellent - he ate three.


Lake Chocorua, NH.


Train line the Conway Scenic Railway travels on in NH. We tried to get tickets for the train weeks before but they were sold out. We stumbled on the train line by accident and saw the train go past anyway, so I don't think we missed out on anything in particular :)


Historic Deerfield. We also had a night in Hanover but it poured with rain the whole time so no photos.


One final burst of colour in Deerfield.

The trip details

We flew to New York via LA on Virgin Australia, they were excellent to travel with and with a direct flight you can't complain.  We then flew Delta from LA to New York, I would never do that again.  Hopeless.  But we got there in one piece and our luggage arrived too so I guess we can't complain too much.

In New York we stayed at the Langham Place Fifth Avenue, which I would highly recommend.  On Fifth Avenue, one block away from the Empire State Building, it was in an excellent location and the staff and hotel services were top notch.  There was also a Michelin-starred restaurant in the hotel  - Ai Fiori - which was brilliant and also served breakfast! 

Of course we went shopping on Fifth Avenue, walked up to Central Park, visited the Museum of Natural History, ate dinner at Picholine (I highly recommend this restaurant), had brunch at Friend of a Farmer in Gramercy Park (which is where I want to live if I ever move to NYC), went on a helicopter flight around the city  (AWESOME), went to both decks of the Empire State Building, visited the Intrepid Museum, saw Grand Central Station (how all stations should look, in my opinion), ate cupcakes from Magnolia Bakery, and generally had an awesome time.

We caught a train to Boston, which was a great way to see the countryside without the trauma of driving on the wrong side of the road.  In Boston we stayed at the Fairmont Battery Wharf, which was really nice.  After our drive around the New England region, we came back to Boston for a couple of days.  Visited Little Italy, Harvard, MIT, did a tour around the city, ate at some nice places, the names of which I don't remember now, and generally had a lovely time.

We flew with Virgin America back to LA, they were excellent.  MUCH better than Delta.  The Virgin lounge in LAX leaves a lot to be desired, but hey it's a place to sit while you wait for your flight.  Then we had a very pleasant overnight flight with Virgin Australia back to Melbourne.  I would definitely fly with them again.

Oh, and we did a flight over the Lake District of New Hampshire in this bi-plane, which I would highly recommend if you ever get the chance.

New York

It's probably time that I told you all about our recent trip to New York.  We visited in late September and spent a week there, seeing the sights, meeting up with Facebook friends, shopping, and generally having a wonderful time.  Here are a few highlights.


The view from our hotel window at sunset... that's the Flatiron Building in the middle.


Financial District and the Freedom Tower, with Statue of Liberty in the foreground. Taken from a helicopter which was an AWESOME way to see the city.


Central Park.


The city from the Empire State Building at dusk. It's touristy but totally worth it. And if you buy the express tickets you never have to wait in line. My kind of deal!


The Chrysler Building. Yes, we saw all the iconic things.


We went to the Intrepid Museum, which was really good. They have lots of planes, Concorde, the space shuttle Enterprise, USS Growler submarine, and the aircraft carrier Intrepid. Very interesting and well worth the visit.

Lord Howe Island

At the end of June we decided to take a short break and visit Lord Howe Island, approximately 600km off the east coast of Australia.  It is a beautiful spot in the Pacific Ocean, famous for its natural attractions and endemic wildlife.  There are only 350 permanent residents on LHI, and a maximum of 400 visitors at any one time, so you never feel too crowded.



Accommodation options are plentiful, and we stayed at the Capella Lodge, which I would highly recommend.  Libby and Mark are the managers, and are there to make your stay as relaxing as possible.  They'll pick you up from the airport, take you into town any time you want to go, organise a picnic for you to take to the beach, arrange a fishing trip if you want one; nothing is too much trouble.

We woke up to this view every day, which, as you can imagine, was pretty hard to take.



Meals were a highlight, and breakfast and dinner is included in the room rate. Friday night brings on the degustation menu, which I am not normally a fan of, but it was truly delicious and not too filling at all. The matched wines are always a danger but really not a worry when you don't have to drive home!

The Lord Howe Island Woodhen is a rare bird on the island, almost extinct a few years ago, but careful management has brought it back from the brink. They are not too worried about people getting up close and personal with a camera, either.



We took a boat ride out to see Ball's Pyramid, which is the largest single rock rising from the ocean anywhere in the world. Unfortunately the weather was not on our side, and out trip was aborted due to four metre swells.



Unless you live in Sydney, LHI is not the easiest place to get to but if you ever get the chance, I do suggest you go. It really is wonderful.

Papua New Guinea part 5

We visited the Vitu Islands, and anchored inside the collapsed crater of an old volcano.  The people here had a small boat-building business.



We had planned to snorkel and see some of the underwater life but the locals told us a crocodile had been sighted that morning lurking about so it was decided that snorkelling would be just tempting fate. We rode around in the tenders instead.



The sides of the inlet were so steep!





It was another magnificent day althought overcast and extremely humid.

The next day we took a trip in the helicopter over Mt Uluwan, which as you can see is an active volcano.



We also flew over these waterfalls in the Nakanai Mountains, which are so remote that they don't even have a name.



We also took the tenders up the river and had a really good morning tea tied up under a large tree.

The next day we arrived in Kavieng and spent the morning sitting on the beach before heading to the airport and flying back to Australia. All in all it was a gorgeous trip and definitely a relatively safe way to see Papua New Guinea, which is usually getting in the news for all the wrong reasons. The staff onboard True North were wonderful and nothing was too much trouble. The chefs were tremendous and delivered five star meals every single day. It was a pleasure to travel on the True North, and I would highly recommend it if you ever get the chance.

Papua New Guinea part 4

Ponam Island.  Just beautiful.  We had a gorgeous day visiting the lovely people of Ponam, who were so very friendly and delighted to see us. We had a look at the school and the hospital, and met the families who live on the island, which has one of the longest coral reefs in Manus Province.



While other people went scuba diving we got the ship's captain to take us for a ride in one of the tenders along the edge of the reef. A storm was coming and the scenery was spectacular.



During the afternoon we visited Rambutyo Island, where we were given a fine welcome with a Sing Sing.





The Chief of the village took his chance to give a long (and largely incomprehensible to us) speech welcoming us to the island. He looked very Chiefly.



I ate the best pineapple I have ever had in my LIFE on Rambutyo Island. And the fresh coconut water was pretty delicious too.