Hawaii to Fiji to Australia

Our last day in Hawaii, we slept in, and relaxed on Wakiki beach.  
 

 

Due to our Fiji flight departure time, we checked out of the Hale Koa and spent the day exploring the island.  We traveled to the North Shore, to the town of Haleiwa.  It was a small town, similar to other shore towns!  We visited a small roadside stand and looked at some overpriced seashells, that were obviously NOT from Hawaii.  We had lunch at Haleiwa Joe's.  The food was great; the views were wonderful!  http://haleiwajoes.com/



We took a drive up to Kaulua beach, which appeared to be at the end of the world.  The "beach" we stopped at was made up of rocks formed from lava, they had great patterns where the ocean waves had worn them away, there were small pools where there was the occasional crab.  The beach was strewn with small pieces of coral, not many shells...in fact shells were very few and far between.  I found my first piece of sea glass!

 

Climbing on the rocks and watching the Pacific Ocean roar was exciting and thrilling!  

We walked along another stretch of beach where there was sand as I am used to.  The water was warm and very calm.  

As we drove out along the road, we spotted this unusual 'greenhouse' !!!

We drove around the island to find Fine Ass Chocolates in  Ka'a'wa.    We managed to arrive there just before closing time.  The owner was quite nice and knew his stock extremely well.  We had many choices in chocolate balls, from dirty balls to frosty balls to salty sticky balls.  We bought a selection and left very happy!  I also purchased a Coffee bean sack which is made from canvas.  I am not sure what I will do with it, but I am the owner of one now!!
http://www.fineasschocolate.com/

We made our way back to a location we had picked out previously so that we could watch the sun set
over the Pacific Ocean.  

 

Our Fiji airline flight had been changed a number of times and we had to turn the rental car in before the last airport shuttle ran.  So, we ended up at the Honolulu airport at 9:30 in the evening.  Our flight was due to leave at 4:30am.  We could not check our luggage, so we were stuck hauling that around as well.  We found some seats that were fairly comfortable and settled in.  I was able to catch some sleep; I doubt Vince slept at all.  Once we could check our bags, we found another set of seats and I resumed my sporadic napping.  Our flight took off on time, thankfully, and they fed us breakfast on the plane.  I was so hungry at that point, I finished most of the food!    Sleep was next on that 6 hour flight.  

Our arrival in Fiji found us sleepy and somewhat grainy eyed, but we were in Fiji!  We stored our luggage and found a taxi to take us to town for lunch.  We found a quiet place, actually the First Landing resort, and had breakfast food for lunch.  The island is very beautiful, and we enjoyed our drive.

  

Our flight from Fiji was uneventful and only 4 hours.  We slept again, and were thrilled to finally arrive in Sydney.  Obtaining our luggage and getting through customs was a breeze! The rental car agent talked us into an orange Hyundai which was not as obnoxious as it sounds.  

The drive from the airport to our hotel was a bit harrowing!  Driving on the left side of the roadway  in a vehicle which has the steering wheel on the right, in the dark, to a destination we had never been to before all adds up to stress. Add on the fact that we were still quite tired....well, we were extremely thrilled to make it. Please note that while I say "we",  Vince was doing the driving.  I was attempting to navigate and remind him to stay on the left!  

The Eagle View Escape is fabulous.  http://www.eagleview.com.au/   The drive in enabled us to see kangaroos and wombats along the sides of the road, along with alpacas!  Our cabin (named Dreaming) has a view of Lake Lyell, the mountains and Australian nature.  As I write this, I am looking out the deck windows at the kangaroos and alpacas grazing.  How fabulous!