Einstein theorized that the closer something approaches the speed of light, the slower time goes. Well, this vacation has been the reverse of that. The sooner I get to my last day, the faster time has gone by. I'm on my second last day, and not ready at all to leave behind the sun and sand for dreary wet days in Toronto.
In effect, I'm trying to cram in as much as possible before that happens. Yesterday was my last day on the Big Island and with a flight that departed at 15:33, I figured I had more than enough time to check off several things. Mauna Loa was one of them, but I had to give that up because a) it was too far out of the way, b) the rain and fog probably wouldn't have been a good mix for my lousy sense of direction, and c) it would have meant giving up more things to fit that in. Besides, I did Mauna Kea twice, with the second time at night to watch the sun go down and the stars twinkle in the sky.
I tried getting up early in the morning but couldn't swing anything until about 6:45, 7, and finally left Arnott's around 8:15. But that still left with me about 6h to drive all the way around the southern portion of the island, and do the following:
Drive down to South Point (the southernmost portion of the 50 states) and jump off the cliff and into the water 40ft below. I stripped off my clothes just fine but when I was standing on the planked ledge, I started to feel the nerves and it was taking a little longer than I expected. But when one of the two women to my right said, "Do it!", I did it! I don't think I quite landed with both feet straight first into the water because it was a bit of a hard impact, but I did it! And good thing I read after how strong the currents get in that area, because my only inclination of that was having a dickens of a time swimming the last three feet to the ladder. No matter how much I sliced my arms through the water, I just stood still in the water.
I drove down to the green sand beach but it wasn't so impressive, so I turned around and got back on the 11 and drove north up to Honokohau, a beach that's reputed to be teeming with sea turtles. I only saw one and I snorkeled around for a bit, but it was quick to leave there, too.
And then to the airport where I had to return the car with a not quite full fuel tank, which ended up costing me $33. Whaaaa! It was 5/8 full! Oh well, at least I managed to find gas for super cheap on the Island at only $3.71/gallon.
Finally got back to Oahu yesterday, but not after some trouble with the TSA agents. Turns out something in my bag aroused attention, so one of them brought me over to the side to search it. When I reached over to move something out of the way, she said, "You can't touch your bag; I forgot to tell you." Ehhh, okay? The suspicious object turned out to be toothpaste, which I decided to throw out (after using once). I thought it was liquids, gels and aerosols, but apparently toothpaste falls into that as well. I can't help but feel as though passengers are held a bit hostage by the TSA to the point where they can say anything they want. You can't argue with them for two reasons: you may be in the wrong, and arguing will just put you on their bad side and they can make you miss your flight. So, to their whim we're held.
But now I'm in Waikiki and "celebrated" by heading to the Waikiki Sheraton, and enjoying a local beer on their outdoor patio while a guy with a guitar played and the sun set over the ocean. I met a fellow traveler and we had a great conversation, and she was cool enough to tell me to look at whatever grabbed my attention instead of politely looking at her.
Today: snorkeling.
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