So we're home now.
I miss Hawaii, but more so I miss Chris.
I'm going to sleep now, I'll do that whole "update" and "post pictures" thing later...
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Oops...
FRIDAY:
We attempted to go pick Chris up from base = epic fail. Security was tight for some reason...whatever. He came over later, met the next door neighbor who is his new best friend, and then made his way up the spiral staircase to our humble abode. Mom and Dad his up a local Italian restaurant for their anniversary, and Chris and I headed to Waikiki to eat at Hy's steakhouse, which was RIDICULOUSLY expensive, yet delicious. We roamed around for a while, went shopping, exploring, and walked on the beach and made it home at a VERY reasonable hour. Sort of.
SATURDAY:
After a lovely breakfast of toasted waffles, we headed to the beach to "get our tan on" and swim for a while. We eventually came back in and went parasailing in Waikiki. Well, mom and dad watched, Chris and I actually went up in the air. It was awesome. When we got done with that, we explored Ward Center (I think) to find coffee and a restroom. But Hawaii doesn't pee enough, according to Chris. There aren't a whole lot of public restrooms. Anywhere. That night we ate at Buca di Beppo's Italian restaurant and it was almost better than Hy's. But not really, that steak was like butta. After attempting to do the cool kid thing and go to a dance club, we discovered that, in fact, we are NOT cool, and just went home.
SUNDAY/TODAY:
Breakfast was a local crepery...they make awesome crepes. And yes, crepery is a word. I got a nice combination of strawberry, bananas, and nutella with ice cream, and Chris got cinnamon apples something...with ice cream. We walked around downtown Kailua, found a cool pair of sunglasses at Macy's that I wouldn't let Chris buy me, and then hopped in Marylan's Cab Van to go to the base. That was exciting...lots of guys yelling at each other. It pretty much looks like what the picture shows on google maps. Yes, I look at it all the time.
As of now, we're getting directions to the luau and gonna have us a good ole time, Hawaii style.
We attempted to go pick Chris up from base = epic fail. Security was tight for some reason...whatever. He came over later, met the next door neighbor who is his new best friend, and then made his way up the spiral staircase to our humble abode. Mom and Dad his up a local Italian restaurant for their anniversary, and Chris and I headed to Waikiki to eat at Hy's steakhouse, which was RIDICULOUSLY expensive, yet delicious. We roamed around for a while, went shopping, exploring, and walked on the beach and made it home at a VERY reasonable hour. Sort of.
SATURDAY:
After a lovely breakfast of toasted waffles, we headed to the beach to "get our tan on" and swim for a while. We eventually came back in and went parasailing in Waikiki. Well, mom and dad watched, Chris and I actually went up in the air. It was awesome. When we got done with that, we explored Ward Center (I think) to find coffee and a restroom. But Hawaii doesn't pee enough, according to Chris. There aren't a whole lot of public restrooms. Anywhere. That night we ate at Buca di Beppo's Italian restaurant and it was almost better than Hy's. But not really, that steak was like butta. After attempting to do the cool kid thing and go to a dance club, we discovered that, in fact, we are NOT cool, and just went home.
SUNDAY/TODAY:
Breakfast was a local crepery...they make awesome crepes. And yes, crepery is a word. I got a nice combination of strawberry, bananas, and nutella with ice cream, and Chris got cinnamon apples something...with ice cream. We walked around downtown Kailua, found a cool pair of sunglasses at Macy's that I wouldn't let Chris buy me, and then hopped in Marylan's Cab Van to go to the base. That was exciting...lots of guys yelling at each other. It pretty much looks like what the picture shows on google maps. Yes, I look at it all the time.
As of now, we're getting directions to the luau and gonna have us a good ole time, Hawaii style.
Friday, June 12, 2009
Semi-daily recap
The wind is blowing everything around in our apartment right now; it's significantly cooler tonight than it has been so far. Granted, it rained for a bit while we ate supper at Pinky's Pupu Bar and Grill. Yeah, pupu, go ahead and laugh.
Dad had a "Pittsburgher," mom had some kind of salmon thing, and I opted for a chicken quesedilla. Chris was supposed to get off work somewhere between 12 and 4, but lo and behold, at almost 5, I get a call from a strange number--Chris broke his phone (this is number 4...or 5. I forget) and they're working until, well, at least right now. It's 9:40.
Snorkeling was a blast this morning. We all got a little scraped up from the coral, but it was beautiful. The fish aren't really afraid to swim with the people anymore, so we got a see a huge variety. I had an underwater camera with me, so I took a few shots with that, then bought another one from the gift shop (for twice what it's worth haha.) We found a Walgreens and had those developed while we ate supper. Let me just say that taking pictures through goggles while dodging fish and sharp coral is harder than you may think. We got those on CD though, so maybe I'll get around to uploading them sometime.
That's really all we did today. Wake up, snorkel, go eat (Panda Express!) go back to Hunauma, leave, get ready, eat. Oh, when we went back to pick up the pictures we got Ben and Jerry's half baked ice cream to celebrate Momma's birthday. Now THAT'S a good way to end the night.
Dad had a "Pittsburgher," mom had some kind of salmon thing, and I opted for a chicken quesedilla. Chris was supposed to get off work somewhere between 12 and 4, but lo and behold, at almost 5, I get a call from a strange number--Chris broke his phone (this is number 4...or 5. I forget) and they're working until, well, at least right now. It's 9:40.
Snorkeling was a blast this morning. We all got a little scraped up from the coral, but it was beautiful. The fish aren't really afraid to swim with the people anymore, so we got a see a huge variety. I had an underwater camera with me, so I took a few shots with that, then bought another one from the gift shop (for twice what it's worth haha.) We found a Walgreens and had those developed while we ate supper. Let me just say that taking pictures through goggles while dodging fish and sharp coral is harder than you may think. We got those on CD though, so maybe I'll get around to uploading them sometime.
That's really all we did today. Wake up, snorkel, go eat (Panda Express!) go back to Hunauma, leave, get ready, eat. Oh, when we went back to pick up the pictures we got Ben and Jerry's half baked ice cream to celebrate Momma's birthday. Now THAT'S a good way to end the night.
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Upon mi madre's birthday
Yesterday we ended up scaling Diamond Head Crater. It used to be some kind of military post, so we got to climb up this joker using trails carved by donkeys. Yours truly was wearing flip flops...yay. It took us 40 minutes to climb up, and maybe 25 minutes down. The view of the southern coast was awesome from the top. We then enjoyed some nice shave ice. Yes, shave ice, not shaveD ice. It was amazinggg. We navigated our way around the coast and found "The Shrimp Express" close to the north shore and ate a pretty good meal before trying to hunt down a Pacific sunset. We missed most of it, but managed to get a few shots in before returning back to the apartment. All in all, not too bad for a first full dy in Hawaii.
We're now getting ready to go snorkel, as this is what Momma wanted to do on her birthday. The fish are supposedly more active in the morning, so we're up and ready to go--it's almost 7 here.
Hopefully, I'll get to go on base and see Chris tonight, which is a big plus for the day =)
I'm off to go swim with the fishes!
We're now getting ready to go snorkel, as this is what Momma wanted to do on her birthday. The fish are supposedly more active in the morning, so we're up and ready to go--it's almost 7 here.
Hopefully, I'll get to go on base and see Chris tonight, which is a big plus for the day =)
I'm off to go swim with the fishes!
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Top of the mornin' to ya!
It's a whopping 9:00 as I begin typing this, which means it's 2:00 back home.
We couldn't sleep in this morning, so we got up around 4:15 and headed down to the beach to capture the sunrise.
This is from our balcony before we actually left.
We spent a good hour and a half down on the sand, taking pictures of anything and everything. Since I have two cameras, I gave one to Momma, and between the three of us, I think we got everything. Here's a couple of my favorite shots from the beach. (Naturally, they're all mine haha)
The lonely coconut =(
And I'll end with this. I absolutely love playing with reflections =)
Mom's asleep on the couch, dad's standing on the ladder playing on his laptop, and I think I'm gonna grab a snack. No clue what's in store for the day yet, but I promise to let you know tonight.
We couldn't sleep in this morning, so we got up around 4:15 and headed down to the beach to capture the sunrise.
This is from our balcony before we actually left.
We spent a good hour and a half down on the sand, taking pictures of anything and everything. Since I have two cameras, I gave one to Momma, and between the three of us, I think we got everything. Here's a couple of my favorite shots from the beach. (Naturally, they're all mine haha)
The lonely coconut =(
And I'll end with this. I absolutely love playing with reflections =)
Mom's asleep on the couch, dad's standing on the ladder playing on his laptop, and I think I'm gonna grab a snack. No clue what's in store for the day yet, but I promise to let you know tonight.
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Aloha!
So a quick recap of the day:
We woke up around 4 this morning (CST) and got everything out of the hotel, mom and dad showered, we got breakfast, and drove all of 2 minutes to the Nashville airport. Our flight was scheduled to depart at 6, but didn't take off until around 6:20. The flight was short, quick, and painless, and it was rainy when we got to Chicago. Once we got to Chicago, we ate breakfast (about $16 or the three of us) and sat down to wait on our 10:00 flight to Honolulu. This flight was long and painful. 9 hours on a plane is NOT my new favorite thing to do. One of the elderly flight attendants had some form of medical emergency, which mixed things up a bit. The in flight movies consisted of "New in Town," "He's just not that into you," and "Confessions of a shopoholic." We finally got sight of the islands around what was 6:30 CST, and it took about 30 minutes to circle around to Oahu and land. We took a shuttle to the Baggage claim, headed down the stairs to find a shuttle to the car rental, and as my dad moved out of the way for some guy trying to go against the flow, I noticed that said guy was my Chris. Who wasn't supposed to be there. Thus, the first thing I said to him, after promptly latching onto him, was "you're not even supposed to be here." Real cute, Caitlin. Real cute. Not even "hello!" or "hey, you!" Just "you're not even supposed to be here." Whaaaaatever.
So we got our rental car, a hundai sonata (spell check me on that one) and headed to our rental apartment in Kailua. It's about 5 minutes from base =D ...not like I planned that at all. I can actually see one of the hills on base from the apartment. We got settled in, somewhat, and took a walk down the beach. It seriously took us maybe 45 seconds to walk there from here. Hawaii is so beautiful; it's unlike anything I could have ever imagined seeing in my life.
The plan for the rest of the night is to finish unpacking, grab some foodage, maybe explore the little town, and then sleep. So far, the jet lag has yet to set in, but maybe that's because I'm use to a certain someone calling me at the appropriate Hawaiian time. Either way, I bet it kicks in real bad tonight. We've been up over 18 hours, and I"m not tired yet. Something is bound to go wrong, haha.
Anywho, that's all I've got for now. I'll try to post pictures later tonight, supposing I make it through supper.
We woke up around 4 this morning (CST) and got everything out of the hotel, mom and dad showered, we got breakfast, and drove all of 2 minutes to the Nashville airport. Our flight was scheduled to depart at 6, but didn't take off until around 6:20. The flight was short, quick, and painless, and it was rainy when we got to Chicago. Once we got to Chicago, we ate breakfast (about $16 or the three of us) and sat down to wait on our 10:00 flight to Honolulu. This flight was long and painful. 9 hours on a plane is NOT my new favorite thing to do. One of the elderly flight attendants had some form of medical emergency, which mixed things up a bit. The in flight movies consisted of "New in Town," "He's just not that into you," and "Confessions of a shopoholic." We finally got sight of the islands around what was 6:30 CST, and it took about 30 minutes to circle around to Oahu and land. We took a shuttle to the Baggage claim, headed down the stairs to find a shuttle to the car rental, and as my dad moved out of the way for some guy trying to go against the flow, I noticed that said guy was my Chris. Who wasn't supposed to be there. Thus, the first thing I said to him, after promptly latching onto him, was "you're not even supposed to be here." Real cute, Caitlin. Real cute. Not even "hello!" or "hey, you!" Just "you're not even supposed to be here." Whaaaaatever.
So we got our rental car, a hundai sonata (spell check me on that one) and headed to our rental apartment in Kailua. It's about 5 minutes from base =D ...not like I planned that at all. I can actually see one of the hills on base from the apartment. We got settled in, somewhat, and took a walk down the beach. It seriously took us maybe 45 seconds to walk there from here. Hawaii is so beautiful; it's unlike anything I could have ever imagined seeing in my life.
The plan for the rest of the night is to finish unpacking, grab some foodage, maybe explore the little town, and then sleep. So far, the jet lag has yet to set in, but maybe that's because I'm use to a certain someone calling me at the appropriate Hawaiian time. Either way, I bet it kicks in real bad tonight. We've been up over 18 hours, and I"m not tired yet. Something is bound to go wrong, haha.
Anywho, that's all I've got for now. I'll try to post pictures later tonight, supposing I make it through supper.
Monday, June 8, 2009
Go!
So the trip has officially begun. We left the house around 5:15, headed to the La Quinta Inn in Nashville for the night. We made a stop in Clarksville to eat at Shoney's and pick up some last minute things at Wa*Mart we realized we forgot at. Our shopping list included: Claritin, Kleenix (dern allergies!,) Tide to go pen, baby wipes, and chewing gum.
Our flight leaves at 6 tomorrow morning, so we're planning to arrive around 5 or so. We then fly up to Chicago, wait for an hour and a half, then head out to the islands. All in all it's an 11 hour trip. There's a five hour difference between CST and...Hawaii, so when we land at (supposedly) 2:16, it will be 7:16 back home. It's going to be a long day. Good thing I've got my camera, Blackberry, iPod, and MacBook to keep me company!
I think Momma is about to help me paint my nails, for real this time, and Dad will most likely complain about the smell and go explore the neighborhood. There's a McDonald's close by; his FAVORITE!
I may attempt to stay up all night in order to sleep on the plane(s,) but I don't really see that happening. A full day at work, coming home to clean and write thank you notes has about worn me out. I think I definitely deserve a week in paradise =)
Our flight leaves at 6 tomorrow morning, so we're planning to arrive around 5 or so. We then fly up to Chicago, wait for an hour and a half, then head out to the islands. All in all it's an 11 hour trip. There's a five hour difference between CST and...Hawaii, so when we land at (supposedly) 2:16, it will be 7:16 back home. It's going to be a long day. Good thing I've got my camera, Blackberry, iPod, and MacBook to keep me company!
I think Momma is about to help me paint my nails, for real this time, and Dad will most likely complain about the smell and go explore the neighborhood. There's a McDonald's close by; his FAVORITE!
I may attempt to stay up all night in order to sleep on the plane(s,) but I don't really see that happening. A full day at work, coming home to clean and write thank you notes has about worn me out. I think I definitely deserve a week in paradise =)
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Set
We had our senior banquet at church after services this morning. To be honest, I felt like the potluck was kind of a let down, mostly because whoever makes that awesome banana pudding didn't bring any this time =(
Anyway, it was fun. We laughed, we cried, we did both simultaneously.
I came home and opened my mound of cards with insertions amounting to $160. I should be writing those thank you notes tonight so they'll be mailed before we go. Clearly, that's why I'm posting here...procrastination =)
I mowed both the front and back yard tonight/this afternoon, then came in to shower and found about 15 pine needles stuck in my hair. GLORIOUS.
One of my new favorite things is Pandora. Since I have no music on my laptop, and don't feel like downloading a virus via pirating, I've resorted to this. I just type in the name of an artist or song I feel like listening to, and it creates an entire playlist of that genre. The best part is: NO COMMERCIALS! I love it. It's becoming my new radio; I'll pick some music, put my computer in "sleep" mode, then listen while I clean or pack or what not. Granted, it will stop playing after a while if it think you're not listening, but that's fine by me.
Amazingly enough, Daddy fit everything he needs for the trip into his carry on and man purse. That opens up more room in the big suitcase for me and Momma. Guess who is now bringing her beach volleyball? =D
Tonight's agenda also consists of cleaning my room and bathroom and possibly painting my nails with my new OPI nail polish. That junk was 9 bucks, good thing I like it so much haha.
My mom is on the phone with my little cousin Caleigh, sounds interesting. I think I'll get out of bed and do something productive now.
Maybe.
Anyway, it was fun. We laughed, we cried, we did both simultaneously.
I came home and opened my mound of cards with insertions amounting to $160. I should be writing those thank you notes tonight so they'll be mailed before we go. Clearly, that's why I'm posting here...procrastination =)
I mowed both the front and back yard tonight/this afternoon, then came in to shower and found about 15 pine needles stuck in my hair. GLORIOUS.
One of my new favorite things is Pandora. Since I have no music on my laptop, and don't feel like downloading a virus via pirating, I've resorted to this. I just type in the name of an artist or song I feel like listening to, and it creates an entire playlist of that genre. The best part is: NO COMMERCIALS! I love it. It's becoming my new radio; I'll pick some music, put my computer in "sleep" mode, then listen while I clean or pack or what not. Granted, it will stop playing after a while if it think you're not listening, but that's fine by me.
Amazingly enough, Daddy fit everything he needs for the trip into his carry on and man purse. That opens up more room in the big suitcase for me and Momma. Guess who is now bringing her beach volleyball? =D
Tonight's agenda also consists of cleaning my room and bathroom and possibly painting my nails with my new OPI nail polish. That junk was 9 bucks, good thing I like it so much haha.
My mom is on the phone with my little cousin Caleigh, sounds interesting. I think I'll get out of bed and do something productive now.
Maybe.
Saturday, June 6, 2009
Ready
So today I successfully packed my carry on, complete with my two cameras, their chargers, extra memory, computer connections, external hard drive to put my thousands of pictures on, and so on and so forth. Oh, and I think there's a shirt in there somewhere. Maybe. And flip flops, I think. I've got my clothes in Ziploc bags ready to load in the one big suitcase we're checking, since that costs $15 now. GAY.
In exactly 3 days and 7 minutes I will be landing in Hawaii. I don't think you understand how FREAKING crazy that sounds. When Chris called this morning, we talked about everything we're going to try to do. I won't be able to see him until Thursday night, if not Friday, due to some training they've got going on next week. He's got Monday off work however, so he'll be able to go with us to the airport when we leave and spend most of that day together. I'm so pumped. I've got an agenda full of stuff to do while we're there. I've also decided I'm naming my new MacBook after whichever proves to be my favorite city in Hawaii =)
That's all I've got for tonight. I'm watching Sandra Bullock movies on Oxygen. They're all sappy and chick flicky and make me very ready to see my boyfriend.
The end.
In exactly 3 days and 7 minutes I will be landing in Hawaii. I don't think you understand how FREAKING crazy that sounds. When Chris called this morning, we talked about everything we're going to try to do. I won't be able to see him until Thursday night, if not Friday, due to some training they've got going on next week. He's got Monday off work however, so he'll be able to go with us to the airport when we leave and spend most of that day together. I'm so pumped. I've got an agenda full of stuff to do while we're there. I've also decided I'm naming my new MacBook after whichever proves to be my favorite city in Hawaii =)
That's all I've got for tonight. I'm watching Sandra Bullock movies on Oxygen. They're all sappy and chick flicky and make me very ready to see my boyfriend.
The end.
Friday, June 5, 2009
A Marvelous Beginning
I am hereby instating the use of this blog for my trip to Hawaii. I might use it afterward for updates on things such as college, but we'll see how that goes.
As of now, I am 4 days away from arriving in Hawaii. I'm about to go do laundry and do some packing =) I got off work at Pella at 11:30, so I have a little while before I have to head to Rue.
I need to make sure I can post pictures, videos, and update this thing from my Crackberry...
As of now, I am 4 days away from arriving in Hawaii. I'm about to go do laundry and do some packing =) I got off work at Pella at 11:30, so I have a little while before I have to head to Rue.
I need to make sure I can post pictures, videos, and update this thing from my Crackberry...
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