Hawaii

Aloha!

Well, it has been 2 weeks since we went to Hawaii and I still have not sent out an email with pictures like I told everyone I would. So instead I will blog about it and you can view at your leisure. :0)

We had an absolute fabulous time in Hawaii! We were on the island of Oahu and we stayed right at the world famous Waikiki beach.
We did some many things I don't know where to start. Our first day we referred to our handy dandy Hawaii book and went to Laniki to snorkel.

Everyone tells you how blue the water is and they are right! So different from the California and Florida beaches I have been to. The 2 little islands in this picture are called The Mokes. This is the beach people rent kayaks and paddle over to the Mokes. It is supposed to be a secluded beach area to have a picnic, but alas everyone know about it so it is not so secluded. :) We just snorkeled here.

Here I am taking a picture of myself on the beach because Jake does not enjoy taking pictures!

I have lots of pictures of Jake, but I had to sneak them when he wasn't looking! :0)

Our first evening we ate at a restaurant called Duke's. Duke is a legend and hero in Oahu. He was an amazing swimmer and surfer. He one 5 medals in the Olympics. The restaurant is dedicated to him.

Here we are at Duke's. Our table overlooked the ocean. Very beautiful!

And here is the statue of Duke that stands in front of Waikiki Beach. Every morning he has frest lei on his outstretched arms. We never figured out who put them there.
Our next day we did more snorkeling! This time we went to the famous Hanauma Bay. This has been voted one of the top 10 beaches in the world for it beautiful coral reef. We swam with the fishes in the warm water. We saw all the Nemo fish! This is a protected wildlife park so we even had to view a video before we were allowed in. We put our beach towels near the trees that grew in the sand by the mountain. Much to our surprise their were ferrets that would come and forage in your beach bag! We didn't get any pictures because they were too fast.
Here is a picture of me making a traditional palm lei. Sadly I could not talk Jake into coming with. He went to the grocery store for supplies instead and I walked to my destination. I went to a store that taught you for free. I got to meet some native Hawaiians and it was great to talk with them about their history and culture. I put the lei in the fridge in our room and saved it to bring home. Now it is dried out and displayed in the awesome coffee table Jake made for us last year. It is a great memento from our trip

Our third day we went to the North Shore to check out the Dole Plantation. There is nothing like eating fresh pineapple in Hawaii. They had killer pineapple ice cream. I know it may sound weird to some, but it was the best ice cream we have ever had. We went twice!

YUM!!!

And here is the yummy fruit growing from the ground.

Our fourth day we stayed away from the beach for the first part of the day. Snorkeling sure gives your back a sunburn quickly! We hopped in the car and explored the North Shore. The North part of the island is beautiful with the dense tropical foliage that Waikiki lacks. We took a gorgeous hike to a waterfall, but alas it had not rained much and it was more of a trickle. The hike was worth it. Some travel brochures say that part of Jurassic Park The Lost World were filmed here.

A huge tree~! Jake's favorite kindA nice stranger offered to take our picture. That's the only way I get Jake to take them with me.

It was pretty hot in the jungle atmosphere and there were LOTS of mosquitoes (have I ever mentioned how much I hate mosquitos?!!?) but it was definitely worth it to observe God's magnificent creation. Jake and I wonder how people can see such beauty and not see God's hand in it all.

Our fifth day we spent shopping and lounging around. There are 3 miles of shops along Waikiki beach. You could walk forever and just keep shopping. It was great to have that option for things to do in the evening. There were street performers and it was lots of fun. Here we are eating dinner overlooking the beach again.

This is my special "Hawaii" dress that Carmen helped me pick out. Jake loved it. :) I think we make a pretty cute pair. Every where we went people asked us if we were on our honeymoon. We must look young!

Our sixth day was my favorite by far. We... snorkeled again! But not any snorkeling. We were driving to the North Shore when I looked to my left and saw a beach full of SEA TURTLES! I let out a yelp and told Jake to stop. I love sea turtles and it was my mission on this trip to see some. Luckily we had our snorkel gear in the trunk. We walked down to the beach and they were basking on the sand soaking up the sun. I was like a giggly little kid I was so excited. When we got in the water it was very murky and not clear like the other beaches. That is because it was full of sea kelp that the turtles, or Honu in Hawaiian, eat. We still could see them and if we wanted to we could have reached out and touched them. We didn't because they are a protected species, but they were not afraid and let us get very close. It was awesome.

Well, I guess you could say day 6 was all about snorkeling. After our turtle encounter we hoped in the car and drove up the coast to Shark's Cove. (insert Jaws music here)
Now, before you get scared and think we were crazy there are not sharks in Shark's Cove. Their are huge under water caves in the cove that look like gaping shark mouthes. Thus the name. This was the best snorkeling we did so far. Most people were staying close so we swam out and had lots of space to ourselves. It does get scary when you can see all the way down to the bottom and realize how deep you are. All I could keep thinking was big things could swim in that much water! Luckily, the only scary thing we saw was an eel. That was scary enough for the both of us.

Only single pictures when the other person has to hold the camera. I can't resist taking pictures of him when he isn't looking. If he is looking I would probably get a scowl anyway. :)

View from the cliffs above Shark's Cove

Here I am Nicole Vogt Snorkelist Extrordanaire

Hooray, a picture of the two of us! What a sweet memory to look back on when we have been married for 50 years. That's how I convinced Jake to take this shot. :)

Day 7 was nice and relaxing. We woke up late and had a nice lunch. Then we walked around and did more shopping. In the evening we went to Cirque Hawaii. Like Cirque du Soleil but Hawaiin style. It was lots of fun.

That is probably more than you ever wanted to know about our trip to Hawaii. What a long post.

But, since this blog is titled A Day in the Life of a Beagle let me show you what I think Chloe and her cat sister Emma did at Mema's house while we were away.

Lazy bums!Mom, Dad? Are you ever coming home?!

Thank you for waiting so long for pictures. And an even bigger thank you to my mom who gave us her time share for this trip. We love you and are so thankful for the gift!!!