Fishing

I have been tagging along with Dan and his friends for the past week or so. I have been having a lot of fun and hopefully they haven't minded my constant presence.

Last night we all met up in Chinatown. It had been a while since I had been out and it was a good time. Our favorite game to play in the bars is watching hapless, lonely guys hit on the transgender crowd. Last night was no exception. Sitting down, the two "ladies" looked feminine enough, but upon seeing them standing, their man-frames gave them away. Oddly enough, most people don't seem to mind and continue dropping their "A-game." There has to be something behind that. I'm guessing a small part of the equation is alcohol.

I cut out from the bars early (and apparently missed out on the excitement) in order to get some rest for today. We went charter fishing this morning. We only caught two fish, but it is always nice to get out on the ocean. Later this afternoon, we are going to go to Waikiki for the Kokua festival. Jack Johnson, Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds, as well as Mason Jennings will be playing. I'm not sure if we will pay the $40 entrance fee or listen for free from Kapiolani park. Either way, it should be a good time.

We didn't really fish. The lines were all prepared and we just waited for a bite. After that, we did reel it in, but that was as far as we went. Someone else pulled the fish into the boat, stored it, and even cleaned it. We really just relaxed, for the most part.

All of us relaxed besides Mike. Unfortunately, this is what he looked like for the majority of the trip.

Kevin and I "caught" fish. What that really means is, we were the closest to the chair when the line snagged and we spun the reel. Pictured are two mahi-mahi. Mine is really bigger, it's just that Kevin is standing in the foreground (ok, not really).

Overnight at the Sandbar

Dan has some friends from Minnesota in town and I have been tagging along. Last night we made our way to the sandbar. The weather in Hawaii has been cloudy and wet lately, but it was a nice evening. Maybe it was because of the weather, but we were the only boat out there until after 9:00am this morning. That was a first for me. It was really nice not having to contend with anyone else. The sandbar was ours and the sunrise this morning was nice. There was a good number of clouds at different elevations and that made for some great color.

Pre-dawn

Day-break

Water and sand

Due to the sketchy weather, everyone (besides me and my waterproof stuff) slept inside. I finally got to turn my table into a bed. That was a first time the table bed fulfilled the bed role. It worked nicely.

Valley to the Top

Last weekend I went on a hike with a friend from work and his father in-law. It was the best hike I have been on in quite a while. It was a full day of scrambling through brush and walking up a dubious trail, but it was an enjoyable trip. We started just outside Honolulu and walked about 7 miles to the windward side of the island. Hard boiled eggs, homemade chocolate/honey bread, and a camelbak full of water were keys to success.

Orchid? It was a bit wilted, but this was a first seen for me in Hawaii.

This is a hill, not a wall. Very steep with swirling winds at over 2000 ft. Fun.

The hill we ended on used to be some sort of communications station for the Coast Guard.

A view of Kaneohe Bay from the top of the trail.

Parents' Trip

Things have been busy lately. I still haven't had a chance to post any picutres from when my parents were here, but better late than never.

My parents really enjoyed their vacation to Hawaii and I had fun showing them to my favorite spots on the island as well as some of the touristy things that I hadn't done up to that point. I'm glad they were able to finally make it out here. I took a few days off work while they were here and some of the key places we went were:

Arizona Memorial

Diamond Head

Sandbar (it's out there, to the left)

Kolikoli Pass

Maunawili Falls

Besides what's pictured, we also made it to Waikiki for a couple of days, the Polynesian Cultural Center, the North Shore, Mokapu'u Lighthouse (no whales, though), and Chinatown.

We were very productive.