let me first start by saying that i have sand everywhere and it won't go away. now, if you know me, you will know my love/hate relationship with sand... i love the beach and the ocean, but when it comes to the actual sand, i absolutely hate it. it is so persistent! and gets everywhere! and never leaves! i will probably find sand in my ass a month after i am back from my trip... but let's start from the beginning shall we? sunday morning, we all woke up a bit tired from our previous day of hiking the volcano, so [View Full Entry]

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Surfing for the 1st Time Welcome to my very first blog! As my profile picture has me on a surf board, let me tell you about my adventure with Surfing for the 1st time. Having tried boogie boarding in Hawaii on vacation 1 1/2 years ago, I caught the "fever" or passion to learn how to surf. The problem with living in Seattle, the ocean nearby is very cold! Not a good introduction to a new sport. With the suggestion of a friend, I started preparing for my surf experience while in Seattle by treading water in the swimming pool. I [View Full Entry]

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July 25-27 Time has flown by. My summer is quickly, too quickly coming to an end. It is the final countdown to departure. It's Saturday morning, my last Saturday morning...I met Terry at Niketown for my last Saturday morning run. It was hot out and I was exhausted; we ran 4.5 miles around Ala Moana and were both happy when it was over. My short runs are definitely improving, but I am a little worried about my long ones. The 1/2 marathon is only 3 weeks away and my longest run here in Hawaii has only been around 9 miles. I [View Full Entry]

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Day 100 We got up and went straight to Auckland Airport to catch a flight back to Nadi, Fiji. We were then had to wait in Nadi airport for our connecting flight for 6 hours! For those who have ever been there it is a very small space with limited facilities to spend 6 hours. But after some reading, chatting and people watching our flight was finally called. We boarded the plane at 10pm on the 19th July. We were quite lucky as the flight was not full so we got 3 seats between us both so were able to stretch [View Full Entry]

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thursday afternoon, we took an easy day on the tours and went to hang out at the beach and in pa'ia, a hippie hawaiian town. pretty easygoing day. got some good shopping done in hippie town (go figure) and even had some hawaiian shave ice for the first time. i chose coconut, mango and papaya as flavours of choice! we then got a special treat from our tour guide isaac. isaac and his wife laina are leaving for a year in australia in 2 weeks and are therefore finishing up with work and what not. yesterday was his last friday tour, [View Full Entry]

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July 22-24 I am tired. Yesterday was a long, full day of activity and today I slept it off and didn’t leave the house until after three. I didn’t have much in mind to do, just take the bus over to the Blaisdell Farmer’s Market before my Wednesday Niketown run. The farmers market was pretty small, but still there was tons of great stuff like fresh baked breads, organic vegetables, fruits, jams and spreads, and flowers. I bought my first apple bananas (smaller version of a banana that tastes pretty much the same, maybe a little sweeter?) and some fresh hamburger [View Full Entry]

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leaving for a trip is always fun... airports are some of my favourite places and as such, i love walking through them people watching and experiencing the full extent of this part of the trip. two full hours before my flight to LA, i arrived at the vancouver airport, wide eyed and bushy tailed, ready for adventure. i successfully went through check-in, customs and security in a mere 30 minutes, and was then left in the international departures wing of the airport to gallivant... breakfast at tim horton's seemed appropriate, since i was going to be far from one for a [View Full Entry]

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plans took a turn last night, when one of my roomies (helen) came busting into the room announcing that her and a couple other friends were getting up early to go see the sunrise from the top of haleakalá, the world's largest dormant volcano. immediately, i asked if there was room for one more and she jumped out of the room to go ask. thankfully, i was rewarded for my forwardness and alarms were set for 3am for an early 3:20am departure! 3am came a little too quickly as it was well past 10:30pm when we went to bed, but the [View Full Entry]

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Since 1986, when I first visited the Big Island of Hawaii, I have been captivated by Pele's song. Unlike other large rocks I have encountered, the Big Island is alive. It breathes, it strecthes, it coughs, it sometimes wakes with a start from a nap, and like all living things, it is unpredictable. Buying a chunk of the Big Island is a bit dicey - either you're a millionaire or you're in a lava zone, and I'm no millionaire. The south side of the Big Island is separated into 2 regions - Ka'u (pronounced ka-ooo), a dry, temperate area which consists [View Full Entry]

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After a wonderful winter of mucking out hot tubs for skiers at Killington Ski Area in VT, I was able to complete my purchase of an acre of rough lava, ohia, and scrub in Hawaiian Ocean View Estates in the Ka'u District of the Big Island. Knowing there would be much work to be done (and remembering my travel partner's need for a hot shower!), I decided to get us a place a bit more on the civilized side than our last visit's accomodations (see my first blog!). While banging any number of boards with rentals on the Big Island, I [View Full Entry]

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