Our last stop on our tour of the Hawaiian Islands was Hilo, which is located on the northeastern side of the island of Hawaii, and offers breathtaking natural beauty plus all the amenities of a vibrant town.
A busy farming and fishing area in early times, Hilo evolved into a commercial center for the sugar industry in the 1800s. Downtown Hilo was built around its crescent-shaped bay and became the seat of county government. Today, Downtown Hilo is a charming town offering museums, art galleries, shops and restaurants.
Today’s excursion was the Culinary Hawaii Home tour. A unique tour of three local residences to learn about the various island lifestyles, while being served a progressive brunch at each location.
Our first stop was to a small cottage overlooking the harbor. and were introduced to the owner who told us of it’s history and what it was like to grow up in the house, and in Hilo.
Our first course of the progressive brunch was baked goods, Portuguese sausage, mango juice, and Kona coffee. Yum.
We then moved on to our second stop, the Palms Cliff House Inn, which is a boutique bed & breakfast on 3 acres with private oceanfront views.
Our second course was a mixed-green salad with pineapple, chicken salad stuffed papaya, and home made kettle chips. Yum Yum.
For our final stop, we went Mauka (mountainside) and visited a newer home that was built by an engineer who designed computer chips. The road up the mountain was narrow and steep, but the speed limit was low and the views were well worth it.
Our last course was dessert and we were served bread pudding, a coconut macaroon, banana mousse, rambutan, and apple banana. Triple Yum!
This was one of the best excursions we’ve ever taken. Hats off to our tour guide (and tour company owner) Lisa, who made this a very memorable day.
And so, our island hopping adventure has now come to an end and we will be pulling up the anchor at 6:00 PM to begin our five day trip back to San Diego. However, because of a little known 1920 law called “The Jones Act”, our ship cannot go directly into San Diego, so our next stop will be in Ensenada Mexico.
Stay tuned