If you missed Part 1, you can find it here.
We were finding it hard to make use of the bunk bed set-up in the room. Shark Boy found the safety railings uncomfortable, but given how he thrashes in his sleep they were completely necessary.
Luckily, every day tuckered them out so much, we came up with a solution that worked better for all concerned and made for good bonding.
Kayaking in Hilo
For our day in the port of Hilo on the Big Island, we had scheduled a Kayak to Waterfall excursion. This was one of the shortest bus rides to an excursion, and Hilo doesn’t seem like much of a town, but small and quaint can be good. Our guides were friendly, but we found out later that ours was the second-last tour they would be operating! Apparently the tour operators were closing up shop. My wife took Shark Boy in one kayak while the Lightning Kid and I were in the other. It was important to keep your strokes in sync, which made it a challenge when quick responses to “Left!” or “Right side!” were called for (I can only imagine how it would have gone to use “Port” and “Starboard”…
We paddled outward from the shore through the surf and needed to hit the mouth of the river from an angle, coming in from further out in the bay rather than heading in a straight line from the shore to it. This allowed us to avoid a nasty break in the surf that would have been hard to handle. Unfortunately that longer paddle through the surf was taxing and tiring for our family, but luckily the overall level of our group wasn’t much more fit or advanced than us.
We got into the river’s opening and found a place to rest under some trees, while everyone got caught up. We held ourselves fast on dangling vines. There was a part of the river where rapids would have prevented us from getting further but the guides were able to get out onto some rocks and pull us using a rope.
Shortly beyond that point, we reached a waterfall area where we could swim, but we were tired and it didn’t really feel safe – it would have been difficult to climb out and back into the kayak. Paddling our way back out of the river and to the shore was a somewhat tiring affair, but the weather was beautiful.
We returned to the ship and I had time to use the running track around the ship (each lap approximately 1/3 of a mile) as well as the fitness centre to do some rehab exercises for my shoulder. I found it fairly well outfitted. We also had our first meal in the Liberty Dining room which is one of the included restaurants, but not a buffet. The food and service were excellent. We wrapped up our evening with a ‘Close-up Magic Show’ – it focusses on sleight-of-hand card tricks (no sawing people in half or whatever). It was a little cheesy, but there was a trick or two that really still boggle my mind. It was actually New Year’s Eve, but jet lag was enough that we didn’t make it to the local midnight – although we did see it observed for those in Central Standard Time
CANCELLED – NO TRIP TO KONA
Kona is the only port where the Pride of America can’t dock – a ‘Tender Port’. That meant taking smaller boats to shore and with the seas being too rough that day, all shore excursions were cancelled. It was too bad as the ‘Captain Zodiac Raft & Snorkel’ trip was the first excursion we booked – the only one that had been formally planned prior to leaving for Hawaii. We had to fill our day with onboard activities like voting on a Gingerbread house contest, board games in the games room, mini-putt and oversized chess. The latter was difficult because the wind kept blowing the pieces over, and there was a lot of demand for any onboard activities – the basketball court was also closed from that day forward. The ship navigated a more scenic route past the islands of Maui, Lana’i and Moloka’i, and the view did not disappoint.
My wife and I enjoyed French Cuisine at the Jefferson Bistro for our date night, and the kids had a blast at the Splash Academy that evening.
Port of Naiwiliwili on Kaua’i
We hadn’t found an excursion that suited us for Kaua’i (the only contender was yet another waterfall/kayak expedition) so we opted for a beach day at Anchor Cove. We had some time to throw the ball around and swim in the waves, but the highlight for me was the surf lesson I booked for Shark Boy and me.
This would be another of those occasions where a GoPro would have come in handy. The lesson was great, and though it was a little nerve-wracking not have a continuous line of sight to my son (due to waves), never mind being far out of reach, we were both able to get to standing on each attempt and had some good runs. It got a little crowded, and once Shark Boy got knocked by a surfboard, while I had a near collision with another surfer and a canoe, overall we had a great time. I did feel the paddling in my shoulders and my back hurt a little when I tried to stand quickly but it was a small price to pay for a once in a lifetime experience.
Did I say we had no excursion booked for the first day in Kaua’i? I forgot the Luau! We gathered in the onboard theatre and were grouped into buses that took us to a plantation where the Luau would take place. The meal was rice, pulled pork (traditionally prepared in a pit called a Lua), Terriyaki chicken and fish. Everyone was encouraged to try some Poi (a paste of mashed taro root) – I found it a little bland, to be honest, I think you’re supposed to add something to it.
The Lightning Kid and I took a chance to volunteer for a dance performance. Then it was time for the show to begin the show. The story of a family separated but ultimately reunited in a journey from Tahiti to Hawai’i was compelling and had great songs, dances and a fire show, but I couldn’t really take it all in, because the Lightning Kid found the drums and chanting terrifying to the point of physically shaking. I took him outside to comfort him. It was really weird to see him react like that, but he had been scared by a theatre performance of ‘Where the Wild Things Are’ when he was much younger, and I wonder if there was some kind of flashback going on. The Luau was an enjoyable experience, but we were eager to bring tired kids back to bed as soon as possible.
Our second day on Kaua’i was spent on the beach (with a little shopping and ice cream mixed in). The chop of the surf seemed rougher and neither kid was interested in trying out the boogie boards I rented, so we were content to swim and play catch. We decided to re-board before lunch so that we could save money and use the buffet. The rough seas also caused the onboard pool to be closed – for a while there it looked like a fun wave pool, but I’m sure it got dangerous. Our cruise was coming to an end, and there was packing to do.
Departure Day
We got up early and enjoyed our final buffet breakfast – everyone on board had the same idea. We had arranged a shuttle to the airport, but it seemed a little foolish since our flight wasn’t till 11:30 PM, we had the day in Honolulu to spend. NCL wouldn’ let us cancel our shuttle charges unless we booked an excursion with them instead. We took our luggage to the airport and paid for storage, then made our way to the Ala Moana Shopping District. We saw the movie Frozen 2 (long overdue, since the Lightning Kid is a huge fan of the first one), we played in a local playground and we did some more shopping and ice cream.
Our last meal was a Shabu Shabu restaurant – you choose your own broth, meat, vegetable and seafood and prepare in on an element at your table. We filled up so quickly the all-you-can-eat aspect was wasted on us, but ending our big Hawai’i adventure with a culinary adventure was a nice way to go out before a long flight.