Aloha!
08/23/2021
Emily Lehnert Photography
After 2 1/2 years of planning and some major disappointments along the way, our Gray family Hawaii vacation to celebrate our 40th anniversary milestone finally happened this summer.
We had originally planned a Hawaiian cruise with Norwegian Cruise Lines for all 21 of us for July 2020. One of our kids' families had to drop out due to illness (the biggest disappointment) then Covid canceled the 2020 cruise (another disappointment) so we rebooked for July 2021. When we found out in May that Norwegian was canceling that cruise too (yet another disappointment!) we all decided to change gears and go to Hawaii anyway!
So that's what we did...17 of us flew to Hawaii for a weeklong stay at Mauna Kea Residences at the Westin Resort on the Big Island of Hawai'i!
For our first time ever, Kim and I flew first class. SWEET!!! Except for the whole ridiculous wear-your-mask-the-entire-7-hour-flight thing, it was fabulous having all that room to stretch out. Not sure if we can go economy class again...(but, of course, we will...)...
Each family had decided to rent their own car for the week, so we could each do our own thing. We could hardly wait to hit the white sand beach...but first we had to wait for 2 hours on the hot parking lot to pick up our rental car. Rental cars are scarce in Hawaii since the pandemic, so we were grateful just to even get one. But waiting here after traveling all day was not the ideal start to our vacation.
It took all the patience we had, but finally we were thrilled to arrive.
Each family stayed in their own beachfront condo, and our condos were all on the bottom floor and next to each other.
I was standing on Hapuna Beach taking this shot...we were just a few steps from what is often considered the Best Beach in the US!
This was the view from our lanai...spectacular!
I often tell Kim, "Take me where there are palm trees!" Lucy and Daniel were also thrilled to finally be in HAWAII!
A peek inside our super-modern condo...
No, I do not make my bed when I'm on vacation...
Who takes photos of a toilet??? Oh, but this is not just your run-of-the-mill toilet! This toilet opens the lid to greet you when you enter the bathroom. And it's also a bidet, which Lucy can attest too as she started pushing buttons to check it out and found herself getting sprayed in the face!
And...my favorite toilet feature of all...the seat is heated! Oh the luxury....
Each of us had our own private saltwater plunge pool, which was wonderful for relaxing...
...or practicing your swimming skills!
A great perk to these residences is that we had access to the amenities of the Westin and nearby Mauna Kea resorts. While we spent most of our time at the beach, it was fun to cool off and play together in the big family pool.
Off to the right edge of Hapuna Beach is a very nice snorkeling area...
...called Turtle Point. Several sea turtles hang out there and can often be seen from shore swimming in the crystal clear water.
We brought our own turtles!
My attempt at underwater photography didn't go so well (and even though I saw them, I never got a clear, focused photo of a turtle...) as I neglected to take into account that my glasses will not fit under my snorkel gear and I didn't even bring my contact lenses along. Hard to photograph what I can't even see very well...
But there were lots of pretty fish living in shallow water just a few steps from our condos!
Speaking of pretty fish, there was a lovely koi pond on the Westin property. Kim had koi envy, I think...
But the best part of staying here was Hapuna Beach...soft white sand, clear turquoise waters, gentle waves, and tropical breezes...hard to beat that combo!
A few photos from our time there...
Okay...maybe that was more than a "few"! But I couldn't stop myself...such a beautiful place and after all the months of hassles to finally get to Hawaii, I savored every moment!
Ahhh...
Aloha!
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