Waikiki Aquarium

Noel and a co-worker were installing ceiling molding on the first floor of the house one Sunday afternoon in late June, so I headed out to Waikiki with Robbie. I called Grandma and Grandpa Tipon to see if they wanted to join us at the Waikiki Aquarium and they were game. We end up arriving around 3:30 in the afternoon. I knew they closed at 5, so I was really hoping that would allow us enough time to see the highlights. Ha! We were actually “done” within a half-hour, and then we killed a lot of time by resting around the lawn outside while Robbie ran around a bit. I browsed the small gift shop, picked up some pins for Robbie, and we were out the door no later than 4:45.
After entering, we all immediately headed into the adjacent indoor wing. I backed out and wandered toward the front again, looking for a map. Well, they don’t do maps at the Waikiki Aquarium! And they don’t do air conditioning. It was a humid afternoon and the indoor wing was stifling. The inner areas didn’t get a lot of cross-ventilation, so I stayed on the outer edge. Robbie liked it, though, and had fun viewing the fish, standing against the glass tank walls, and climbing what he could. The picture above is courtesy of Grandpa Tipon. I had forgotten the camera in the car parked a few miles away, so I bought a postcard and scanned the very cool colorful clams they had on display (see below). Even if I had my camera, you couldn’t really get a good angle on the clams because they were under the tighter security of an extra fence. Sadly, I remember reading a year or two ago that someone had stolen some of the clams from their outdoor exhibit. I believe all were ultimately recovered, but it is still upsetting to think about a few individuals ruining things for the rest of us – not to mention the clams.
As we were packing up the car, Noel’s Dad said something about the dolphins not being very active. Dolphins? Even in the small layout, I had completely missed them! I also nearly missed the Hawaiian Monk Seal. He looked absolutely wiped out, resting in the sun and in a deep sleep. I didn’t even realize he was a Monk Seal until later when I saw TV segment related to the Aquarium. The pictures of the others I have seen – plus one we saw on White Plains beach one day in 2006 – were grey and speckled. This one was all black. I'll head back one day a little more prepared and with camera in hand - not in the trunk.

Misadventures in Fine Dining – La Mer

Noel’s parents celebrated their 40th Anniversary in July, so the five of us went out to dinner. Noel made reservations for Le Mer, a 5-star restaurant in the Halekulani Hotel, Waikiki. We arrived late on a Sunday evening - the restaurant was very quiet and the crowd was very thin. Even then, the staff made a very big deal about our table situation. The table we had reservations for (with a water view) was not yet available, so would we like to sit down and get started, and then move once the table was ready? I thought this rather bizarre and didn’t think it wouldn’t be necessary, but would defer to Noel’s parents. They didn’t seem to care one way or another either, so I guess the staff just assumed we would want to get started. As we walked to our table, Noel leaned in and whispered, “There’s nothing on the menu for you.” What? Not even a chicken course? Nope.
So we settled in at a very nice table with a decent view and we were promptly served an appetizer of one small puff pastry each, and champagne or sparkling cider. We all cracked up when the wait staff made a big deal of serving Robbie the cider, and it was even more absurd when he got the largest serving! As we read the menu, I realized Noel was right. Nada on the menu for me, all seafood and meat courses, no veggie entries in site. So I said to Noel, I’ll just see if they can make one of these vegetarian. I asked, and they did indeed have a vegetarian menu, and they brought it over. A three-course, price-fixed selection of veggies. I’ll take it!
As Noel is reading the menu, he asks me what “venison” is. Is it deer? I’d guess yes, but I really wouldn’t know. Then he says, “I’ll Google it!” And whips out his phone and proceeds to punch in “venison.” “Oh Jesus” I said under my breath, albeit a little too loud, because Noel says, “Did you just 'Oh Jesus' me?!?” Yes, I did. One, you’re using your phone in a 5-star restaurant, and two, you’re using it to figure out a menu item. He made a good point when he said, “You watch the Food Network all the time. Why don’t you know this?” I had to think about that one. I guess when I hear “venison” on any program I change the channel.
At this point in the evening, the wait staff said our next table was ready, so we packed up Robbie (who was already dining on his Cheerios) and headed over to another side of the restaurant. In the end I was really glad they made a fuss about it. We were seated next to the water, and it was as if we had our own private balcony. We could let Robbie out and he could wander around a little bit, which was a true blessing because our dining experience came to nearly 2.5 hours, way too long for a 2 year old to be confined to a rigid plastic highchair. Actually, none of us were able to sit very still for that long. It was kind of a nice excuse to have to get up and take a shift with Robbie.
But back to my veggies! The first course was a slice (think small helping of banana bread) of a roasted veggie, layered casserole, with a nickel-sized chink of goat cheese in the center. Not bad, although nothing to rave about. Second course was chilled tomato soup…served in a shot glass. Although it tasted fine it really should have been served warm. I wanted to send the shot glass back to be microwaved. The final course was really the joke of the day. The presentation was nice….steamed root vegetables in what I thought was some sort of dinner crepe. Carbs! I salivated at the thought. However, imagine my disappointment when I quietly tapped the “wrap” with my fork and found out it was just the papillote / parchment paper the veggies were steamed to oblivion in. (OK, I’m really not that stupid…it was a dark restaurant! It could have easily been some sort of “wrap!”) The plate was served with three small bowls on the side, containing two sauces and some white powder. I asked what the powder was…and they answered, “Salt.” I then discovered that my steamed-to-oblivion veggies were just that, steamed and not seasoned. At all! And they were just root vegetables, nothing fancy, and so over-cooked that they were nearly unrecognizable and/or ready to be mashed. The sauces were not that great, either. One red wine sauce that tasted too much like red wine for my liking, and something else that was forgettable. Noel sampled a few of the veggies, and said, “Yeah, those are awful.”
The others at the table seemed satisfied with their myriad of courses and selections, although they all were small. Noel’s Mom did manage to end up with enough left on her plate to request her remainders be bagged – but she is a petite woman who regularly eats very, very small portions anyway.
I’m thinking I really look like an uncultured fool with my review here, but here’s the final blow: the above veggie selections (plus desert) were $75! All other entrees started at $90 for only two courses. There are many more nice dining options in Waikiki that you can “splurge” for ($25-40 an entrée) and get 2-3 times the food, not to mention better recipes and flavors. So skip Le Mer and head elsewhere. The House without a Key and Orchids (other restaurants at the Halekulani), the Hula Grille above Duke’s at the Sheraton Waikiki, and The Yard House on Lewers Blvd. are all “approved” by me. I can’t wholeheartedly recommend Roy’s (a new location opened up in Waikiki this Spring) – but that’s a subject for another blog. And I promise I will no longer snub my nose at the folks we walk by occasionally, waiting for over an hour or more for chain restaurants like Cheesecake Factory. I might even join them next time!

Lunar Eclipse

Noel and I became backyard astronomers, err, make that front yard astronomers, on the evening of Monday August 27 / morning of Tuesday, August 28 during the lunar eclipse. Noel set up the camera, long lens, and tripod a few feet from our front door and we took a series of shots from the early stages to the middle of the event. We gave up near 1:00 AM as we felt we'd seen the best and a wide cloud rolled in and obscured any further viewing. I don't recall ever seeing a really good lunar eclipse like this one so it was fun for me. I have great memories of watching a solar eclipse back in St. Lucia with students one afternoon when school was in session, passing around and sharing one small piece of glass removed from a welder's helmut to see it safely (it was a vocation school). Sadly, no pictures to share from back then. How that would be different now!
Here's the eclipse progression - maybe over an hour and a half or so.

Dora Ruins Day at Beach

One of my favorite things to do on the Leeward side of the island is to head to a small, local beach down the road from Kapolei and look for turtles in the water. It’s actually about a mile down from a fairly popular local surf spot, but this particular beach isn’t surfable and the current is strong so whoever ventures in doesn’t go too far. So the waters are not too crowded and the turtles are easy to spot pretty close to the shore. A lot of local folks also like the location for their beach parties. And when the locals party on the beach it’s an all-day thing and they go all out. Vanloads of supplies, coolers, food, toys, you name it. Beach parties are a big operation.
On a recent Sunday morning my fave activity crossed paths with this other local fave activity…and in addition to the food and music, they set up a bounce house near the beach. There’s actually plenty of room to do it and in the past they never bothered me, but this family chose to set up a Dora the Explorer bounce house and then keep the generator on the whole time I was there. (In the picture, you can see the generator between the house and the utility pole.) It was loud and I have a hunch that the sound and vibration scared away the turtles. The tide was pretty high that day and the current stronger than I’ve seen in a while, so it wasn’t prime turtle watching conditions anyway, but I still think the generator played a part. I did see turtles come up farther out than usual, but the water was murky and you couldn’t track where they went very well. I sat for a while watching, but got kind of dizzy scanning the water and I gave up on getting any turtle pictures. I’ll check the surf report before I head out next time and avoid heavy currents.

I did take two shots that morning that I found interesting. The two kind of sum up the Leeward side for me. Looking to my left (shown above), I saw a pretty stretch of coastline, complete with blue water and palm trees. From the same spot to my right (shown below) I saw industrial facilities and a working smoke stack!

Backyard Bird Watch Begins!

For a long time now I've wished I had a bird feeder in our yard. Before our backyard was decked and landscaped, I thought a good place would be to hang it somewhere in the front. But now that our backyard is much more fun, I thought I'd hang one where Robbie and I could enjoy the birds while playing on the deck. I ran out to Home Depot one weekend and picked up a simple, cute little model and now it's installed. There are no squirrels here, so I could get a cheap, uncomplicated style. Plus, it was the only one I didn't break standing in the store aisle when I was trying to figure out how to open and fill it! (Seriously, are those things squirrel proof or human proof?) I've picked up some bird seed at the Commissary for $3.79 a bag. We'll see how far that takes us. I fear that this latest venture will nickel and dime us, but I will continue at least until I get some good pictures. I've conveniently swung the feeder over the side of our fence into the common area but so far bird waste is still winding up in our side of the fence. Now we'll see how long it takes for our grumpy neighbor down the street to complain! Noel has already snapped a few pictures of the birds last week - they will be posted when I get them off the camera.

The End of Summer Savings

Sometime in April or May our AC system went down. It still powered on and off, but it just didn’t cool down the house. So we put up with it a while, tried to do some troubleshooting ourselves by checking and replacing the indoor filter, but otherwise lived with it. But recently Noel had had enough with the stale air and open windows and called an AC repairman he spotted on the freeway while stuck in traffic. He gets a quote for $65 an hour, so he says, “Great, how soon can you come?”

My worst fear was that the $100 or so that we’d saved every month on our utility bill since the breakdown would be for naught with a $400+ repair bill! So I held my breath as the guy went to work. Within less than an hour, he came in and announced all was good to go. He found and patched a burnt wire somewhere in the main outside unit. And he only charged us $65! I was so relieved. Sadly, this means our bills will jump up again, but hopefully only a month or so more of hot temps here. And no doubt I will like having the option of a working AC when the baby comes.

The picture above is placed here for two reasons: Not only does it showcase the working AC unit, but it also puts our side yard on display. For those who haven’t visited and haven’t seen the eyesore that was our yard in person - this side yard was in bad shape until this past April. Noel’s Dad found us a contractor who cleaned up the area, planted grass and trees, and even installed a sprinkler system. I haven’t done anything and see how nice it looks! (Well, I should note that recently Noel's Dad borrowed a lawn mower from a neighbor and trimmed the out-of-control grass seen here.) A working AC and landscaped yard…two huge things we don’t have to worry about when we sell the house!

Got Dead Bird?

Another from the “only in Hawaii” file – I bring you the state-sponsored Got Dead Bird? site. A co-worker heard it on the radio driving in one morning. Originally, it looks like it was intended to be a way for residents to track and report dead birds for government officials to determine if they wanted to investigate possible West Nile virus or Bird Flu infections. But it’s been reported recently that there are a large number of wild chickens and roosters on Kauai dying mysteriously in parking lots and along the roadside, so officials are encouraging those on Kauai to report dead chickens and roosters here. It’s sad that this is necessary, but I can’t figure out what makes me laugh more - the title of the site itself or the upside-down “dead” bird logo.
Click the Gallery link for a handy reference for you casual bird watchers! I feel vindicated in a way. At some point during our stay here I went to the Dole Plantation to take pictures of the Dole gardens. I asked the garden docent about what types of birds I saw around. She didn’t really know for sure, but guessed that the Zebra Dove was a dove, and the Red-Crested Cardinal was a cardinal. Flash forward many months later and I’m walking along the Ko Olina coves with Robbie one evening. We’d paused to watch the birds when a nearby tourist, also watching the birds, asked me if I knew what they were. I reported what I understood, that I thought one was a dove. Well, that information was quickly dismissed by said tourist, with a “no” and told me some contradicting bird information. I shuffled away with my chin down, mumbling, “Well, that’s just what I was told one day…” So imagine my surprise when I see this reference and find out that sweet college kid working at the Dole Plantation was indeed on the right path and had not done me wrong! Take that know-it-all tourist!

The Great Turtle Shot!

I’ve sent this to a few people, but thought I should make the distribution global. No, the attached picture was not doctored in Photoshop! Earlier this Spring, Noel and a few co-workers went out on a snorkel / swim with turtles / see spinner dolphins cruise off the Waianae coast (another reason to get off the beaten path here...at least out of Waikiki!). I'm not sure if the cruise operators got mad at Noel for getting so close (I think this distance just may be illegal), but I think he just kind of drifted toward the turtle (who was possibly in a drift of his own) and the turtle didn't swim away quickly. In the shot, Noel is looking down and advancing a disposable camera. The tour hires a professional photographer to get in the water and take shots of the cruisers, and Noel bought this one from him. I can’t wait to go months from now, definitely after the baby arrives, sometime before we leave here. Noel said he saw a ton of dolphins up close from the boat, but they swim away the minute anyone gets out of the boat into the water. But all the turtles - lots of them - stick around. Here’s another one from the professional photographer.

Superferry, Super Brouhaha

Long time in the making, both in planning and opposition (!), the Hawaii inter-island Superferry is finally here and making big, big waves. A coalition of Maui environmental groups tried to put a last-minute stop to the Oahu-Maui route days before the kick-off of daily service, but the judge merely ordered an environmental assessment and didn't stop service. So that prompted a "It's a go!" $5 sale...Superferry executives offered a special deal of $5 one way for a person or a vehicle for the next two weeks, with service starting on Sunday to Maui and Kauai. By end of day Sunday, nearly 95% of the discount fares were snatched up. Initial Sunday service to Maui went well, and there were only a few protestors on the dock with signs, etc. Folks protesting Sunday night's passage from Oahu to Kauai were a different story. Swimmers, surfers, and kayakers met the boat at the entrance of the dock and temporarily blocked the Ferry docking. The Coast Guard plucked folks from the water, but only arrested a handful. Once the Ferry docked and the cars were unloading, protestors on the ground surrounded cars and beat on windows!

Flash forward to a Maui courtroom on Monday morning, and another judge temporarily halted the Oahu-Maui route. Then on Monday night, a reinforced “flotilla” got back in the Kauai waters to block the Ferry again, this time at the entrance to the harbor. After waiting for nearly 3 hours to dock, the Ferry was forced to turn around and sail back to Oahu despite the Coast Guard making significantly more arrests. Noel and I laugh as we watch the news reports and see all those people who have now find themselves in legal trouble and face stiff, federal penalties ($32,500!). I'm sure they are proud of their efforts, but did they realize this could have been handled in court like the civilized folks on Maui, and the Oahu-Kauai route would have been grounded, instead of idling in Nawiliwili Harbor for hours and no doubt causing some sort of environmental disruption? But it worked. The Coast Guard determined they would not be able to keep the peace and keep the protestors safe in or out of the water, so the Superferry to Kauai has also been haulted. (Terrorists, do NOT take note of what can cause the Coast Guard to throw in the towel!) And just this past Friday, the court determined that the State was in error in granting the Hawaii Department of Transportation an exemption in a stage of the environment review process a few years ago. Now Superferry service to Maui has been suspended for at least another week while Superferry lawyers and execs fight to continue service concurrently with an environmental assessment.

So why am I bringing all of this up? Well, Noel jumped on the $5 deals and secured tickets for himself and his parents to head to Maui for an overnighter, departing Friday morning August 31. I'd asked Noel to take along his camera equipment and take some photos of the people and places, but it isn’t meant to be for a while. In the bigger (and sadder) picture, this issue has divided the islands, pitting folks from Maui, Kauai, and Oahu against each other.

Elvis Returns to Honolulu

Another entry fitting the “What’s going on out here?” theme: a new Elvis statue. Funded by the cable network TV Land, it sits in downtown Honolulu next to a concert hall.
From the Honolulu Advertiser: “The King is immortalized wearing his beaded and studded show jumpsuit and in a singing pose. The statue is a tribute to Elvis' 1973 concert from the site that was dubbed ‘Elvis: Aloha from Hawaii.’ The massive bronze statue will be on the Ward Avenue side of the complex near the box office.” The Honolulu Weekly pointed out that unlike the US Postal service stamp release in the 90s, no one got to vote on the “skinny” or “fat” Elvis, so it looks like they went for something in between. His head is kind of big, while his body - even in the "later years" jumpsuit - is rather fit.
I thought it was kind of odd that they dropped him near the ticket booth. To me it is a sad connection to his lasting commercialism and money-making machine, not his legions of admirers or his impact on music.
Elvis does not have a lei, at least not one in bronze. Evidently flowers, or the sort of detail needed for a lei, are very hard to cast. So he’ll get the real thing every now and then, a la Duke Kahanamoku in Waikiki and King Kamehameha a few miles away on King St. A few cheap ones are thrown around him here.