I'M BACK! June has been filled with so many memories, lots of love and picture perfect moments shared friends and family. Last weekend Zach and I GOT MARRIED! Then, right away (literally hours after the wedding), we left for HAWAII!
Now I've been to some beautiful places and never though anything could top Switzerland, the Rocky Mountains of Colorado or even the coast of Mexico.... But I was wrong. The island of Kauai is by far my favorite destination so far.
Kauai is Hawaii's fourth largest island, often referred to as the 'Garden Isle." Its coastline is 111 miles with over 50% of those miles being sandy beaches with crystal clear water sitting below the jagged green mountains and white fluffy clouds.
The week started off picking up our 2015 convertible Mustang (Awesome, I know). From the capital, Lihue, we drove up north about 45 minutes to the North Shore where we stayed in Princeville, next to Hanalei.
Throughout the week we cruised around to several touristy locations from east to west. Below you can check out photos from our favorite look out spots and events during the week!
Image 1: Hanalei Bay is surrounded by the town of Hanalei, where you can find great shopping, shave ice, coffee and lots of chickens (not unlike the rest of the island). The bay stretches over roughly two miles of beach surrounded by that great mountain view that I obsess over.
Image 2: Kilauea Point is home to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services and is marked by a lighthouse that sits across from a dormant volcano. Ten minutes after arriving, it started raining torrentially and never really cleared up, so we left.
Image 3: This precious row of pineapples was located at the top of Waimea Canyon. Zach and I purchased one (per my request) and we sliced it open later in the week.
Image 4: Waimea Canyon... when you walk up to it, you practically can hear the Jurassic Park theme song. From time to time we would see a helicopter dip into the valley of the canyon close to the waterfalls. It was incredible. The mountains were so lush and saturated with color that is was almost unreal.
Image 5: Tunnels Beach (Makua) located on the North Shore is known for great snorkeling. One day, Zach and I attempted to snorkel, however, it was choppy, making it impossible.
Image 6: We took a catamaran to the Napali Coast, which is only reachable by boat or via an 11 mile hike. Although the Waimea Canyon screams Jurassic Park, the Napli Coast is where it was filmed. We spent the morning and afternoon eating, watching dolphins, meeting new friends and snorkeling the coast!
Image 7: Story time! So earlier in the day, Zach and I went into a store located directly across from my new favorite store, SoHa Living (I literally bought the entire store. Sorry not sorry) Anyways, Zach was interested in getting himself a piece of Koa wood jewelry. Koa means "warrior" in Hawaiian, and the wood is only grown on trees in Hawaii. Historically it was used to make weapons and canoes.
The lady in the store kept urging Zach to buy me a bracelet if he was getting one for himself. I kindly said no thank you, because I had already spent my fair share of money across the street, so it was Zach's turn to splurge.
I don't know how it happened, but all of a sudden during the luau later that evening, Zach and I were walking onto the plantation and he goes "Oh, you forgot something." So naturally, I look down to check to see if I had my purse, the tickets for the show and my GoPro. While I was looking down, he snapped a koa wood bracelet around me wrist. I'm not sure how he pulled that surprise, considering I was in the store with him the entire time, but it was the sweetest gesture in the world. Zach isn't known for being sneaky, so it was doubly cute.
After only being back at work one week, I am already itching to go on our next adventure.
