Saturday 3rd October.
A good sleep does wonders and after a quick coffee we were back in the shuttle and off to Los Angeles airport. All checked in, there was plenty of time for a hearty American breakfast of omelettes and breakfast pizza....
A crafty switch to extra leg room seats was a great idea and we enjoyed a comfortable five hour flight west to Hawaii comparing notes from our two Hawaii guide books!
We stepped off the plane into a wall of humid heat. Bill was particularly cosy in his black jeans and fleece jacket!
As we approached baggage reclaim there was the unmistakable figure of Chris - and Alan the bike box - safely arrived just before us!
The car hire queue is best glossed over.... Suffice to say that when 2000 Ironman competitors, their family and friends converge on Hawaii on the Saturday before their race, they all want hire cars....
The end result however was a rather snazzy Nissan Pathfinder - a monster 4WD SUV that easily accommodates five adults, their luggage and Alan the bike box! And it goes! We negotiated our way south to Kahlua-Kona in search of lunch which we found in style at Humpys bar and bistro with its choice of 36 beers and a balcony overlooking the sea. Perfect! It also served monster tacos and nachos and plenty of the sort of lunch that really requires an afternoon nap.
On arriving at Banyan tree that's exactly what Chris did, having had no sleep for over 48 hrs on account of a 4 am departure for Gatwick on Friday morning, and a night on a bench in Vancouver airport on Saturday.
The rest of us admired the sea view - you can see nothing but sea from the window! The apartment is on the second floor and overlooks the Pacific - standing on a small promontory so that there are views along the shore to north and south. There are palm trees all around so that the view from our balcony, sofa and even from our pillow is of the ocean. Just perfect! Even indoors the sound of the waves crashing onto the beach is loud enough to require raised voices for conversation!
Over whelmed by heat, even with all the ceiling fans on, we decide to leave Chris sleeping and head to the beach at Magic sands, about half a mile south. There is access to the ocean just next to our apartment but it is rocky and we need some reef shoes.
Not so on Magic sands... White sand, palm trees, warm clear blue waters and light surf - what's not to like?!
Spent a very happy hour swimming and body surfing and then walked home. Very hot and sticky by the time we got home. Fortunately, just opposite the apartment is Banyan Mart. Sells cold beer and crisps and a few other essentials. Excellent.
After showers we enjoyed beers and crisps on our balcony and this served as an excellent temporary respite from the humid heat as we watched the sun set. Cool breeze, surf, turtles swimming in the sea below and big, big skies....
Despite starting to feel a bit jet-lagged and lack lustre, we decided to make matters worse by spending a dispiriting hour in Wallmart buying provisions from their under stocked and uninspiring shelves... On returning home, overwhelmed by a need for sleep we abandoned supper in favour of peanut butter on toast and turned in!!