Radio Lady here, getting into a Hawaiian mood! Tell me anything you know about Oahu, Kauai, and...

the Big Island of Hawaii. Here's a Totally Fantastical Interpretation of how I'd like to look:



We have less than a month until we leave! Get away from the gloom and doom -- fantasize with me if you can! As always, Audio Al and I would love to charter a big plane and take any and all of you who would want to go! Ah, but that is not possible, so this is second best.

What to see and do! People, places or things. We're not going to have a car in Honolulu and we will be at Waikiki Beach for four days. Other islands Kauai and the Big Island, we will have rental cars and more time.

Red Ginger


We'd appreciate any memories of your visits and or photos you might have. If you actually live on one of these islands, perhaps we can ask YOU some questions if that would be OK?

Maui Sunset


Does anyone happen to know a Dr. Clyde Ishida, who's supposed to be a good dentist on Kauai? I got his name from my endodontist. Just in case. Seniors have to think about these things. We have a local Kaiser Permanente clinic in Honolulu and have made visits there -- nothing serious.

Thanks in advance for anything you care to add to this thread.

Cordially,

Radio Lady Ellen in Oregon

Stay on the look out for freaks like this.

Thanks for checking in, buddy.

Radio Lady Ellen in Oregon

unless you're up for hour-plus bus rides to attractions such as Sea Life Park, Pearl Harbor and the North Shore surfing beaches (this time of year is when it's really kickin'; even people who don't surf just stop and stare!).

http://www.thebus.org

On the plus side, the $2 fare or Tourist O'ahu Discovery Pass (which, if memory serves, is good for precisely four days!) is good around the whole island; no extra zone charges or anything like that.

edit: often overlooked is Honolulu's Bishop Museum (still about 45 minutes, but a direct ride from Waikiki) featuring the world's largest collection of Hawaiiana (it is rivaled only by that at UH-Manoa).

It will be interesting to see the Grand Waikikian (the new Hilton timeshare) and how much they have progressed since we were last there. We'll be at the Lagoon tower at the Hilton Grand Vacation Club -- it's a pretty good location.

We love to walk. We might try to get to the Goodwill store on Beretania Street -- we like to thrift shop for Aloha shirts and other stuff! However, we did get a parking ticket at a meter there last time! Got to remember to feed the meters :-(

There was a little Asian restaurant across from the Goodwill that made us a great lunch.

If you think of anything else, please post or PM it to me.

Nice to hear from you, as usual.

Mahalo,

Radio Lady Ellen

A neat trick, that -- seeing as how there's no theatre there. :-) Perhaps you mean Ward, a bit farther out Ala Moana Blvd. and fairly accessible by bus as well? There's a nice native Hawaiian craft shop at the 'Ewa (far) end of Ward Warehouse, plus (still) more restaurants and shopping.

I do recall they had a VERY long escalator and the movies were on the top floor. We saw the original movie "Ice Age" there on an extremely hot Hawaiian day! Thanks for correcting me.

On other trips, my daughter and I have taken a taxi to the Ala Moana Shopping Center and we had a very nice little lunch there. We bought some Japanese candy and wasabi peas in the drug store there -- a HUGE store but refreshing because it was air conditioned.

Cordially,

Radio Lady Ellen

A dollar theater on Restaurant Row. At least as of last April. I stayed in Waikiki Beach and walked to the theater, even though I had a rental car. Not bad movies, recently out of their major box office run. I saw Zodiac the first day it was available for a buck.

The walk back to Waikiki was a blast. It was Friday night so the Hilton had its weekly fireworks display on the beach. I think that's at 7 PM. Might be 8 PM.

Otherwise I wandered into a wedding at sunset, nearly tripped a roller skater while trying to take a picture, begged a few minutes of beach volleyball, then like a fool I ventured beyond the "Danger!" signs and damn near slid into the Pacific and an uncertain next few minutes.

I can't imagine Oahu minus the rental car. The Pali Lookout is awesome, although I couldn't get myself to blast a golf ball toward the windward side. The early morning walk up Diamond Head was a highlight. But it's longer than you think and many frustrating tunnels toward the top. Much the best to bring some water, take your time, and go early to avoid the midday heat.

I looped Oahu and indeed it's spectacular. Those gliders that someone mentioned are at the rugged North Shore. The road suddenly ends, and it's dramatically different than the rest of the loop, but that's where the big waves and most adventurous surfers are.

The other stuff is fairly obvious: Pearl Harbor (get there early), Punchbowl Cemetery (great mural depiction of how WW II unfolded in the Pacific), and the palaces where Steve McGarrett pretended he had his offices.

Actually, one gem was smack on the street in Waikiki. It was an old military bunker dating more than 100 years that they tried to demolish several decades ago, but unbelievably it withstood the wrecking ball and they gave up. True story! It's the Hawaii Army Museum, on the west end of Waikiki Beach, on the grounds of Fort DeRussy Park. They've got artifacts and displays and films of Hawaii's military history. I learned a ton of interesting stuff and the price was certainly right, a freebie.

The best suggestion you made is the Fort DeRussy Park museum. I have probably have walked by it more than a dozen times, but we've never been in there. I'm going to put it at the top of the list.

We've actually been to the Hawaiian islands many times -- perhaps nine or ten visits over almost three decades. We have one whole LONG closet shelf devoted to photograph albums of most if not all of our trips.

The first time we went to Hawaii in the 1980s, (the year before Kilauea erupted and wiped out a whole town), we took the trek from Boston, Massachusetts. We really thought we've never get back, so we covered five islands (Oahu, Kauai, Maui -- including Lanai-- Molokai, and the Big Island) in an exciting, whirlwind trip.

Then we decided to go back the following year!

In 2001, just after the attack on the World Trade Towers, we went to a presentation about the Hilton timeshare, and ended up buying points in their system. The salespeople were desperate for buyers because the 9/11 situation curtailed their tourism business for several important months. My husband, also a sales and marketing guy at the time, made an incredible deal with them. It was one of the best purchases we ever made. We've been able to host many members of our extended family in a variety of villas and hotels worldwide.

My husband likes more frantic whirlwind vacations -- see everything and do everything. He is more tolerant of the tropical heat; I prefer colder climates. I am more laid back and happy to be poolside or on the beach under an umbrella, reading. Sometimes it's a bit of a thermal and metabolic misfit, because he is never in a pool for more than ten minutes before he gets cold. Most of the time he's with me, but then I just let him loose and he strolls out for a walk with his digital camera as his companion.

Thanks so much for your post!

Cordially,

Radio Lady in Oregon

The Hawaiian Hall is under renovation until mid-2009.

but perhaps not on this visit.

Appreciate your comments.

Best regards,

Radio Lady Ellen

Hanalei Bay is beautiful and since you have a car go to Tunnels Beach for some excellent snorkeling. It's farther up the road from Hanalei. Ke'e Beach at the end of the road is also terrific for snorkeling.

There is a bar in Hanalei, Tahiti Nui that has a Luau that is more local and funky that the big resorts. Lots of fun and the food was great. Check to see if it's still there.

On the other side of the island, Poipu Beach is supposed to be one of the the best beaches in the country. I like Tunnels and Ke'e better because they are less resorty.

THe Grand Canyon of the Pacific - Waimea Canyon is pretty spectacular. Lots of hikes. THere is a lookout at the end of that road that overlooks the North Shore of Kauai.

Big Island is, well, BIG! We spent 3 weeks ther last March and worked our way around the island. A week in Hilo, 5 Days in Waimea, another week in Kona and then back to Hilo. THe Kona side has better weather and wonderful beaches.There aren't many beaches on the Hilo side that are swimable. THere are some in Hilo but the rest of that side of the island is very rocky with lots of new lava flows. Waimea is kind of cool. We stayed there for about 5 days and saw the ranchland and visited some of the more remote northern parts of the island. Hilo has a wonderful Farmer's Market on Wed & Sat. Tons of fresh local produce and flowers at good prices.

THe far south end of the island is the southern most tip of the US. THe beaches aren't swimable but they sure are awesome!


Waikiki is crowded. THere's a good aquarium and an interesting outdoor world market that is fun to walk through. If you can get to Hananamu Bay, the snorkeling is terrific.

Mz Pip
:dem:

with the Kalalau Trail http://www.kalalautrail.com/ (though Hawaii Volcanoes National Park as some spectuclar ones as well)

:woohoo:

Again, your comments are very much appreciated. I don't recognize your screen name but with thousands of people here, perhaps we have met before.

Best to you in the New Year (if I'm not too late!)

CU@theDU ----

Radio Lady Ellen and Audio Al

with us on this trip.

Our last trip to Kauai was short -- at the Marriott resort at Poipu Beach in 2006. We had been there once or twice -- in the 1980s -- before the hurricane (was it called Iniki?) which completely changed the beach's layout. But Kauai is still beautiful. I didn't snorkel on the 2006 trip because of a problem with my sinuses. This time, I'll definitely go and perhaps we'll have time to enjoy the other beaches you mentioned.

Again, thanks for your contribution to this thread.

Mahalo, friend.

Radio Lady Ellen

Or not... :rofl:

:)

In the 1980s, we actually took a flight to Molokai and did the mule ride down to Kaluapapa (sorry I don't have time to check the spelling, but you know where I mean). The disfigurement of the people there was very sad, but we understood that drugs can be used today for that disease.

We had a wonderful day on that island before there was any real population there. Same for Lanai -- went on a boat cruise and spent the day snorkeling and visiting the pineapple plantation. We have had a decade's long love of the Hawaiian Islands, first from Boston, and now from the Pacific Northwest, where it's a single direct flight to Oahu! How good is that?

Warm wishes,

Radio Lady Ellen

Hawaii have "Interstate Highways"...

The answer is: they're not "interstates", obviously, but state highways (H1, H2 and H3) that were built with Eisenhower's Interstate Highway Program funding back in the fifties and sixties.

Also that the wave depicted in the opening credits of "Hawaii Five-O" was not some ginormous tsunami, but just an ordinary-sized tubular wave of the kind that surfers tackle everyday. The camera angle made it look huge.

That's all I know about Hawaii, Radio Lady. Hope that helps. :+

:hi: B-)

BTW, your digital avatar is hot! :silly:

"My digital avatar is hot!" But I don't have an avatar -- that's the little picture in the header which I haven't used in years.

You mean this lady? Yeah, she's hot all right.

...is getting married in Oahu in February. He wants Mrs Robeson and I to be there, but as I told him, we've got no more money to pick off the money tree...

If you see him, say hey! :-)

I guess weddings are big business there, too -- just like in Las Vegas.

In Honolulu at Waikiki, the Hilton Grand Vacation Club's Lagoon Tower (the timeshare facility), we are wrapped in the enclave of the Hilton Hawaiian Village -- and the place is always jumpin' with so many activities. I like to rest on the porch and look at the garden or the ocean (depending on what kind of a villa we get).

On Kauai and the Big Island of Hawaii, things are a bit more relaxed.

My mother used to live on the Big Island in Hawi. She moved back here to the mainland to be near the grandkids....

I have yet to forgive her. :evilgrin:


Used to get some good info on the BI from this site, http://www.konaweb.com/forums/visiting.cgi
Hope that helps!

Well, we made up for your mother. We followed our daughter and son-in-law from Boston, Massachusetts to Portland, Oregon so WE could be close to OUR grandkids who at the time were YET TO BE. But now there are two here and two others in Salt Lake City, Utah. With our purchase of the timeshare, we extend our ability to help all of our kids and grandkids with vacations. It's a nice place to be in life!

Our other grandson in Boston has a birthday on February 6th and we talked to him tonight -- he's the BIG guy! I held him the day he was born in 1989. Doesn't seem so long ago. We invited him to Hawaii but he's working at one of the theater chains and can't come.

He heads to college (we think) in September of this year. We don't know where he will end up, but he's planning to study Media Arts which he may have inherited from me -- his step-grandmother -- by osmosis. I took him to movies and plays and all sorts of other entertainment while I was living in Boston.

Just in case we return....our NW winters, well you know!
Say Hi to Portland for me...I went to High School in that area. :hi:

forget for a moment about politics. I am sure you and Audio Al will have a wonderful time. I wish I could go, too. ~sigh~ Oh well. I am sure you will have lots of nice pictures to share when you return. :loveya:

heard today that Madonna made 72 million dollars in one year. Holy moley! She is the wealthiest person in pop music according to the magazine quoted by the announcer. He was on a classical music station this evening, but he had no information on who earned the most in classical music.

Anyway, if I had money, you DU folks would have a flight to somewhere unbelievable! Alaska, Hawaii, London, Newark... (Newark???) -- any place you wanted to go.

Once in a great while, I fantasize about how what I would do with tremendous wealth and the time to do good things for ordinary, caring people.

Ah, well.

My heart is in the right place; but unfortunately, the wallet is a little slim tonight.

Hubby and I just had a big fight about whether I'm spending too much money on vitamins and other things I consider important to our health. Now I've got to make peace with him.

Back to the real world...

Radio Lady Ellen

Even though this is Maui, there are still whale watching trips you can take from the other islands:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=105x7415968

Regrettably, the boats do not get very close to the whales due to "environmental concerns" -- and we only saw a couple of babies. The adult female whales can stay underwater for a VERY long time -- but the babies have to surface more frequently. We have about five photos of what do I call it... "blow jobs"? No tail breaches at all. The best photo was the poster they gave us!

So, it was an expensive couple of hours on the very choppy seas. I took two Dramamines pills and drank lemon soda throughout the trip. I got a little bit seasick, but several other people were really heaving into buckets in the back of the boat. That was not good...

We did get some nice views of the Maui hills and other scenery behind the marina. Also, there is a little Internet cafe run by a Swiss couple with their gorgeous yellow Labrador retriever dog right on the main road. They had airconditioning and ice cream to cool my fevered brow.

Thanks for your post.

Radio Lady Ellen

You'll never forget the experience, and the view is great.

http://www.soarhawaii.com
http://www.honolulusoaring.com

I was terribly afraid for no particular reason.

Hubby bought me the U.S. Air "fear of flying" class for one of my birthdays. It was held once a week for nine consecutive weeks at Logan Airport in Boston. After graduation, I was so pleased with my coping skills, relaxation tape, lectures on the how and whys of flight, and a book they gave me -- that I began to go comfortably everywhere with my husband, who was a sales executive on travel about 50% of the time.

Best gift I ever got. I'll fly in the large planes, and even do the smaller Horizon Airlines planes... bumpy as hell sometimes between Portland and Seattle, but barely enough time to sip some orange juice and crackers!

BUT, I still have never been in a VERY small plane. Or a helicopter. I get motion sick from wide-screen movies in IMAX. We almost went to see Denali when we were in Alaska, but the day we chose, the mountain was socked in with fog and they cancelled. So....

Maybe next time? Thanks -- the links are awesome.

Mrs. Dannofoot and I were there last year, and once we've paid that trip off, we're heading back!

When you drive around the Big Island, be sure to keep the radio on and listen to the various local stations, it really helps set the mood.

Hilo is indeed lush and gorgeous...be sure to spend time at Rainbow Falls. As you drive around the south end of the Island, you'll be struck by how it resembles parts of the Great Plains.

Please plan a good bit of time at Volcanoes National Park...it is the most incredible place I've been on earth, as you reach the top of Kilauea, it becomes otherworldly. The power that emanates from that place is humbling.

Enjoy the fantastic beaches around Kona...the snorkeling is outstanding, and there is no experience like drifting through the water and coming face to face with a four-foot long Honu! If you scuba, even better; we dove off the Kohala coast.

Do you like to fish? Fishing in Kona is awesome, my wife snagged a 157 lbs Ahi tuna, and I caught a 30 lbs. Ono. Unfortunately, they keep it all there, unlike in Alaska, where we were allowed to ship our catch back home.

For foodies, the place is paradise...be sure to eat Loco Moko, a local favorite (have it with the Spam and Portugese sausage!), and in Hilo, by Queen Liliuokalani Park, there is a fish market that sell a huge array of poke - raw seafod mixed with various marinades and juices.

I'd also highly recommend Cafe Pesto in Kohala, Ken's House of Pancakes in Hilo (for the local flavors), Sushi Rock (north of Kohala), and best of all Daniel Thiebaut's in Waimea.

The one thing we will always remember about the Big island is how friendly the people were there - it seemed like everywhere we went, people were singing!

I wasn't even aware they were in Kohala. In either case, akolu (seconded). And, if you can catch it on a day when it isn't raining and a cruise ship isn't docked, that stretch of downtown Hilo right along the bayfront is quite possibly the coolest two blocks or so in the entire state.

...downtown Hilo is incredibly charming. We spent time at the Tsunami Museum there...the docent who walked us through the museum was an actual survivor of the great tsunami.

Thanks for mentioning it.

Cordially,

Radio Lady Ellen

It was sunny that day, but I recall talking with a woman at the next table. This was in the early part of the year, maybe January or February. That person told us that Hilo had had SEVENTY inches of rain since the first of the year. We bought some fruit at the Farmer's Market and then drove over to the Naniloa Surf hotel which is the first hotel we ever stayed at in Hawaii! I remember waking up that morning and seeing BLACK LAVA all around outside. And those magnificent banyan trees in Hilo.

I was astounded! I had lived in Miami, Florida when the average percipitation was 60 inches of rainfall per year. These conditions have undoubtedly changed. I have no idea what it is today. I believe Boston gets about 37 inches (falling as rain or snow), while Portland, Oregon gets about the same (mostly rain). The difference is in the amount of sunlight. Boston has two days clear out of every three days, Portland has only one day clear out of every three days. However, the summer is totally dry from late June sometimes through October, and one of the most beautiful climates in the world.

I am definitely a temperate climate kind of girl.

Thanks!

They have a great thrift store there. We rented horses and got to canter across a field!

Thanks so much for all the time it took to post the details. FYI, I print the whole thread and take it with us as a DU guidebook!

We're staying at the brand new Hilton Grand Vacation Club resort at Waikaloa. A couple of years ago, we were in the hotel facility nearby which is just stupendous -- and I got to swim with the dolphins!

But don't recommend the Big Island to my sister-in-law! She and her husband went because we said it was delightful -- and they hated it. Didn't like the barren lava. Too long to drive around. Hilo too hot and steamy. It rained a lot when they were there. Not interested in volcanoes, etc. etc.

Different strokes for different folks!

it is worth doing, it will take about 7 hours, you can see the great north shore beaches with the really big surfing waves.

Waikiki Beach is delightfully tacky. Much of it seems to date from the '50s, with lots of stucco. Much kitsch.

Have a Mai Tai at the Royal Hawaiian



I was there when Magnum was being filmed back in the '80s. We saw a shoot taking place.

My favorite place is Haunauma Bay, which is a washed-out volcanic crater on the far side of Diamond Head from Waikiki. Beautiful beach, and amazing snorkeling, with giant tame tropical fish swimming in schools all around you. It is protected, so the fish are not afraid of humans.

we were attacked by bees! The snorkeling was fantastic! I almost got out to Witch's Brew area but felt cold and came back to shore.

I understand the place has undergone renovation, but you have to park there very early in the morning.

The Royal Hawaiian hotel is a wonderful landmark. We've walked through it many times, and I even have a photograph of us in the garden -- I think it was taken by another tourist years ago when we were there for one of our anniversaries -- February 4 -- coming up next Monday!

Recently, I decorated our downstairs powder room with all Hawaiian "artifacts" -- including a poster with the Royal Hawaiian hotel. The half-bathroom just needs a new coat of paint and I'll be done.

Your post is much appreciated.

Cordially,

Radio Lady Ellen

They took our camera and other stuff.

The natives were quite unfriendly, but the tourists were nice.

I had a horrible time, but then again, my new husband asked for a divorce when we arrived there, so my response "may" be tainted.

Good things: the pineapples were scrumptious, the maui chips were great.

Bad things: those sea worms in the shallows should not be stepped on....yuck!

This was eons ago, and unless you are travelling with my ex, you will probably have a better time!

Right now, my score is:

First Husband (Richard) -- A young doctor in residency in Miami who was my cousin's first choice for a blind date for me. He was handsome and well-born, and we married in haste in March 1960 after a six-week cross-country courtship. We repented at leisure while I was living in Westchester County, New York with him and his elderly mother and Dr. Richard was away all day and most nights. I had no idea at age 20 what it meant to be married to a doctor! We divorced in 1961 after a stillborn daughter died in utero while I was in a hospital for depression. It was a very difficult time and I don't remember very much about the experience. I was in NYC for job training for a month in 1983 and looked him up in a telephone book. I decided to call but had to get through his secretary who insisted in knowing who I was! I hung up the phone on her, then called a second time. He answered. He hardly remembered me, but he was very cordial. He had married again and had two sons. I suggested we get together for coffee, but he demured. Last spoke with him in 2006 to find out how he was -- he's still working part-time as a diet doctor in NYC. If I figure correctly, he just had a birthday, which would make him 83 years old.

Second Husband (Peter)-- a schoolmate whom I knew BEFORE marriage #1 -- married me in NYC on December 21, 1963 which I now laughingly call "the longest night of the year" (winter solstice and other private reasons). The long and short of it was we honeymooned (if you can call it that) in Quebec City, Canada. It was so very cold we barely left the hotel and all I remember is that we opened many envelopes with checks in them, which I handed to my husband. We had two children in 1968 and 1969, and left me for another woman in 1970, and then married her two weeks after we divorced in 1971. The long and short of it is he was a long-term cigarette and pipe smoker, and he died of lung cancer in December 2006. He was 70 years old. The odd thing is we battled royally between the two families, but I was very shaken when he died and all of the hate just fell away and was replaced by sadness.

Third (or as he puts it "current") Husband (Al) -- came on scene in Boston in the summer of 1972 while I was living in the "lap of luxury" in a third floor walkup apartment while working full time as a radio talk show host four hours a day, six days a week, to support my two babies, then 2 and 3, and our cocker spaniel dog. Al was a widower with three older kids who had lost his first wife to stomach cancer at age 34. He had an empty house in a beautiful suburb of Boston; and his kids were living with his mother and sister so he could travel on his job. He put a tiny little ad in the Boston Globe for a housekeeper. (There were no personal ads in 1972...) I answered his ad after clipping it out and holding it in my wallet for several weeks. I invited him on a blind date for dinner. We married in 1973 with five kids. Unfortunately, we had to get rid of his dog because their pet chased children on bicycles and motorcycles. My dog remained and lived until age 14. The "blended" family wasn't perfect and certainly not the "Brady Bunch", but they are all grown up and married (or remarried in one case) with kids of their own.

So, hang in there. My husband teases me that he wants to outlast all of my former husbands and lovers. He doesn't have far to go now! We celebrate our 35th Anniversary next Monday, February 4, 2008.

In peace,

Radio Lady and Audio Al

It's a beautiful island (personally, my favorite to tour on bike), but outside of the touristy areas the locals can be quite unfriendly.

Of course, you MUST always lock your rental car, with the windows rolled up. You don't want your car to look you're a tourist. You should try to rent a car that can contain all your luggage in the trunk. My husband makes sure that our luggage or shopping bags are NEVER in the back seat so it can be seen.

You should try to park in busy areas, because thieves are more likely to choose another car and pass yours by if nothing valuable is visible inside the car. Don't park in dark or vacant areas at night. Parking is expensive, but you have to weigh the price versus the convenience and security of a garage.

The only time I ever had my car broken in to was sometime in the 1980s -- It was in the Boston suburb of Brookline right on busy street (Harvard Avenue). I had my company car parked in a busy Boston area and went to talk to one of my customers. Here's where it went VERY WRONG: I LEFT MY PURSE ON THE PASSENGER SEAT. Someone came by, smashed the window, took the purse and was gone. That was my wake-up call!

We were on Maui for three weeks last year at the Embassy Suites hotel at Kanapali. Parking was tight in their garage, but free. Every night, we gathered in the atrium lobby for free drinks and very salty chips. We only met nice, helpful people at the laundromat and various local shops. Stopped at the Birkenstock store and Auntie the saleswoman talked us blue in the face. We are timeshare owners on Oahu at the Hilton Grand Vacation Club.

Perhaps you'll go again and have a better experience. I hope so.

Cordially,

Radio Lady Ellen

Living in one of the highest auto-theft areas in the nation (I live a few miles from Modesto California, which was #1 in per-capita auto thefts for several years and is still in the top 10), all of that is second nature to me. I never leave valuables visible, I try to park around crowds, the doors are always locked, etc. On my first trip a windows was busted out and someone pried the back seat down to get at my camera bag. Unfortunatly for them, it was empty...they just got a couple of lens caps and a few unused rolls of film.

The second time I was hiking down to the blowholes at Nakalele Point along the northern edge of West Maui. When I got back to my car, I discovered that all the windows had been knocked out. I called the police, and the officer told me that it was a fairly regular occurrence there because the locals along the north shore don't like tourists.

Funny thing is, I rode my bicycle all over the island (including the Hana Highway...that was crazy scary on a bike as the tour busses passed us on the narrow stretches) and never had a single issue. I never even had to lock up the bike.

people, and thieves, too, on each of these island paradises. I remember that each time I watch "Dog the Bounty Hunter" -- is his show still on TV? Ever see that show?

Did you have insurance through a credit card, or the fleet car insurance? We have had one accident with a fire plug (backed into it and crinkled the back bumper). When we returned the car, we told them about what had happened. But no one said anything to us, so we guessed that they expect cars to be roughed up like that.

You rode the Hana Highway on a bicycle? You deserve a trophy, IMHO!

If I had done that, well... all I can say is that it was bad enough down and back in a car in one day. Beautiful ride, if you are not subject to motion sickness, which, regrettably, I am. Cars, trains, busses... but OK in airplanes.

:puke: :puke:

It was so beautiful that it didn't seem real, particularly the cliffs along the Na Pali coast. The climatic variation was also incredible: a town with only 25" of rainfall per year at the southern tip, but just a few miles inland, a mountain that gets over 300" of rain per year.

drive to the Glass Beach -- the clay T-shirt factory (bought a shirt there, but eventually returned it because the clay is NOT a permanent dye and it ruins other clothes) -- one of the coffee factories and some tiny little thrift shop where I spent a delightful hour talking to other tourists and natives and buying a bright aqua blazer from another era.

We both had a very nice day --

"Let there be spaces in your togetherness..." (Kahlil Ghibran)

Quick, I need some Hawaiian songs to teach to my grandkids so we can sing them in the car when we're driving.

"I'm leaving on a jet plane
Don't know when I'll be back again
Oh, babe I hate to go..."

Who used to sing this one? I remember lyrics -- but just snippets of them -- and I may not recognize composers.
Well, that's not exactly Hawaiian, but it's running through my mind anyway.

Don Ho is gone. Hope he didn't live long enough to hear his surname dragged through the mud by that other Don IMUS.

Lyrics to "Blue Hawaii"? That's Elvis.

"Night and you and blue Hawaii..."

Lyrics to "Hawaiian Wedding Song"

"This is the moment
I've waited for.
I can hear my heart singing
Soon bells will be ringing
This is the moment
Of sweet 'aloha'
I will love you longer than forever
Promise me that you will leave me never. ......"

Lyrics to "Sweet Lelani, heavenly flower -- dum dum dum de paradise for two..."

Maybe a link to those politically incorrect songs we used to sing in the 1940s. About the "Little Brown Gal in the Little Grass Skirt, in a Little Grass Shack in Hawaii." I was told by native Hawaiians that was not the image or the history they wanted to leave.

Radio host Arthur Godfrey broadcast from Honolulu, Hawaii. His Hawaiian co-star was named Haleoke. Only folks my age would even remember them. I listened to his show all the time. Trouble was that we already lived in Miami, Florida, snowbird country on the mainland. Who needed to take a train to Los Angeles and a boat (or a plane) to Hawaii? It was the last place I ever thought I'd get to visit.

Jody Carver's steel guitar memory web site is here. Scroll down a bit to see his autographed photo of Arthur Godfrey & Haleoke - 1955 He has a lot of links.

http://jodycarver.com/ArthurGodfrey.html

OK, music, Maestro, please!

We're packing for our umpteenth trip to Oahu and getting out of the gloom in a couple of weeks!

they're surrounded on all sides by water.

I forgot which one!

:rofl:

Cordially,

Radio Lady Ellen in Oregon

----

On edit and getting to know you: Oh, I like that quote:

"Vision without action is a daydream, action without vision is a nightmare." - Walter Elias Disney

But what the heck is this about?

http://www.geocities.com/copazie/index.html

I am on the Big Island 5 miles above Hilo (just visiting a friend for the winter - I'm orginally from SLC, UT) and it has been raining heavily NON-STOP for days. In the last 4 days we have gotten over 40 inches of rain! The Bayfront Highway (at the edge of Hilo Bay) has been closed due to flooding. The local paper had a great aerial shot of it online, but by now I'm not sure if it's still up or not:

http://www.hawaiitribune-herald.com/

Here's a link to the Hilo Bay webcam on top of the Pacific Tsunami Museum, and I highly recommend a visit there:

http://www.tsunami.org/hilobaycam.html

Another place you may wish to visit here is the Imiloa Astronomy Center:

http://www.imiloahawaii.org/

And as for your Hawaiian song lyrics, here ya go on that as well:

http://www.huapala.org/

Aloha! :hi:

Probably won't venture to Hilo -- I know they get tons of rain. We've been on all of the islands and we'll be ready for anything.

We just found out our 19-year-old grandson from Boston is going to be with us for the week! That should be wonderful fun! He graduated from high school in August 2007 -- but decided to take a year off before going on to college.

Appreciate your posts; they're GREAT -- and we'll be looking for lots of new things to do!

Peace, love, and happiness,

Radio Lady Ellen

http://www.tsunami.org/hilobaycam.html

All you can see is headlights driving by. Is that my cousin Sandy's car with a hooker hanging her shoes out the window??? Crap. Wait until I tell his wife.

:rofl:

Pelee hates it when you steal rocks and black beach sand.

Don't ask, just trust me.

Z

Just watch out for that really big puddle...

:rofl:

It is the most beautiful campus in the nation. Of course that's just my opinion. I'm partial since I put in close to three years of my life there back in the 1980's.