We started out our first full day on the ship by getting up at sunrise and having an impromptu Easter sunrise service. By “service” I mean that I read the Easter story to our group out on deck as the sun rose through the rain clouds in the distance. Beautiful. Another couple asked if they could join us, so we had a regular little underground church going. Also beautiful.
Then we had to hurry to breakfast so we could make our early call for our excursion. But before that call we had to make another one. At breakfast we FaceTimed Melissa Dammeyer back on the Mainland East Coast to wish her a happy 60th birthday. Great fun. Wish they were with us.
Our excursion for the day was a drive on the famous Road to Hana. Why is it famous? Technically, for its amazing views. Practically, because the road is the most outrageously twisty and winding road in the world.
We did have a few “excitements.” I guess the first one came before we ever left. Good ol’ KayLynn forgot who she was and had to go back to her room to find out. Cary (and the rest of us) waited for her, though. Fortunately, so did the bus.
At one of the photo op stops along the way, one of the ladies slipped and hit the ground. She seemed ok. But then the real excitement happened. A young woman on a moped didn’t quite make the turn. She laid her bike down and almost went under a car. She popped right up, though. Obviously embarrassed, she got back up on the bike and hurried away. Tread carefully on the treacherous Road to Hana, ladies and gentlemen. Especially in the rain.
We saw lots of waterfalls on the way. Didn’t even have to hike. Very beautiful. Oh, and at one of our multitude of stops, I managed to score picking my own banana for 50 cents. Pretty good stuff. Grown on site.
Our last stop was the Black Sand Beach. It’s called that because … well … the sand is black. It’s squishy like wet beach sand in Galveston, but it is made from pulverized lava rocks. So … it is black. Very weird. And on the beach I went into a lava tube with no promise of return. Had to bend this poor old back way over just to get in, but once through that initial opening, it spread into a pretty cool tunnel. It ended at the ocean not too far from that entry hole. Nope. Couldn’t get Chris closer that about ten feet from the entrance.
We enjoyed a box lunch at the state park. And while we ate, Cary caught sight of a telltale sign out in the water. A whale cleared out his blowhole. We all then joined in the whale watching efforts. We saw a few more blows, until they kind of petered out. But just as I returned from the bathroom, I saw another. Cary saw it as well. But this guy didn’t stop there. We saw him breach. It was an amazing sight back when we saw it in Alaska. Still is. That’s not your mama’s dolphin, Galveston.
Oh, and one final comment about the Road to Hana … I understand now why those with bad backs should not ride roller coasters. Ouch.
On my the way back to the ship we made one final stop. It made the whole trip worthwhile. Know those Kemp Ridley sea turtles we release in Galveston? We found em. Almost 30 we’re basking on one of the beaches while humans surfed and played on the sand. This one stop made the trip worth it all. And to top it off, what should we find back onboard the ship? A brand new friend to complete the journey with us. Little Krakatoa Kemp, the Kemp Ridley Sea Turtle.
Mark 16:6 says, “Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him.”
Father, you never cease to amaze us. Christ is risen. He is risen indeed. Amen.
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