Okay, so we made it back. We're still tired from the trip. Our last day in Hawaii was a good one, just like all of the other days! We woke up and went to Pearl Harbor. It was very sobering to see the Arizona and all of the names of the people who died. Here are a few pictures. This first picture is of the Arizona Memorial. The white "building" is built over the sunken battleship. You can see part of the Arizona above the water. There is still oil (2 quarts a day) leaking from the ship. The soldiers who died are still entombed in the ship below the water.
And here is a picture of the names of the soldiers who died.
After that, we went to Waikiki Beach. It was pretty crowded, the waves were itty-bitty and we decided to leave. We ended up driving up the coast (for the last time, sadly) and viewed the North Shore again. That is my favorite part of Oahu. We stopped for some shrimp from a shrimp shack and it was good, expensive but good. We also stopped at a fruit stand and had some slices of coconut. Then, we went back to Dan and Krystal's, had dinner, finished packing, and left for the airport.
Our plane left at 10:20pm, Hawaii time, landed in LAX at 6:40am, Pacific time. We were scheduled to leave at 1 or so in the afternoon, but God was very gracious and provided an earlier flight. When we were landing in LAX, I looked at our tickets for the LAX-KC flight and noticed that Seth and I weren't sitting next to each other. So, we decided to go straight to the ticket counter and try to get our seat assignments changed. The very nice guy at Midwest Airlines told us of an earlier flight that left LAX at 7:40 and got into KC at 12:30. We took that flight and our bags were able to go with us (they weren't sure at first if our bags would make it). Wesley, one of Seth's brothers, was able to pick us up. We were so grateful for that!!
I would definitely recommend that if you are able, to go to Hawaii. It was such a wonderful experience. We absolutely enjoyed our time with our brother and sister in Christ. It was such a great combination! To see God's creation and His power was definitely a sight to behold.
We were also able to get a unique alarm clock while we were there. Apparently, roosters and chickens run around Dan and Krystal's neighborhood. It was definitely a different experience to wake up to the sound of crowing. We were able to laugh about it together. Here is a video that Seth took of the rooster...
So I just noticed that all of the dates are one day ahead. And that is because I have been posting at night, but my computer has stayed on Central time. For example, my computer says that it is 3:21am. Of course, I am not up at 3:21am, it is 10:32pm. So today is Monday and I will give you a quick view of what we did today.
Seth and I got up and went snorkeling at Hanumuma Bay (I think I misspelled that!). We were running a little short on time and it took us longer to get through the lines and tickets and safety video and such, but we were able to have 45 min or an hour to snorkel. This is a bay that has is just so beautiful. I have to wait on the pics because I used the waterproof camera. But it was very cool. It's just so amazing to be able to be a part of a whole other world. It really is a different place. The sounds are different (I heard little snapping sounds today and that was from these fish who were eating things off the reef), the sights are different (of course!), the feel is different (it's amazing how different water feels), the smell is different (well, your nose is in a mask and can't smell anything, but you can taste bits of salt water and so that affects your nose, so you smell the salt). Probably the best way to describe it would be to imagine little butterflies flying around your face, completely oblivious to you, and being able to part of their world.
Then we went on this catamaran ride. It was very cool. We were able to go out into the ocean and have lunch and see some whales and some cool fish. Here is a video...
So to continue on what Krystal and I did when Seth and Dan went hiking. We went driving up the coast and it was just beautiful. The colors of the ocean were so blue and green! We then went snorkeling and that was so cool. This was my first time and it was definitely an experience I will never forget. We started swimming in this tide pool and there was a circle of rocks that basically allowed small fish in and kept the sharks out. Krystal showed me how to snorkel and we started in. It was amazing because I started to see fish and it felt like I was in a fish tank! We saw schools of fish and I took a lot of pics with my waterproof camera. But I have to wait for those to develop.
Then we went to this small beach town on the North Shore called Haleiwa and had lunch. I had a cajun chicken salad with papaya dressing. Then we did a few errands and the boys made it home safe and alive.
The next day, Saturday, we went with Dan and Krystal to a park. They have an outreach to the homeless in this park. Every other Saturday they bring food and basically have a cookout for them. They also brought toiletries for them this time. It seems to be a good outreach and Dan and Krystal seem to be able to have regular contact with them and have a relationship with them. There seemed to be some openings about talking with several people about spiritual/eternal things. It was a good start to the day.
Then we went to a surfing museum in Haleiwa and then out to a very good, chic Thai restaurant. Then we watched the sunset on the beach and came home.
Today, we went to their church and the pastor was a really neat guy. Seth and I were able to talk to him a little bit and he just seemed to be really open and honest and joyful. Then we went up to the North Shore again and had a picnic on the beach. It was at turtle beach and we were able to see 2 turtles sleeping on the beach!
Here's a picture of a surfer getting ready to go into the ocean. We had lunch on this beach.
After that, we had shave ice (a Hawaiian snow cone, kindof, but a lot better). Here's a picture of that! Also, Seth and I rode in the back of Dan's truck (which is legal in Hawaii) from the beach to the hiking point.
Then we went up to the westernmost point on Hawaii. It was a beautiful walk/hike to the point. We saw a monk seal, actually 2 of them! Then we saw multiple whales jumping/breaching in the distance. It was amazing to see!
We walked back to the car in darkness, which was hard because the trail was kindof rough. But we went to this small "dive" by their house for a yummy dinner.
Okay, so I do have 2 faithful readers! Yea! So, I will try to continue my posts. And I agree. It will be much easier to remember things that happen if I try to post more frequently.
So, yesterday the 2 couples split up. Seth and Dan hiked up this mountain, Ka'ala Mountain, the highest point in Oahu. It was a slightly dangerous hike, but God protected them and they had a good time. Here are a couple of pictures...
Okay, so it's kindof late, but not as late. I am going to try and tell you about our trip so far. We started off on a nice flight on Midwest from KC to LA. Our layover in LA was 2 hours, but we had to leave the secure area, go to another terminal and go back through security. It was fine, but we were waiting on line to go through security and I noticed that there were some lights and people walking around with clipboards and fanny packs. I told Seth, "There's something going on! I think there is a movie being shot here!" So, I kept on watching and I saw Ashton Kutcher. I tried to take a picture, but the security people get nervous about that, so I took a quick picture. The makeup lady got in the way though! Here's the pic.
So our flight over to Hawaii was over 5 hours long and on a much more cramped plane. But except for some turbulence, it was a fairly uneventful flight. We arrived in Honolulu and it was around 6p Hawaii time and 10p central time. The sun was just about to set. The airport is very open. Lots of natural light and fresh air.
The next day, Seth and I drove to Honolulu and that was interesting. We arrived at the dive jewelry shop to get our Go Oahu pass and took a tour of their facilities. It was very interesting! This company started and "farmed" black coral. It was in very deep water and very hard. They were able to use it in their jewelry and also used pink and gold coral. Black coral is actually the state gemstone.
Then we drove over to the east coast and went kayaking. It was so beautiful! It was amazing to see the bottom of the ocean. It was just so cool to see all of the different, beautiful shades of green and blue and turquoise that God made. I kept all of our valuables tied to my kayak because I thought I would be less likely to tip. But I was wrong. I tipped 3 times and when I went over, I was shocked that the water tasted salty because it looked like a pool. But it was amazing. We had such a good time.
Then we went to the Dole pineapple plantation, took a ride on a train and saw pineapples growing (they looked like cute little baby pineapples!). We had some pineapple ice cream with pineapple chunks on it, bought a few souvenirs and went back to Dan and Krystal's house (we are staying with some friends from college). We had homemade pizza and talked into the wee hours! It was a good day.
Today, Seth and Dan went hiking up this mountain. Krystal and I went snorkeling and drove up the coast. We ate at a really good Mexican restaurant tonight.
Tomorrow, we are going with Dan and Krystal (they do a ministry outreach to the homeless on the beach) and then to the North Shore. I will try to let you know how our trip is progressing. But if you are reading this, please leave a comment, so I know if people are reading this during our trip. Otherwise, I'll just leave a post when we get home. Thanks! It's off to bed for me! In MO, it's 2:52am! Hope everyone is getting some zzz's!
So, the clock on my computer (still in Central time) says 3:56am. It's been a good day, filled with lots of sunshine (a little too much), blue water (I've never seen so many colors of blue/green), kayaking, a diver's jewelry shop, and the Dole pineapple plantation. Our trip over will have to wait until tomorrow... I'm so sorry my faithful readers! :)
I am someone who likes the truth. I love the book "PostSecret: Extraordinary Confessions from Ordinary Lives" by Frank Warren and I think it's an interesting concept of how it seems easier to tell the truth about something under the cloak of anonymity. So this blog is about the truth about our jobs and what we do. It is the confessions of different people in different "jobs".
