Aloha Hawaii

Aloha! This past week my boyfriend and I traveled to The Big Island of Hawaii. It was a much needed relaxing vacation for the both of us.  We found this amazing deal with Travelocity for a 6 day five night stay at the Marriott Waikoloa Beach Resort. It’s a Marriott hotel, so I was expecting it to be nice, but the setup of the resort is breath taking. You walk in the main entrance and are welcomed with the warm sea breeze and a view of the ocean. The staff was friendly and helpful and the room was a lot better then I expected.

The inside of our room. Balcony was to the right (where the light is coming from). 

There was a coffee machine (you’d be surprised how many big hotels don’t have this), a fridge, ample storage space, good size bathroom, a decent TV and a balcony! The balcony was a plus because it was a great place to sit and drink your morning coffee/read while enjoying the warm Hawaiian air. ( I must be getting old if that's my idea of a good time!!)

View from the balcony of our room. We faced the pool and the beach.

Our first day in Hawaii was really just about getting settled in, exploring the area and relaxing by the beach. We went to a farmers market at King’s Shops and picked up a few goodies, then we headed over to Queen’s Marketplace to check out what restaurants were around and see where we could pick up a few other things we needed. After that it was back to the hotel to relax at the beach, check out the pool and get in some swimming.

Kettle corn, jams and soaps from the market :)

Yummy Hawaiian Jams from the farmers market.

Beach side at the resort.

We found a great sushi spot (that we ended up going back to the final night) at Queen's MarketPlace that had a great discount, good beer on tap and very friendly service.  After that it was off to the hotel to rest up and get ready for more relaxing by the pool.

The most amazing fresh sushi.

Day two followed with the same relaxing vibe. Lots of relaxing by the pool, swimming, good conversation and drinking. We started off the day by going on a glass bottom boat. Sounds odd, but I'm still not a solid swimmer (I've been learning to swim for maybe two months now) and wasn't totally comfortable diving into the ocean and going snorkeling for real. The glass bottom boat was great for me (and all the children on the boat) who got to see fish in a peaceful boat ride. 

Not the best photo, but this was the glass bottom boat.

A guide to all the fish to look for. 

Later we ordered our tropical drinks and had lunch by the pool, I went for a walk in the afternoon while the boyfriend started to watch the NBA playoffs. I joined him for the second half of the game and then we had dinner at the hotel restaurant. We were digging the relaxing vibe, but were definitely ready to get off the resort and adventure around the island. Luckily, as I passed out right after dinner (time change and a little too much wine) my boyfriend went to hang out by the pool and met a really great couple that lived in the island… The real adventure was about to begin!

More on that in the next post  :) but here are the rest of the photos from the Day 2.

Tropical drink for two.

View looking up from the lounge chair at the beach.

Pretty view on my walk. 

My last glass of wine at dinner. Loving the reflections.