20 Days in Hawaii and Disneyland - Yes, we are Lucky Nuts (Updated 9/19)

[afwdwfan]

Wow. Those are some huge rays. That looks like it would be an incredible experience to see. I love the pictures and the videos. I didn't realize exactly how big the rays were until I saw the video of them swimming around the pirate princess. I guess when you're that close to something that big, you're glad they're a filter feeder and hope the suction level isn't too high.

I'm glad you both enjoyed it.

One question though... you mentioned a 60 foot drop off, but how deep was the water where you were hanging out watching the rays at night?

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

Amazing pictures! What an experience.

I can only imagine how eerie it must be to be out in the middle of the ocean at night. Looks like it was absolutely worth the trip. That'll be an experience you and your daughter remember forever.

Nice job on the Barry shout-out, too.

 

[cj9200]

The dive video, though short, is cool! I love Huggo's, glad you liked it too. This extended report is making the fun last longer!

Huggos was so good that I dreamed I ate there twice.

Thanks for a wonderful update and I would have been over the moon for the dolphins and turtles also..


That is wonderful.

So was she. I am sorry that I skipped that dive.

Hmm... maybe we should try to get certified before we go back next year... that looks amazing!

Are you looking for me to say no you shouldn’t? Love diving and it was a great thing for DD and me to do together. Lots of pictures and memories from our dive trips. It isn’t cheap to get certified or to dive but it isn’t outrageous. A whole different world down there.

I'm sure there were some highly intelligent individuals on those podcasts. And the DIS Dads, too.

The Dis Dads were doing the best attractions podcasts and it almost caused me to run off the road screaming, “What are you thinking?” Actually a lot of good podcasts out there and it really helped pass the time. If anyone hasn’t tuned into the Disneyland Dis Unplugged podcast, you should. Like the mother podcast, the team has good chemistry. I learned a lot for the trip but even if you are not heading to Disneyland in the near future, it is still informative and entertaining.

I figured he was posing a little too well.

And since it was a no fish area, he wasn’t reef kill and on someone’s plate earlier.

Wow!

Don't worry, I promise I won't be shark-hunting anytime soon.

I also said Wow when I saw the sharks, but it was a bit muffled because I had a regulator in my mouth. First time seeing white tips. The sad thing is that most of the hunting just takes the fins and dump the body back in the water. Waste of a beautiful animal.

Looks like a beautiful spot and a great meal!

Yes and yes.

Sounds like it was absolutely worth the time and effort. Great pics!

Thanks. It was a great start.

Uh huh. Promises, promises.

Well, I did post the Manta pics. I thought I was going to be faster with updates now that the Kid is in school. Hasn’t happened. Will try to do better.

 

[franandaj]

Though I want to read more and more if your updates, I'm glad you're not hammering them out fast and furious. I'm able to keep up this way! I'm reading far too many TRs to keep up when people post long and text heavy updates and do them in three to four posts at a time!

 

[cj9200]

As for the sharks, how big are they and (I guess) it's safe to be in the water with them??

They were nice sized, around six feet. I guess if I swam up to them and told them in shark talk that their mother was a hamster, they might get upset. But other than that, no.

Your question comes up a lot when I show those kind of pictures. Most sharks are not aggressive toward humans and are more leery of you than you are to them. If they bite, it is usually mistaken identity or the person doing something stupid (like trying to feed them). A few like Hammerheads and Tiger Sharks, can be more aggressive. Haven’t encountered any to those but if I did, I would be aware of where they were. Now, would I dive without a cage around me with Great Whites? No.

One of my favorite pics is this one of a Nurse Shark in the Keys. He/she was about 4 feet away and it was like, “Come on take your picture so I can go back to relaxing.”

So jealous of your trip, and as always enjoying your TR! I really hope we can make it out to Hawaii with our kids someday.
I did my first dive on the big island when I was about 15 years old. I can't believe they let me do it! No certification, just a quick lesson in the hotel pool and then off we went. I am now a certified diver, but my kids have put a serious crimp in my diving. Your photos really really make me want to get back under the waves!

They do something similar now. A “Discover Scuba” course that offers pool instruction and guided open water dive. We took DD’s boyfriend (I shudder when I type that word) to do that over the summer. The Pirate Princess was certified when she was 12 and kids as young as 10 can get certification. It became a family activity that encouraged me to do more diving. Just saying. Something to think about in the future.

That's great to hear. I'm glad she's doing ok there.

Thanks. She is enjoying college life. And I am enjoying the empty nest.

I hope you didn't listen to the DDC Pluto bracket podcast. That could cause a serious accident on the highway.

I did listen to it and almost did. Seriously everyone that participated in that series did a great job. But there were many “WHAT?” moments. That is why those type of podcasts are fun.

As long as it doesn't want to play "got your nose"

If he or any other lobster tried, I could just show it a stick of butter.

I thought it was popcorn shrimp.

I wish I payed attention to what they called it. I have since seen other underwater videos with that same popping sound. Need to google it.

Cool

I think they're fascinating animals. Preach on.

Love sharks. When I was on the Roatan trip, we were supposed to do a shark trip but they were gone making baby sharks. One of these days.

Seriously, when you decided not to go back in, you should have known that there was going to be something really cool to see.

Of course. Many a dive, someone would decide not to take their camera and something neat would show up. I have seen lots of turtles before but not dolphins. She one upped me. As proof of turtle sightings...

Just amazing shots of the dives! This trip is one to treasure for a lifetime. That princess is one lucky girl!

Thanks. I appreciate that I am lucky to do this. And I want to thank whoever decided to build a DVC in Hawaii. If the resort wasn’t there, we would not be going to Hawaii.

Amazing creatures! How awesome for you and DD!! I'm sure your pics, while awesome, don't do the experience justice. Can't wait for the next update!

They are the coolest thing I ever witnessed underwater. You are right about the pics versus reality. That is why I put the camera down and just sat back and watched at the end of the dive.

 

[cj9200]

She had to go? In the rented suit? I guess that's one way to help warm up the water.

One of her phobias is that others have previously “worn” the suit even though they “sanitize” it.

Diving has always been on my bucket list, but with the little kids and time/money constraints it's going to have be more a mid-life hobby that DW and I want to pick up. This just makes me want to do it even more.

Come on down. Tell Bambi you are going out for a gallon of milk and hop on a plane. If you get in any trouble when you get back, tell her you were just doing “research.”

Do they make nice little piles with the shrimp peels and chicken bones, too?

By the way - that was last year's pile. To see this new one from our latest trip, you'll have to follow along with my TR.

They aren’t wimps like you, they eat the whole thing. Nice plug on the TR. Haven’t visited in for a while and I need to go over there.

Dad Level: +1

Thanks. I like to think so but Pooh sometimes doesn’t.

Excellent pictures and descriptions, CJ! It looks like so much fun!

Thanks but I was not happy with the number and quality of the pictures. A few for the wall though. Yes, it was fun.

Wow! That looks absolutely amazing! How wonderful you were able to see so many of them.

It was a good night for Manta watching.

I am just speechless - what a fantastic and memorable experience. I am guessing your DD will never forget that.

Neither will I.

Wow. Those are some huge rays. That looks like it would be an incredible experience to see. I love the pictures and the videos. I didn't realize exactly how big the rays were until I saw the video of them swimming around the pirate princess. I guess when you're that close to something that big, you're glad they're a filter feeder and hope the suction level isn't too high.

I'm glad you both enjoyed it.

One question though... you mentioned a 60 foot drop off, but how deep was the water where you were hanging out watching the rays at night?

I think if they wanted to, they could have swallowed her whole. The ray diving spot was around 45 feet. The dive locations on the trip were from there to about 70 feet.

Amazing pictures! What an experience.

I can only imagine how eerie it must be to be out in the middle of the ocean at night. Looks like it was absolutely worth the trip. That'll be an experience you and your daughter remember forever.

Nice job on the Barry shout-out, too.

Thanks. Night dives are a different experience. Figured I’d give Barry a plug for his shrimp eating skill.

 

[lisaviolet]

Really enjoyed listening to the waves crash on the beach, especially going to sleep

All this time - I KNOW who she looks like now. She looks like Nina Dobrev. Talking to myself.

As for the bold. Sighing. Heavenly.

So as a parting gift, here is what these guys look like underwater. Magnificent animals.

I'm not sure where I heard this before - ummm

WOW

I guess dorm rooms haven't changed much over the years

We unpacked everything and made the bed. Ta-Da!

.

Nope. They haven't.

How exciting. What a wonderful time for her. And your wonderful financial planning. Good for you CJ.

 

[lisaviolet]

Shut up you smart a$$.

He's funny.

Not you. Him.

There were some good swim throughs

Nice. Yep. Nice.

I
The smile on her face is all fake. She hated wearing the suit.

These were captured from one of the videos

.

Priceless on the bold.

And priceless on those videos. Thank you CJ. Wow. Absolutely. Breathtaking. I think I'm adventurous and courageous but I'm sorry I'll be vulnerable enough to say I would feel ummm trapped. But good on both of you to pursue such a loved passion.

 

[cj9200]

So the last day of diving was today. We skipped breakfast because we needed to be at the marina. We were on the small boat, only seven of us were diving that trip. Four of them live in San Fran and came regularly to Hawaii. We were talking to one member of our group about the dive last night and she made a very true statement. Something along the lines of, if aliens came to the site they would think we were worshiping our gods, sitting in a circle of light just to observe these creatures. Made sense to me.

So we got off the boat and a few more pictures.

A couple of Yellow Tangs

Took more pics but I think there are enough underwater pics for one TR. Really enjoyed diving here and it was more than worth the detour. Beautiful water.

We did see this guy hanging out to be weighed.

Another Yellow Fin Tuna. The boats bring them in, they are weighed and taken to the packing house right at the pier. Guess they either give you the steaks for a price or pay you what it is worth to local fish shops. Big suckers.

The Pirate Princess in front of out boat before our last trip

So the diving was done. Dinner that night was at the resort. I again had the ham & cheese panini. Forgot what the kid had. Something meatless. The night was spent just relaxing. Tomorrow was an easy day.

Warning: Dive Geek Talk. Once you dive, you build up nitrogen in your body. If you dive deep enough and come up too quickly, you get what they call the bends. It was first discovered while digging the Manhattan side of the Brooklyn Bridge. The nitrogen in your system forms bubbles that expand on rapid ascent and creates pains in your joints and other areas of your body. In other words, it can mess you up. The same on the surface with going to high altitudes or flying in a plane. So, once we were done diving, we were relegated to staying on the surface and not going up into the mountains. We needed to “bleed” the nitrogen off before we could get on the plane.

We arose for a late morning. Well, I was up early but the Princess decided to sleep in. Sitting out on our patio, I noticed this guy with a thin pole that had two prongs sticking out. What was he doing? Crabbing.

Don’t know if he used any bait but he would drop this stick down and the idiots (also known as dinner) would grab the stick and he would gently pull them up and put them in a bag. Must have gotten over a dozen while I was watching him.

Don’t know how they tasted but I imagine they were pretty good

Breakfast was? You got it, Lava Java for Eggs Benedict. This time they over cooked the eggs. Missed the runny goodness of the yoke dripping over the English muffin. DD took pity on me and traded with me. Still good.

While we were sitting there, there was this thing sitting out in the lagoon

After breakfast the kid posed

The rest of the day was spent at the resort. We did pick up our gear at the dive shop and finished drying it out on the patio (they rinsed it and partially dried it for us). Took a few pictures around the resort and basically just chilled.

The Royal Kona is a very nice resort. Great staff, nice accommodations and overall a good experience. Plus they have fat fish.

Some pics of the resort

The open air lobby

Out of picture space so the final part of the day will be in the next post.

 

[cj9200]

Less fat fish

The gathering area before the luau

Wonder what she is thinking

Our Coy pond

A tandem parasail

The Pirate Princess and I did that on a trip last year at the Contemporary

Our last sunset at Kona

While watching the sunset, we had our dinner at the bar. Nothing exceptional but fit the bill. Spent the last night listening to the waves crash on the shore. Nice sleep.

To recap, overall, this was a great start to the vacation. The diving was memorable and the resort was beautiful. Kona was an interesting area and not what I expected. We spent six days there and it flew by. Much like the rest of our trip.

Up next: Flight back to Oahu and Welcome Home. AKA: I didn’t know I owned a place in HAWAII!

 

[mckryan]

The "open air" hotels, airports, etc. was so weird when I first went to Hawaii. I loved it, but it was so foreign to me, living in GA, because we live and die by our air conditioning!

 

[franandaj]

You take such awesome pictures, the resort looks fantastic! Sorry that it is your last night there and no more diving, but can't wait to see your digs on Oahu!

I remember seeing a show on the History Channel about the building of the bridge and how some of the workers died from the bends. How do you "bleed" the nitrogen? Is it just something that only time can cure, and you just wait it out or are there certain things you can do or take to speed up the process?

 

[CarolynK]

Your last sunset at Kona picture is gorgeous! I'm looking forward to reading about your time in Aulani....

 

[dgbg100106]

You take such awesome pictures, the resort looks fantastic! Sorry that it is your last night there and no more diving, but can't wait to see your digs on Oahu!

I remember seeing a show on the History Channel about the building of the bridge and how some of the workers died from the bends. How do you "bleed" the nitrogen? Is it just something that only time can cure, and you just wait it out or are there certain things you can do or take to speed up the process?

I think you can use a Hyperbaric chamber as treatment for the Bends...

 

[cj9200]

Though I want to read more and more if your updates, I'm glad you're not hammering them out fast and furious. I'm able to keep up this way! I'm reading far too many TRs to keep up when people post long and text heavy updates and do them in three to four posts at a time!

That is a good excuse why not to update. "I want to give the Disers a break." I also have a lot of catching up to do on the trip reports out there.

All this time - I KNOW who she looks like now. She looks like Nina Dobrev. Talking to myself.

Had to Google that name and I will take it as a compliment. Won't tell the kid or her head will get even larger.

As for the bold. Sighing. Heavenly.

Really enjoyed listening to the waves at night. Very relaxing. Told a staff member at the front desk and she said that some people don't like ocean views. Scared of typhoons or something.

WOW

Yep, it was WOW.

Nope. They haven't.

Considering all the money I fork out for that room, it should be nicer. Not that I care, she has to live there, not me. Toughen her up a bit.

How exciting. What a wonderful time for her. And your wonderful financial planning. Good for you CJ.

Thank you. She is enjoying her experience at school. Last weekend a few of her new girlfriends went to NYC just to look around and go to tea. Sure the tea idea was hers. A couple of pics from that trip.

He's funny.

Not you. Him.

No he isn't and don't encourage him. So I forgot when my vacation started once. OK, twice.

Nice. Yep. Nice.

One of the neat things about diving there were these huge swim throughs. Enjoyable exploring the nooks and crannies. We saw the sharks on one of the largest. Like a giant cave.

Priceless on the bold.

When she was younger, I had to cut the tags off her shirts. One of her biggest complaints was that it "itches." Had to give away clothes after I took out the tags and she still couldn't wear them. Diving with a full suit bugged her. Made me laugh though.

And priceless on those videos. Thank you CJ. Wow. Absolutely. Breathtaking. I think I'm adventurous and courageous but I'm sorry I'll be vulnerable enough to say I would feel ummm trapped. But good on both of you to pursue such a loved passion.

Actually diving gives you a freeing feeling. If you are balanced properly you are weightless and free of the pull of gravity. It is so peaceful down there. Especially at night. Some feel claustrophobic with the mask and regulator. Fun hobby for me.

The "open air" hotels, airports, etc. was so weird when I first went to Hawaii. I loved it, but it was so foreign to me, living in GA, because we live and die by our air conditioning!

It was weird. The Kona airport was all open air and the same with the hotel. Geek Fact: Each state has two monuments in the Hall of Congress. One of the statues representing Florida is the guy who invented air conditioning. Tells you how important it is down here.

You take such awesome pictures, the resort looks fantastic! Sorry that it is your last night there and no more diving, but can't wait to see your digs on Oahu!

I remember seeing a show on the History Channel about the building of the bridge and how some of the workers died from the bends. How do you "bleed" the nitrogen? Is it just something that only time can cure, and you just wait it out or are there certain things you can do or take to speed up the process?

Thanks for the complement but I was hoping for better pictures. Nitrogen naturally leaves your system over time. Nothing you can do but just let time take its course. Another Geek Fact: Washington Roebling who took over from his father to build the Brooklyn Bridge suffered from the bends like many others that worked on it. When they dedicated the bridge he was confined to bed and had to look at the ceremonies from his window.

Your last sunset at Kona picture is gorgeous! I'm looking forward to reading about your time in Aulani....

Thank you. Next update will be soon.

I think you can use a Hyperbaric chamber as treatment for the Bends...

Yep. There are actually a couple of chambers here in S. Florida. If you get the bends, they put you in a chamber bring you back to pressure and slowly let "come up" to surface atmosphere. Luckily it is easily avoidable and cases are now rare. Third Geek Fact: Diving Tables that divers use to understand time and pressure underwater to prevent the bends were developed by the US Navy. Basically they told them to go at depth and see how long they could stay down before feeling the symptoms when they came up.

 

[dgbg100106]

Yep. There are actually a couple of chambers here in S. Florida. If you get the bends, they put you in a chamber bring you back to pressure and slowly let "come up" to surface atmosphere. Luckily it is easily avoidable and cases are now rare. Third Geek Fact: Diving Tables that divers use to understand time and pressure underwater to prevent the bends were developed by the US Navy. Basically they told them to go at depth and see how long they could stay down before feeling the symptoms when they came up.

Pretty scary... But I know we have performed a lot of experiments, that sound crazy now...

 

[kid-at-heart]

I say, that child of yours just becomes more beautiful by the day. What is she majoring in? Did you tell her no male is good enough for her???

I agree with A, tags itch and should be removed from clothing.

kate

 

[Tinks "SS"]

What an awesome update!! OMG. That pic of the nurse shark is really cool. Love all of the diving pics and the resort is really beautiful. My oldest has decided that he wants to go to Hawaii for his senior trip also. At least i have a little to plan and save for it. (He's in sixth grade right now).

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

We were talking to one member of our group about the dive last night and she made a very true statement. Something along the lines of, if aliens came to the site they would think we were worshiping our gods, sitting in a circle of light just to observe these creatures. Made sense to me.

Just call them Neptune.

Took more pics but I think there are enough underwater pics for one TR. Really enjoyed diving here and it was more than worth the detour. Beautiful water.

I don't think anyone's getting tired of the diving pics yet!

Warning: Dive Geek Talk. Once you dive, you build up nitrogen in your body. If you dive deep enough and come up too quickly, you get what they call the bends. It was first discovered while digging the Manhattan side of the Brooklyn Bridge. The nitrogen in your system forms bubbles that expand on rapid ascent and creates pains in your joints and other areas of your body. In other words, it can mess you up. The same on the surface with going to high altitudes or flying in a plane. So, once we were done diving, we were relegated to staying on the surface and not going up into the mountains. We needed to “bleed” the nitrogen off before we could get on the plane.

Interesting. I wouldn't have thought about that in regard to the plane.

The Royal Kona is a very nice resort. Great staff, nice accommodations and overall a good experience.

Looks like a great place. Unfortunately, as I do my research I'm finding that most of these places won't allow a family of 5 in one room.

Up next: Flight back to Oahu and Welcome Home. AKA: I didn’t know I owned a place in HAWAII!

Can't wait to see it!

 

[kathymc]

Loving your report. We recently got back from a week in the Big Island and a week in Kauai.

Our snorkle/dive with the Mantas was a highlight of not only the trip but of my life!

Looking forward to more as we are coming to Oahu in December - my hubby won a 4 night trip to Waikiki and then we added on 6 nights at Aulani on our points!