Hawaii Chronicles - Day 11

Today Doc & I started the day in Kailua with breakfast at Crepes No Ka 'Oi. We ordered one savory and one sweet crepes. For the savory crepes we got The Godfather which was melted mozzarella cheese, tomatoes, fresh basil, and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar. It was delicious! It basically tasted like a caprese salad - which we are both obsessed with. For the sweet crepes we ordered Stephanie's Hula Dance. It was filled with coconut syrup, crushed macadamia nuts, topped with whipped cream and powdered sugar. We got the whipped cream on the side because Doc doesn't do whip cream - but I do because I eat like a child. 

Doc found the Byodo - In Temple online as she was googling and insisted on us going there. I had no idea where we were going and had not seen any images beforehand therefore it was surprise for me! Some fun facts about the temple: 

• It was established on June 7, 1968, to commemorate the 100 year anniversary of the first Japanese immigrants to Hawaii

• The TV series Hawaii Five-O and Magnum, P.I. featured several episodes where the temple is incorporated into the plot

• The temple and its gardens also appeared in an episode of the ABC series Lost, "House of the Rising Sun" in season one as the home of Sun's father

• The Byodo-In Temple is a non-practicing Buddhist temple

After the temple we made a pit stop at Starbucks because it was the last day for the buy one get one free holiday drink. We really didn't need coffee but because Doc couldn't pass up a good deal - it was FREE! After our dose of caffeine we started driving along the south side of the island toward the Makapu'u Lookout. It was super windy and the waves were rough however the view was breathtaking! The water was so blue!!! There is a trail near the lookout that allows you to go to an even higher elevation for a more spectacular view - Doc & I will be back with proper hiking gear to go on the trail!

Further up from the lookout was the Halona Blowhole. It requires a lot of patience to snap a picture of the blowhole - something that is very hard when my camera battery is dying. It was very cool though. Some idiot tourists were getting up close to capture the perfect image. Doc wouldn't let me do it because she wasn't about to be the one responsible for me breaking a limb or drowning.  

After all our scenic stops we drove to Honolulu to go to Leonard's Bakery. Leonard's is famous for their malasadas. We ordered one plain and one stuffed malasadas. They were delicious! For Ann Arbor people it basically tasted like a Fragel on crack!!

On our drive home we were able to catch a rainbow - something that has occurred pretty much daily here in Hawaii. I literally pulled over on the side of a highway while Doc jumped out and went on top of a hill to capture a shot of the rainbow! She is very dedicated to her craft!

We stayed in for dinner and enjoyed some mindless reality TV shows on Bravo!