Hilo, Hawaii

From the Land 

of Big Leaves

It has taken me a while to get the little computer organized and some time on it to myself. We actually arrived in Hilo on Monday. It always seems like a long flight. It's 5-1/2 hours from Sacramento, then a 2 hour layover in Oahu, and a 45 minute interisland flight to the Big Island - Hawaii.

I think we had a good flight. Like childbirth, it's something you promptly forget if there were no exciting times. Here are the boys in Hilo.

This is Alex, Jon, Brent and Bob. Bob is my actual son. Jon and Alex have been around our house since kindergarten. Brent was added to the group a few years ago, a friend of several of the boys' friends who turned out to be a keeper. The other guys are dressed casual. Bob somehow always manages to go beyond that.

We got our van in Hilo. Not a Dodge Caravan as I ordered, but a big, squishy Chrysler Town and Country. It was all I could do to back that boat out of the parking lot, but we were soon on our way with our directions from my friends Harold and Linda. Harold was born on this island. Now that I've been here, I can see what a special childhood he must have had.

Our rental house is in Pahoa, a few miles from Hilo. It's in the kind of subdivision that makes sense to me, with big lots and a mixed assortment of fancy and plain houses, all of them built by people who bought lots. It's not a cookie-cutter, California-style desecration. Also, in this part of the world, there is so much lush vegetation you can barely see your neighbor.

This is Kipa Hou Mai (the rental agency names the houses).

And this is the view from our deck.

This is a really nice house. It easily sleeps 10 people - you could have more relatives and/or friends sharing it than you could probably stand. There are 4 bedrooms and a huge game room with more beds in it. The two fellows who run Hawaiian Paradise Vacation Rentals have 30 or so properties that they manage. They are very easy to deal with, and I especially appreciated the fact that I didn't get 10 pages of rules along with the contract.

I'm having trouble uploading pictures on this internet connection, or maybe it's because Jonathan has this computer doing 14 other jobs at the same time. Whatever, I'm going to keep the posts short and make sure everything comes out right.