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Original Hawaiian Chocolate Factory   
 

When you come to the Aloha State, go beyond the mai tais and and enjoy some divine, locally grown chocolate!

The Hawaiian islands are home a number of chocolate-making companies, and most are bean-to-bar businesses. Hawaii is the only U.S. state which grows cacao, then processes and makes it into bars and other cocoa products. I've done my share of eating chocolates on the different islands, and I find the chocolate confections not overly sweet and with

Hawai'i The Big Island, is the largest of the eight Hawaiian Islands. It's easy to find unique activities in Hawai'i that will leave lasting memories. The island is full of extraordinary natural wonders, regardless of which area of the Island you're on.

In the Kohala Coast, you'll see black sandy beaches and white sand at the 'Anaeho'omalu Beach (nicknamed "A-Bay") along with the 4 mile Onomea (Pepe'ekeo) scenic road - which is the most renowned scenic road on Hawai'i's island. It is also possib

Ali'i Kula Lavender


“Ve vere bored in Hamburg,” Eva Kafsack mused to me as I had at a plateful of her divinely creamy chevre. Had I made a wrong turn at the sugarcane factory and ended up in a Monty Python sketch (“blessed are the cheesemakers…”)? Nein, mein Schatz, this very German-looking retired teacher sitting across from me, along with her former software entrepreneur husband Thomas, was the real deal: a goat farmer in the fertile “upcountry” of Maui. Sugar may once have been king hereabo

boraboraphotovideo.com

As an ex-flights attendant for 25 years, Bonnie is well traveled.  Today, we both enjoy tying work and leisure working in the U.S, where I am from and Hong Kong, where we have been visiting Bonnie’s family and friends several times a year, pre-Covid.

Over the years operating here, we have met couples and people from all all over the world – As far as Siberia!  We have met client’s who were not given the best information and their trip could have been better.  For those of

When you realize you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible.

-When Harry Met Sally

Having attended & photographed many weddings here in Bora Bora and abroad, we know couples and perhaps more so the bride can feel a certain stress on this very special day. Weddings in Bora Bora are typically couples who decided to Elope and while the day is certainly as important to the couple, not having the pressure from parents and friends c

In these slow times and now that we can go out a bit, it is a good time to experiment and learn new techniques. Here is a 360 Pano, created with a DSLR - View of Bora Bora from the Bloody Marys Pier. For the full panoramic effect, click here.


#360photography #borabora #tahiti

Winter has begun across most of the United States, Canada and northern Europe. As chilly winter weather freezes the north heading into Christmas, you are not alone if you have started dreaming about a sunny tropical holiday.

Escape this winter to the land of summer in Costa Rica – the “happiest country in the world”. It’s hard not to be happy with blue skies, warm sunshine, tropical breezes, rainforest, warm surf and soft sand. Sounds pretty good if you are looking out the window at freezing rai

You’ve been to Costa Rica on vacation, and you’ve thought: “Wouldn’t it be great to live there?” Or, invest in a vacation home that you can rent out and visit frequently?

Besides being one of the top five best places in the world to retire according to the 2015 International Living Retirement Index, a lot of people from other countries invest in real estate in Costa Rica for vacation homes and rentals.

But where do you start to look for property in Costa Rica?

Location is most important. Two of the

People in other countries pay big money for audio programs like this, while here at Portasol Rainforest & Ocean View Living eco-community it’s real. The sounds of the Costa Rica rainforest: crickets chirping, big bullfrogs burping and booming, Common Tink Frogs “tinking”, myriads of other insects whirring, and the Portalón River bubbling over stones and boulders.

I returned to Portasol Living eco-community on Costa Rica’s Central Pacific Coast a couple of months ago for a much-needed weekend get

Time to get away from it all, but you want something different than the usual packed beaches and crowded hotels? What if I told you there was a tropical paradise of rainforest and beach with bright sunny days and warm balmy nights, and you could have it all to yourself? No crowds.

You’d probably think: now hold on, I can’t afford a private island or multi-million dollar hard-to-get-to swanky hideaway. So what if I told you this place is completely affordable, easily accessible, and brand new in

Every parent knows that a huge part of a ‘family’ cruise is making it kid-friendly. While some ships are great for infants, others are perfect for teens; also, some itineraries are simply designed for kids, while others aren’t really fitting. In fact, not even the ships within the same fleet are identical; they may vary greatly in terms of onboard activities, which are the essence of any cruise. With this in mind, I've rounded up some of the top tips for a fantastic family vacation time at high

Traveling with friends is a must. A friends’ trip is the chance to share some amazing and memorable times, not to mention great stories. I’d even go so far as to say you haven’t lived until you’ve experienced a vacation with friends.

Have you heard about the amazing travel experiences in Costa Rica?  The hot travel destination of Costa Rica not only gives you thrilling scenery, exciting adventures and lots of off-the-beaten-path places to explore, the people are also really friendly. So you can g

If you love the idea of roaming through a rainforest looking for monkeys, snakes, exotic birds and wild cats, then this Costa Rica nature adventure tour is for you.

On your next Costa Rica vacation, you should go on the Bushmaster Adventures rainforest wildlife tour. This is one of your best bets in the Central Pacific region of Costa Rica to see an incredibly diverse array of wildlife.

Private or group guided tours visit the coastal rainforest at Portasol Rainforest & Ocean View Living, located

Out on the calm, clear, jade green-blue water of the Golfo Dulce (“Sweet Gulf”) in southern Costa Rica, it is easy to think this must be one of the most pristine, beautiful places on Earth. And it is. This inner sea is a critical habitat for endangered migrating southern Pacific humpback whales, dolphins and sharks, among other marine life.

Then our boat passes a small patch of floating plastic bottles, chips bags and other random flotsam. Trash. Human trash. And we are reminded that if anything

Coming very soon to Playa Hermosa by Jacó in Costa Rica are the Costa Rica National Surfing Championships for 2015. The annual national event will take place July 17 to 19 on Playa Hermosa in front of the Backyard Bar & Restaurant.

If you are in Costa Rica at this time, don’t miss this fun beach party and exciting Costa Rica surfing competition on the third weekend in July 2015. Newly opened Hotel Tramonto is the best place to stay in Playa Hermosa by Jacó. The modern 76-room hotel is located on

It’s no wonder that Jacó Beach is one of the most popular beaches in Costa Rica. There is so muchto do on the Central Pacific Coast of Costa Rica – beaches, surfing, outdoor adventure sports, the Carara National Park, Manuel Antonio National Park, and the Tarcoles River with its famous huge crocodiles.

The thing about Jacó, though, is that it is one of the closest beaches to the capital city of San Jose, and is always really busy. If you’re like me, and you want to experience this spectacular re

You want to visit Santa Teresa, Costa Rica – named one of the most beautiful beaches in the world with some of the best surfing in Costa Rica. But where is it and how do you get there?

Santa Teresa Beach is located on the Pacific Coast of Costa Rica on the southern Nicoya Peninsula. There are three ways to get to Santa Teresa, Costa Rica:  driving, domestic flight or boat taxi.

Hotel Tropico Latino is a Santa Teresa beachfront hotel at beautiful Playa Carmen. Hotel Tropico Latino specializes in 

The southern Pacific Ocean off the Osa Peninsula in Costa Rica is an amazing natural wonder of marine biodiversity, home to more than 25 species of dolphins and whales, four of the world’s eight different sea turtles, along with manta rays, sailfish, marlin, tuna and sharks. The southern Pacific, and especially Golfo Dulce (Sweet Gulf) on the eastern side of the Osa Peninsula, are vital breeding and reproducing areas for endangered hammerhead sharks and migrating endangered Humpback Whales.

All

Meet sloths, kinkajous, tayras, ocelots, peccaries and anteaters. Stand next to Scarlet Macaws feeding on almond trees. Watch white-faced monkeys swing and play next to you, and have your heart melt when a spider monkey comes to hold your hand.

This isn’t some exotic zoo, but rather the Osa Wildlife Sanctuary on Golfo Dulce in the South Pacific of Costa Rica. The Costa Rica wildlife refuge helps orphaned and injured animals that are indigenous to this southern Pacific rainforest. Sadly, many of t

Did you know that kids have an actual right to play?

Article 31 of the International Convention on the Rights of the Child states that “… the right of the child to rest and leisure, to engage in play and recreational activities appropriate to the age of the child and to participate freely in cultural life and the arts." (UNICEF)

We all know that regular physical activity is essential for our physical, mental, psychological and emotional good. According to UNICEF, the world’s leading organization f