Running Into Me Is a Good Thing!

Who wants to go to Bubba Gumps?

My offline and online world is starting to merge and it sure makes for some new adventures with the visitors to Kona! The first tourist I ran into, Dawn, has checked in with me a few times via my Facebook Business page and she asked for advice on the ZipLine tours. I helped her decide on the tour company up on the Hamakua Coast. (will tell you more when she checks in with me!)

Then today, my kids and I decided to do something different and we rode the Keauhou/Kona trolley shuttle to downtown. While we were waiting, we started talking to some women visiting from Edmonton, Canada. They said they were going to have lunch at Bubba Gumps. Ok, not to slight the restaurant made famous by Tom Hanks, but I just could not endorse a chain restaurant in Kona. (and thankfully, there are not many!) SO, I launched into my enthusiastic support for restaurants in downtown Kona with direct ocean views, tasty drinks, and reasonably priced menus. They abandoned their plans to go to Bubba’s and got off the shuttle with us and followed us into the Kona Inn!

They had the mai tai’s I suggested and the calamari appetizer, too! Then we all raised our drinks in a toast to Kona and took pictures of one another! I told them about this blog and gave them the url, so it will be fun if they become fans of the Facebook page!

I am writing this also to show that word of mouth is so important. You don’t want to just read what a guide book has to tell you. You want to feel the excitement from someone explaining an amazing experience they had, ask the questions, and like all good travelers know..get the inside scoop. SO, this is not going to just be “101 Things To Do in Kona”..there is already a magazine for that. And this is not going to be “The Big Island Revealed, blog edition”.  I want this to be an interactive experience, as well! If you are coming to Kona or are here and want some feedback on experiences in Kona, please contact me through the Facebook fan page! I check it daily and if you want, you can even send me a direct message through the site, like Dawn has done! I want to be a resource and I appreciate the opportunity to meet new people and create fun blog posts on what YOU are experiencing, too!

A friend of mine from Las Vegas is coming to visit on Wednesday. I hope to share with you what we do together. She is only here for four days, so whatever we do is going to go under the chapter of “Stuffing it all in within four days on the Big Island!”

Spread the word if you love what you heard! #365kona so we can say Thanks!

Meet the Author

Julie Ziemelis

Julie Ziemelis is an entrepreneur, business owner, author, blogger and vlogger in Kailua Kona. She created and moderates the “365 Things to Do in Kona” page and the Kona Newbies group on Facebook. She blogs at 365Kona.com and MoveToHawaii365.com and vlogs with her husband, Eric, at “365Hawaii” on YouTube. Julie also authored the books, “How to Move to Kona” and the “Insiders Guide to Buying Real Estate on the Big Island of Hawaii”. You will most likely find Julie in Kona hiking, running, biking, taking photos and sharing Aloha.

Leave a Question or Comment About this Topic

  • Genell Cornett says:

    Would love to meet up with you in the summer of 2015
    . This will be my first time visiting Hawaii, and we ( my mom and I ) have one week to “stuff everything” to see and do to make my visit memorable. Could you help out? Thanks in advance. 😀

  • robert wong says:

    hi Julie, thanks for sharing your blog and your experiences about the culture, love, aloha spirit of Hawaii and its people.

    Years ago, I used to subscribe to Aloha magazine, which is no longer in publication. It was a beautiful magazine before the rise of the internet and online world we have today.

    The magazine had the most beautiful pictures, photography of Hawaii, its people, life, customs, history, culture and articles explaining everything that makes the Aloha spirit and of local things in/around the islands.

    Aloha magazine was how I learned about Hawaii and deepened my connection after I left the Hawaiian islands vacationing for many years.

    I wish Aloha magazine would come back , I do find some similarities with your FB and blog as soon as I came across your FB/blog this past week.

    I encourage you to continue the great work and if you have a really good camera – share the beauty of the aloha spirit, traditions and its people, customs, land, sea, sky through the beauty of images and photography and your writings through pictures and photography and articles.

    If you ever come across an old Aloha magazine, take a read and perhaps it will reveal to you what it did to me and how those images continue to keep the flame and draw of Hawaii’s spirit so alive and warm.

    I will retire to Hawaii in the next 3-4 years, and returning this July-August as I do every odd year for two weeks with my kids and wife to enjoy the place I truly call home.

    Robert W