Mammoth and Bluesapalooza - August 2010

Mammoth is a cool destination for skiing in California, but we usually ski once a year and go to either Colorado or Lake Tahoe.  I’d always heard stories of the traffic being a nightmare trying to go to ski resorts in CA.  Mike is a member of the website Meet Up and joined a group that likes to camp and hike.  A member made up an event to attend Mammoth’s Bluesapalooza.  Mike forwarded me the info and I said sure, let’s go.  If nothing else, it would be a good excuse to finally get up to Mammoth to check it out. 

Yosemite May 2010

Traveling during holiday weekends is usually not recommended, but we both had a 4 day weekend.  Why not go somewhere?  I had been looking into visiting Yosemite National Park for the past couple of years.  We had a trip planned for Labor Day weekend a couple years back, but cancelled it due to other plans and the fact that the waterfalls would have all been dried up.  Memorial Day weekend sounded like a good time to go as the waterfalls would be in full flow. 

Belize - April 2010

This trip was planned to attend a friend’s destination wedding.  They got married at a resort in Hopkins and we decided to go a few days early to go diving in the Cayes (keys).  We chose to stay on Caye Caulker instead of the popular tourist destination, Ambergis Caulker.  Caye Caulker is smaller and more laid back according to my travel guide.  I used Moon Handbooks Belize guide to help plan the trip along with the trusty TripAdvisor website. 

Melbourne, Australia January 2010

We went to Australia for 2 weeks.  We usually like to travel in October or November, but a job change forced us to wait until January.  January is summertime in Australia and we were expecting it to be quite warm.  

Our itinerary included:  3 nights in Melbourne, 5 nights in Cape Tribulation (visiting the Great Barrier Reef), and 6 nights in Sydney (visiting the Blue Mountains and Hunter Valley).

We flew into Melbourne and out of Sydney on Qantas Airlines.  We also used Qantas for our domestic travel in Australia between Melbourne and Cape Trib and Cape Trib and Sydney.  We rented a car in Melbourne and Cairns using Avis.  We used Frommer's Australia guide book to help plan our trip. 

January is an expensive time to fly to Australia.  I checked airline prices almost daily for a year and the price never went down much.  We ended up booking 2 weeks in advance, as that is the required booking time for international flights, because I was hoping for a last minute deal that never came.  

3 Nights in Melbourne

We arrived in Melbourne after a 14 hour flight from LA on a Saturday morning.  We went to pick up our rental car at Avis and the first thing I did was try to get in on the driver's side (since it's on the opposite side).  Mike was the designated driver and I was the navigator and the one constantly reminding him to KEEP LEFT.  We tried to go slow and it took a little time getting used to driving on the left, but eventually it started coming easier. I don't know that he ever got used to the turn signal being on the opposite side, however.  Most of the time when we made a turn, Mike turned on the windshield wipers.  We ended up with an Australian car, a Holden, that has their windshield wipers and turn signals on the opposite side than American cars.  Other European cars have them on the same side as American cars.  

After some backtracking, we finally made it to the St. Kilda area where our hotel was located.  I decided on St. Kilda and the Hotel Tolarno as I read that the area was beach-y and artsy and had great restaurants.  It wasn't as beach-y as I was expecting, but we liked staying there.  It was pretty quiet during the time we were there as Australians were still on holiday from Christmas and New Years and it wasn't as warm yet.  As soon as we left Melbourne, the temperatures started soring.  

LODGING

Hotel Tolerno (TA Review) - Lovely Hotel, Helpful Staff

This was a nice European type room.  The staff was very helpful when we needed directions or asked questions.  The tram also stops along the street in front of the hotel to take you downtown.

ACTIVITIES

Melbourne's CBD (downtown)

We hopped on the tram after arriving to Melbourne, checking into our room, and eating lunch to go visit the CBD.  The tram got us there in about 20 minutes.  We bought a ticket at the 7-11, but they have vending machines on the trams as well.  We got off at the Southern Cross stop and made our way to the free city tram.  We didn't really ride it but to get off a couple of stops down at Federation Square.  We checked out the area and then made our way to the Old Melbourne Gaol (jail).  We ended up getting there around 3:45pm and they tried to talk us into coming back the next day to do tours.  We opted to pay the concession fee to just check out the jail house.  This is where Ned Kelly was jailed and hanged.  After leaving the Gaol, we walked back to the Southern Cross stop to catch the tram back to our hotel.

The Great Ocean Road (GOR)

Our second day in Melbourne, we got up early, had some breakfast and left the hotel around 7:30am to drive the GOR.  Our plan was to get ahead of the tour buses that usually left the city between 8:30 and 9.  We were making good time, but missed an exit and had to back track a little.  We started on the GOR outside Torquay and made a couple of stops at Bells Beach and the Split Point Lighthouse.  As soon as we left the lighthouse and passed the GOR sign that goes over the road, we came to a stop in traffic.  People started turning their cars around and heading the other way, so we did also.  We stopped at a store to find out what happened and discovered there was an accident and the road was going to be closed for at least 4 hours. The GOR is a 2 lane road, so there was no way to go around that accident on that road. We decided to ask at the information centers to see what our options were to get around. 

The info desk in Anglesea gave us a map with a dirt road that went around and we got back on in Lorne. Driving on the dirt road was a little scary at first since: 1) we aren't used to driving on dirt roads; 2) it was the first full day Mike was driving on the opposite side of the car and road; and 3) cars coming from the other direction were flying past us.  We joked about our experience the whole way and finally made it back to the GOR.  It ended up being a 2 hour delay, but we continued on our trip.

We stopped in Lorne, a cool little town, to get some coffee and stretch our legs.  We also stopped and visited the Maits Rainforest Walk, The Twelve Apostles, and other stops along the way. We grabbed dinner in Colac at Cafe Nu-Deli and headed back to Melbourne. We didn't get back until 11:30pm to our hotel.
It ended up being a really long day due to the back tracking, the detour and all the stops, but the Great Ocean Road was beautiful. I'm glad we drove ourselves, so we could stop and go whenever we wanted.  I think it probably would have been a good idea to stop somewhere for the night and relax a little, soak in the scenery, and then drive back to Melbourne.  That's something we talked about doing different after our trip.

Phillip Island Penguin Parade

We slept in a little before making our way to Phillip Island to watch the penguin parade.  We weren't supposed to be there until about 7:30pm as that was about the time the sun would start setting and the penguins would come out of the ocean from hunting all day.  


We ended up leaving our hotel around 11am and made it close to the island's turn off about 12:30pm.  We hit traffic and thought, oh no, not again.  Well, there was another accident, unfortunately a fatal one involving a family, that closed the entrance to Phillip Island.  


At first, no one knew if or when it would open back up.  We found Kilcunda beach down the road and spent some time hanging out there.  We also drove into Wonthaggi to go to the visitor's center for ideas of what to do in the area and to get some lunch.  We were heading back to Kilcunda about 5pm when we hit traffic and thought the island must be open again.  We slowly moved towards the round about to Phillip Island and got to the Penguin Parade a little after 7:30pm.  We made it!  It was worth all that waiting, because watching these little fairy penguins get out of the ocean in little huddles and then waddle along the beach back to their burrows was absolutely amazing.  We wished we could have seen more of Phillip Island, we had planned on going to the Koala sanctuary as well, but I'm glad we made it to the penguin show!

After the show, we headed back to Melbourne and made it to our hotel after 12:30am.  

RESTAURANTS

Chinta Blues - Great Malaysian Food

Our first meal in Australia ended up being one of our favorites.  When we got to the restaurant it was completely empty and that made me a little nervous.  However, once we got our food and tasted it, I was not disappointed!  I ordered the Ayam Ria Chicken (diced chicken fillets, wok-tossed in a blend of spices, fresh ginger and dry red chilli, finished with crisp carrot slices and peanuts) based on Frommer's recommendation in his guide.  Mike ordered the Hokkian Char Fried Noodles (soft hokkien noodles gently simmered in a dark soya sauce with fishcake, bok choy, prawns and calamari).  This place was delicious.  Our meal was about $50 which included 2 beers.

Cacao 

This place was a couple of buildings down from our hotel and we went in one morning for coffee.  The lady working the counter was from the U.S. and was really friendly.  

The Angahook Cafe (in Anglesea on the GOR) 

We stopped in here for a quick bite before attempting the detour around the accident on the GOR.  I ended up with a grilled ham and cheese sandwich although I tried to order something that looked better in the display case.  I guess I didn't say the right thing.  Mike had a pastry filled with stuff that he saw someone else order.  We had a small lunch for about $10.

Cafe Nu-Deli (in Colac on Murray St.) - Good Local Meal 

We stopped here on our way back to Melbourne from the GOR.  We made it to Colac with less than 1/4 of a tank of gas and was really starting to wonder if we were going to make it to a station before running out.  The first gas station in Colac we came to had just closed and we were hoping it wasn't the only one in town.  We finally found one and asked the attendant for a recommendation for food.  We didn't really want to eat at McDonald's in Australia.  She recommended a pub down the street that we never found, but came across this place instead.  It looked like a nice casual place.  We walked in and immediately felt under dressed.  We had been in the car for about 12 hours and were tired and might have looked a little run down.  There were two older couples dressed up and having a nice evening out.  We almost missed dinner as our server had to check to see if the kitchen was still running.  We were in luck and ended up having a pretty decent meal here.  I ordered the special which was chicken and shrimp sauted in peanut sauce, which was pretty good.  However, it came with an Asian salad which was drenched in dressing.  Mike ordered a ribeye steak and it was very nice as well.  After such a long day of driving we were even more tired after our meal here, but had to drive another hour and a half to Melbourne.  Our dinner was about $50 which included 2 beers.

Leo's Spaghetti Bar - Quick Egg Breakfasts

We went here for breakfast the morning of our trip to Phillip Island.  It was across the street from our hotel.  They serve fried eggs over bread and it was pretty good.  I had fried eggs and ham on toast and Mike had Leo's breaky.  Yes, in Australia, they refer to breakfast as "breaky".  Mike's breaky came with some strange looking sausage, otherwise it was a good breakfast for about $20.

Continue Reading About Our Trip:

5 Nights in Cape Tribulation

6 Nights in Sydney

Maui - November 2006

We chose to go to Hawaii for 2 weeks for our honeymoon.  We spent most of our time relaxing, which is needed after planning a wedding! 

Our first destination was Maui.  We stayed there for a week and enjoyed catching up on our rest.  Among our activities, went to the top of Haleakala to watch the sunrise and ride bikes down the mountain and we took a tour on the Road to Hana.

HOTEL:

As part of our wedding gift, a family member booked our stay at Maui Sunset (TA Review). These condos are both owner-occupied and time shares. Our unit was an ocean view.  It was a very nice room decorated with floral wicker furniture.

There is an activities desk on site that helps you plan your stay and book activities. They have an informal information session every morning and serve juice, coffee and pastries. There are also tennis courts on site.

ACTIVITIES:

1.  Independent Snorkeling - While sitting through a discussion of things to do on Maui, our hotel rep mentioned a secret place where locals go to snorkel. It's called "the aquarium" or "the fish bowl." She gave us a little bit of directions and we headed out to find the place. It was an amazing place to snorkel, but the area has been closed off to keeping the area preserved.

2.  Snorkeling Tour - We went on a guided tour to the most popular snorkeling and diving spot in Maui, Molokini. It's a crescent shaped island off Maui's southwest side.  We decided on Maui Magic as our catamaran after having several options. We got on the boat at 8 am and they had coffee, juice, and pastries for us. We pulled out of the harbor and headed south to find some spinner dolphins. Maui gets a lot of wind, so the day will determine how far south the boat will take you. The crew found a couple of dolphins to follow for a short while.

We then headed to Molokini. They docked us for about 45 minutes to snorkel around. There were several other catamarans there. The water was deep, so what you saw was fish up against the side of the Molokini. There were quite a few fish, but it wasn't the greatest snorkeling. 

After Molokini, the crew took us to a place between the harbor and Lahaina to snorkel and eat lunch. This area was known for sea turtles and we were the only boat in the area. We snorkeled there for about an hour and a half and had lunch. The crew grilled hamburgers and hot dogs. There were also free drinks all day, as well as beer. We didn't see any turtles while in this area.

We headed back to the harbor and on our way back, we got to see several sea turtles swimming in the open water. We were docked shortly after noon.

I recommend this catamaran and crew. They were all very friendly. This catamaran cost more than others, but I think it was worth what we got out of it.

3.  Road to Hana Tour - We ended up taking a guided tour on The Road to Hana. The road consists of 50 some miles of sharp curves and one lane bridges. We thought having someone else drive would allow both of us to enjoy the scenery instead of focusing on the road.

The company we went with was very good and we highly recommend them. Our driver was very nice and informative. He talked almost nonstop from the time he picked us up from the hotel to when he dropped us off. After being picked up from the hotel, we were taken to a place to get some juice, coffee, and pastries. Once in Hana, we stopped to eat a provided chicken plate lunch. They also provide beverages all day; water, juice, and soda.

You also get to see the Maui Winery on this tour. The road to the Seven Sacred Pools was damaged from an earthquake when we were there in November 06, so instead of making a circle around the island, we had to back track to get back to Kihei.

The drive itself is beautiful, full of vegetation, waterfalls, and cliffs. We saw rainbow eucalyptus trees and awesome bamboo jungles. You can pull off to the side of the road and get out and walk around to see things. Our 12-passenger tour van made a few stops, but not as many as we would have liked. We decided we should have driven the road ourselves, made several stops, and stayed the night in Hana before driving back the next day.

If this is something that you plan to do, make reservations for rooms in Hana early. If you plan to make the drive in one day, make sure you leave early in the morning, so you are back before it gets dark.

4.  Bike Down the Volcano - We got up at 2:30am to be driven to the top of Haleakala to watch the sunrise and then bike back down the volcano. It was very cold and windy at the top, but it was a neat experience to see the sun rising above a Volcano crater.

The bike down was ok. We were in a group of 8-10 people and rode down single file. They put the lighter people in the front; therefore, those in the back had to brake down most of the way. We were also wearing a helmet and couldn’t really look around at the scenery very well. It was exciting at first biking down, but the excitement wore off after about 10 minutes.

I still recommend doing it for the experience unless you don't want to get up that early or want to ride a bike. There are different tours where you don't get up as early, but you don't get to see the sunrise. You could always drive up to see the sunrise on your own.

RESTAURANTS:

Sarentos - Our hotel rep recommended this restaurant for a romantic dinner. We were on our honeymoon, so we wanted some place special.  The restaurant has free valet parking. You have to make reservations in advance to reserve a table on the rail to get a good view of the sunset (5:30pm in November was our reservation). It's an open air restaurant, so you can view the sunset and feel the breeze while eating. The food is a little pricey, but the food was really good, the service was spectacular and the atmosphere even better.  Definitely a place I'd recommend for a nice romantic dinner. 

Sansei - We were really hungry and wanted to eat early.  We got here right before it opened at 5:30pm and there was already a line starting to get inside.  We sat at the sushi bar and thought the food was pretty good.

Other restaurants we ate at but don't remember details on the experience:  Stella Blues, Cafe O'Lei

Second week on Maui 

Sequoia National Park - July 2005

We planned a weekend trip up to Sequoia National Park to go white water rafting and to visit the National Park.  We drove from San Diego to Kernville and it took us about 4 and 1/2 hours.  We camped outside of the park at a place along the Kern River that ran through Kernville.  We decided to camp here, because it was right next to the White Water Voyage office and place where we needed to met for our white water rafting trip the next morning.  We did the Big Water Run trip.  It was a blast.

We visited the forest to see the Sequoias in Sequoia National Park the day after our rafting trip.  We stopped off at various trails and also the Trail of Hundred Giants.  It's a nice shaded path that takes you around to see over 100 Sequoias.

Grand Canyon - June 2005

We made a weekend trip to the Grand Canyon.  We camped out at the Mather Campground in the park.  We made reservations in advance online.  We hiked the Rim Trail along the Hermit's Rest Route the first day and took a mule ride down the canyon the second day.

I'd always wanted to ride the mules ever since I saw that Brady Bunch episode where they all go on a mule ride to the bottom of the Canyon!  It's recommended that you make reservations well in advance, but we were able to book a Sunday ride one or two months out. We booked the One-Day Mule Trip to Plateau Point. We had to check in the day before to get weighed, receive our rain coat and canteen, and sign a waiver.

We had to be at the corral very early the morning of the ride and wait to be assigned to a mule. They line you up in a single file based on weight and you start to follow the leader down the canyon. The trail is very narrow. The mules are trained to walk on the left side of the trail, which is the edge of the trial, so my heart was beating a little fast at first when I looked down. Eventually, I felt comfortable and trusted the mule was not going to go off the trail.

We made several stops along the way. Anytime there was too much separation between 2 mules we stopped as this causes the mules to run to catch up and can lead to an accident. We had one lady in our group get thrown off the mule as it was running to catch up to the one in front of it. This happened on our way back up and she fell in the direction away from the edge. We also stopped half way down to go to the bathroom and fill up our canteens.

Once out to the plateau, we had a box lunch (sandwich, fruit, chips, and cookies) and enjoyed the awesome views of being a long distance down in the canyon. After lunch, we headed back up the way we'd came. We stopped again for a bathroom/water break at the same place as before.

It was about a 7-hour trip that was exciting and a little scary at first, but definitely something I'd do again. If you go on this trip, just listen to directions and you'll be fine.

The Big Island of Hawaii - May 2005

This was our first big trip together. I was looking to plan a trip for my 30th birthday. Once we decided to go to The Big Island, we booked it a year early, because we couldn't wait until my birthday. Being the adventurous couple that we are, we decided on The Big Island for the main reason of seeing the active volcano. We stayed at the Hilton Waikoloa Village (TA review). We stayed there on points for 9 nights and absolutely had a blast traveling around by car.

Driving around the whole island can take a while. We decided to go on a circle island tour our first full day on the island. The tour guide was a little hard to understand, but we made all the major tourist stops. It was a long day; I think by the time we were picked up and dropped off, it was a 12 hour day. If you don't rent a car or you don't like to drive or you are only staying for a short time, this would be something I'd recommend. However, if you like to do your own thing and are going to be on the island for at least a week, skip the tour and drive yourself.

We did take a couple of days to drive around to the different beaches for snorkeling. We jumped in the car with our own snorkel gear, lunch and snacks, and a map from the hotel. One of the great things about the Big Island is that there are so many different kinds of beaches to see. The island has beautiful white sand beaches and spectacular black sand beaches. There are also green sand beaches on the island, but we didn't make it to any of these on our trip.

ATTRACTIONS:

1. Pololu Valley Lookout - While out driving around, we went up to the northern part of the island and followed 270 until it ended. You'll see cars parked on the side of the road and people out walking. The highway stops and overlooks this beautiful lush green valley. We put on our hiking shoes and walked down this path that takes you down to the bottom of the lookout. The trail was a little rocky, but not that steep for experienced hikers. For beginners, it may be a little rough on you and you might just want to enjoy the scenery from above. Once at the bottom, there is a black sand beach where most of the surfers go. This is the only part of the island that usually has waves.

2. South Point - We went down to South Point. It's the southern most point in the US. To get there from Kona, you take the main highway south. South Point (Ka Lae) is at the end of an 11 mile road, due south from the Mamalahoa Highway (Hwy 11) turning off between the Ocean View Estate and Wai’ohinu (home of the descendant of Mark Twain’s Monkey Pod tree). Once you get down off the main road, the road gets a little narrow and bumpy and you think you are going the wrong way. Just keep going, you'll pass some wind turbines on the way and eventually see other cars parked off to the right. If you keep going, there's supposed to be a green sand beach around also, but we didn't know that when we were there. Where we stopped, there are places were people jump off the side of the cliff into the ocean. That wasn't for me, but Mr. FT did it and loved it.

3. Punalu'u Beach - This was my first time experiencing a black sand beach. We stopped here twice, once on our circle island tour and once on our own. When we came on our own, we had our snorkel gear with us. We grabbed it and jumped in to swim with the turtles. The water was really murky and I was startled when all the sudden 2 big sea turtles were right in front of me and jumped up and out of the water! It was a cool experience though. Also visit the Punalu’u Bake shop when in the area. They have awesome Hawaiian sweet bread and samples. I've even ordered it online.

4. Hapuna Beach - If you are looking for a beach to relax and get the Hawaiian experience, go to Hapuna Beach. The beach has beautiful white sand and is pretty big so you'll be able to find a spot on the beach. We snorkeled up against the rocks on the south end and were able to swim with sea turtles. My husband came across a reef shark lying under a rock ledge also. It was docile, so nothing bad happened. I was swimming around the area where he saw it, but I was too scared to go under to see it closer.

5. Kilauea Volcano - We visited the park on our circle island tour and had lunch in the Volcano's House. We then drove around crater rim drive and stopped to walk through Thurston Lava Tube.

The highlight of our trip was hiking out to the erupting Kilauea volcano. We had been advised by a family member to wait until the evening to hike out. We drove into the park in the afternoon and headed down Chain of Craters Rd. Once we got a ways down the road, you could see the steam from the lava entering the ocean. This is sight enough worth seeing if you don't want to hike over lava rock in the heat.

We got to the end of the road where people are parked on the side of the road. We parked, grabbed our backpack, 2 flashlights (one for each person) with NEW batteries, and plenty of water bottles and snacks and headed out.

The hike is long and tiring and hot out to the active lava. There are markers in the beginning, but then you just head toward the steam. Once you get to where you can see the lava entering the ocean really well, most people stop here and watch it for a while. You can look up the mountain and see lava flowing down, which is easier to see when it's getting dark.

We were feeling a little more adventurous and decided to walk to the other side of the lava flow where we saw some other people sitting. We could hear crackling under us, which was probably lava underneath the rock. We came upon a hole that was glowing from the lava underneath, it was pretty cool. This hole eventually started erupting with lava and turned into a lava flow that was within a 100 feet of us. You could feel the intense heat. It started raining and you could hear hissing from the rain hitting the lava.

I look back now and realize how dangerous this hike can be. Be careful.

RESTAURANTS:

1. Captain Bean’s Dinner Cruise - We decided to go on the Captain Bean's Dinner Cruise and booked through our hotel. It's a cruise on a big catamaran that serves dinner and has a luau onboard. Once onboard, you are allowed to get drinks. I don't remember all the options, but we stuck with the Mai Tais. After the catamaran launches, the crew starts performing. They put on a little show and get the audience involved. They usually chose men to dress them in hula attire. Dinner is served to your table. The tables are in the middle of the catamaran that can hold up to 15 people or so. It wasn't a gourmet meal, but the atmosphere and entertainment made the cruise very enjoyable. I would definitely recommend this cruise if you are looking for a little fun.

2. Café Pesto - We found this restaurant in Kawaihae by the harbor. It's a cozy little pizza, Italian joint. The servers are all friendly and the food is great. We enjoyed it so much that we went there twice during our stay on the island.