We decided to check out a new island and a place we have ever been before…Hilo, Hawaii!

It is a little breezier and a little rainier, but it does have some great sunrises and sunsets.

We found a good rental along the eastern coast of the island that was not quite we expected, but it has great views! 😂

Wait! Is that a shark right off the shore?

No, it is two turtles flapping around!

Hilo is very different than Honolulu and Waikiki and you definitely need a rental car as there is a lot of driving around.

But it is a definite small town atmosphere with many very small shops, restaurants, cafes and pubs all with a surfer feel. A lot people rave about the Farmers Market which we checked out, but it was not as crowded as we expected it to be on a Friday morning.

We love checking out the famous Banyan trees, but you do have to fight for some park, bench or sidewalk space with the plethora of homeless milling around.

But our AirBnB had a security guard so we did not need to worry about anyone coming up to our Lainai at night

I think his smile also scared away the local dogs too! 😉

One gem is Rainbow Falls which is only 10-15 minutes away from downtown and is only a 2 minute walk.

It takes longer to deal with the parking scam than it is to walk to the falls and take a photo.

and of course, yes, I went running like I do in every city, country and continent in the world! check out some of the favorites: Running Around the World | David Cross Travel Blog

The one thing I could not figure out was the Occupation protests. I will have to do some more research on who is occupying this island…