shave ice & gelato

Katia & Guido arrived in Honolulu early yesterday morning. They had a long layover before continuing on to Kona and so we had a few hours to spend together. They kept saying how strange it was to see me here in Hawaii when they are used to always seeing me in Italy with them. I felt the same way. It was strange speaking my not so great Italian and seeing them here in Hawaii but also so wonderful to be together with them again.

I had planned to take them out to breakfast but they already grabbed a quick bite to eat at Starbucks in the airport and were not very hungry. After leaving the airport, I decided to checking out the views from the Pali Lookout. I had not been there for years now and thought it would be a nice place to go to see some wonderful views of Oahu. It was a little fogged in when we arrived. The fog started to lift just as we were about to leave. They were amazed at the beauty of the area and did not imagine so much "green".

Here are a few views of the windward side of Oahu from the Pali:

'Iolani Palace is the only official state residence of royalty in the United States. I have been on a tour of the palace once many years ago while on a field trip with three 4th grade classes. The palace is well preserved and quite beautiful both inside and out.

I had planned to take Katia and Guido to the palace while they were here visiting Oahu. Friday, August 17th was Admissions Day. Admissions Day is a state holiday in Hawaii, which is celebrated on the 3rd Friday in August to commemorate the day Hawaii became the 50th state (August 18, 1959). I called the palace that morning to see if it would be open for tours. I was hoping to visit the palace on Friday as the Royal Hawaiian Band plays on the lawn of the palace at noon on Fridays and parking would be free and much easier to find since it was a state holiday. I found out when I called that the palace would be open and that special ceremonies would be taking place at noon as well as an open house of the palace when the ceremonies were completed. I later found out that the special ceremonies were not specifically in honor of the state holiday but were in honor of the 125th anniversary of the 'Iolani Palace.

It turned out to be a perfect day to visit the palace! After a few trips around the block to find a parking spot, luck was on our side. We ended up with a perfect parking spot right in front of the palace! When we arrived, the Royal Hawaiian Band was warming up. The palace was decorated with two flags hanging at the entrance and people were lined up along the driveway waiting for the procession to begin.

One morning while up on the North Shore, Katia and I were hanging out on the beach reading our books, while Guido went for a walk. When Guido came back, he said started talking to Katia in Italian. I heard the words "la foca" and knew right away that he must have seen a seal! He said while he was walking, he thought he saw a big rock on the beach, but when he got closer, he realized that it was a seal! So off we went to check out this amazing creature. I have heard of Hawaiian Monk Seals coming up on the beach every now and then but it is a pretty rare sight to see and something I have never experienced in person. The lifeguard was pretty sure it was a girl seal. Isn't she cute?

I am always so mesmerized by the colors and the beauty of the ocean in Hawaii.
Here are a few of my favorite pictures:

I could spend an entire day watching the ocean foam. How beautiful nature can be.

One quarter down and three to go. The school year is flying by! I am now on break for a week. Finally, I have some time to catch up on posts from my mini-vacation this past August with my friends from Italy.

One of the places Katia & Guido wanted to visit while spending time here in Hawaii was the Byodo-In Temple. This would be a new place for me to visit also. Thanks to Google, I was able to get directions and opening closing times.

If you are a visitor to Oahu, I highly recommend putting this place on your list of things to do if you live here, you should definitely make time to visit this beautiful, peaceful and serene temple. It was a place I could have spent hours at if I wasn't doing the "around the island" tour.

The Byodo-In Temple is a full-scale replica of the 900-year-old Byodo-in Temple located in Uji in Kyoto, Japan. The Byodo-In Temple here in Hawaii was completed and dedicated in 1968 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the arrival of the first Japanese immigrants. The original temple was built entirely without nails and is said to fit together like a jigsaw puzzle. I am not sure if the replica was also built without nails.

Byodo-In Temple Entrance

Phoenix Hall

Mokoli’i Island, better known as Chinaman's Hat because of the island's shape, is a famous landmark located off the windward side of Oahu.

There is a Hawaiian legend telling how this island came to be. Madame Pele’s sister, Hi’iaka, the goddess of lightening, defended herself by slaying a giant mo’o or lizard. She cut off the tail and threw it into the ocean. Legend has it that this giant tail of the lizard became Mokoli’i Island.

Pictures taken at Kualoa Beach Park on a windy overcast day:

GO SOX!!!

I am in awe every time I am up close to this majestic mountain range.

The first three pictures were taken while at the Byodo-In Temple.

The next two pictures were taken at Kualoa Ranch.

GO SOX!!!

Laniakea Beach, more commonly now known as "turtle beach", which is located on the North Shore of Oahu, is known for the Hawaiian green sea turtles that hang out on the beach on most days. They have been hanging out there during the afternoon and early evenings for about 10 years now that I am aware of. At first, only a few people knew of the turtles. Then the massive tour groups started to arrive. Now tour buses stop at the beach and the traffic near this beach is often almost as bad as a high surf day.

The first time I saw the turtles, I was pretty alarmed with how some of the visitors were treating the turtles. They were touching them, crowding them, and some were even trying to sit on their shells. Now thankfully there are daily volunteers that keep the crowds under control and try to educate the visitors so that the turtles are able to have some peace.

I have been lucky to be at this beach a few times when there were only a few other people hanging out. It is pretty amazing watching the turtles "just be" on the beach. If you are ever visiting Oahu, I would definitely recommend a visit to this beach, but go on a weekday to avoid the larger crowds.

Here are some of my favorite turtle pictures:

We had a "SNOW DAY" today at school! In Hawaii, a "snow day" means snow will be delivered to your school instead of school is canceled due to snow. Twenty tons of "snow" were ordered and delivered early this morning. After all the rain we have had recently, I was worried about the weather. Fortunately, it turned out to be a beautiful day with rainbows in the sky. The temperature was about 80 degrees. A perfect day for snow!

After the first 10 tons of snow were dumped, the first scheduled, Preschool, Kindergarten, and Grade One came out to play. Each class took a class picture and then everyone went wild!! Santa also stopped by for a visit.

Halfway through our scheduled time, the second truckload of snow arrived. The timing of the arrival worked out perfectly as the students were able to see the snow being dumped. As the truck prepared to dump the snow, the students chanted "dump it, dump it!" and then squealed with delight as the snow was dumped in another big pile.

Channel 9 News came to our school and showed a quick clip of our Snow Day on the evening news, but unfortunately so far, it has not been posted on their website. If they do post it, I will do an update and add the video clip. Because I don't have permission to post pictures of my students and I didn't think to take any distant shots, I only feel comfortable posting the snow shots (without students).

Beautiful December morning in Hawaii at my school:

SNOW!

For everyone who needs a little beach right now:

I took these pictures a couple of years ago one evening at sunset while down at the Ala Wai boat harbor, which is considered to be the beginning of Waikiki. I hope you like them.

Wear RED, post RED, eat RED, drink RED. February 1st is National Wear Red Day to show support for women’s heart disease awareness. My hope is that with this day being targeted yearly to increase women's awareness of heart disease, women will become more aware of how important it is to be aware of staying heart healthy. My mom died of a sudden heart attack in February, 2000. I wish she was more aware of her risks.

Tips for Heart Health

* Don't smoke, and if you do, quit. Women who smoke are two to six times more likely to suffer a heart attack than non-smoking women. Smoking also boosts the risk of stroke and cancer.

* Aim for a healthy weight. It's important for a long, vigorous life. Overweight and obesity cause many preventable deaths.

* Get moving. Make a commitment to be more physically active. Aim for 30 minutes of moderate-intensity activity on most, preferably all, days of the week.

* Eat for heart health. Choose a diet low in saturated fat, trans fat, and cholesterol, and moderate in total fat.

* Know your numbers. Ask your doctor to check your blood pressure, cholesterol (total, HDL, LDL, triglycerides), and blood glucose. Work with your doctor to improve any numbers that are not normal.

These are 2 of my favorite RED photos.

The first photo is of a red hibiscus flower. I took this photo for a photography class a few years ago.

The second photo is a photo which was posted on the Boston Globe website this past year. I believe it was taken during Spring Training. We don't have Willy on our team anymore but we still have Manny & Big Papi. GO SOX!!

Kung Hee Fat Choy!

Happy Chinese New Year!

There are many traditions associated with Chinese New Year, including:

*Each Chinese New Year is designated by one of 12 Animals (in the order of):
the Rat, the Ox, the Tiger, the Hare, the Dragon, the Snake, the Horse, the Sheep, the Monkey, the Rooster, the Dog, and the Pig.

Angie of Vagabond Artist wrote a very interesting Chinese New Year post about
the 12 Animals.

This year is the year of the Rat. Traits of those born in the year of the Rat (1900, 1912, 1924, 1936, 1948, 1960, 1972, 1984, 1996 and this year): Quick-witted, excellent taste, organized, meticulous, charming, funny, sharp, compassionate, loyal, generous, greedy, quick-tempered, calculating, intelligent.

*Sweeping the home before Chinese New Year gets rid of any bad fortune that may have been in the family and makes way for the incoming good luck. Sweeping is never done on the first day of the new year for fear of sweeping away good luck and fortune.

*Staying up all night on New Year's Eve brings longevity to one's parents.

*Eating nian gao (a sticky rice cake steamed in lotus leaves) brings good luck, prosperity, and a successful career.

*Preparing and eating a fish with head and tail intact guarantees continuous good fortune. Breaking the fish is avoided during or after cooking as cutting things up is considered bad luck. The fish symbolizes togetherness and abundance. Many times, half of the fish is served during the New Year's feast and the rest is served the next day. Leftovers symbolize the sign of prosperity; that the family will always have more than enough.

*Wearing and displaying the color red also brings good luck (red clothing, red doorways, red lanterns, etc).

*The red envelopes (known as li see paper), which are often filled with money, are handed out for good luck.

*Popping firecrackers drives away bad luck.

*Lion dances are performed as a symbol of protection and good luck. It is also believed that the noise from the drums, the face of the lion, and the way the lion dances scares away bad or evil spirits.

Our school has been very fortunate to have one of the lion dance associations perform for our students the past three years. I missed the performance last year (was home sick). This year just as the performance was about to start, a big black cloud appeared over head. It started to pour just as the lion began to dance, so the kids had to run for shelter and it rained much of the performance.

2006 performance

I guess you could call Ewa Beach my new hometown. I can't believe it will be 15 years this June that I have lived here in Ewa Beach.

There once were two distinct towns; Ewa and Ewa Beach.

Ewa's history includes the sugar cane plantation, a sugar cane mill, and the Ewa Railway. My friend's mom grew up on this plantation.

Ewa Beach was a little town with houses all built near or along the beach. I don't know much of the history of Ewa Beach

When I first moved to Hawaii, I lived in Honolulu. I worked out in Ewa Beach for one school year, 1984-1985, as a Speech Pathologist, while living in Honolulu. I can remember driving by all the sugar cane fields down Fort Weaver Road to reach Ewa Beach. I even drove through a couple of controlled sugar cane burnings, which were a little scary. The sugar cane fields are now all gone.

After living in Honolulu for a few years, I grew tired of all the traffic and buildings and decided to move out to the "suburbs". At first, I rented in Waipio Gentry and Mililani. After a few years, I finally decided to buy. I purchased my little studio out in Ewa Beach. I have been very happy living in my quiet townhouse community (except for the traffic which I will get to) and have been very fortunate to have wonderful neighbors.

When we all first moved into this new townhouse development, we were warned that Ewa was to be part of the "New Second City". It was something none of us really could imagine. It was such a quiet peaceful area. There were only a few new developments built in the area. The traffic was wonderful, at least until we reached the freeway. It only took about 10 minutes to get to the freeway, 15 when the traffic was really bad. Since then, more and more developments have been built. It now takes me 10 minutes just to get through one stoplight!

Right now there are about 25,000 homes built in the Ewa/Ewa Beach area. There really is no distinction anymore between Ewa and Ewa Beach. There are now houses the entire stretch of Fort Weaver Road where there used to be sugar cane fields.

There are two beaches in Ewa Beach, with one more talked about "being built", whatever that means, and at least four golf courses. I am not a golfer, but I am very thankful for the golf courses, as that means no houses on those sections of land.

Two new schools have opened up since I have moved to Ewa Beach. There are now six elementary schools, one intermediate school, and one high school in Ewa Beach. We also have three shopping centers, one of which is within walking distance from my house. The shopping center by my house has both a Starbuck's and a Coffee Bean, which are located about 20 feet away from each other.

You would think that the roads would have been built as the developments were built. Don't even get me started on this subject. It now takes me 20-25 minutes minimum and sometimes up to 45-50 minutes just to drive 3 miles down Fort Weaver Road, never mind all the extra traffic on the freeway. They are working on widening the road by one lane and building one more road out of Ewa Beach, but the math is just not adding up, not with 35,000 more homes in the works to be built!

I really would love living here forever if I only had a "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" car, but the traffic is definitely getting to me. The problem is the cost of housing everywhere, especially where I would want to live. But someday I will be moving out of Ewa Beach, unless those roads come with those houses.

Here are a couple of photos (taken a few years ago) from one of the beaches in Ewa Beach. It's difficult to see but Diamond Head is in the background of the photo with the little girl.

My class along with two Kindergarten classes went on a field trip today to Ke Ala - The Learning Center, or what we still call "Makaha Farms" (the name has changed a few times). It takes about an hour to get there, with views of the ocean once we reach the Leeward Coast area. Every time we go on this field trip, it brings back memories of my first year living in Hawaii, when I worked out on the coast. I really enjoy the drive with all the memories along the way.

We participate in two activities on this field trip and then have lunch.

The plant unit is my favorite activity. The children learn about various plants, what they need to live and grow, and how to respect the land. They also have an opportunity to taste a few types of fruit, plant something (today we planted lettuce), and pick something (again lettuce).

The animal unit is probably the children's favorite activity. The animals sometimes change depending on the year. This year they were able to see ducks, geese, goats, chickens, a turkey, a rabbit, fish, and turtles. They fed the goats and ducks/geese and touched the rabbit and the chicken. The guide also caught some fish in a net for the children to see and there is a bee apiary on the farm, which we only had a few minutes to visit since it was almost lunch time..

Here are a few photos from the trip. The first one is my favorite.

One of my favorite trees here in Hawaii is the Golden Shower Tree. I was surprised to see that it had already bloomed when driving home last week. I always thought it bloomed in March or April as I remember it blooming around Easter time. I went home, grabbed my camera, and then drove back to take a few photos of the tree. Lucky thing that I did because today already half of the flowers have fallen to the ground.

The botanical name of this tree is Cassia fistula. I have known it for years as just the shower tree or the yellow shower tree. Only since researching this tree on my favorite encyclopedia, google, did I find out that the real name of this tree is the Golden Shower Tree. There are a few varieties of this tree here in Hawaii (golden, pink, & rainbow).

While researching, I found an interesting article in the Honolulu Advertiser that talks about some of the beautiful trees in Hawaii, including the Golden Shower Tree.

To finish out my tree mini series, the first time I saw the Rainbow Eucalyptus, also known as the Mindanao Gum, was a few years ago while I was on the University of Hawaii campus hanging out before my photography class began. I was immediately drawn to the beautiful colors of the bark of this tree.

The Rainbow Eucalyptus is originally from Papua New Guinea. It is grown nearly exclusively for it's amazingly colored trunk.The botanical name of this tree is Eucalyptus deglupta.

I took this photo yesterday evening at Ala Moana from the balcony of the restaurant, Mariposa, in Neiman Marcus. We stopped to use the bathroom in the store before heading out to our cars. When I saw the view from the restaurant, I decided to take a couple of quick photos (since many were staring at me as I was not a customer eating dinner there). The photo is not one of my best - just a view from the mall.

I thought more about Nordstrom last night and have come to the conclusion that the store in Hawaii must not be a complete Nordstrom store. Each department was very limited in their selection. Even the underwear/bra department had only 1/3 of the selection that Macy's has. I think the owners decided to only sell the more expensive items in each department, which I believe is a major mistake. The store was not that much busier than Neiman Marcus (which is always empty) and this was during spring break, a very busy time of year when teachers flock to the mall to shop.

I went to have blood drawn this morning (had to go first thing before I ate) and decided to stop at White Plains beach on my way home to hang out and read my book for a while. White Plains beach used to be a private military beach. It is now open to the public and is about 4 or 5 miles from my house. I parked my car, set up my chair, and started to notice a few people with cameras walking towards a spot a little bit to the left of my chair. I walked over to see what was going on. There, below a little mound of sand was a cute Hawaiian monk seal. I was so happy I remembered to bring my camera. I moved here 25 years ago and this is only the second time I have ever seen a seal on the beach (post on my first seal sighting). I talked to the lifeguard to find out if this was the first sighting of this seal. He said there have been 4 seals hanging out in the area for a while now.

After about an hour or so at the beach, I headed on home. I made a major change regarding my trip...no more Switzerland, and then checked the progress of the "where oh where my new camera could be". After clicking on 4 links to get to the progress of the shipment page, I was thrilled to see that my camera was finally delivered to my school. I jumped in my car and went to pick it up. I am really happy I chose this camera! Of course I just finished charging up the battery and have only taken a few practice shots in my house so far. I am thinking of going back to the same beach tomorrow to see if the seal returns to try out my new camera.

Anyways, here are a few cute photos of the seal on the beach. He or she was inching his/her way up and finally rolled over to snooze for the day.

Both of these photos were taken at the Iolani Palace in Honolulu.

Tomorrow we are going to Kualoa Ranch. You may recognize the area from films and TV shows. Jurassic Park, Mighty Joe Young, Pearl Harbor, Windtalkers, Godzilla, 50 First Dates, Tears of the Sun, Fantasy Island, ER, and Lost have all been filmed here.

We will be visiting the fish ponds first. We will throw nets in the water and catch little shrimp (and then throw them back). Then we will go to the ranch to feed the cows, horses, sheep, etc.

I am hoping for nice weather. The past two times we have gone it was raining or rained the day before. It can get pretty muddy. I am hoping for a sunny day tomorrow.

I am not a fan of long drives but love the views on the way to the ranch. This area of the island is so beautiful. Although I mostly take photos of my students when on field trips, I try to sneak in a few other shots when I have the chance. These photos were taken at the fish pond area during last year's field trip:

I drove over the H3 to Kaneohe Friday afternoon for an acupuncture treatment. The drive over the H3 is one of the most beautiful drives on Oahu. I made a slideshow with a few photos I took from the drive back to share with everyone.

**DISCLAIMER - All but the first 2 photos were taken on my dashboard through my not so clean windshield while driving. Although they are not the best photos, they will give you an idea of the views when driving over the H3.

The first two were taken outside the office where I had my acupuncture treatment. The second two were taken on the drive up the street. The next 7 were taken while driving on the H3 towards the tunnel. The last photo is a close up of the Koolau mountains above the tunnel. If you ever visit Oahu, this is one drive you should try
not to miss.

This is my team color "green" post. GO Celtics!!

The sky (somewhere on Oahu)

Hamakua Marsh, Kailua, Oahu (behind the Down to Earth health food store)

The Pali Lookout, Oahu

After waking up early this morning with another massive migraine, I slept most of the day. I don't have the energy to hunt for a scary photo and so I have decided to skip PhotoHunt this week. Instead, I have decided to post the following...
(I will be back next week for another PhotoHunt entry.)

After a stressful day at work many months ago, I spontaneously drove up to the North Shore (with an older digital camera). I hung out on the beach for a while. I packed up and started heading home when the the sun was about to set because I don't like driving home in the dark from the North Shore. I didn't get far though. After driving only a few minutes, I could not resist stopping at Haleiwa Beach Park to take a few photos of this beautiful view. I ended up driving home in the dark after all, but it was worth it. Although a little blurry, this is one of my favorite photos.

I stayed late at work today. When I opened my door to leave my classroom, I was greeted with this beautiful rainbow. I went back into my classroom and grabbed my camera (not a great camera but it did the job).

I couldn't decide on just one photo...

Every time I see rainbows, I think of the song, Hawaiian Lullaby. I was in a sign language group many years ago. This was my favorite song that we signed and the only one I still remember how to sign. I found this home video on YouTube of a Hula Halau dancing to the Hawaiian Lullaby. The song is sung by the Brothers Cazimero.

The news of the horrific terrorist attacks in Mumbai have been so disturbing. I don't understand how anyone can harbor so much hatred and kill so easily with absolutely no remorse. So many senseless deaths. My heart breaks for all those in Mumbai and all those who have lost a loved one in this horrible tragedy. It makes me wonder if there will ever be peace in the world.

For this week's theme, I decided on posting photos of the the sacred bell, also known as the peace bell. The peace bell is located on the grounds of the Byodo-in Temple in the Valley of the Temples in Kaneohe (Oahu, Hawaii). This five-foot, three-ton peace bell is customarily rung before entering the temple. It is said that ringing the bell will bring you happiness, blessings, and a long life. Ringing the bell is also said to send out a sound of calm and peace.

My all time favorite trip was a sailing trip to Molokai, Labor Day weekend, 1996. The night before this trip, I had dinner with some friends. They invited me to join them on their yearly sailing trip to Molokai. While having dinner, they mentioned that there 13 people going, which they joked was an unlucky number. They asked me to join them to make it a lucky 14. I was thrilled! My favorite place in the world is to be on a boat and three whole days sailing was a dream come true. Little did I realize just how breathtaking the views would be on this trip.

Early Saturday morning, we left Oahu and sailed to Molokai. On Sunday, we sailed over to Lanai, did some snorkeling, and then sailed over to Maui for the afternoon. Monday morning, we sailed around the North Shore (or what locals call "the Back Side") of Molokai. This side is not accessible except by boat. At the far end is of the North Shore is Kalauapapa, which is only accessible by plane, boat, and mule. After a day of gazing at incredible sea cliffs, many of which are the highest in the world, and swimming up onto a beach by an incredible waterfall, we sailed back home to Oahu.

*Warning - I took these photos with a crappy film camera. The negatives were pretty old when I scanned them in a few years ago. They don't do justice to the beauty of this island. I only wish I had a good digital camera when I went on this trip.

My friend's boat, the Kahala Kai, which is anchored nearby the house where we stayed on Molokai. Maui is in the background.

Delicioius fish for dinner Saturday night. The fish was caught Saturday afternoon, spear fishing off of Lanai.

First views heading towards the North Shore of Molokai.

The first of many incredible waterfalls on the North Shore of Molokai. The ocean was the most beautiful shade of blue. Unfortunately it does not show up correctly on this photo.

I was really stumped this week and almost gave up. I was ready to post this:

But then...

last night, when I mentioned this week's theme to a friend, in less than
a minute, she came up with this idea:

(I took this photo of the wide blue Pacific Ocean in August 2007 up on the North Shore of Oahu.)

Happy Holidays everyone!!

I took these photos on Monday at Honolulu Hale (Honolulu's City Hall).

To see more photos of Honolulu Hale, as well as photos of the Kamehameha Statue and Iolani Palace, click on...

After many days of cleaning, organizing, and tackling piles, I treated my self to a beautiful day up on the North Shore at one of my favorite beaches and then a stop at..

I wrote about shave ice once before here. My previous post on shave ice included a video of how shave ice is made. By the way, the proper name is "shave" ice, not "shaved" ice as many of the reporters called it when reporting Obama's recent shave ice excursion.

Haleiwa has two great shave ice shops. Matsumoto's is the more famous of the two. I personally prefer Aoki's. They have more flavors and the lines are usually shorter. Matsumoto's as usual had a big line out the door. I was very surprised to find no line when I arrived at Aoki's. I was so lucky. Right after I got my shave ice, the crowd arrived. Because there was no one else in the shop while I was ordering, I was able to take a few photos...

The shave ice machine (behind glass so not a great photo).

The sign with all the flavors. I missed getting a better shot of my shave ice being made because I was so distracted trying to decide which flavors to choose.

Watermelon syrup being poured on top of my shave ice.

My shave ice ready to eat. Yum!! I went with mango, liliko'i, and watermelon and ice cream at the bottom (I decided to go without the beans this time).

I wanted to take a photo holding my full size shave ice but it kept melting and dripping all over the place. I got it on my shorts and drops fell on my toes. This was the first chance I had to take a photo after finally getting the melting and dripping under control.

They really need to make a mini size shave ice. I can never finish mine. See my next post "aftermath" for the ending of my shave ice.

I decided to skip Super Bowl this year and head into town, figuring that just about everyone else on the island would be watching the Super Bowl. I am not a huge football fan. The Super Bowl to me means baseball season is almost here! I did record the pre game ceremonies to see Faith & Jennifer sing and also the fantastic half-time show, but missed most of the commercials and only caught a little bit of the game.

It ended up being the perfect day to be out and about. Gorgeous weather, no traffic, and ample parking, something unheard of on a Sunday. Before doing some errands, I stopped at the Kewalo Basin, a commercial boat harbor, to take some photos for a possible future PhotoHunt post. Below are a some of the photos I took on Sunday.

View of the boat harbor:

View of Diamond Head from the little park near the ocean:

View of the west end of Ala Moana Beach Park and Diamond Head:

I am guessing this is part of a shipwreck?? I didn't notice the bird until I got home
and transferred my photos to my computer. Can you spot it?

Views from my lanai this morning:

*will continue with Bologna tomorrow...

There was a murder at the shopping center near my house yesterday afternoon. I left work early after feeling sick all day and stopped at the shopping center to pick up a prescription right when the ambulance arrived. Police were everywhere. A woman was stabbed while sitting on a bench eating saimin after getting her hair cut. She later died at the hospital. She was a teacher, a wife, and a mother of two young children. The man who killed her was found sitting on the grass smoking a cigarette across the street from the shopping center. As of right now, most think it was a random murder. The woman was murdered about 15 minutes before I arrived at the shopping center. The man bought the knife in the store I was in probably a few minutes before she was stabbed. I often walk to this shopping center, and walk right by the bench where she was sitting. I still feel very safe where I live and I will continue to walk to this shopping center but I won't forget about this horrible and senseless murder for a long time.

I am thankful so many things, my family and friends, a job, a roof over my head,
my health, my travels, but mostly today I am thankful for my life, my life in this beautiful place.

Crowded Space:

Empty Space:

I was amazed at how many yellow photos I have. Yellow buildings, yellow Smart Cars, yellow foods, yellow vehicles, yellow hats, yellow chairs, yellow trees, etc. etc.

Since I have been blogging so much about Italy lately, I decided to share something from Hawaii. I have been walking by this gorgeous yellow hibiscus flower all week at school. The bush is located between my class and the Kindergarten class. I grabbed the camera in my classroom one day and took a few photos as our class headed to the bathroom, a place we visit frequently. I often joke that my desk should be located in that bathroom.

Most of the hibiscus bushes at our school produce red hibiscus flowers. We also have a few bushes with orange and white or light pink flowers. The bush with the yellow hibiscus flowers at our school is my favorite.

One more view...

This yellow hibiscus flower is not the native yellow hibiscus (Hibiscus brackenridgei A. Gray) which is the Hawaii State Flower. If you scroll down to the bottom of the page of this link, you will see a close up of the native yellow hibiscus.

This morning I had an appointment in town (Honolulu). I ended up getting into town much earlier than I anticipated due to very little traffic. I had about thirty minutes to kill. I decided to head up to the Makiki Forest Recreation Area or as many know it, the Hawaii Nature Center. It is only a 5 minute drive from the craziness of traffic, high rises, and noise of the city.

I am always amazed at how peaceful this place can be. I haven't been up there in a quite a while. The gravel parking lot has moved down to the bottom of the road. They have knocked down the old Nature Center (a great place to go on a field trip or to take kids to on the weekends) and built a new one. There are two hiking trails I used to hike quite a bit that start by the Nature Center.

I love walking around in this forest area. The smell of eucalyptus is in the air. Birds are chirping, the brook is babbling ( the Kanealole Stream), and the leaves of the trees are rustling in the wind. Oh and every once and a while you will hear a few chickens and roosters and if you are lucky, you will see a few hanging out.

Here are some of the photos I took today. The photos are of my walk from the parking lot to the beginning of the trail head. I did not hike today but hope to go back next week with a friend if the weather cooperates and do the Makiki Valley Loop Trail - the Kanealole Trail, the Makiki Valley Trail, and the Maunalaha Trail (all of which connect at one point to make the loop).

I took these photos while hiking in the Makiki Forest Recreation Area on Thursday.

Leeward side of Oahu ~ Makaha Farms

Windward side of Oahu ~ Aquaculture Fish Ponds (part of Kualoa Ranch)

The reason I am so late posting today is because I have not been able to make up my mind on which way to go with this PhotoHunt challenge. Meanwhile, I spent most of today dealing with a different electrical problem, trying to fix my *electric* Gaggia espresso machine. I searched online, got my tools out, and tried a few different suggestions. My machine is now in a bag heading to the dump. I thought of posting a photo of this machine run by electricity but it is just too depresssing. I guess now know what I will be doing with my birthday money this year.

So, it is now early evening and I still can't make up my mind. Since I now need to put all my energy into deciding on a new espresso machine (ideas are welcome), I am not going to dwell on which way to go with this post and instead am going to post all of my ideas.

Views, scenes, and buildings at night lit up by electricity ~ Rome

~ Florence

~ Venice

~ Isola Bella