Hawaii...specifically Oahu!

Wow, What an absolutely beautiful state. It is no wonder that the native Hawaiians are so upset about having so many people come in and take so much of their land. Life in Hawaii is slow. The highways still have sixty mile an hour speed limit, with 55 being the standard as you get closer to the city (or town as it is called here). Jessi and I are fortunate enough to have family that lives on the island and are willing to put us up for a couple of weeks. It has been the most relaxing of the vacations thus far. The sun makes relaxing much easier than the snow. We have spent several days doing nothing but lounging around the house and spending time with our nephews who are just about as cute and well-behaved as anyone could ask for. We made it to Waikiki and Honolulu and Jessi found tickets to one of the bands that she really likes...Motion City Soundtrack. We went there one night and saw them play. They played in a small venue called "The Pipeline Cafe." I think that we were the oldest people there who were not escorting their children, it seems to be a theme of the concerts that we have been to.
Jessi took me to a spa for Valentines day and we got a couples massage. We were both in one room and the ladies did a really good job, I thought that I was going to have bruises after she was done with me!!! It was painful, relaxing and invigorating. That is something that we should try to do on a more regular basis.
Henry, Cindy, Jessi and I all took a dinner cruise from Honolulu out in the Ocean. There was music and food and drinks. The food was good, mostly oriental, and served buffet style. We ate and watched the hula dancers do their thing. Then we went upstairs to the lookout area and saw a whale...well, the tale of one anyway.

We went snorkeling and got some pictures of some fish...but they are on an old-style camera and have to be developed, so those pictures are going to have to wait.

We also went to a luau! It was held on a resort just down the road from Henry and Cindy's place. There was all kinds of activities, from making your own lei to throwing a spear at a target. Jessi, Henry, Linda, and Vincent all got "Polynesian tattoos." Vincent's came off in the bath and it set him to crying. He was so upset that his tattoo got washed away!!! There was a hula show with dinner and there were traditional dancers from each of the original settlers cultures. The fire dancer was my favorite! It made for some interesting pictures...


We went to see the USS Arizona Memorial and stumbled across the USS Utah memorial as well. It was a touching place and very reverent. This was the perfect place for Jessi and I to end our enlistment. Our last few days of employment were spent on the beach...getting paid!
We only have a couple of days left and then it is back to real-life...or as real as it is going to be for us for a while.