Hawaii Trip

So I have lots to post on our trip but here is the link for the pictures that I just loaded up today onto Facebook that you could check out. We had a great time and took lots of pictures but I posted a sample of our adventures on the island.
Here is the album link that you can paste in your browser: http://www.facebook.com/media/set/set=a.10150648554715788.694286.530165787&l=8b58c44bbc

We stayed on the North Shore where we rented a condo at the Turtle Bay Resort. It was a nice enough place. We really enjoyed being on the the North Shore but the condo had some downfalls. The resort was beautiful but the condo was close to others and the noise was bad in the master bedroom. We ended up sleeping the other nights in the living room where they had a futon mattress for extra guests. That was also where the a/c was so Hans was much happier with that arrangement as well. We bought groceries at the store and cooked many meals at home which was nice and saved us money. We got fresh pineapple at one of the roadside stands which was yummy!

We went to many beaches that were all beautiful. It was so great to be so close to great places to walk, relax, swim, boogie board and snorkel. We went on a long drive one of the days to explore the whole coastline around the island. We almost made it everywhere and saw so many great spots. It was Memorial Day so all of the beaches were just packed with people but it was fun scoping out all of the great places to go later in the week.
We visited the Laie Temple and Visitor Center which was great. It is a very beautiful temple inside and out. We went on a walk that evening (which was quickly becoming Hans' favorite time on the beaches due to the temperatures being much lower and it being less sunny). We took the walk from Temple beach to Castles. At least we got pointed in the direction of Castles and presumed we got there during our walk but was not quite sure what to expect. It was very windy but beautiful and warm enough for me not to wear any jacket or pants and cool enough for Hans not to totally melt away.

On Wednesday we headed into Honolulu to Pearl Harbor and the Aloha Stadium for the swap meet. I had been to Pearl Harbor the last time I was in Hawaii but it was nice to see it again. So many names on the wall, it was sad. The swap meet was a great place to get our souvenirs so thank you to our friends that gave us the tip. We were both hungry and hot (for some reason I chose to wear pants that day) so we did not last too long but we made it all the way around the loop.

Thursday we made it our beach day and went snorkeling first thing in the morning at Sharks Cove. It was recommended to us by several of our friends and it was a great spot. We had a great time and got there early enough that it was not too busy while we were there. We saw lots of neat things and got to swim around with the fish and 2 sea turtles as you can see in our picture album link. Hans tried his luck at boogie boarding at a really windy beach--all of the beaches were not labeled really well so it might have been part of Sunset Beach or maybe where the Pipeline is? It was pretty there but sooooo windy that day. It would start to blow hard and pick up the sand which was little bits of coral and shells and pelt your skin with it. At first it was a bit comical but eventually after a couple of hours it got old. We had sand everywhere and caked into our hair. I had so much sunblock on that it stuck to me like glue. We still got sunburned that day though and ended up with the back of our legs getting red and a strip on our backs. I guess the sunblock did not get put on there properly. We took a break for lunch and to cool off and rest a bit. Who knew that using fins could work out your feet so much? Later that evening we went back out to another beach and we both got out on the boogie boards. I caught one wave but not for very long. We had a fun time and I was actually not too cold even though the sun was going down as long as I kept moving. The water in general seemed cooler than I remembered if from last time. There were spots that we would find that were warmer but the majority was just like a mellow swimming pool or something.

We went to the Polynesian Cultural Center one of the days and it was pouring rain off and on that day. We had a great time going to the different villages. They did a great job at having entertaining performers. We ended up going to the Luau as well and enjoyed it. The food was OK which is what we had been told but we had a good time. We got seated next to some fun people. We met a couple that was there for their 31st anniversary and the wife was a hygienist. She had been practicing for 30 years and was still working. It was fun to talk to her about the profession and pick her brain a bit. I still did not have my Clinical exam results at that time so we spoke about that and how I wanted to know how I did. It was actually later that night that I found out that I passed and so it is official... I am going to be a Registered Dental Hygienist (RDH). YaY!!! So glad that is over with. I am waiting for my state license to get processed but at least it is all just formality now and no more sitting on pins and needles for the results.
We really enjoyed the night show at the PCC although Hans was wishing that the wind would blow for him because it was warm. They had some impressive dancers and the fire dancers were great. I think it is the most complicated routine I had ever seen. They did a great show!
Our last day there we picked up some last minute produce and nuts to bring home. We stopped at the Dole plantation because I really wanted some pineapple ice cream. We got some and it was so good. We drove around some other areas that we had not seen on our other drive and unfortunately it was raining when we found one of the scenic look outs. We want to go back again next time and see it better.

I loved all of the flowers and flowering trees/bushes. It smelled amazing everywhere we went. It definitely is a piece of paradise.

We had a great time and are already thinking about when we can go back again. So now we just need to decide if we go back to Oahu or to another island?

This video is showing the shy plant that Hans was playing with. It is pretty neat. I had not ever heard of a plant like this before.