{stateside} hawaii: day nine - kona and aloha

sunday morning we packed our bags and hopped into our little rental car to go to the airport.  we dropped H & J off for their flight and tried really hard not to cry during farewell hugs {it didn't work}.
A and i still had something like nine hours to spend in the aloha state, so we headed into kona for breakfast and some kona coffee, of course.  the town of kailua-kona is lovely but a bit crowded compared to where we'd been staying in waikoloa.  we walked around a bit after breakfast and then drove back up to spend a relaxing day where it all began.  we hung out by the pool at the marriott, explored a shoreline trail, saw one last sea turtle {!} and wrote in coral in the tidal pools.  we ate a leisurely lunch by the dolphin pool at the hilton and snuck in a nap under a waterfall there.  we got a little sunburned, but that's to be expected.
the whole day was lovely but so bittersweet.  hawaii makes it really hard to say goodbye.  i guess that's why they have a word like aloha.