Yay! I think I'm finally caught up on posts. On January 12th, I headed to Las Vegas to meet Jon and spend some time in Sin City to celebrate my birthday (January 16th for all you people who don't already have this on your Outlook calendar). We walked the strip until our legs ached, enjoyed a few of the best restaurants in Vegas, and lost a bunch of money playing slots and sampling overpriced cocktails.
(too bad they don't go off all day). That night we ate at a great restaurant called Drai's. It's in the basement of the Barbary Coast Casino (not the most modern place) but the food, decor, and service were awesome. The creme brule isn't too shabby either. After that we attended the late showing of Cirque du Soleil's "O". This is the show that is entirely performed in and around a pool of water in the stage. It can be made shallow enough such that the performers appear to walk on the water, but it is also deep enough for high divers to plunge in from the ceiling.
Kona is now 5 months old and a whopping 66 pounds! He's very smart and well-behaved until one of the cats crosses his path. Then all bets are off. We're hoping one of these days he will lose interest in the felines, but it's not looking good for the kitties over the next few months.
This post is a few months delayed, but we thought you would like a quick rundown of our honeymoon to Hawaii. Our first week was spent on the Big Island of Hawaii. We stayed at the Hilton Waikoloa Village resort in Waikoloa, just north of Kona on the west coast of the island. We spent our time snorkeling, cruising in our rented Jeep, shopping, hiking, and trying all of the great restaurants at our resort. Being a geology nerd, I was especially excited for our trip to Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. We hiked out after dark to see the flowing lava. It was beautiful, but also a little scary. The four mile hike back in the pitch dark through glowing lava, sharp volcanic rocks, and other lost tourists was especially nerve-wracking. One of the highlights of our trip to the Big Island was a two-hour helicoptor tour of the island. We flew over ancient lava fields, spurting volcanic vents, lava flowing into the ocean, and narrow waterfalls that were hundreds of feet high.
We took one day trip to the Island of Oahu. There we went on a shark cage dive off the famed North Shore of Oahu. After getting over the initial fear of jumping into a floating cage four miles offshore, it was amazing. We were immediately surrounded by about 30 Galapagos sharks, ranging in size from 8 to 10 feet long. It was a wonderful experience that we will never forget.
