Thursday, August 12: A nice mellow day for all to relax recuperating from the bug-bite fest. At 5:00 p.m., we went to see Fr. Bob and renewed our wedding vows after 30 years. The kids didn’t know what was going on and that was part of the fun.

Dinner for ahi tuna BBQ and lilikoi cake for dessert. Yum and good times.

Tonight was the Perseid meteor shower and there were a few to be viewed. By the time 11:30 p.m. rolled around, the clouds had rolled in and the sprinkles blocked the view just a bit. Oh well, I figured out how to do time exposures on the Canon T1i, it is one capable camera!

Wednesday, August 11: Today is the Circle Island tour to Hilo and Volcano! We started off at Tex in Honoka’a for the malasadas and then down to Hilo for the marketplace and jewelery shopping. After a quick deluge, we shopped in the heat until our stomachs got the better of us and we headed to Reuben’s Mexican Food on the boulevard. It was OK, not spectacular. It did us well and fortified us for more shopping.

We headed to Kurtistown, on the way to Volcano for a Bonsai and Cultural Center tour and, unexpectadly, class on Chineses bonsai with Sensei David Fukumoto. Rosie was very excited and completed her bonsai. It wll be packed and shipped for school by the time that she arrives. The mosquitos were out in FULL force and there were lots of bites to go around.

Rather than continue around the island, we decided to backtrack over Saddle Road to home. It was a quick hour or so and we were back by about 6:15 p.m.

Dinner was cocktails and bread (different vodka martinis), cheese and crackers! The gin rummy game began in earnest out on the lanai.