Kualoa Ranch and Heading Home

Right there at the end of the trip we had our biggest adventure. Travel agent Ellen booked us an ATV tour through the jungly valley where Jurassic Park was filmed. We all thought this was a marvelous idea, except for Brett who was certain it would be a hokey tourist trap bound for disappointment. This is funny retrospectively because I think Brett may have loved it more than anyone. 

This time, Scott's cousin Kiko picked us up outside of our hotel and drove us 45 minutes to the ranch. We all jumped out of the car and Kiko kind of giggled as he drove off which made me oddly suspicious. We painted ourselves in sunscreen, checked in for our ride, and then all became enamored with the jackets and t-shirts in the gift shop. We huddled around them, stroking the soft fabric like we'd never heard of the concept. Ellen reminded us that Mom and Dad had to catch their flight home just as soon as the tour was over, so this was our only chance to enjoy the gift shop. This lit a fire and Dad, Lee, Ellen, and Brett scrambled to find their size. 

Before we set out, we watched a short video on how to operate an ATV and then we met our guide, Charlie. Charlie looked especially Hawaiian with skin the color of hot chocolate and long black hair running wild in earthy tendrils. Charlie was extremely laid back and held a perpetual smile on his face. He had tribal tattoos and frequently did the "hang loose" sign with his hands. I thought Charlie was the coolest. 
And off we went, zooming through jungles to be spit out in grassy valleys. 

Occasionally we would pull over and Charlie would tell what we were looking at. This included history of the land, what movies were filmed there, and fun facts about life at Kualoa. Heaps and tons of movies have been filmed at the ranch and it was oddly exciting to be on the Jurassic Park set. The buildings and trees on set are made of foam and then painted to look old. The artistry! 

Brett drove Mom and me, while Dad and Lee swapped back and forth with Ellen in tow. Occasionally Dad would run into the back of us just for fun and we could hear them cackling throughout the ride. In this grassy patch, Charlie had the kids pose for a photo...

Then he got creative.

He took a video while we ran away in fear of the rubber dinosaur. 

The only downside to the tour was that it was very dusty. Charlie's ATV kicked up a cloud of dirt dust that we would drive through, and towards the end of the tour I took off my mask and sunglasses and everyone laughed at my face. I'd developed a dirt unibrow and assorted brown smudges. My white shirt was filthy. Jokes on them. We were all equally dirt-coated (except Lee who wore a face shield of sorts) and afterwards, us gals when to the bathroom to clean up, and all the other women in there gawked and asked us what on earth we had been doing. 

It was a whole bunch of gorgeous scenery and giddy Hawaiian vibes. We loved it. Brett wants to move there. Kiko picked us up, and Mom and Dad made their way over to the airport. We kids had one more night to live it up, so Lee met with his friends and went for a boat ride while Ellen joined Brett and me at a "hip n' happening" dinner spot. We were here for ages because our waiter forgot to put my order in but I'm too polite and hopeful to ever say anything. I helped eat Ellen and Brett's food and then some tacos appeared out of nowhere and just as we gave up, my supper arrived. We were all full but we were also too polite and hopeful to say anything. 

On our last morning, Brett and I walked way out of the touristy downtown and found a breakfast spot so inspiring that it made us sit to discuss how we should go about moving to Hawaii. I enjoyed the conversation the way I enjoy any sort of dreamy musing but Brett was in a serious, business transaction style outlook about the thing and part of me worried that he'd really move. And I'd love to move there, but only if everyone I love came too. Later that day, we had life altering Asian food that put another egg in the Hawaii basket.

We all packed our crap, checked out of the hotel, and enjoyed a final Dole Whip. Lee used the women's bathroom, and then we took a cab to the airport. Farewell pretty paradise with your delicious food and balmy breeze. We had an 8 hour flight to Chicago and I was in the middle seat. 

Here's a hodgepodge of phone photos from the trip because oooh they make me smile.