Lots to Update! And I forgot to tell you about Tantalus!

Eek! I'm slipping and not updating nearly as much as I should. I'm going to have to chop chop and get you all filled in on the last week or so.
Last weekend, I forgot to mention our Tantalus drive. This is a beautiful drive up into the mountains of Oahu, with a great overlook of Honolulu. We did this drive on our way home from snorkeling.
The photos barely do this drive justice and I can hardly wait to take our visitors on the drive whenever they come. Lots of hiking trails that we'll do once we get Jaden a hiking backpack.

Hanauma Bay -- The McCann Snorkeling Adventure!(Part 1)

Yupp....we went snorkeling this weekend! At Hanauma Bay, a marine preserve about half an hour from where we live. This place is amazing and anyone who comes here to visit MUST go there to try snorkeling. Basically it's knee to chest deep water, relatively clear on top of an old coral bed and loaded with fish. And I do mean loaded. Kinda spooky at first but once you get over that it's simply amazing.

We started off early and went to Starbucks (our Saturday morning ritual). Well, let me backtrack. I had no idea where we were going, this was completely a surprise for me from Tyson. This I think was a good thing, because I might have gotten a bit freaked out if I knew what was coming, despite the fact I REALLY wanted to go snorkeling. Okay, so now we drove to Hanauma Bay, paid the dollar for day parking (can't beat that I tell ya!) and then I stood in a kinda long line while Tyson parked.

Now, I have to interject with a funny story at this point. Tyson parked and brought Jaden and all the beach gear we have, I had gotten into line with the (surprisingly heavy) backpack. Anyway the line was moving kind of quick and I was watching for Tyson because I didn't want to lose our spot (he had the money!). All of a sudden I see Tyson, umbrella poles sticking out every which way, towels dangling, and Tyson hunched over like he was trying to save it all from spilling. Jaden was clearly -NO- help in all of this. I cracked up. Wish I had the camera out then.

We ended up not having to pay because we're locals (nice!) but did have to watch a 10 minute movie about safety and the preserve. We hiked down to the beach, rented a set of snorkel gear and trekked out to a quiet beach spot. Now, Tyson kept walking and walking and walking and I kept thinking "here's good" but on we would walk. Jaden is not light but on we trekked anyway. I can't say how great it was that we did because we all but avoided the crowds completely, found a shady area to park our stuff and basically I think enjoyed the experience more.

I snorkeled first, while Tyson and Jaden waded around. These fish are NOT timid! They were allowed to be fed until very recently so they have no fear of people really. I did not stray too far from Tyson the first time out but did see some amazing fish! We saw some triggerfish that were tenacious buggers! They basically played chicken with us, darting up within inches of us with mouths agape(very small mouths, I don't even know if a grape would have fit, so it was not dangerous). Apparently they even nipped at Tyson's fins. Apparently crusty that we weren't feeding them?

Tyson snorkeled next while I played with Jaden. Jaden loved seeing the fish in the water, they're so colourful they were easy to point out. We continued to trade off for the majority of the afternoon, going about three times each. Tyson was a lot more adventurous than I was, though I did get out there a bit, he explored further than I and was rewarded with seeing a 2 foot (or slightly bigger) parrotfish. I saw some too, and I have to say, if you listen underwater you can HEAR them chewing on the coral.

Needless to say snorkeling is my new favourite hobby, I think Tyson's too! We were both a bit sunburned (despite our constant application of sunscreen), but Jaden was unscathed.

Ala Moana Beach Park

Nestled away in downtown Honolulu, on the edge of Waikiki lies the Ala Moana Beach Park. With claims of near-desertion during weekdays, this was our destination for the week. Jaden and I set out by bus at 10am and headed toward the beach.

The trip to the bus stop in and of itself was a journey, one we almost did not make in time. Jaden spent a lot of time unpacking the bag I was packing . . . But we managed. The bus ride was nice, through Chinatown and much of downtown Honolulu - we chatted with some friendly people on the bus, who especially loved that Jaden blew them kisses.

Our first stop was the Ala Moana Mall, which I've written about earlier. I decided to call Tyson who agreed to meet us for lunch at Bubba Gump Shrimp Company. A little pricey, but delicious, though none of us tried the shrimp! After lunch, we parted sadly Tyson had to go back to work. Jaden and I took the short trip off to the beach. It's very pretty, a white sandy beach in a kind of a bay. The water seems pretty calm and clear. Right next to it is some sort of marina, which was fun to look at. By this time we were hot and sweaty, and wanted nothing more to swim however decided that we had just a couple too many valuables to leave unattended. Instead we walked around the park, found a little tidepool to play in and look at some fish.

The day was really nice, the bus ride home not so. The bus was crowded and the A/C couldn't keep up. Generally the buses here are nice, a lot nicer than in Winnipeg anyway - but this one had roaches that were creeping around. Ick.

Just Some New Pictures

Here are just a few of the recent pictures. The first is of our drive to the North Shore of O'ahu - though I forget where exactly, but it was so pretty.

Then various pictures of Jaden. He's taken to hat wearing, and anything can be a hat. He only runs into walls occasionally. I especially like the picture of him with his "hair horns" (the very last picture, you'll see what I mean if you enlarge the pic.)because believe me he was a little devil that day....

First Impressions of Honolulu

Well, now that it's been NEARLY two weeks that I've been in Honolulu, I thought I'd write some of my impressions of this city - the good, the bad and the ugly. Of course, it's only been two weeks and I imagine things I don't like will get easier to bear and things I do hopefully more appealing.

First the good -- Well, I can't get lost no matter how hard I try. That doesn't sound like THE best first good thing to write about, but trust me, it is. Very settling to know that no matter where I end up, I'm not too far from home.

Of course, much of O'ahu is beautiful. Trees look sculpted, blooms everywhere, lush and green. The weather is beautiful, warm and not too muggy whatsoever. Our apartment gets warm by about 2 in the afternoon, but that's when we head out for a swim so it's more than bearable.

I haven't been to Waikiki yet, but it looks amazing in pictures. That's my goal this week, to find a bus to take Jaden and I there (see above and not getting lost).
I truly enjoy our visits to the beach, there is so much here to do, I don't know if we could do it all in a few years let alone how people try to in a small vacation.

Next the bad -- Our apartment, though very nice inside, is in a highly concentrated area. Not much green space around, and always things going on outside, so no real quietude to be had. Though during our morning walks, Jaden and I head into suburbia and find some peace.

People tend to litter here -A LOT -. It's gross, and there's always old mattresses and miscellaneous discarded household items on the curb. I don't know how often that gets picked up - every couple of weeks? (Garbage pick up is daily or every other day though). This could be such a beautiful area, even if not a lot of green, there's tons of flowers and colour everywhere...yet people just do not take pride in where they live - which leads me to the ugly....


First of all the smell. It's generally okay, but out walking or certain times of the day it can get a little rank. I guess my nose is a little sensitive, maybe missing that fresh Canadian air?

Next the various critters - all I can say is ewww. I don't like them. Roaches are very common on the island, and control is not the easiest. We're winning the war I believe and keep our kitchen fairly immaculate. Kudos to Tyson on this before we got here. Anyway, today I opened a drawer and one fell - - - on my foot. Now, these are not the gargantuan hissing cockroaches or anything like that, they're barely bigger than a pinky...nail (did I get you there?!?) Still, they do not belong in MY home and I do not take too kindly to minding my own business and being "interrupted" by their presence. We're going to get an exterminator to spray every few weeks, apparently this is what most locals do. And we're talking about one or two a day in the sink killed before they EVER get anywhere. (This is what I tell myself, I need to believe it, please do not try to convince me otherwise. Mom, I DO clean my cutlery and plates etc BEFORE I use them.)
The other day while walking with Jaden up to the movie store, what ran in front of me, and prompted a screech heard 'round the world? A rat. Again ewww....These are all common things for an island, and for urban living, neither of which I am accustomed.

SO that's the lowdown on island life. I'm still not sure how ANYONE can get island fever here with so much to do. I'm really excited to try snorkelling soon, as well as hiking and exploring some more.

I will endeavour to have a few more pictures in the next couple of days. I have some of Jaden around the house, and will work on getting those up soon with maybe some pictures of our area.

Weekend Two - More Exploring and a Few New Sites

Well, our second weekend is over already. We're definitely going to need to hit the beach during the week!!!

On Saturday we made the same loop as last weekend, but stopped at a place called Turtle Beach -- didn't see any sea turtles, maybe they're just as elusive as those pineapples. But, we DID see a manta ray while exploring a rocky shoreline. Pretty cool - the water was a bit murky but there was this black thing with wings gliding through the water, had to have been a ray, and we THINK it was a manta ray. Played around at the beach and explored the tidepools and then set off for home. It was a nice morning and early afternoon.

Swimming was nice, though there was a lot of broken coral in the water, so it wasn't as pristine as Waimea Bay. We had those aqua shoes though so that made it easier on our still-tender feet. Jaden was just starting to get used to the sand, actually picking something up from it - Progress I tell ya!!

The Week in Review

Well, this was our first week with Tyson working and Jaden and I home alone during the day. It feels like the vacation is over and we're settling into this new reality.

We have our routine established fairly well, and it includes some swimming and walking, kind of boring drab stuff to write about, but breaks up the day nicely. Sufficed to say, we spend a lot of time outdoors and have really enjoyed exploring our new territory. We found a couple of parks, a strip mall (sadly, no Starbucks nearby...boo I say).

The highlight of the week was a trip to Pearl Ridge Centre - a shopping mall that seems a bit more "in our league" versus the Ala Moana Centre I wrote about in an earlier post. Jaden and I loved the bus ride, about 35 minutes of winding through residential areas (Tyson and I drove there today, it took 10 minutes by car). The buses are air-conditioned (and our apartment not, I think I'll spend some time on the bus!!) and really clean, not like Winnipeg Transit. Anyway, it was uneventful except that I started out in entirely the wrong area to catch the bus (though I followed the directions I was given), was rescued by a very nice bus driver who happened by in his out-of-service bus and gave us a lift back to where we needed to be.

Weekend Festivities

Well, I guess Tuesday is not too bad for finally updating you on our weekend. Sufficed to say we've been a bit busy these last few days, but are settling into our routine nicely I think.

Friday was our day to "take it easy" and go shopping. We first went to the Ala Moana Shopping Centre - a beautiful open-air mall with everything you could want/need/desire. Lots of high end stores there, quite a big change from St. Vital Centre I tell ya. Then we took care of some errands at Wal-Mart and Costco, stopped for lunch and hit a Farmer's Market down by Fisherman's Wharf. The market was pretty cool, lots of neat looking fish I might try tasting sometime. Needless to say we were fairly exhausted by the time we got home.

Saturday was a cloudy, rainy day (did I bring that with me?) but we decided nothing was going to stop us from hitting the beach. Tyson drove us up to the North-Eastern side of Oahu. We drove right through the heart of the island (I think?), through some plantation-type areas. I hunted high and low, but still have not seen a pineapple tree....highly elusive I guess.

Our first stop was Waimea Bay Beach Park, which was surprisingly deserted and quiet. It's apparently a world famous surfing place in the winter, but the water was calm almost like a lake. We decided to go swimming - and the water was SO calm and warm we scarcely thought of the "S" word, but sure didn't venture too deep! Jaden really loved the water, but again hated the sand. He sat on my towel with his feet and hands up in the air not knowing how to avoid it - quite funny. From there we continued on through several villages and saw a lot of places we'll have to back and explore more thoroughly including a place called Shark's Cove. Though apparently not sharky (according to our guide book), it is supposed to be a great place for snorkelling and learning how to SCUBA. Our last stop was the Pali Overlook on the Pali Highway, with a gorgeous view of Oahu and on a clear day whichever island neighbours it (not sure what that one is, but then again I've only been here a few days!). It was a bit too hazy, but I'm sure we'll go back!

Day One - Sandy Beach and Hanauma Bay

Well here's our first official entry! We arrived in Hawaii on time, and still alive AND with our sanity intact (though Jaden was a tad crusty by the time we landed, he was cheered on by our fellow passengers for his good behaviour on the plane - I think we all breathed a collective sigh of relief).

Tyson greeted us at the airport with our first lei's. They were beautiful, and I thought 'wow, I could get used to this place'! We went back to our apartment and then the fun began.

Though it was already a long day, we packed up the car with various Jaden necessities and headed off for Sandy Beach. Let me say that Hawaii and I are going to get along great I think, though we all stick out like sore thumbs with our glow-in-the-dark white legs. The beach was awesome, but a little too rough for swimming. We played around in the waves, looked for sea life and just enjoyed the first official beach trip. Then we headed off for a drive to Hanauma Bay....a great snorkeling spot we'll have to go back to soon. Took some pictures and then headed homeward.

In general, I don't think Jaden liked sand too much but he loved the water running over his toes. He splashed his dad and I and enjoyed watching the waves breaking but refused to walk barefoot in the sand, even in the cool, wet stuff!

Aloha!

Aloha and welcome to our site! Not sure how exciting it will be, but we really hope to keep a chronicle of all our adventures in Hawaii (complete with pictures!) for everyone to peruse at will. That way we won't have to bore everyone with our countless stories (or tire of telling the same ones over and over again!)

Stay tuned, we'll have pictures and an account of our first day VERY soon!

P.S. Happy birthday Ashbop! Would you like me to mail you a Hawaiian hunk for your gift? :)