Special Bonsai Garden on Oahu

Another reason why traveling is great.  This is a very special Bonsai garden.  The cove next to Sharks Cove on the north side of Oahu. The keeper of the garden is a homeless old Japanese lady who has taken this cove over and made it her own.  She lives in her make shift tent. The public ablution block is her bathroom and if she runs short of cash she sometimes borrows from the local firemen and always insists on paying back on time and with interest!!! (This info direct from those firemen who supply the loan).  The local authority leaves her alone while all other squatters get moved on. She earns her keep by maintaining such a beautiful water front. We watched her saying a little prayer over her little trees.  Her tools: a pair of nail scissors.
A lesson in non verbal and "just accepted" co operation.  ............This is her garden!  Note the detail.

She declined to be photographed in courteous Japanese style.

Interesting Hawaiian flag....Did you know........

I knew that Capt. James Cook had discovered these islands and named them the Sandwich Islands and I also knew that he met with a sticky end here, but I didn't know that Hawaii had a past history with the British much beyond the discovery. They acknowledge their past in their flag. The Hawaiian flag with the union jack in the top left hand corner flies alongside the stars and stripes all over Honolulu.  

For more info on the history of Hawaii centred around the British connection I chose the link below:

1.       http://www.britishempire.co.uk/maproom/hawaii.htm     

O   Other links are more American orientated and there seems to be a bias in all directions as to what happened here depending on the author..... hey, history was written by the victors.  The influence the British had is recorded in the state flag, just another very good reason why flags should be an acknowledgement of a country's past,  it gives interest and meaning to that piece of cloth, don't you think?

2.        

The 3rd flag in this picture belongs to the Dole pineapple plantation where we had the typical American fare!

pineapple ice cream and fresh pineapple for $4.95
We shared this......

another concoction. This person wasn't sharing!!

The plantation is on the way to the northern beaches of Oahu. A slick operation.

Turtles everywhere

The turtles are enormous and a great attraction. We spent heaps of time snorkeling on the north coast of Oahu.  

 

........and then there's the movie

 

Ko olina Golf and really interesting stuff!

Yes, we played golf.  This is Ko Olina golf course.This is Tone's "can't find it" tee shot.

Playing with Tony is different.  No one behind us and a paw paw tree right on the fence line of a locked up property........just had to pick the ripe ones.
It was golfing and harvesting. Well, they were only going to go to waste....and they were delicious.

 Haven't seen this sign for years!  The idea that property is private from intruders is extinct in Oz!






Another sign you don't see in Oz.....These beaches are for the public but it's private property. People have been warned, no compensation for being an idiot.

 This is a microwave!  It's a drawer without a turn table.  Exceptionally efficient!

What is it?  It's a "Daiquiri whizzer" for campers,silly! It runs on diesel and starts like some lawn mowers and the handles work Al a motor bike style. Rev it up for different speeds!!!  These campers were serious about their sun-downers!






Interestingly, the price of alcohol is way cheaper than Oz and we are yet to see drinking on the beach or drunkenness.


There's a message here somewhere.  The legal drinking age here is 21....

Tony's 70th birthday

Dinner at the Marriot KoOlina Resort

Graham's gift to his dad of "Grange" a decade ago, had made it!  Very drinkable.

.....and just to make sure guests don't get out of hand in the decorative pools around the hotel

They're full of small Hammerhead Sharks.

For more photos of Tone's 70th click on his Facebook badge on this site.  I'm on open wireless WiFi at the moment and it's taking forever to upload a photo. Amanda is uploading her photos to Tone's FB.

snorkling and diving

We now have Tony's Son (Graham) and daughter (Amanda) and her husband (Roger) with us. All here for Tony's 70th birthday on July 29.  They can be seen in the right hand corner of the boat.

Be patient.....dolphins seen more towards the end of this video.......  more impressive videos from U tube in side bar......

The dolphins were surfing in the bow wave as the boat was being turned around.  Sorry, no spinning captured on my video.

The most amazing feature today were the spinner dolphins. They're a smaller variety of dolphin and literally spin out of the water. 

Tone checking out the dolphins.

Today it was snorkeling for us and diving for the youngsters.  Unlike Australia the reef here is volcanic rock. 

Hawaiiam vacation 2011

Away from winter in Australia and a world away from the US debt crisis, in spite of being on U.S soil, Hawaii is  truly a holiday destination.  The people, whether local or tourist, are really friendly and chatty. I have been given discount coupons by strangers who have found themselves with an excess. Information is given freely and  the staff, wherever one goes, bend over backwards to be helpful.  Some of  these photos will amaze Australians who are used to excessive regulation.

What? 
No helmet!

Because the beaches are private property (but public usage) you've been warned. There's no compensation for being an idiot. A respect for private property.

 Another good idea. Pier/walls using the volcanic rock extend out from the shore and a short wall has been built between these pier walls to form a large pool area making it safe swimming without netting.   

Didn't know you could seat 3 in the front any more!

The arm rest in the front seat...........

becomes another seat......This was one of the large American cars!

Can you 
guess what
this is?

A microwave! yes it's a drawer built into the kitchen units and has no turn table!

Extremely efficient too. 

Not just a speed limit but a minimum speed limit as well.  Keep that traffic flowing.

Even in Honolulu workers have to deal with the end of day traffic heading home!

So, is there a downside?  One thing you don't come to Honolulu for is the food!!!!!!   If you're into hamburgers tacos and the steak house...that's it! 

But....if you're into shopping, I thoroughly recommend Ala Moana shopping centre. We must have walked 10klm and that doesn't include the detouring into the shops or the looking around.  We were there from 10a.m 'till 9p.m when the shops close here. We felt like we had dragged our eyeballs across the beach and for the next 24 hours looked that way too!!! We had shopped and we finally dropped!!!!

UP AND ABOUT AGAIN

Tony is up and about again having had another hospital stay.  At least this time it was at home. The upgrade at Pindara private hospital is fantastic and still on going.  Old scar tissue from 40 years ago had to be severed from organs and it was very successful. Both surgical procedures, the gall bladder removal in Cairns and now the scar tissue problem (this time via laproscopic surgery) were done by South African surgeons. Both surgeons immigrated to Australia 5 years ago.  Tony now takes pancreatic enzymes with every meal and snack. His huge loss of weight was due to non absorption of food. I'm happy to report he's now putting on weight.

SO FIRST TRIP WITH TONY FEELING MARVELOUS, WAS VALENTINES DAY IN SYDNEY.  OUT ON SYDNEY HARBOUR FOR DINNER AND CABARET CRUISE AND STAYED AT SEBEL PIER ONE UNDER THE BRIDGE IN THE ROCKS AREA OF SYDNEY.

A PIECE OF ART ON THE ROUNDABOUT WITH TONY OR THE OTHER WAY AROUND?

VIEW OF THE BRIDGE FROM HOTEL FRONT DOOR

SYDNEY CITY FROM THE BOAT. THE OPERA HOUSE WOULD BE ON THE LEFT.

 I WAS TAKEN TO SEE THE JERSEY BOYS. FABULOUS, SLICK, LOUD, BRILLIANT PRODUCTION. IT'S THE STORY OF FRANKIE VALLI AND THE FOUR SEASONS.
A BRILLIANT TRIP.

Behind the Harbour Bridge, Sydney

Darling Harbour from our lunch table. Facing west.

 The back of the ciyt from Darling Harbour, Sydney. Facing east. The restaurant (above)  is over there, on the right!