J.D. Hodges

We’ve been in Hawaii just over a month. It’s been a wonderful time so far and here’s a short categorical summary of my thoughts so far:

Weather

Definitely one of the highlights. In Kona we had one day of rain, the rest was sunshine.  Temperatures were in the low to mid 80s during the day and mid 60s at night. Now we’re on the Hilo side and we expect more rain but similar temps. So far we actually like the variability of the weather on this side of the island.

Lodgings

We’ve been staying in economical, but nice, lodgings. A 3rd story condo on the Kona side with a small view of the ocean and a great view of sunsets. On the Hilo side it is a 2nd story condo with a view of a pool and an unbeatable price. Both places are nice but so far we actually feel more relaxed in Hilo, there is less hustle and bustle around us and the occasional shade is nice too.

Cuisine

We try to eat healthy and reasonably. Sometimes we succeed, sometimes we fail. But overall I think our stomachs and our bodies overall are happy :-).

We cook about 2/3rds of out meals at home and eat out the rest of the time. Samantha has made some delicious entrees and we’ve tried some tasty places but I’ll save that for a dedicated entry.

Work

Most of my work involves the internet, so connection speeds and latency can have a big impact on how much (or little) work I can get done. So far we’ve lucked out at both places, the internet is as fast or faster as on the mainland. Consistent 600kbps+ (actual throughput), 50-200ms latency. This means I’ve been able to do as much work as I want. I miss my large monitor at home, but the laptop is doing fine. I’ve also experimented with using a netbook as a 2nd monitor, it works surprisingly well.

Transportation

We spent the first 3 weeks exclusively on foot and bicycle and we covered approximately 160 miles (each). After that we rented a car to transport our guests around. The rental car rates were reasonable so we’re the keeping the car (a Pontiac G6) for the rest of the trip.Out location in Kona required a decent amount of travel to get to restaurants and entertainment (a negative). Where we are in Hilo, most things are within east walking distance (a big plus).

Entertainment

(to be updated)

Economic  state of Hawaii

(to be updated)

Misc

I’ve left a lot out and I haven’t posted photos either :-(. Hopefully I’ll do some updating before long…

Reason for writing

I’m amazed how much I forgot about Hilo since our last visit. I wanted to start writing a bit of this down so I wouldn’t forget it all again!

Summary

Our stay so far has been relaxing but still productive. It’s really very similar to what we do at home, except in a warm winter climate. I do miss people, places and activities back home but I’m excited to continue experiencing Hawaii until it’s time to go back!