Plague in Paradise

Although it looks like we've been just having fun with our heads in the sand, the news about the COVID crisis exploding on the mainland is becoming increasingly worrisome. We keep our fingers crossed that the virus will not invade the islands for a good while longer.

Happy hour at Don the Beachcomber in the Royal Kona

Strangely quiet at Sam Choy's for Sunday Brunch

Unfortunately, COVID comes sooner rather than later.  Cases start showing up first on Oahu and then Maui.  The Big Island is spared a few days before the first case walks off a cruise ship as passenger in Hilo. Brown matter hits the fan and breaks loose. Crazed hoarding behavior floods Costco first, then Walmart. We try to pick up a few things at Costco on an early "seniors" Tuesday morning and are stymied by the over an hour long line. Costco has wisely enacted stricter rules to control the mounting chaos... only a certain number of people are allowed in the store at one time and limits have been put on how much toilet paper etc. can be bought at one time.  One Filipino lady in the parking lot tells me her sister is now in the store, but she arrived at 5:30am and then waited for the store to open. There were already people in line before she got there. We then try the pharmacy in Walmart and are taken back to see the shelves wiped out in the colds and flu aisle, where just a few days ago it had been well stocked. We next try Safeway and are able to get most of what we need, but do wonder for how much longer.

Me taking photos of the Costco line

Close-up of the Costco line - social distancing?

We realize life is quickly changing on the island and we can no longer be the carefree tourists we had been. Still we have fun feeding the birds on the lanai where we have breakfast. We learn that Cole, the owner of our vacation home, doesn't have any tenants after us. I contact him to see if we can stay longer should the need arise.  He offers us a very good week-to-week deal should we stay. Whew - at least we can continue to live here if we decide to stay or are forced to.

Yellow billed Cardinal

likes bagel crumbs and MacNuts

Kalij pheasant

By now all the Hawaii state beaches have been closed and parking lots blocked. Still Peter, Jill, and Mark craving one last beach day head out while I stay at home to catch up. The beach at A-bay is open, but very crowded catering to the big Waikoloa resorts.  Several of the smaller resorts are already closing down, such as, Four Seasons and Mauna Kea. Our quickly evolving situation finally sinks in. COVID-19 is already causing havoc on the Big Island and it's likely to get worse. So we start sheltering in place and ponder what to do next.

Jill & Mark's last beach day

Morning exercises

with bands

We start regular walks up the volcano and begin to meet others in the neighborhood. We see one couple with three dogs on a regular basis.  Matt, the husband, has just returned from Colorado from a ski vacation in Vail. He only got one day of skiing in before all lifts were closed forcing him to fly back early. It was pricey and not much of a vacation, but at least he got back safely.

Morning walk in Kona

Jill - no worries

Matt and family

One of the neighborhood homes sits on a large double lot and the owner is supervising a major landscaping project. We kid him about his huge concrete Easter Island heads by asking him if that's the new altar for sacrificing virgins. He took my kidding good naturedly, but I could see his contractor trying to stifle a laugh behind his boss's back. Humm - maybe I should be at least a little more diplomatic 

Home with large landscaping project

Future altar?

Christmas lights in plumeria trees

On our forays around the neighborhood, we often pass an AV (abandoned vehicle) parked alongside a curb. Hawaii has an interesting way of dealing with old cars. To reduce the amount of waste on the island, old cars are left in easy to access areas until they are stripped of useful parts. They are then towed away and replaced with another AV open for free parts - you bring your own tools. It's a very innovated approach to recycling! Almost stripped AV Tow truck picking it up Next AV left in the same place with parts available

After a day or two at home, we start getting itchy feet and look for things we can do. We learn  Mountain Thunder's Cloud Forest Coffee is still open. There are very few visitors and we are delighted to get a tour with just us.

Peter outside gift shop

Display showing different parts of the coffee process

Yup - we are in a cloud forest

Sorting table

Green coffee beans versus their hulls

Coffee roaster

Also, several golf courses are open.  Mark starts teaching Peter how to play golf by hitting off several buckets of balls at both Makalei Golf Club and Makani Golf Club  (now closed). While the guys are busy pounding balls, Jill and I wander around the mostly deserted golf cart trails and enjoy the beautiful landscaping and plentiful birds.

Nice swing

Peacocks at Makalie Golf Club

Nene family at Makani

In the evenings, our main topic of conversation surrounds the question "should we stay or go?" Mark and Jill's friends in Florida tell them they should stay as things could get nasty with the state's mostly older population, many in nursing homes. Friends in California are watching the raising rates of infection with mounting closings of businesses and recreational areas. We find the the news of the possibility of shutting down all domestic flights especially alarming.  In the end after much debate, we all decide we would rather face the unknown in our own homes. So the conversation then switches to how to mitigate the dangers of the flights back to the mainland. After several hours of hassle online and an unsuccessful trip to the airport in search of a reservation desk, we get our flights to California switched cutting short our stay by a week.

Our last night treats us to the best sunset yet. Our last meals have been a little odd as we try to finish up as much as the food we have left over without buying more. In the process of celebrating three birthdays on this trip (Mark, Peter and Liza) we have accumulated some excellent desserts, which we feast on for our last supper. We joke about feeling like Marie Antoinette's "Let them eat cake" on her way to the guillotine.
The next morning we finish cleaning up our rental home and arm ourselves with plenty of wipes, hand sanitizers, and food for the flight. We are surprised to find just how few people are traveling that day. We are the only ones returning at car at Hertz. We are the only ones on the airport shuttle and the driver is very concerned about how much longer he'll have a job. There is only one family in front of us in the TSA line and our departure area is almost deserted. Not many issues with social distancing here. When our plane arrives from the mainland, we count 33 arriving passengers disembarking, about the same number as the group waiting to fly back to the mainland.  

KOA airport departure area

Big bottle of sanitizer

Dancing hula girls don't have much of an audience

NO planes at other gates

... and we are off

Good-bye Kona Sorry we have to leave so soon

During the whole trip home we feel like we are trapped living in a grade B Sci-FY movie. It really hits us as the plane circles over San Jose coming in for a landing. The urban area is all lit up as usual, BUT there are no cars on the streets below. I can only find about 3 cars on Hwy 17 and maybe 2 on an expressway. I am eerily reminded about a scene from the movie On the Beach, where a post-apocalyptic submarine surfaces in San Francisco Bay finding the City devoid of life.

We land about 20 minutes early as there is no other flight traffic and no other planes sitting at the gates.  To leave the waiting area, we have to pass through a series of three hermetically sealed doors on our way to the baggage claim. Feels like exiting a space ship or a contaminated area. Baggage is unloaded quickly. Our good friend David is coming to pick us up, but is about 15 minutes away as we were early to the curb. While waiting, our flight crew walks by and I recognize our head stewardess. I thank her and the rest of the crew for working and getting us home safely.  She smiles and says  she is glad we are still flying in a wistful tone of voice (probably wondering how much longer they will be able to fly).  She then catches herself and recites the corporate standard "we're delighted you chose to fly with Alaska."

We arrive home at the beginning of a cold snap. Jill, Mark and David are all staying with us at our house for an indeterminate amount of time until they can determine what to do next. There is a sense of uncertainty and being cold. To the four of us returning from Kona, the cold feels especially sharp, so we turn up the heat and try to get comfortable.

Landing in San Jose

Ahhh - Mark sets up in front of the heater

Dog walk in hail storm

The cold stormy weather lasts for another few days, while Jill and Mark try to find flights back to Florida.  Finally after three false starts, they secure flights that don't get cancelled on them. They leave early in the morning, armed with wipes and food. Peter takes them back to SJC and they successfully fly back home. A few days later when the weather clears, David drives back to San Diego along the Big Sur coastline, where he enjoys having the magnificent scenery to himself, but has trouble finding open bathrooms. Even though Hwy 1 is open, Big Sur's amenities are closed for tourists and travelers.

Last of the squalls wash over Monterey Bay

Mark dressed for travel

Warmer weather returns to the coast

We are left at home to ride out whatever come next