Hawaii

So we are back from Hawaii.

Amazing trip.

A few random thoughts:


1. I had no idea jet lag was as hard as it was. For three days, I was up at 6 or so, and wanting to go to bed at like 8 pm. I resisted, but it was tough.


2. I had no idea that Hawaii was so different historically than the rest of the US. Did you know it was run by a king and a queen right up until the US took it over?? They lived here:It was so pretty.



3. I had no idea there were going to be so many Japanese people there. Everything was in English and Japanese. It was pretty cool. The Japanese people there were very "trendy". Fashion I've never seen around here, that's for sure. I wish I had taken some pictures, but I guess that would have been rude, huh?


4. My favorite day was when we rented a car and drove the entire island of Oahu. We went to Pearl Harbor, which was one of those things you "have" to do if you go. It was very sad. After that we drove to the North Shore, went to Haleiwa, which is where Barack Obama used to "shave ice" when he was a kid. It's called the surfing capital of the world, and is tiny, very remote, and beautiful. We drove all day, and went in the mountains, Sandy's beach, around Diamond Head, and even stopped for pictures at some of the places "50 First Dates" was filmed.


5. Spam. It's all over Hawaii. Even at 7-11, in the little hot dog case, they have spam stuff. I did not try it. I ate it as a kid and had enough. Seriously. What is Spam? I'm not sure I want to know.



6. Sunsets. Absolutely amazing. Every.Single.Night. Well except for the one night we went on a sunset dinner cruise. Figures.
7. I also had no idea that Waikiki was so "busy". Beach town with massive skyscrapers on one side. Louis Vuitton, Coach, Kate Spade.....seriously. There was a Coach store on just about every block. And people were buying! The sunset picture and the picture below were taken on opposing sides of our hotel. Our balcony looked out on the beach and the city....depending on which way you looked. Crazy.

8. I missed my children terribly. I couldn't wait to get back to them, after about the first three days. I won't lie. The break was good. But 9 days was way too long. Mason wanted a Hard Rock Tshirt from Honolulu, and we found that. I also got him a really cool Obama shirt that says "OBAMA SURFS" since Obama is from there. They are very proud of the future president! Abbie wanted a snow globe- not easy to find in Hawaii believe it or not. But we found one. We also brought them chocolate covered pineapple from the actual Dole plantation, some shell necklaces from the luau we went to, and a few other random shirts.

9. Yes, I want to go back. I actually think I could live there. BUT, the 10 hour straight flight from Atlanta, not being able to move, my feet falling asleep, freezing or being hot, and then being stuck in between Tony and another guy on the way home will definitely keep me from going back for quite some time. We originally were going to take the kids. Thank goodness we didn't. I was whiny and miserable and cranky. I can only imagine how they would have felt. Awful. Just awful.

10. We both got sick while we were there. Can you believe it? The morning after the dinner cruise where we ate salmon, steak, and lobster, I woke up with a "rash" on my wrist. The rash became full blown, head to toe hives within a hour or so, and 2 days later, I was at the dr getting a shot. It looked awful. It's never a good sign when the dr is looking very puzzled and tells me he's not sure what to do- meds or a shot. I made the decision for him. :-) Tony, on the other hand, started with a cold, and for 2 days didn't leave the room at all. Luckily, this was why I was at the conference. For two more days, he was miserable, but mustered the strength to at least sit by the pool bar with me. We also went to see an illusionist that trained with David Copperfield....that was awesome, even though Tony felt bad. He would not go to the dr. I don't get that about men....but that's another post entirely.

Anyway, we had a great time, and enjoyed a part of the country that I have to say was even more beautiful than the Caribbean. I feel certain we will go back someday.