Tsunami Day - February 27, 2010

2:30 AM Hawaii time my cell phone rang. Jim was calling to tell me that an earthquake had hit Chile and a tsunami was predicted to hit Hawaii late morning. What a call THAT was! Daddy and Abby got up with me and we went into survival-mode! Daddy and Abby went to the lobby and bought most all of the food in the vending machine and brought it back to our room. When they returned to our room, Daddy filled the bathtub with water. I knew we would need some more money, so Abby and I went to the lobby and got more cash from the ATM. (side story...Jim was in Guam about 8 years ago when a very strong hurricane hit and he had $1.50 in cash...enough to buy a poptart! Remembering that he was in a bind, I knew we would need plenty of cash). By this time, Carolyn (my sister) had sent an email about the impending tsunami, so we had her and Jim both getting all the info they could and sending it to us (I had taken my laptop, so we had a steady stream of info coming in).





At 4:30AM Daddy suggested that we go eat breakfast so we could be ahead of the rush when people started waking up and the sirens started going off (6AM). We went to the corner diner and was surprised that there were quite a few people eating. I think some of them had actually not been home from the night, yet! We had a good, filling breakfast and then walked around the corner to one of the 66 ABC stores in Honolulu. Yes, there are 66 just in Honolulu! The store normally did not open until 7AM, but there were several people waiting outside and they had gotten word that the store was going to open early. After waiting for about 10 minutes, the store opened. We went in and bought a jar of peanut butter, loaf of bread, SPAM, several pre-made sandwiches, 2 gallons of water and a few other goodies.

Abby-ism...If you've had the pleasure to spend some quality time with my niece, Abby, then you've heard some Abby-isms. Carolyn said in one of her emails that we would need some food of sustenance. Remember the fried bananas from the North Shore? We had a couple left. When I told Abby and Daddy what Carolyn had said, Abby said "well, we can cut the fried off of the bananas"! I split a gut laughing at that! Here is the photo of the fried bananas again.



Back in the room I checked the latest email updates and we watched the news. The table in our room became Tsunami Central, complete with a map of Hawaii, map of evacuation line, computer, pen, paper and phone. Abby took a little nap and Daddy read the newspaper. Remember the post from last night when I said we saw the demonstration outside the Hawaiian Hilton? Well, Daddy read in the newspaper that it was Karl Rove they were demonstrating against.





Around 8AM we decided to walk to the beach. The tsunami was supposed to hit about 11:14AM, so we had plenty of time to beachcomb! A lot of people were down there doing the same thing we were...just looking at the ocean and imagining the water pulling back into the sea and then rushing onto land. Intense. Because boats do not feel the effects of a tsunami, they were leaving the harbor and just going offshore to wait. We took some photos and walked around a while before going back to the hotel. An hour or so later, Abby and I went down to the street and it was eerily quiet. No cars, no people, no businesses open...and it was about 10AM! Really weird.




They pushed the tsunami arrival to about 11:30AM. About 11AM there were reports that Hilo (on the Big Island) was seeing a little tsunami action. We could see a small portion of the beach from our hotel. The gauge we used to see if the water receded, was the tops of the palm trees. We could see where the water receded a small amount. And then...it was over. About 2PM the all clear was given!



We had to go from survival-mode to get-to-Maui-mode. We were supposed to have left on a flight at 9:30AM to Maui. Jim took care of the hotel and car reservations and I rebooked a flight. We gathered up our belongings and got to the airport early hoping we could catch an earlier flight. So did everyone else. We got on our 6PM flight. It was a short 30 minute flight over there. Picked up rental car, drove to other side of island, find hotel, park car 4 blocks from hotel and then we were ready for a drink! What a day. I didn't realize it during the day, but it had been stressful. I never was nervous about the tsunami. I had a calmness about it...but now...I wanted a drink or two! Supper and back to the hotel. We stayed at the Pioneer Inn in Lahaina. This was my 5th time to Maui, but I had never stayed in Lahaina. I thought it would be nice to be able to walk around the shops at night and to restaurants.

North Shore - February 26, 2010

I told Abby and Daddy that this would be a long day...and it was. We went to the corner diner for breakfast and then headed towards Haleiwa. We stopped for several photo ops and then we came to the Dole Plantation. Unplanned stops are great when you do not have time restraints. We strolled around, tasted some pineapple and got on our way.



When we got to Haleiwa, we parked and walked around town. Went into McDonald's for a drink and continued to look around. Next stop...North Shore! Once we came to the water, I knew it was going to be a beautiful day to be at the beach. Not knowing where to stop, I knew once we saw lots of cars, that it would be the perfect place. We lucked on to a great parking spot on the side of the road and made the trek down to the water. After walking around a bit, a lady asked if Abby and I wanted her to take our picture. Of course, we did and then she asked if we had seen the turtles. Um, no, we had not. There was a female Green Sea Turtle sun bathing on the beach just beyond some rocks. It was roped off so people did not get too close to her. It was so cool! The lady told us that it was a popular feeding area for the turtles and we saw more of them in the water swimming among the rocks.





We stayed there about an hour and then headed to Sunrise Beach. The surf was huge...10-15' according to a local surfer. One guy walked up from the beach with his surfboard snapped in half! The local guy said it was the fifth broken surfboard he had seen that day!





After filling our eyes with the beauty of the North Shore and our ears with the sound of waves, we continued towards the east side of the island. We saw a small farmer's market on the side of the road and stopped to see what they had to sell. We bought some bananas (in case you didn't know, the smaller the banana, the better the flavor), some banana bread, fresh pineapple and some fried bananas...they were wrapped in eggroll wrappers and deep fried. At first I was leery that fried bananas could taste good, but, OMG...they were divine! (don't let the photo fool you...)





Our next stop was to see the Chinaman's Hat Island. I knew it was in the area, but not sure of the exact location. I had Abby call Carolyn to ask her and from that moment on, Carolyn was a great source of Everything Hawaii! I had been to Hawaii 5 other times...but, Carolyn had lived there, so she KNEW! We found a park that was a good location to see the Chinaman's Hat, so we stopped and took some really good photos.




Another unplanned stop was at a macadamia nut farm. Here is a photo of an old cracking machine (?), Daddy cracking some on a stump and a wooden carving at the entrance.






Finally back at the hotel, we rested up and then walked over to the Hawaiian Hilton. On our way over there, we saw some sort of demonstration going on in front of the HH, but did not pay much attention to it. I don't know why we basically ignored it looking back...I guess we were just tired from a long day(?). We found an outside bar area with comfy chairs. We ordered drinks and relaxed. (When Jim and Daddy and I went to Alaska last year, I wanted to get a picture of an Eskimo with Daddy. On our way to Denali, we stopped at a local restaurant and our waitress was indeed just the Eskimo I'd been looking for. I asked her if I could take her picture with Daddy and she of course obliged. So, it made sense while we were in Hawaii that I had to get his picture with a Hawaiian native). Abby actually took the picture of them while I was roaming around. Daddy didn't look like he minded having his picture taken with her, either! Daddy had been hungry for a hot dog. We found a place in the HH that served them, so that is what we had for supper. The hot dog place was right by the pool. I told Abby and Daddy about "crashing" a pool in Maui with Carolyn and Hailey and we got kicked out. Abby and I decided to "crash" the pool at the HH. It was night time and there was no one in the pool. Probably because it was COLD! Sometimes you just gotta live on the edge...haha! We jumped in the pool and Daddy was laughing at us. The water really was cold!!! We quickly got out and dried off and felt proud! I might just try to crash more hotel pools! We headed back to the hotel. There was a washer and dryer in the hotel and we wanted to go to Maui the next morning with clean clothes.

Forgot...here's the Blue Bus Restaurant

It wasn't really called The Blue Bus Restaurant...but I think the name is appropriate!

Diamondhead

Pearl Harbor - February 25, 2010

Pearl Harbor is where we went today. Daddy was in the Navy, but did not join until 2 years after Pearl Harbor. We walked around the grounds, looked at monuments, bought postcards, took photos and then took the boat over to the Arizona Memorial. I had been there before, and it was nice to visit it again. When we got back to land, we watched the 22 minute video about how it happened that PH was actually caught off guard and bombed. When Jim and I saw the video in 2004, we were in an auditorium. There was quite a bit of construction going on and there was a temporary location. I think the construction will be finished for summer visitors. When we left PH, we went back to the hotel and Abby and I decided to go to Diamondhead. Daddy wanted to stay in the room, so we took off. I had never been to Diamondhead, so I was excited to see it up close. The drive up there was interesting. I took a wrong turn, but ended up going through where the locals lived and it was neat to see that instead of just the resort areas. When we got to the park, we realized that we were actually INSIDE the crater! There was a sign telling you about the climb to the top. .8 of a mile up a paved sidewalk, rock path, and several flights of stairs. Most importantly...it said you would need water. We had just gotten a piece of gum and had no water, but we decided that we would at least start the walk up and turn around when we were tired. We kept passing people on their way down and we came to a dad and little boy. I made small talk with them and the man said the boy (about 5) had gone all the way to the top. We told him we did not have water and he said we would not make it without it! We continued on. Abby really wanted to go all the way up and I told her that I would go as far as I could. We continued...When we came to the stairs...OMG...they were very steep and it was dark inside. Oh, there was also a tunnel that was dark...the sign at the beginning had said to have flashlights...we had the light on our cell phone! We continued on. Up the stairs, through the tunnel, up a circular staircase and finally we were at the top of Diamondhead!!! It was a spectacular sight! We took in the views and then went back to the hotel. For supper, I had found a coupon for a seafood restaurant. We drove over there and it was in a BLUE BUS...a bus! It was really funny. You know, you THINK you know where you are going and when you get there it is totally different. We checked the menu and it was not what we were looking for...we wanted fried shrimp and fried oysters. So, we drove around a bit and parked close to another seafood restaurant...Seaside Bar & Grill. We had a good supper and walked around the shopping area before going back to the car. We were in a parking garage. When we got to the exit to pay, we were the 3rd car in line. There seemed to be a little chaos for the car paying and so we waited and waited. After a while, we were motioned to back up...WTH? Back up in a parking garage...uphill. We backed up and finally got to the toll booth and the lady said the people had thought the parking was free...and she wasn't about to let them out without paying! We got back to the hotel and planned the next day of adventure.

Hawaii Bound-February 24

My Dad came to our house on Monday and Abby, my niece, came Tuesday. It was supposed to SNOW Tuesday night...and it did...so they came early to avoid any nasty weather. We ordered pizza for supper and had a nice evening after Hailey came home from work. The next morning we left home about 6:45AM so Hailey would have time to get to work on time after taking us to the airport. We arrived a little early, but more time to people-watch! We flew out at 9:30 on Continental Airlines. On the 8 1/2 hour flight we did what we could to stay occupied...ate...watched movies...slept...read...ate some more...etc! We only had carry-on baggage, so when we landed, we headed straight to the car rental area. Picked up the Honda Accord and headed to Waikiki Beach. We checked in to the Ramada Inn (fka the Holiday Inn)...side note...Jim has lots of Holiday Inn points, so we were gonna stay there for free! Well, it just so happens that in January 2010 the Holiday Inn changed to a Ramada Inn. Because of this, the reservation person gave us a good rate). Got checked in to the 14th floor! We could see the mountains and also the water. Not bad for a hotel that is 4 blocks from the beach. We walked to Waikiki to have a few drinks. The beach was abuzz with people reading, sleeping, laying in the sun, and just generally relaxing. We had a drink at one place and mozied down the beach to another place that had a guy playing guitar. After several hours, we headed back towards the hotel and find a place to eat. There was a corner diner by the hotel, so we checked the menu and it looked good. We had fish and chips and enjoyed it! Back at the hotel we got ready for the next day on Oahua!

The pole on the sidewalk...

While in Scottsdale we went to Old Scottsdale with our friends, Beth and Frank. Just as we got out of the car, we were walking down the sidewalk and looking to my right at Beth...All of a sudden..........BAM, I had walked right into a pole on the sidewalk! WTH? My sunglasses cut my eyelid. Jim was quick to the rescue cleaning the blood while I was laughing. I was just so flabbergasted that I had WALKED.INTO.A.POLE!! He thought I may need stitches at first, but he decided that I would not. This happened 4 weeks ago and my eye is still sore and there is small scab AND there is an ingrown hair where the cut was! Crazy! I was able to cover up the bruise with makeup and did not have to have people wonder if Jim had had enough of me! Ha!!