Blogs from Hawaii, United States, North America - page 149

North America » United States » Hawaii January 10th 2009

After having to return back to Auckland we did a real quick trip to Rotarua and back and had the best buffet we have ever had in tourist type place, the Maori Hangi traditionally is cooked in the ground but in Rotarua having access to the power of the geothermal hot springs by the bucket load they cook using steam. A complete selection of cold starters followed by steamed (and then maybe roasted/smoked a little) chicken, lamb and pork with kumara and stuffing. There was a huge set of desserts including NZ pavlova and some lovely icecream with nuts in. After that lot, we were taking by a little tram to watch the geysers erupt and have some hot chocolate. Luckily for me doing the haka on stage with a bunch of people worked up an ... read more

Hawaii - June 2006

North America » United States » Hawaii » Maui » Lahaina January 9th 2009

Old Lahaina Luau

Shane is offski

My little sis decided to get married in June 06...and as she was marrying a yank they decided to head out of Adelaide and get married in Maui, sensational idea. After a week or two away on a "non-backpacking" holiday I'm usually ready to get home.........not this time, I was genuinely gutted at leaving this place. Could easily move there for good, if I win the lottery, bloody expensive place. ... read more

The Real Hawaii

North America » United States » Hawaii » Oahu January 9th 2009

Girls jumping into to swim with turtles

Strathgets

Wakiki is great but you need to get out into the country to find the Real Hawaii. I found a hostel in Makaha on the west coast, the least touristy area but it is starting to pick up. It's great here. Very different. Makaha is not a rich area. Most people here are indigenous Hawaiians living in small fibro houses. There are also lots of homeless people living on the beaches. House prices have doubled in Hawaii in the last 5 years due to mainlanders buying up holiday homes. So even people with a minimal wage job can't afford to buy or even rent a cheap house. But Makaha has beautiful scenery and beaches and turtles and whales. After arriving here I went for a walk along the coast and there is this little cove where ... read more

Hawaii: Spectacular beauty and vibrant history

North America » United States » Hawaii » Big Island » Hilo January 9th 2009

Marty in the rain

Marty Freeman

Three days till we fly to Hawaii! On Jan 12th we fly from Portland (PDX) to Hilo, Hawaii and we can't wait to get there. Warm whether and sunshine, Yea!! (we hope) Today I-5 has been closed due to flooding at Chehalis and Olympia so we may have to change our plans to have David come down from W Seattle and drive us to the airport on Monday. But he says, if I-5 clears up he'll come down on Sunday.- Keep your fingers crossed. Meanwhile we are in the packing stage - making lists of things to remember to take and being careful not to "overpack". We will be gone for 3 weeks and need to be able to carry our own luggage. I'm hoping we can live in our bathing suits most of the time. ... read more

Wakiki grows on you

North America » United States » Hawaii » Oahu » Waikiki January 8th 2009

Strolling wiith Elmo

Strathgets

Despite being the biggest tourist trap this side of Las Vegas, Wakiki Beach grows on you. At night it is a hub of activity: there are buskers all down the main street from musicians to a guy dressed as Elmo you can cuddle; lots of hotels and food courts have performers ranging from great to very tacky; there are regular traditional hula performances on the beach and crowds of people justly strolling. Everybody is very mellow. Even the tourist touts are pretty mellow. You just have to give in to the gaudiness and enjoy it. First thing to do is get a loud Hawaiian shirt or Mumu, get some thongs (they call them slippers) and stroll. That's what I'm gunna do now. Aloha. Catch you later. PS the old guy doing the Hula was the best ... read more

A Day of Infamy

North America » United States » Hawaii » Oahu January 7th 2009

USS Arizona Memorial

Strathgets

Visiting Pearl Harbour brings up all sorts of emotions. The attack on Pearl Harbour was a horrendous crime. The men who died there should be remembered as innocent victims of Japanese aggression. It was rightly condemned by FDR as a "Day of Infamy". The USS Arizona Memorial is very moving. It seems to float on the water over the wreck of the ship. A wonderful reminder of all the dead sailors trapped in the wreck. But I can't help thinking about all the people killed in American attacks. Particularly, after visiting Hiroshima I came to the conclusion that the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki was wrong. America could have bombed an uninhabited area as a warning and given Japan an ultimatum. The Shrine and Museum in Hiroshima showed the devastation that was caused there but it ... read more

Aloha Hawaii

North America » United States » Hawaii » Oahu » Waikiki January 6th 2009

On the beach

Strathgets

Hawaii at last. Sun, surf and sand. And the sun doesn't go down till 6 o'clock. I'm starting to thaw out after Canada. Waikiki is just like Surfer's Paradise except it is full of Americans. Tall hotels overlooking the beach. Crowded Tourist shops and junk food restaurants everywhere. They even have pistol ranges (Slogan: Gun shooting in Paradise). But even among all this the real Hawaii sneaks through. Wandering around on Sunday evening down near Wakiki Beach I came across a group of about 20 local people mostly with ukeleles playing music. They gather there every Thursday and Sunday nights to play music, sing songs and do the hula. It was a mix of traditional Hawaiian song as well as some good old American songs. I sat and watched for about an hour while they took ... read more

Tyler takes a break from harassing the gecko on the wall to blog...

North America » United States » Hawaii » Kaua'i January 3rd 2009

Kauai 019

Kate and Ty

Aloooooooha! This is the first and last hello you will get from Hawai'i, and we apologize to everyone for not posting anything sooner! Kate and I are awaiting a lovely steak dinner her parents have prepared for tonight's "Last Supper." Don't worry, we've addressed Kate's vegaterian needs as well.... The days since I've been here have been absolutely amazing! Lots of beach everyday! We played tennis the first day I was here and Kate and I totally wooped Megan and Ali in a doubles match 6 games to 2...sorry girls, your sister taught me to play a tight game of tennis. New Years came and we all had our fare share of spirits, before and after the amazing fireworks display over the Pacific Ocean in front of the Sheraton in Poi'pu. On the second last day ... read more

Big Bang celebration for New Year 2009

North America » United States » Hawaii January 2nd 2009

View from the Balcony

aquariantravelbug

Hawaii has been fairly cold at around24c and fairly wet. Have just pottered around and shopped a bit - tried out the trolley cars. Took in some of the nightlife around the beach area, sort of like the middle of Surfers (with different accents). I got warned about jaywalking, (apparently MUST cross at the lights). Today is NYD 1/1/09, last night we were going to celebrate the new year sitting on our balcony watching the fireworks, however things do change! Deb went out to buy a tshirt and after she left, the fire alarm went off in the building, so the building was shut down with her outside and me on the 8th floor. The building filled with many hunky firemen (they all seem to be young and work out! and are calendar material). I decided ... read more

Thanksgiving in Hawaii

North America » United States » Hawaii » Oahu » Honolulu December 29th 2008

vin8

We got off the ship in Honolulu, Hawaii at about 10 am and immediately went to the most American place we could find…Wal Mart. It was really weird being in an American store where you don’t haggle over prices for the first time in three months, and it almost made me feel like I was at home because every Wal Mart in the world is exactly the same. The funny thing about going there was the fact that there were probably over 100 SAS kids that were also there buying all sorts of random things (I had to get a pair of dress shoes for the “Ambassadors Ball”). Anyway, after our Wal Mart stop we went to Waikiki Beach and enjoyed the beautiful Thanksgiving day sun. It was about 85 or 90 degrees, and the water ... read more

Brief history of United States

Britain's American colonies broke with the mother country in 1776 and were recognized as the new nation of the United States of America following the Treaty of Paris in 1783. During the 19th and 20th centuries, 37 new states were added to the origina...more history

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