Home Sweet Home

So nice to be back... AND it will be for a while this time!

They say some snow tonight....

We've been in Minneapolis since Wednesday... not much going on...just cold, cold, cold but sunny. Halley and I had pedicures yesterday... was nice... Dan was at work and Jerry spent the day working from the hotel. Tell you what... we had cold little toes on our way to the car. 12 degrees in flip flops was not fun. Then, the car itself was freezing.
In the evening we took H and D and two of their friends (Ann and Carey, both girls) to dinner. Found a yummy place called Granite City.... really good food.
Today, Jerry has a board meeting, so Halley and I haven't figured out what we're gonna do. Dan will be working till 4. Tonight there is a fundraiser at the school-a spaghetti dinner-whoohoo! Actually it will be nice... current students and grads will be there.
Oh yeah, they are saying we'll get some snow tonight. As long as it stops before we have to take off tomorrow!

We have returned.... exhausted....

Our plane was late taking off and as a result, didn't get home till 1:00 am..... Tired cowboy and cowgirl.... but at least we were no longer pasty, northwest, pale white! Froze on the curb waiting for the shuttle to get our car (fancy flip flops don't work in 30 degrees....).

So, we've settled in until the next jaunt.... I have a box of mail from the post office I'm sorting (took a break to write this), have already completed a print job for work, gone to the office supply store for ink and envelopes, downed only 1 CAFFEINE latte.... and now am in sore need of another one. Have to drive out to PLU and then Jerry's office in an hour or so. Life is back in full swing.

We are blessed to have had the respite we just experienced.... btw, did I spell caffeine right?

Goodbye to this beautiful Aloha Land...

Halley and Dan took off last night for Minneapolis.... We came back to the hotel and prepared for our trip home. They texted us at 2AM our time here and said they were home safe. The lights here in Waikiki this evening were clear and sparkling.... sure will miss the warmth that's here right now. We hear the snow in T-Town is gone and we missed it.... Not that we mind....

We are in the processing of getting ready to check out.... It's funny how much quicker you can pack when you're going home then when you are preparing for the trip away.

Dole Pineapple, Turtles and the Punchbowl

We finally made it to the Dole Pineapple Plantation Tourista Site. We took a 20 minute mini train around the place. Halley loved it and, even better, was not tempted to shop in the Gift Shop. Jim Dole started the company and at one time it provided over 90% of the world's pineapple. Last night, I commented that pineapple in Hawaii tastes so much better...(especially in a MaiTai....) It seems so much sweeter. They have a huge Koi pond, but all the fish are where the tourists are with their 'fish food'. Dan bought some and as you can see on the video, they go crazy.

Went back to Turtle Beach to see if we could really see turtles....we did.... Pictures don't really show the turtles well; they blend with the water. The little humps in the picture are the turtle's shell.

On the way home, we drove through the punchbowl.... the Military's Memorial Graveyard. Dan was wondering if any of his family was buried there. Had to explain, he needed to check that out in a advance of the trip. He wasn't even sure who that might be.... He had a bunch of atonic seizures in the evening. All seems well now.

Dan and Halley thought the dirt on Dan's sneaker looked like Lincoln.... I say more like George Washington....

I see, when Halley wants to spend another day "laying low", she wants ALL of us to lay low...

Went to church this morning. Invited Dan and Halley and Halley said she was gonna lay low today and have a massage at 2:00, but that Dan would be coming. Great we thought....
So we go to a Baptist Church here in Waikiki.... quite full... most everyone with silver hair... After church we went to a restaurant called: House without a Key.... I heard about it from Tripadvisor AND Rachael Ray had a special on it. Wow... the food was so yummy. The place, like so many of them, is right next to the water. Beautiful views.

Since Halley was laying low, so to speak, we took Dan with us on a trip to the West Side of the island to the Makua Cave, it was formed a long time ago when the water and weather was warmer and the water was up higher. Pretty cool. As we drove by quite a few parks, less traveled by tourists, we noticed there were alot of "tent homes" set up. Pretty sad. Gorgeous parks were taken over. I'm sure it's hard for those (the tent people) that live there too so I don't know what the answer is.

Well, now for the drama.... while we were out, Halley called Dan and then talked to her dad. Her idea of "Laying Low" was for all of us to stay with her while she was laying low. She was pretty mad, cancelled her massage (I guess she showed us) and was busy texting Dan quite a bit. After a while we were out of cell area, so there was a respite. We got home around 5 and she seemed to have calmed down.

Oh yeah, we went by Dog, The Bounty Hunter's Bail Bond Store... Since it was Sunday, there wasn't much activity there. Our driver from the tour on Thursday, said the police on the island aren't really all that thrilled with "Dog".... he's sort of a loose cannon... which I can imagine...

SeaLife Park Pictures of H and D

Okay... I got my camera back from the car. We did lay low all day yesterday. Halley and Dan had spa treatments. Halley had a manicure, pedicure and foot massage, and a facial.... Dan had a massage. Jer and I checked out the pool and ocean.... I, of course, managed to cut the top of my foot on the rocks in the sand.... ugh... figures... Thinking, we might not take Halley in there... she might not be aware she's hurt herself.

Well, what to say about SeaLife Park?

We spent about 4 hours at SeaLife Park. Being from the Northwest, we were surprised at how old this park was and its' exhibits. Except for the Dolphins, I think Point Defiance is just as cool. HOWEVER, the great thing this park had was that for a little extra $ you got to go in the tank with some dolphins and even touch, kiss, and swim with them. Of course, my pictures are in the car and I am in the room, lol.... I'll see if I can post them later. The place took a video of the whole thing.... cost of the package, $139.... needless to say we passed on that.
We went by the Spitting Rock on our way home.... Halley and I stayed in the car cuz Halley could not have managed the hike. Jer took Dan down the skinny path (to get there you go between two home... rather two fabulous view homes.... and then out to the rocks. I'll post those pics later too... )
The city is getting to be a bit busier... the ProBowl is happening this weekend. As we were walking down the street we thought... just like NYC but warmer. Glad we're taking daytrips around the island during the day.
Last night in the elevator Dan had a seizure. He had gone down to have his key repaired. Caused a bit of a ruckus for the staff, but they were assured he didn't need to go to the ER or anything. He's been good at taking his meds so we're not sure why these things happen, but today we will lay low.
BTW, blue skies for as far as I can see... Diamond Head is shining its' awesome face to us.

A quickie video from SeaLife... More info to come later...

Just the start of a great time!

Griffin and Renae---about the Pua'a

When we were at the Ranch, they do have some Pua'a.... but unfortunately, all we could see is where they hide and not get a good picture of them.... They use really thick bushes that are mostly limbs... a person can't follow them inside the bushes and and have room to move around, that's how many limbs there are.... .

50 First Dates, Lost, Mighty Joe Young & a Hummer

Yesterday was a fabulous tropical day.... Not too warm and not too windy.... Well, except when we went to the Pali Lookout.... Views spectacular, hair coiffures... non existent! And this is how we started our Hummer Trip. Our guide was great and helped make it an even better trip. The highlight was going to the Kualoa Ranch property. It's pretty much the main staging area for gobs of movies AND of course, the TV show "Lost". (If you watch Lost, you may recognize where the old Bomb was hanging this season...) We did most of our offroding in the valley between the mountains and can see why so many movies are filmed there. What made it even more fun, Scott, the guide, had a DVD player in the car where we could see the actual scenes filmed at the spot we would be at. Windtalkers, Pearl Harbor, Godzilla, Brady Bunch Sequel, George of the Jungle, on the list goes. As for the trails, check out one below... most weren't that bad and a few were worse. HANG ON! All in all, we were gone about 5 hours. Had some dinner at the HulaGrill later and as you can tell, we're not sure if Dan was gonna eat Halley or his meal!

H & D were in heaven.... the AlaMoana Mall

Well, we didn't make it to the Dole Plantation.... H & D had massages in the morning and by the time all was done, we opted to just go to the Mall and to the Plantation another time cuz closing time there is 4:30, and that would not have left enough time after lunch to get there and check it out. So, off to BubbaGumps for a late lunch (1:30) and heavenly bliss for H and D.... a few hours of shopping. Jer and I left for a bit and crossed the street for our bridge picture.... Today, we will be going on a 5 hour tour in a Hummer (I think H & D are most excited about the vehicle) and we'll be checking out sights off the beaten track and see where movies and television features are made (ie Lost, 50 First Dates, etc....)
So, Aloha to everyone.... hope your day is great!

Helicopters, BlowHoles and the Banzai

We started the yesterday off with a note under our door that said due to an unexpected problem with a piece of equipment on the roof, it was going to be replaced that day with use of a helicopter... It might be a bit noisy and don't go out on the deck. Well, it was pretty awesome, but the noise was a bit loud. The whole area around our hotel found it was free entertainment.
We drove up the east shore to the north shore. Beautiful, Beautiful. Got out of the car quite a bit to take pics... Spent a lot of time at the blowhole... was windy, windy..... Drove on to the Banzai Pipeline, well, not on to it, but next to it.... More parasurfers then surfers.... big waves and windy again...
Today we went walking (just Jer and I) and just enjoyed the air and warmth. Even saw a whale breech at one point out on the water. Came back home, had a latte and now I'm watching the surfers outside and just being quiet..... Gonna go shower.... today, we take H & D to the Dole Plantation then.... off to the AlaMoana Mall.....WooHoo!

We're Off Again...to Hawaii

On the 2nd, we met up with Halley and Dan at the airport and boarded the plane for the trip. The plane was a bit late taking off; then, our rental car, through National... remember that name.... was a hassle to get. We waited for the National Shuttle for over 30 minutes. Finally got it by calling National's hdqts... We checked in at midnight Hawaii time at our Hotel... All better is better today, the 3rd!