Paradise Cove luau (Photo credit: Anosmia)

Since we will be staying at Aulani Resort, it makes perfect sense to attend the Paradise Cove Luau! Located just around the cove from Aulani with mountains & the pacific ocean as the backdrop, were sure to enjoy ourselves.

Anywhoooo…

It was a weekend of Jamie+Tony adventures.  And because the spouse+I are such Friends fans, I excitedly kept repeating, “Jamie & Tony’s day of funnn!!!”  Surprisingly, Tony didn’t get annoyed once! Woot*woot!

The weekend began with a rock climbing session at Rockcreation in Costa Mesa.  We had won “climb-time” certificates over a YEAR ago from a silent auction and we finally found the time to use them.

Check out our awesome climbing shoes that smelled like B.O. Here I am in my harness – attempting to look as unattractive as possible.  LOL As for the rock climbing itself, well.  Let’s just say that once again, Tony excels at something and Jamie flounders about and attempts to survive.  He scaled walls like freakin Spiderman. I went up the wall like the itsy bitsy spider. Tony took some awesome pics on his iPhone since my camera died (which I should probably get btw).  There was this one wall that went at an angle and literally used every ounce of my non-existent upper body strength to stay on that wall.  A couple of times, I “fell” and went swinging across the wall.  It was definitely an experience.

Today, the spouse+I headed to the Getty Villa in Malibu. It was quite possibly the most perfect day to visit the Villa!  It was 70something degrees, the sun was shining, and it was absolutely gorgeous outside! As for the museum itself, the exhibitions were of ancient Greece, Rome and Italy.  I was a big fan of the dedications to wine ancient Greeks & Romans put into their art. And thank God for the descriptions that went with the artifacts.

Such as…

And… Who knew ancient times were so amusing?  And drunk???  LOL

After the Getty Villa, we drove up the coast to the Paradise Cove Beach Cafe that my sister had told me about.  The food was pretty good, but definitely overpriced.  And there was a sign on the wall that was grammatically incorrect and it DROVE ME CRAZY!!! It’s using the possessive of “who” and unless the sign is asking who the baby belongs to, it’s the wrong who’s/whose.  ARGHHH!

And the restaurant obviously shopped at Costco for their salt and pepper.  Hey, Kirkland! I’m sorry.  But if you’re going to charge $14 for guac+chips, then why the EFF are you putting out your Kirkland pepper? Rude.

Then there was this gem. Apparently it’s a huge bone.  But that’s not the kitschy-ness of it. It’s in the sign – where the “Gucci Indians” consumed the animal???  I don’t know.  I just ate there. 

Then there was drive home.  It was so gorgeous out that I successfully convinced the spouse to stop on the side of the road like a tourist so that we could take a picture. 

Success!!!

I feel like I should share the point of this post early on to capture your attention.  We saw three Orca Whales.

Now, back to your regularly scheduled programming.

This morning saw us in Paradise Cove.  A beautiful bay with scenic glaciers, small iceburgs, adele penguins and a summer Argentine research station.

We landed at the base of the research station and our penguin expert, Patri, directed us to climb the hill first while the light was good and stop and the penguins on our way down.  So if the penguin expert is advising us to move along, we, of course, started climbing to the peak.

I don’t know how far up we climbed but it felt pretty high.

It wouldn’t bother anyone until you get to the top and realize that the only way to get from the snow to the rock at the peak, is this narrow 3 feet bridge.  With a drop.  A long drop.  Jason, the expedition geologist, advised us to climb to the very peak and take a panoromic picture, but we contented ourselves 4 feet from the top instead.

It’s a pretty easy climb but it’s rough getting down.  It requires sitting on your bum and keeping your feet up in the air while you toboggan down the hill.  It was so horrible, Keith and I did it three times.  We hold the record for number of trips down the mountain.

We got so good at this torturous decent that we started doing the penguin pose on the way down.

We had a quick zodiac tour on the way back to the boat.  Saw some nesting birds and glaciers and stuff.  And penguins.

Tired of penguins yet?

Then we headed to our next stop,  Lamier Channel.  After lunch, the fam decided to head to the bridge.  (Oh, right, one of the best perks of this boat is the open bridge policy.  You can literally stop by any time for a visit.  My SIL and BIL have a habit of visiting at 1 AM before bed.)  Anyway, they headed down because we were navigating through an ice field and wanted to see how the captain and ice captain were getting along.  I held back because, well, I don’t remember.  It made sense at the time.  But it was the wrong decision.  Just 5 mins after they left, the expedition leader, Larry, announced an Orca sighting.

So of course, I booked it to the bridge too.  And tried to make it look like I had been there all along.

At first, it the whales were a long way away.  And the Ice Captain wanted us to continue on course.  However, the Captain made the ultimate decision to turn the boat around and head closer to their location.  It was tricky getting back through the ice but totally worth it.

At first, all we saw were birds.  Then through the birds, pops up an Orca whale fin.

Then another fin.  Then a whole whale.

Rich, another expedition staff member, advised us that the whales had just taken down a seal and the three orca’s were feasting on it’s remains.  And the birds were eating whatever was left.  Nice right.  This one’s still alive.  For now.

But it’s got trouble.

Finally, I started to get cold and headed down to our room.  The captain was starting to turn the boat back the way we had come.  Now, remember, I have horrible timing.  Usually I leave just before the most awesome thing happens.  Like the breaching humpback whale earlier in this trip.

I decided to make one more peek out of our stateroom balcony.  And two killer whales, swimming in tandem, surfaced not 20 feet from my perch.

For once, my awful timing turned out great.  From where I was on deck, I would never have gotten this picture perfect view.

Next up was an attempt at Laramier Crossing.  Supposedly the most gorgeous fjord in the world.  I wouldn’t know.  It was too icy to get in.  There was a huge iceberg blocking the path.  The Captain got us as close as possible then we hopped in the zodiac’s for a zodiac tour of the icebergs and seals.

See the iceberg sitting in the middle?  Apparently they are bad for ships.  (I.e. titanic)

Since it was only the second thing that was canceled on our entire trip, I can’t be very upset that we missed it.

Oh – have I mentioned it’s New Year’s Eve?  After dinner, one of the passengers who is also a vet and a standup comedian, Kevin Something, performed a short routine.  It was hilarious.  My favorite jokes were about the stupid questions people ask on the boat and it’s true, stupid questions happen.  My favorites:

1. When on the a zodiac, what sea level are we at?
2. When told that you can’t take any chickens onto the Falkland Islands, does that include Chicken Sandwiches?
3. When told about a time change after we go to sleep, one lady asked if that meant tomorrow’s movie was going to be at 7 instead of 8.
4.  Is this the same moon we can see in Texas?
5. What country does this Chilean military base belong too?
6. Does the boat generate it’s own electricity?  No, the boat drags a really long extension cord all the way from Ushuaia.
7. And the best: Do the scavenger birds eat the penguin eggs raw?

As it got closer to midnight, we wandered up to the 6^th floor deck where the crew had installed a 2012 sign that flashed at midnight.

Notice Keith has been swimming….

Because swimming one time in Antarctica wasn’t enough.

And then he wore his swimsuit to the bridge

Just another average day in Antarctica.  Oh -  and I forgot.  We saw another ship today for the first time since leaving the Falkland Islands.  I almost forgot other people still existed!

Happy New Year!!!

lovely, yet overcast, plus perfectly placed seagull, afternoon in Malibu

Some weeks breeze by, some crawl. Slowly. This has been one of those weeks free of any afterwork commitments, yet I found myself exceptionally exhausted every day. With Halloween weekend ahead, I’m a little more exhausted just thinking about the last minute costume I have to pull together.

margherita pizza from Bottega Louie

I look at this lamp everyday & wish I had a pair

Oahu is a 9 hour flight from Hartsfield Jackson Airport Atlanta.

The hotel was set on Waikiki Beach, surrounded by Palm trees. Tiki Torches set out along the beach walkway and hotel gardens.

A stroll along the beach as the sun was setting over the ocean, was I dreaming? Stunning white sands and frothy surf.

Most of the beach hotels had a catarmaran excursion for a few dollars, whether daytime or to watch the sunset over the ocean; complete with cocktails! Of course we had to try it out.

A place to visit is Pearl Harbour, named for the pearl oysters once harvested there, is the largest natural harbor in Hawaii.
The devastating aerial attack on Pearl Harbor resulted in 2,390 dead and hundreds wounded, and drove the United States into World War II.

At 8:06 a.m. on December 7th, 1941, the USS Arizona was hit by a 1,760-pound armour-piercing bomb, which ignited its forward ammunition magazine. The catastrophic explosion that resulted sank this massive battleship in nine
minutes, killing 1,177 crewmen

We took a shuttle over to the USS Arizona Memorial, a floating memorial built over the sunken hull of the Battleship USS Arizona, the final resting place for many of the ship’s crew.

Next we ventured onboard the USS Bowfin, also known as the “Pearl Harbor Avenger,” for a panoramic view of the harbor.
Going down below decks into the body of the submarine touring the torpedo room, engine room, sleeping quarters and eating area. Have you ever tried trying to get into a bunk on a submarine, my friend and I did!!!

To finish off our holiday a Polynesian Night out where we were entertained by ‘hula hula’ dancers and even the famous Haka was performed, with yet more cocktails.

http://youtu.be/SgfXPJKM86k

Me (in the yellow) and my lovely friend Judith.

This was the most beautiful and fantastic holiday. Sad to have to leave. Definitely a recommenation and thumbs up from us!

Aloah from Oahu!

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On the second day of our trip, we stumbled upon a Japanese Festival! I believe the occasion commemorated the dead. Participants chanted and danced around a stage where a band was performing. And just like every festival, street food galore!

Yummy udon soup

Surprisingly, even our Luau buffet had vegan selections! The only thing is, the surrounding paradise distracted me from taking photos of the food itself so I can’t show any evidence of my meal =( But here’s what we had: tons of carbs. Filipinos sure do love our carbs so of course I loaded up on them. For Luau dinner: Pasta with vegetables, salad, and Poi-a Polynesian dessert made of taro. I have to say, Poi was rather bland and tasteless, maybe I was supposed to eat it with something else? I should have asked someone to school me on this before I tried, oh well.

The luau experience was a whole-night event, a package deal complete with historical and educational workshops, two free drinks, dinner, canoeing, and a concert-and a free ride from and back to your hotel.

Concert

Admittedly, the Mai Tais got me little buzzed. Okay, alot buzzed. But hey, I was celebrating my birthday AND I was on vacation. And speaking of which, as soon I opened the door to our hotel room, a wonderful surprise welcomed me: a bottle of champagne, box of macadamia nuts, and a card with the “Aloha” sign carefully placed on our dining table. The staff of Wyndham hotel got me a gift!

The day of my birthday, August 28th, we decided to hit China Town for lunch. Japantown might have been a more obvious choice considering every other person I’d bumped into was Japanese, but interestingly, I couldn’t find Japantown on the map.

Chris and I rented a car so we wouldn’t be at the mercy of the bus’ arrival. Plus the bus commute would require several transfers and I was afraid I’d be famined before I could reach to food!  After we parked, I noticed the place was not as bustling as I had imagined. Most stores were closed and the people were sporadically few, very not China-town-esque. I assumed maybe we arrived at the dead hour of which most of the folks were taking a break, their siesta before going back to their hectic itinerary. Nevertheless, I was impressed with the architectural structures and landscapes of the town.

The purpose of getting there was lunch and unfortunately we couldn’t find a Chinese vegan restaurant. The few people we asked seemed disoriented with what we’re trying to accomplish there. After some strolling and asking around, we found one lady who confirmed there IS vegan dim sum restaurant but it was closed for lunch and won’t re-open until dinner time. Bummer.

Chinese Cultural Plaza at Chinatown Honolulu

Closed on my birthday!

Chris suggested to settle for a regular Chinese restaurant because they would definitely have vegetable selections anyway.

My birthday, can you see me in the background?

Mock Fried Fish with Sweet Sauce, ang sarap!!!

Chris and I wanted to hit the other side of the Island, North Shore.  We wanted to  just mellow down and see the provincial side of Oahu.

We settled to heading down to the beach-which was not a bad consolation at all.

To make it less of a risk, especially because I didn’t know how to swim nor thread! Chris offered that he would be exactly where I would dive, to make sure I’ll be okay. That sealed the deal.

On our way back to the hotel, we drove dark roads in random pouring rain. Normally, I would feel threatened in such situations. After all, you are out in a dark, empty, wet, unfamiliar place. But I was rather relaxed because every now and then we would see bicyclists on the road, indicating I was in safe territory.

Chris and I decided to eat dinner as soon as we get off the dark road of North Beach. And thanks to Happy Cow, we found a little gem called “Simple Joy”.

Veg Pork with Spinach Mushroom on the side. Sooo gooooddd!!!

Nothing like Pho after a long day of adventure

My birthday cake, on the house!

Simple Joy should rather be called Tremendous Joy. Their comprehensive menu similar to Loving Hut would bring out extreme joy  to every vegan who would walk into their door.

After a long day of adventure,  we ordered vegan pho and vegan pork dish with side of mushroom and spinach. Plus, we got a free birthday cake!

Our waitress tended to us with no sign of stress or irritation even though she was ready to close shop before we got there. In fairness, while Chris and I were on the road trying to look for the place, I had called Simple Joy to tell them we were on our way. We arrived probably 2-3 minutes before their actual closing. Whew. I consider myself lucky for not missing out on “Tremendous” Joy.

Luau Beach Games

Celebrating the culture and history of the island of Oahu, your luau experience has taken great care to preserve the special qualities that make Hawaii so unique. This luau package is designed to give you and your guests an authentic Hawaiian experience from the exciting demonstrations and activities, to the delicious food and the spectacular Hawaiian Dance Revue.

You’ll receive a Mai Tai greeting upon arrival and be adorned with either a fresh flower Lei or Kukui nut Lei. Stroll along the lush lawns and under coconut palms, which overlook a secluded beach with brilliant sunset views. Enjoy all the luau has to offer by participating in our Hawaiian games of skill, songs, dances, or the many arts and crafts demonstrations before adjourning to your exclusive table service meal, which includes the main show revue.

Luau Show

Your Luau Dinner Package includes the following:

• A Mai Tai Greeting upon arrival

• Fresh Flower Lei or Kukui Nut Lei Greeting

• Souvenir Arrival Photo (One per person)

• Souvenir Gift

• Hawaiian Games

• Shower of Flowers (Gently showered by fragrant island flowers)

• Arts & Crafts demonstration

• Hukilau on the Beach (Cast fishing net lined with ki leaves from the shore)

• Royal Court Procession (Reenactment of a Hawaiian Royalty procession, including a dedicated dance)

• Imu Ceremony (Ceremony to remove the cooked pork from the pit oven)

• Deluxe seating

• Two standard & Two Premium drink tickets (Alcoholic Drinks)

• Table service Hawaiian Menu

• Spectacular Hawaiian Revue (Main show)

• Round-trip transportation from resort/condo in the Waikiki Resort area

http://mydesigntours.com

So whatever you’re looking for, the Hawaiian experience you’ve always dreamed of still exists at this Oahu luau that will be remembered long after your Hawaiian travel has ended.

For further details on this and other luau packages, please contact (808) 366-0400.  A representative from My Design Tours awaits to assist with your reservation or inquiries.

Dinner and Show operate Daily

Further attractions, activities and transportation within the Hawaiian Islands, please visit: http://www.mydesigntours.com

http://mydesigntours.com/index.php?page=shop/browse_tours&category_id=31284e38cf242af7e9070edcf1a8a74e&product_id=433

I don’t even know where to start. Our family day at Paradise Cove in Malibu was seriously perfect (I’m still pinching myself). It was the eve of the Fourth of July so the place was packed when we got there, completely buzzing with good humor and fun in the sun. Heck, even Lindsay Lohan was enjoying the afternoon until the paparazzi came and forced her to bail!

We grubbed on crazy amounts of fried goodness and fresh seafood tacos, introduced my nieces Juliana and Isabella to the sensation of sand between their toes, and I ran after Juliana while she chased her new friends, the seagulls. It didn’t take long after my sister and brother-in-law dipped the girls’ toes into the ocean water for them to feel at home…they loved it albeit it being freezing.

I can’t believe that I’d never been to this stretch of So Cal sand before. I’d driven past the entrance dozens of times but never did I imagine that such a little oasis existed. The cafe and restaurant are two great dining options, public lounge chairs and day beds make the visit comfortable, and the quiet waters are perfect for relaxing. Because it is a private beach, you can drink alcohol by BYOB or ordering bottles from the cafe! It’s no wonder that the atmosphere there is so great – people are much happier and nicer when they’ve got booze in their hands!

Even though Paradise Cove has been around for a long time, I felt like we were lucky to have “discovered” it that day. If you ever find yourself driving through Malibu on PCH, make it a point to stop at the Cove. It’s too special to miss.

First  of all we went to a botanical garden, where mosquitoes decided to bite the hell out of me. This wasn’t the most pleasant of experiences, but I only noticed the bites once I got onto the plane the next day. It meant that it didn’t ruin my holiday but it made travelling a bit uncomfortable.

After that we had planned to go to The Polynesian Cultural Centre but the time was getting on so we headed out to the Dole Plantation.

Just a note on the plantation. Do not do the tour. It is really boring and there is not much to look at. The gardens are very pretty though and I wish I had the chance to have a go in the worlds largest maze!

After walking around in the rain for a while we went indoors and had pineapple icecream with pineapple pieces. It was AMAZING.

Then it was off to get some pearls out of oysters. I got a lovely black one and I am currently trying to think of what I should do with in.

Of course the day time ended with there being a huge rush to get back to the hotel to get changed for the Paradise Cove Luau which was definitely one of the highlights of my trip. The food was good, the drinks were flowing and the entertainment was impressive. I even went up to be taught how to hula!

It was a really enjoyable way to end a fantastic trip to paradise.

Lake Bryan, Orlando, Florida. ©Calvin Palmer 2011. All Rights Reserved.

Ricoh GR Digital III, ISO 64, 1/750 sec, f/4, EV -0.7.

The hippest neighborhood in Malibu right now is … a trailer park? Yes, say the likes of Minnie Driver, Pamela Anderson, and Matthew McConaughey. In Paradise Cove, whose pioneers included director Sam Peckinpah and Los Angeles Times publisher Otis Chandler, Vanessa Grigoriadis explores the surfboard-and-shirtless bohemian charms—not to mention those trailers, with their marble floors, Italian-granite countertops, and Sub-Zero appliances—which have sent the price of a tricked-out double-wide into the millions.

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