Hilo, Hawaii

Sunday, January 12th

Aloha everyone,

First of all, I want to say welcome and aloha to those of you I don't know who are reading my blog.  It's fun to see some of you from Alaska following along with us.  After five full days at sea we arrived in Hilo, Hawaii this morning.  We are so lucky to have such a beautiful day here especially since it's often raining.  It rained as we sailed last night and cleared up early in the morning before we got off the ship.  As usual in Hawaii it's quite humid but absolutely beautiful.  We're docked on the Hilo side of the Island so it is very green and lush.  We walked into town and attended a beautiful traditional church service at Haili Congregational Church.  Everyone there was incredibly welcoming. The pastor (Brian Welsh) met us art the door and when he found out it was our first time visiting the church he immediately welcomed us with a crochet lei made by one of their members.  We received such a warm Hawaiian welcome with hugs all around :)  Some hymns were in Hawaiian and others were in English.  We tried to sing the Hawaiian words which were printed but we were pretty bad at it.  Luckily, the sermon was in English.  After the service we were planning on walking to the AT&T store to clear up some issues with our phones and one couple graciously offered to drive us there (which we quickly accepted).  I'm not sure we would have ever found the place on our own! After a couple of hours there we walked to the farmer's market filled with fruits, veges and tropical flowers.  We couldn't resist getting a beautiful bouquet for our stateroom.  Hopefully, they will last quite a while.  Love Hawaiian flowers.

After exploring the town a bit we headed back to the ship.  It's early, but here in Hilo most everything is closed on Sunday (which is actually a nice memory of how it used to be at home MANY years ago when I was young).

So, I'm spending some time this afternoon catching up on emails, Facebook, and writing my blog.  As I sit here on our balcony I'm enjoying the peacefulness of the ship's engines being turned of, looking at the catamarans and fishing boars tied up at the old, wooden dock and watching children play on the pile of rocks used as a breakwater.  Peaceful, still and quiet, while surrounded by a small bay filled with turquoise water and lush greenery - my perfect way to spend afternoon.  Tonight we're having dinner with some friends we met onboard from Chicago, going to a "Broadway" production onboard, then it's off to Maui.  I never want to take this opportunity for granted.  We are sooooo blessed to be on this amazing journey.
Aloha