Who's Mahalo?

Love love love love Hawaii. I get it now. I get the obsession, why people who go need to go again and again. It's beautiful, it's friendly, and it's American. There is something for everyone; beaches for beach lovers, adventures for adventure lovers, Obamas for Obama lovers.
It's easy to catch the aloha spirit in Hawaii, partially because people really say "aloha" and other Hawaiian phrases all the time. The title of this blog is a bit of a joke. One night we decided to go to a movie. Right before the show begins, a screen flashes up which reads, "No smoking permitted in the theater. - Fire Marshall". I probably made some lame remark to my aunt Yvonne about why is that even necessary anymore, blah blah blah. The next screen flashes up and it says "Please do not talk during the show. Mahalo". I turn to Yvonne and say, "Who's Mahalo?" "Uhhh...Mahalo means "Thank you" in Hawaiian." But I don't speak Hawaiian, so you can understand why I was confused, right? I was picturing some large Hawaiian man who works at the theater and occasionally checks up on audiences to make sure people aren't chatting. Or, maybe Mahalo is the Polynesian god of communication who frowns upon disruptive conversation. Anyways, the point is... I don't know what the point is but I won't forget what mahalo means and I was more inclined to use that than the English version for a week after I got home.

We stayed at Hau'ula, which is about half way between Honolulu and Waimea Valley on the north shore. An ideal location in my opinion; while it was usually overcast where we were staying, a 20-30 minute drive north or south usually brought sun. The waves are the biggest at this time of year on the north shore, so we enjoyed avoiding getting crushed in the surf or watching others do the same. At Sunset Beach and Pipeline Beach, we didn't even bother swimming, since signage on the beach indicated it was unsafe to do so. I love bumming it on the beach, so this is my number one highlight.


Other highlights include...

Eating prawns at a shrimp shack. Yummy!


Going on a "Hole in the Wall" Food Tour of Honolulu. Our guides were hilarious and they showed us some great eats in the city that we never would have found on our own. If you're going to Oahu, I recommend it. This is a photo of me at the "Look Funn Factory" in China Town.

The Polynesian Cultural Centre. Who doesn't love traditional song and dance? It was very entertaining and exceeded my expectations.



Turtles!


Hiking in the Waimea Valley.


Perhaps the best part of the holiday was spending quality time with my family. I'm glad we took this opportunity to take a long trip together when everyone was in a position to do so. Thanks for the fun times!