Today we made the 1 hour drive from Hilo to the Hawaii Volcanoes State Park. The road gently inclines the whole way there until we hit 3500ft at the entrance. We were lucky enough to arrive at the visitor centre just as a park ranger was about to begin a free 45-minute guided tour. So we tagged along and learned all about the volcano, the foliage and the Hawaiian mythology. We ended our tour overlooking the massive crater, but unable to see any of it due to the...

Not too much to report today other than a short trip to Rainbow Falls and the upstream Boiling Pots near Hilo in our newly rented car. Julie spent the rest of the day in bed trying to recover from a nasty bug so she was fighting fit for the following day.

A lazy day was in store for us today. After 2 days in America and still no pancakes eaten, all was about to change when we passed an IHOP and stocked up on stacks of delicious pancakes drizzled in blueberry sauce and maple syrup. The plan was to hit the beach once our bellies were full but the heavens decided to open so we were forced (well not really in Dean's case!) to seek sanctuary in the Apple store for the next hour or so until it was time to catch our flig...

After sifting through hundreds of tour options that did or did not include guided tours of the many attractions at Pearl Harbor, we went for the simplest option and just got a shuttle return from the hotel. The fact that all the tours picked up from the hotel at 6:45am and we got an 8:30am shuttle may have been a factor in our decision... We bought a combo ticket for the USS Bowfin submarine and the USS Misouri battleship. Why any sailor would choose the cramped...

The longest day of our trip began with waking up at 4:55 for a 7am flight from Rotorua. We arrived in Auckland about 30 minutes later and, in keeping with our earlier experiences in Auckland, ran into the honeymooners, Sarah and Martin, at the airport. We then flew on to Honolulu and, like a pair of star-crossed lovers, Dean and Julie were ripped apart by a foul-up at the airport, which gave us seats in the middle section. Julie's claustrophobia meant she swappe...