Honeymoon Stop 6--Port Douglas, Great Barrier Reef

Ready to scuba!

After snow and rain in New Zealand and lots of rain in Sydney, we were looking forward to returning to a tropical climate at the Great Barrier Reef. Warm weather wasn't our only motive; we were hoping to become certified as Open Water Divers, the first level for PADI certification. We completed the e-learning portion of our course while we were in Sydney, so our training course was just three days. Three very long days.

From Sydney, we took a three-hour flight to Cairns and then a one-hour shuttle to the Sheraton Port Douglas, our home for the six days and nights we were at the Great Barrier Reef.

We spent the first day of training in the outdoor pool at the Sheraton in water with a temperature of 23 degrees Celsius or about 73 degrees Fahrenheit. This doesn't sound cold and under ordinary circumstances--swimming some laps or spending an hour frolicking in the water--it's not. But when you spend more than six hours in the water performing scuba skills, like getting accustomed to using a regulator, taking your mask on and off, taking your scuba equipment on and off, practicing buoyancy, etc., 73 degrees starts to feel cold; our core temperatures were so low, everyone in the pool was shivering uncontrollably.

Getting into scuba gear was difficult at first

Z soaking in some sun

Our scuba class consisted of five students including us. Our German instructor made sure we had our skills down cold. By the end of the first day, we were freezing and exhausted and I was second-guessing my decision to take a scuba course. Z didn't enjoy our first day either, but because he had taken a discovery scuba dive years ago, he knew what we were working toward. An unsolicited tip: If you're contemplating scuba certification, take a discovery or introductory dive. This way you know if you like it and you'll know what to look forward to once you complete your scuba certification.

The next two days of the course in the ocean got progressively better. Not only were we (a little) warmer in the ocean, but we also got to see some coral, fishes and other ocean wildlife. By the end of the third day, we did a fun dive in the ocean, reached 17 meters or 56ish feet and began to understand why scuba divers love diving.

E jumping off the boat

Practicing buoyancy in the ocean

Some of the coral we saw on our dives

"Nemos" at the Great Barrier Reef

Despite our exhaustion every day after our scuba course, most evenings we took the town shuttle into Port Douglas to eat dinner because the two restaurants at the hotel were overpriced and the food was just o.k. The food was still overpriced in town, but at least we ate some good Thai and Italian food and some tasty fresh seafood. A couple of nights we indulged on local gelato with flavors like panna cotta and toasted coconut.

After we finished our scuba course and were successfully Open Water certified, we had two days to kill in Port Douglas. The first day after our course completion, another couple in our course, Ingrid and Ashley, invited us to go boating and fishing with them on a river in Port Douglas. Our fishing expedition didn't yield any seafood we could eat, but we caught and saw some interesting wildlife, including a small (about 2 meters or 6 feet) crocodile on the bank of the river.

Croc waiting for the next animal that makes a misstep

Reeling in a mud crab

Catching mud crabs the "proper" way

On our last day in Port Douglas, we rented bikes--"push bikes" as they are called in Australia--from our hotel and took a ride to a nearby nature park where we spent a few hours feeding kangaroos and wallabies and trying to stay clear of domineering ducks and swans. Because of the liability of a bunch of wild animals running around, a park like this would never exist in the U.S. We enjoyed our time at the park even more knowing this was a rare opportunity to play with the animals.

Trying to get over my fear of birds...

Salt water croc and his girlfriend

Feeding a super-sweet baby kangaroo who came to play

Z and the wallaby

The wallabies liked to hold hands as they ate

Port Douglas is tropical and lush and the beach is beautiful, but after a few days the town begins to feel like the small town it is and our Visa card was exhausted from the over-priced everything. We made a brief stop in Sydney before we left the developed, English-speaking world and boarded a flight to Vietnam...

Honeymoon Stop 5--Sydney, Australia

Sydney Opera House

Our weather curse followed us into Sydney! We were hoping for sun and blue skies Down Under, but were greeted by clouds and intermittent downpours during the five days we spent in Sydney. Despite the precipitation, the weather was warm enough to spend time outside and explore the city and its hip neighborhoods. We saw the botanical gardens, took a quick trip across the Sydney Harbour to visit Manly and the world-famous surfing beach on its shores, and spent some time in the southern suburbs with our friends Reed and Lisa. By the end of the trip, we had fallen in love with city and could see ourselves living there, if it weren't so expensive and far from everyone we love.

On the Fast Ferry to Manly

Surfers riding the waves in Manly

Z from the highest point we hiked to in Manly

Sydney skyline from the Sydney Botanical Gardens

A quaint touch--birdcages hanging over an alley near our hotel

In front of St. Mary's Church

Sydney is known for its Asian food, which Z and I love and eat at least a couple of times per week. We wasted no time finding a sushi lunch. As you can see from the photo below, in many restaurants it's common for the individual sushi plates to come by on a track. You select the plates you want and pay by the plate at the end of the meal. The sushi quality was mediocre at best, but our lunch experience was fun.

Sushi lunch

Sushi plates on tracks in the background

Z checking out the black rice sushi

The next day, we stopped by a fast food sushi spot that offered rolls with black rice. We did a little research and it turns out black rice is more nutritious than brown rice, rich in antioxidants and protein.  In addition, black rice (turns purple when cooked) tastes much better than brown rice - win/win. We'll look for it when we get back to the U.S.

Like many big cities, Sydney is also known for its fine dining. We enjoyed a delicious meal at Cafe Sydney overlooking the Sydney Harbour thanks to our friends Mike and Kirsten, who treated us for our wedding. We dined on delicacies including "bugs", goose liver and duck fat.

Celebrating in Sydney

First course of our meal at Cafe Sydney

Our centrally-located hotel, The Westin Sydney, meant we could easily walk to many sites we wanted to visit. One of the first things we did when we arrived in Sydney was visit and take a tour of the Sydney Opera House. The iconic design of the Opera House makes the Sydney skyline easily identifiable from other world-class cities. We learned on our tour that this innovative building almost wasn't constructed. Other judges for the opera house design competition had discarded Jorn Utzon's design, but an American judge reviewed the submissions and rescued Utzon's drawings from the discard pile.

Unfortunately for us, performances at the opera house were in a bit of a lull while we were in Sydney. I wasn't blown away by the tour and for the cost ($35 Australian per person), I can't say that I'd do it again. At least the tour was an opportunity to experience the site.

Outside of the Sydney Opera House

Inside the concert hall at the Sydney Opera House

Opera House at night

In an earlier post I mentioned that this is a trip of new experiences. That includes positive and not-so-positive experiences. Whale watching was a positive experience. Seeing whales less than 10 feet from our boat (we caught it a little late in the pic) was humbling and amazing and almost worth the seasickness that came from being on the boat. About an hour into our three-hour boat trip, we were ready to turn back and be back on dry land.

Look closely and you can see a whale!

Despite the suffering, our whale watching boat trip was good training for the next stop on our trip--scuba certification at the Great Barrier Reef!

Honeymoon Stop 4--New Zealand

Within a few hours of arriving in New Zealand, we had already found a statue honoring sheep

Our visit to New Zealand was horribly timed. Part of it was our fault; the weather at the beginning of winter is unlikely to be great anywhere, save the tropics. But based on our research, we weren't anticipating the South Island would be as cold and snowy as it was. Unfortunately for us, our visit corresponded with an usually strong and early winter storm system.

Trying to stay warm in Queenstown

We made the best of our time in Queenstown by hanging out in coffee shops, drinking good coffee and eating good food, playing games, watching movies and trying to hunt down free wifi. I can see where Queenstown and the surrounding area is lovely. Unfortunately, with temperatures hovering around zero degrees Celsius, we weren't able to experience much of the beauty.

Queenstown from the harbor

After a few days of freezing in Queenstown, we were looking forward to warmer weather in Auckland on the North Island. Unfortunately, the precipitation in Queenstown followed us to Auckland. Much of our time there was rainy, so we tried to make the best of it by trying new restaurants and getting out when we could.

We savored delicious Turkish and Malaysian food. We choked down some awful Japanese food and ate a decent Italian meal, too. And of course we drank our fair share of coffee. To entertain ourselves, we caught a bizarre play--"The Pitchfork Disney"--at Theatre Q in downtown Auckland.

Ginger bar from one of our coffee breaks. Ginger is a very popular flavor in New Zealand and Australia.

The day after we arrived in Auckland, we took a harbor ferry over to Devonport, a quaint town on the harbor. We spent a couple of our walking around town and hiking up Mount Victoria for a great view of Auckland and the harbor.

Departing for Devonport

Z on the ferry to Devonport

Auckland from the boat

The next day, we took another hike to Mount Eden, a few kilometers inland from the harbor. We picked up coffee and breakfast at a cute cafe before walking through town to catch a spectacular view from the top of Mount Eden.

Cool bird we met on our Mount Eden hike

From the top of Mount Eden

One of our last sights before departing for Sydney

Honeymoon Stop 3--Honolulu

At the USS Missouri at Pearl Harbor

For me, Honolulu brought back memories of the two weeks I had spent there five summers ago with my sister and her now-husband. I remembered lazy days at the beach, snorkeling, fresh fruit, Pearl Harbor, Guiness Shakes and rainbows. Sure enough, within minutes of landing in Honolulu, we saw not one but two rainbows.

Although we had been in Hawaii for about two weeks by the time we arrived in Honolulu, we had yet to eat what I would consider authentic Hawaiian food. (Our luau meal at the St. Regis on Kaua'i did not count.) After some search triangulation on Yelp, Urban Spoon and Trip Advisor, we settled on Ono's Hawaiian Foods, less than a mile from the Marriott on Waikiki Beach where we were staying.

Full disclosure: Ono's fits the definition of a hole-in-the-wall restaurant to a tee. It's a small space with seats for about 25 guests. Yellowing photos of satisfied patrons and restaurant critics, including Anthony Bourdain and the New York Times, decorate the walls.

We waited for our table outside of the restaurant while the owner told us stories and gave us tips on what to eat. Once inside, we settled on the Pork Plate and a beef soup with watercress. On a busy Saturday night, Ono's was out of its specialty, the laulau, so we came back on Monday afternoon.

The plate dishes come with many sides and we were stuffed with the Pork Plate and the a la carte soup. Our food was served in record speed and even Z, initially skeptical of Hawaiian food, agreed that Ono's was on of the best meals we ate in Hawaii.

Spread of food at Ono's, on our first visit

With the owner at Ono's

We ate another delicious meal at Little Noodle House in Chinatown after we visited Pearl Harbor. Honolulu's Chinatown is one of the largest in the U.S. and Chinatown anywhere can be overwhelming if you don't know where to eat, so, again, we triangulated with a few user-review websites. The steady crowd of customers late on a Sunday afternoon helped to validate our decision. We ordered a Hong Kong noodle dish with curry and a half duck with rice.

No visit to Honolulu is complete without spending time on Waikiki Beach, seeing Pearl Harbor and hiking up Diamondhead. Unless you go just after the park opens, Diamondhead is always busy and is often filled with visitors who are ill-prepared for the hike. Although, the hike is short (about 1.6 miles round trip), it is steep and parts are narrow.

Well worth the walk--views from the top of Diamondhead

We waited until the day-of to try to get tickets to see the USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor. If you're going on Father's Day, this is not recommended. By the time we arrived, the national park that administers the site was out of tickets. We went to see the USS Bowfin (submarine) and the USS Missouri (battleship) instead.

Obviously, these are two very different ships, and what struck me most was how different the crew spaces are on each ship. It's a starker difference than living in an apartment in Manhattan and living in an apartment in almost any other city in the U.S.

Honeymoon Stop 2--Maui

A pleasant surprise at the Maui airport--leis courtesy Katey, Paul, Ethan & Piper

After a fabulous week on Kaua'i, a welcome greeting at the Maui airport and high marks from many people we know who have visited Maui, we had high expectations for our time there. And you know what they say about high expectations...

In general, we found Maui to be much more developed and touristy than Kaua'i. The hiking isn't nearly as good, and while the food may be a little better, it's still overpriced. 

While Maui may not have met our expectations, our time there wasn't wasted. The day after we arrived, our concierge at the Westin directed us to a hike on an old golf course. After a leisurely brunch at the Ka'anapali Beach Hotel, we put on our hiking shoes. Despite a steep uphill climb at the beginning, the hike wasn't particularly challenging.

We chose the 3.5 mile hike, with some off-road additions

Later in the week, in an effort to avoid driving two hours to hike on the eastern side of the island, we hiked the Lahaina Pali Trail. This trail is accessible from Highway 30 and follows a ridge with spectacular views of both Maalaea and Kahului Bays. This hike is longer--more than five miles one way--and all sun.

Once we completed the Village Walking Trails hike, we continued around the northern part of the island in search of more adventure. We hiked down to the Nakalele Blowhole and the lighthouse near it. While I was leery about going down to the blowhole, I'm glad we did. It's an awesome sight, one that I couldn't experience from 200 feet away. We kept a safe distance away from the hole itself. Locals told us that tourists still die at the blowhole every year after they get too close.

Near the Nakalele Blowhole

At the blowhole, off to the left

Fascinating, yet bug-ridden forest we discovered after our trip to the blowhole

Maui is home to a large national park, Haleakala National Park, which has an entrance near the end of the Road to Hana and another entrance at one of the highest points on the island, the Haleakala Crater.  The summit exceeds 10,000 feet.

Z and I before some hiking on the crater

Beginning our hike on the crater

You could spend days hiking in the park. In fact, we picked up a hitchhiker who was doing just that--hiking with friends and his kids from one cabin to the next at the park. We opted for a shorter hike because we had dinner reservations at the infamous Mama's Fish House.

Waiting for our table at Mama's

Everyone we spoke with who has been to Maui told us we had to go to Mama's. Founded in 1973, it's still one of the most popular restaurants on the island, probably in all of Hawaii, and cooks up some great food. Our meal was one of the best we ate in Hawaii, but it was the atmosphere and the ambiance that made the meal special.

Our table at Mama's, overlooking the beach and ocean

Spread of food at Mama's, whole fish, macadamia-encrusted stuffed fish

Z devoured his whole fish

On our way to the crater, we stopped at the Ali'i Kula Lavendar farm to stretch our legs and sample some delectable lavender creations, like lavender lemonade, a dark chocolate lavender brownie and dark chocolate with lavender essence. Yum! The farm isn't large, but it's a great place to stop enroute to the crater. Entry costs just $3 per person.

Stopping for a moment of zen amidst the lavender

This honeymoon is a trip of "firsts". Z's first time in Hawaii and our first time in most of the countries we're visiting. It's also a trip of first experiences, like shooting a gun. I never thought I would shoot a gun on my honeymoon, but, then again, I never planned on a 10-week honeymoon.

On the boat to La'nai

We took a ferry boat to the small island of La'nai, less than eight miles from Maui. La'nai is home to two Four Seasons properties, but looked deserted until we got around the southern part of the island to the harbor. After we landed, we took a quick transfer to the Four Seasons Lodge at Koele to wait for our shooting tour.

The Lodge at Koele is a beautiful property. I imagine a stay there would be incredibly relaxing, but that I would get bored after a couple of days.

Orchid house at the Four Seasons Lodge at Koele

Hawaii has perfect growing conditions for orchids

Z catches up on the news with his new feline friend

Shooting a gun is serious business and our instructor made sure we followed all gun safety regulations before he let us lose on the range.

Ready to hit the course!

Z hones in on his target

All safe at the end of our adventure

While on Maui, we knew we had to drive the Road to Hana. But rather than seeing all of the sites on the drive twice, we started the road in reverse, west of Hana and Kaupo from the Piilani Highway.

At Wailua Falls

We stopped at a cave, where Z did some cave swimming

In Hana and not far from Hana Beach Park, we found a delicious Thai restaurant. Hana offers many Thai restaurants, but the one we settled on was Nutcharee's Authentic Thai Food. It features a partially outdoor kitchen and a dining area covered by a tent, which we appreciated given the frequent downpours. Our dishes--Massaman Curry with chicken for me and a steak noodle dish with lots of chilies for Ziv--had plenty of flavor without the grease that often appears in Thai food.

Since he first read about lava tubes on Maui, Z wanted to see them and tick another "firsts" experience off his list. He had his chance on our Road to Hana tour.

Stalactites inside the lava tubes

One week on Maui was plenty and by the end of the week we found ourselves missing the ruggedness and adventure of Kaua'i.