Leaving The Big Island, Heading to Maui

Today is our last day on the Big Island, and concludes the first month of our visit to the Hawaiian Islands. Tomorrow morning we fly to Maui, where we will spend the second, and final, month of our stay. Dan and I enjoyed our time here very much! We visited waterfalls and beach parks, walked through underground lava tubes, and watched the sun set into the clouds on Mauna Kea Mountain. We snorkeled with the beautiful tropical fish, made friends with the neighborhood geckos, and walked through lush botanical gardens. We enjoyed the sounds of local birdsongs, our many trips to the nearby Farmer's Market for fresh tropical fruit, and the aroma of the many blooming plants found all over the Island. Speaking of the Island, we drove (a lot!), and made our way around the perimeter, across the middle over Saddle Road, and to the southern most point of the United States (fittingly named South Point). We saw tons of lava, learned a bunch about volcanoes, saw the molten glow at night from Kilauea, and visited a planetarium. But our home base during our last four weeks has been Hilo, and I thought it only fitting to close out this chapter of our travels with a few "local" photos.