Week 3 - Newport Beach!

Time to wrap up my time in Pacific Beach and head to Newport Beach for a few days with some great fun friends. Cheryl had arrived for the last few days to hang out with me in Pacific Beach at my AirBNB and it was fun to take her to all the fun spots I had discovered. The BEST fish tacos, ice cream, brunch and places to visit the seals and sea lions.

We picked up the rental car and decided to stop on the way to Newport to check out a donut shop I had read about that was supposedly legendary in Cardiff By The Sea. Is 30 miles too far to go for a donut? Nope! And it definitely did not disappoint. It was a Saturday and appeared that every human within a 15 mile radius was there in spite of the rain. Packed! But clearly not a first for the staff and they very efficiently kept the line moving. But what to get? We picked a cinnamon roll, a few donuts and some gorgeous cookies to share with the friends we were picking up in Newport. It is a beautiful town right on the coast but sadly due to the torrential rain we headed to Newport after the stop.

We stayed at the beautiful Marriott Newport Coast Villas and they were great. We had a two bedroom villa with a living room and full kitchen so plenty of room to spread out. It was chillier than normal but all the pools were heated to a very comfortable temperature and plenty of hot tubs which we managed to enjoy.

Sunday was a beautiful day so we wanted to make the most of it and did just that. Started out at Wilma’s Patio on Balboa Island for a delicious brunch. You might call those drinks Bloody Mary’s but we prefer to think of them as salads 😂

Then a walk all around Balboa Island. The homes are so cute and really sandwiched into every possible space and a beautiful harbor. Lots of cute shops and amazing landscaping.

After Balboa Island we headed to Inspiration Point. A beautiful spot in Corona Del Mar. A gorgeous point overlooking Newport Harbor and the beach. A great place to look at tide pools and dodge the waves. Oops one of the waves got Cheryl and the water was COLD! Love these ladies! We always have a great time when we are together💕

We had a fabulous dinner at Gulfstream in Corona Del Mar. Awesome fire-pits outside to have a nice glass of wine while waiting for your table. I love this picture of Harriett (second from left). She has the best laugh and it comes from her soul. She always says no one has it better than we do and she is right! I didn’t do a great job of taking pictures of our food. It’s a lovely restaurant but the lighting wasn’t conducive to great pictures - or more likely I’m just not a professional photographer so trust me the food was excellent. If you eat there I highly recommend the biscuits on the appetizer menu. Order twice as many as you think you can eat and you will finish them. And the roasted artichoke. Best ever! Everything we had was delicious and we each had a bite of the lemon meringue pie for dessert. One bite was all we had room for. Yumm!

We ended a great day in the hot tub! The next morning sadly it was raining again - but it didn’t deter us from our reservation at The Beachcomber in Crystal Cove. I have never visited this area without making sure to have breakfast there. So much history! There is an enclave of 46 vintage cottages that date back to the 1930’s that are being renovated by the California State Parks and the Crystal Cove Conservancy many of which you can rent out. The food is great at this little spot but reservations essential. Beignet appetizer to start! Why not?

Profile pics for everyone on this cool beach right in the tide pools. Clockwise starting top left: Cheryl, Deidre, me, Harriett. I have such great friends!

For our last night together we picked another awesome restaurant I have been to before - The Bungalow again in Corona Del Mar. We went for happy hour and ended up just making it our dinner place too. Shared a good bottle of Champagne and some yummy appetizers and sandwich specials and finished by sharing a dessert that was called butter cake - but was like a St Louis Gooey Butter Cake made better with ice cream and whipped cream. Yes even better!

That was it for our time together in Newport Beach. But my time in California was not over yet. We took Cheryl and Harriett to the airport and then Deidre and I headed up the coast to Santa Barbara. Girls Gone Wild Part Two! Well not really but check back soon as we did a lot there and had another great time!

San Diego Week Two

I’m starting to feel like a local! Another fun week here in Southern California. I have walked a ton of miles! It’s a reminder to me everyday of how fortunate I am to be in good health. I don’t take it lightly. There will come a day when I am not able - but today is not that day! So here are the highlights of places I have been this week.

I spent most of a day at the Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve. It is located right next to the famous golf course but doesn’t overlap. It is almost 2000 acres and named after our nation’s rarest pine tree. Beautiful hiking trails with gorgeous views of the Pacific Ocean, sandstone cliffs, natural vegetation and beach access. Some of the trails are fairly flat and easy to navigate but there are significant stairs and an uphill climb for others. Totally worth the time. I love this view of the trail to the beach.

That’s me standing on Flat Rock which is at the very southern end of the reserve. Not as easy as you might think to get up on it! Bottom left is the Torrey Pine tree.

From Flat Rock I headed south walking down the beach, and was a bit nervous that everyone else was heading back north. First thing I saw was a sign that said “Unstable Cliffs Stay Back”. Well my option was walk by the unstable cliffs or stay really close to the water and hope I didn’t get hit by a big wave. I had thankfully checked on the tide before concocting this plan and was assured it was low tide until later in the afternoon. At high tide there is no beach at all. My plan was to end up at the Cliff Hanger Cafe about a mile and a half down the beach and get a bite to eat while watching people much braver than I paragliding. So while I was definitely the only person on the beach I continued my trek. This is not an idol threat as just last week on the news in this exact area there was an area of cliff that crumbled onto the beach. Here is a picture of the unstable cliff I was walking by.

My next concern as I walked along under these cliffs was once I hopefully made it to the cafe up on the bluff, what if there is no way to get up the cliff? Well I could start to see the gliders in the sky above me so I knew I was close. I was looking intently to try and find a way up and finally spotted what appeared to be a set of stairs. The worst set of stairs ever! There was a sign at the stairs that said “Unstable Stay Back”. My question was is that the cliff or the stairs? Or both? But I had no choice so started to ascend. They were patched together with old tires, railroad stakes, broken slabs of concrete, and a very steep climb. I exhaled when I finally got to the top safely and lo and behold was exactly where I wanted to be at the cafe. Success! I had soup and a sandwich and it was fine but the food is really irrelevant. Sitting there watching people strap into what are basically kites and ascend is amazing. You can pay for a tandem ride and someone will take you up, but a lot of the people doing it had their own equipment and clearly knew what they were doing. Not something I aspire to do but very cool to see it up close. The Cliff Hanger Cafe is right behind the University of CA San Diego campus right above the ocean.

I spent another good part of a day at the Old Town San Diego State Historic Park. Considered to be the birth of San Diego the park contains restored and reconstructed buildings that are now museums, shops and restaurants that illustrate the community between 1821 and 1872. I specifically planned to go on a day when a free one hour walking tour was offered and really found that to be a huge contribution to my enjoyment of the park. The dates the tours are offered are listed on the website and the other benefit is that typically on those days areas that aren’t always open are available. For instance the Blacksmith Shop was open and had demonstrations happening all day. The guide was very knowledgeable and interesting and we got to go into buildings that aren’t open if you’re there on your own. Only 18 people allowed on the tour so get there before as you need to sign up for it. Tour is at 11AM so arrive by 10:30 as a number of people after that were turned away.

I wandered into a number of the cute shops many of which had beautiful pottery from Mexico, candles, clothing, sweets, jewelry etc. There were a number of restaurants and so I decided to go with Casa De Reyes which my Uber driver had recommended. Not the best Mexican food I’ve ever had but it was fine - just soup and a side of beans and rice - but an outside space that was lovely and the staff couldn’t have been nicer.

After lunch I walked around the area and just happened upon Heritage County Park. As someone who loves architecture and historic homes I felt like I had hit a jackpot. San Diego County purchased the land in 1970 after concerned citizens realized that downtown’s rapid growth threatened the many fine Victorian homes with destruction. Private and public funds were used to acquire, move and restore these endangered Victorian structures. There are 7 structures in this park - 6 homes and Temple Beth Israel. In reading about each home I was struck by the dates of construction coinciding with the dates of the start of the career of Frank Lloyd Wright - an architect near and dear to my heart. It confirmed again how Wright was such a ground breaking architect and had such an impact on the evolution of an American style of architecture.

It’s not really a Patti Part Two adventure if there isn’t at least one stop at an art museum - so that was next on my list. I spent a couple of hours at the Museum of Contemporary Art in La Jolla, and it vastly exceeded my expectations. I’m not an art of any kind expert, and even less so of contemporary art - but this is a really beautiful museum. It is a fabulous building that overlooks the Pacific Ocean right above the La Jolla Cove so that alone is worth a visit. The rooms overlooking the ocean have windows with breathtaking views so you see amazing art and then nature at its finest. It was so much larger than I expected and when talking to one of the employees and expressing how impressed I was she told me the museum had just reopened after a very large expansion making it five times larger than before. So if you have visited in the past it’s definitely worth another stop.

Now for some food I enjoyed this week. In my quest for the best fish tacos I think I found them. At the Fish Shop. Three locations in the San Diego area. The BEST! (Survey of one😬) Usually when you order fish tacos you don’t get to pick what kind of fish. Not here. They have 11 different kinds of fish always and sometimes even more. You can get your fish in a taco, salad, sandwich or on a plate. Don’t come looking for a burger here. You pick your fish, marinade, and then how you want it. Need a side with your fish? They have some great choices. Halibut in a taco with Fish Shop Seasoning in a flour tortilla please! Delicious! Going back again soon!

You say you want to eat breakfast at the beach? Try Woody’s! You can’t get any closer to the beach, and I’ve walked by it 20 times and it’s always busy. Breakfast or burger - that’s your choice. No inside dining. Boardwalk or roof. I went with Popeye’s Scramble. Eggs with spinach (duh!) mushrooms, onions and peppers. Delicious rosemary potatoes and an English muffin. Their slogan is “eat some breakfast, then change the world”. Well ok! A great place to people and surfer watch.

Another awesome place I ate at was Sugar and Scribe. A bakery and restaurant in downtown La Jolla. Open for breakfast and lunch and on a Sunday morning was a mob scene. One of the benefits of being a party of one is that sometimes they can squeeze you in asap if you’re willing to sit at a counter. And I was so got seated immediately for brunch. So many great things to choose from. Also an amazing coffee bar and the bakery items were gorgeous. I got another type of scrambled eggs with a side salad and incredible Irish toast that came with made from scratch blackberry jam. Also a delicious latte. Another spot I want to return to again. A number of their menu items were Irish but the decor was really more French to me. So pretty and a great outdoor space too.

Another cute bakery - The Olive Baking Company located just off the boardwalk in Pacific Beach. Touts their cinnamon rolls which were delicious but I also got a blueberry muffin that I liked even better. A large selection of sweet and savory kolaches as well.

The açaí bowl of the week was from Vili’s Health Bar. Equally as delicious as the one from the Ocean Cafe last week so not necessarily worth the extra $5 it cost. But I do love all their yellow decor. So cheerful.

Now just a few random pics. Walking down the street I noticed my first every tsunami sign. Unclear as to which way to run but I’m guessing away from the ocean?🤔

The view from one of the windows at the art museum overlooking La Jolla Cove. Spectacular!

The most adorable house ever in La Jolla that looked like something out of a fairy tale. Zoom in to see the pink hose hanging from the spigot and a glass gazebo filled with flowers on the inside. If I ever win the lottery (which first I would need to start buying tickets) I am going to buy this house. Magic💕

Sunset is even pretty on a cloudy day if it’s over the ocean. Thanks for coming along on my trip!

Solo San Diego

I totally love where I live 10 months of the year. Post holidays can be a long string of gray cold sometimes snowy days, so a change of scenery can help a lot. So I found what I hoped was a cute AirBNB in the San Diego area and headed out for some warmer weather and sunshine. The first couple of weeks I will be here by myself, and then later in the month I have friends coming out to share the fun. I was very pleased to get to my place and find it exactly as pictured - which is always a relief. Since I’m not renting a car till my friends arrive location was key. I’m just about a 10 minute walk to the beach and tons of cute restaurants and coffee shops close by in addition to at least 4 grocery stores. So far my feet have held up nicely and I have walked lots of miles. I frequently make the mistake of forgetting to turn around because there is always something right around the corner that I would hate to miss. Then I realize I have to walk back too! But if you have a cell phone Uber or Lyft is just a click away. I haven’t had to resort to that….yet!

Since I’m here for a number of weeks I don’t feel compelled to squeeze everything that I want to do into a short amount of time. So I’m having a good mix of activities and relaxation. Definitely taking a long walk along the beach everyday, and I’ve already eaten my share of fish tacos. So just going to post some pics of things I have done so far and some of the food I’ve eaten.

I spent a good chunk of a day at Balboa Park. It’s where the quite famous San Diego Zoo is located, but there is a whole additional area full of museums and gardens. Built in 1915 for the Panama-California Expo the architecture is Spanish Colonial Revival. Originally meant to be taken down after the event, but people loved it so much they reinforced many of the buildings and it stands to this day.

I visited the zoo many years ago, and since I’m not really a zoo person decided to focus on the gardens and museums. There is also a beautiful theater there called the Old Globe that is modeled after the Old Globe in London. I purchased a ticket a few weeks ago for the performance of “The Notebooks of Leonardo Da Vinci” that is running now, so planned the day around that event. It was a beautiful day so I walked all over that area of the park and enjoyed the different gardens and some of the museums. The play was very interesting. All dialogue actually excerpts from the notebooks of a genius and artist. Different vignettes of topics Da Vinci wrote about. The set and actors were all incredible so I was glad I had made the effort to see it.

There is also a wonderful restaurant there called Prado. So pretty inside and the food was excellent. Fish tacos of course for me😂

Lots of beautiful gardens but this tree was amazing to me so just going to post one picture. The Japanese Garden was really cool too.

Another fun thing I did was take a kayaking guided tour of the La Jolla area. I love to kayak and also learn so this accomplished both goals. There were about 20 people in our group with two knowledgeable guides. We were on the water for about two hours so admittedly I was a bit sore the next day. My upper body is not used to paddling for that amount of time against the ocean waves, but the good news is that I didn’t capsize. I also didn’t bring my phone to take pics for fear of doing exactly that so you’ll just have to believe me that I did it. There are a number of different companies you can do this with and they were all similarly priced so I just picked this one. I did need to make a reservation and was glad I did because at least the time slot I picked was sold out. The water was pretty rough so we didn’t get to go into the cave. That was fine with me because crashing into a rocky cliff wasn’t on my bucket list and there was plenty to see outside the cave. This was the group that went out before us so just pretend I’m standing here with a life jacket and helmet on too.

Now for some fun food. I tend to like to eat out at lunch and just have something lighter for dinner which has worked out great here. So many cute places to try. More fish tacos. These are from the Pacific Beach Ale House. A cute place really close to the ocean with a nice rooftop deck. They were delicious. They came with a fantastic corn and black bean dish of wonderful.

Is it a trip to California without a few stops at IN-N-OUT? Not for me it’s not! One of the few places I enjoy a burger and fries. Ok and I did have a chocolate shake that day too. Treat yourself Tuesday! (Not sure it was Tuesday🤷🏼‍♀️)

Before the kayaking I headed to Scripps Beach and a place I had read about called Caroline’s Cafe. Overlooking the beach I had a fantastic tuna sandwich and salad. Eating and looking at the ocean never gets old.

A cute place in downtown La Jolla called The Cottage spoke to me so I had lunch there one day while browsing the cute stores in that area. Another beautiful day to eat outside.

Breakfast for lunch and a delicious scone to enjoy later.

If you know me at all then you know few things make me happier food wise than a good bakery or even better coffee shop/ bakery. The Wayfarer did not disappoint and I tried a ham and cheese croissant. Going back again soon to try the almond croissant.

In Hawaii I became obsessed with Açaí bowls so I’m on a quest here to see how the California ones stack up. First up the Ocean Cafe. Nothing fancy just the traditional açaí, granola, fruit and honey. This one was as good as the ones in Hawaii minus the sweet flower they put on it there.

On one or two of my walks I spent some time at the tide pools. Fascinating! Snails, anemones, tiny fish and who knows what else!

Lots of birds and animals we don’t routinely see in the Midwest. Like Pelicans!

Seals laying on the beach in La Jolla at the Children’s Pool. Actually was made for human children but the seals have taken over as a place to nurture their babies so humans can only observe from above now. That’s fair.

And Sea Lions! So many Sea Lions! Literally hundreds and they can make quite a racket. Seeing them get themselves out of the water and up on those rocks makes absolutely no sense. Their bodies are big and they have tiny flippers by contrast. They must be so strong and agile to accomplish it. Luckily the wind was blowing out to sea or might have been less pleasant to observe them.

So many beautiful beach and cove and wave pictures to choose from. I pick this one!

Someone with so much more patience and imagination made this cool sand labyrinth.

My best EVER sunset picture. No filter. Just in the right place at the right time. Feels exactly like my life right now. That’s week one. Hopefully I’ll do a few fun things this week too! Make it a great week for yourself💕 (Also today is Super Bowl Sunday. Eat some barbecue. GO CHIEFS❤️💛❤️)

Hello 2023!

But first goodbye 2022. Hoping everyone reading this has had a great Christmas, Hanukkah, Festivus, Kwanzaa or just a really good 2022. If 2022 wasn’t all you hoped for then 2023 is another chance to do what you can to make it a special year.

2022 was good for me. I was able to start traveling again, and dipped my toe into leaving the country in October. I went to Tampa, St Petersburg, Scottsdale, Tucson, Tahoe, Kansas City, Lake Geneva, Raleigh, Sugar Mountain, Nashville, Québec City, Montréal and Oahu Hawaii. I felt like I was starting all over again in terms of travel expertise. Coming back from Canada I asked where the TSA pre check area was and the employee responded “In the United States.” Took me a minute to understand what he was saying and then had to laugh at myself. I can usually pack so fast but found I was having to really think about what I needed to take. Travel like almost everything is something that you get better at doing the more you do it. Hoping this year to get more of that skill back. I’m finalizing my plans so stay tuned because I will be blogging.

This year I trained and started volunteering at 2 organizations here in Oak Park doing tours of historic homes. The first is the Frank Lloyd Wright Home and Studio and the second is Pleasant Home. Pleasant Home is just open for tours on Thursdays so much less of a commitment and more relaxed. It’s an amazing estate that was designed and built by the architect George Washington Maher. Commissioned by the first millionaire in Oak Park John Farsons and built in 1897. Definitely worth a visit if you’re in town and have time. The picture at the top of the group in front of the house is from when the re-opening happened this past spring after the new state of the art geothermal system was installed and that’s me in the center in the green shirt with her arms raised. They said cheer so I did!

I spend quite a bit of time at Frank Lloyd Wright doing tours as it’s a busy and popular destination. I have met people from all over the world - Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Egypt, Australia, every country in Europe, and all over the US. Wright is considered to be the most important American architect from the late 19th century to the mid 20th, so it’s fun for me to share what I know with them, and I learn more every day. It’s also been great to meet the other volunteers as we have such a shared passion.

Keeley came and took my tour and snapped this picture of me outside the studio right before I take people inside. I do look like I’m enjoying myself because I am!

I still run or walk - almost every day. My good friend Cheryl and I had a goal to run and/or walk a combined total of 2022 miles and we achieved it by the end of November. Having a partner to make you accountable is a good thing! Cheryl we ROCK!🏆

I read quite a few books - 40 to be exact. So many great ones it’s hard to pick my top 3 but here you go:

• Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

• We All Want Impossible Things by Catherine Newman

• Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt

My kids are all good! I get to see Keeley and Matt on a regular basis which I love. They keep very busy with work and their new puppy Monica. She’s a lot of work but so sweet, friendly and smart. If you sit down she will try and sit on your lap. At about 60 pounds that’s quite a bit of puppy!

Keeley and Matt are big sports fans so this is a picture of them at the United Center for the KU Elite 8 game which they won to get to the Final 4! I was there too! And then they won the National Championship! Rock Chalk Jayhawk💙

Anna and Tom have made Raleigh their permanent home and it’s been a great move for them. They still have the mountain house and will be making it available for rental soon. A great place to visit any season of the year up in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains. I got to spend time with them recently in Oahu and we had such a wonderful time. Here’s a picture that I took of them in the botanical gardens.

I stopped making resolutions quite a few years ago. Instead I like to take a bit of time and reflect on the previous year - what are the things I enjoyed the most, anything I would change if I could, things I could or would like to do without. Travel, volunteer, and spend time with family and friends. That was my 2022 and I’m planning to do the same in 2023. I will do things that bring me joy and in my own small way try to make the world a little bit better for those around me. I encourage you to try and do the same. As my mom always said we are each responsible for our own happiness and I believe that is very true.

Time to open my new planner! Yes I do mean an old school planner - my favorite thing about New Years Day🥳 The best is yet to be! Wishing you each a great 2023!

The Beautiful Island of Oahu🌴

I returned recently from a lovely two week trip to the beautiful island of Oahu, and am finding it somewhat challenging to be back in what is being called a Bomb Cyclone, Arctic Freeze or Polar Vortex with the coldest temperatures in a generation! The wind chill here right now is -32, and Hawaii was 80 degrees consistently every day. But instead of feeling sorry for myself I’m focusing on being grateful for a fantastic two weeks.

A couple of lines about the history of the Hawaiian Islands. They arose from the Pacific Ocean around 70 million years ago from lava. Oahu is not the oldest of the islands but it’s growing days are over. Translation - no more active volcanos unlike the newest island - the Big Island of Hawaii which has made the news lately with not one but two active volcanos helping it to continue to grow.

I have been to Maui, Kauai and the Big Island previously, but had only landed in Oahu previously to change planes. Like a lot of people I thought of Oahu as just being Honolulu and Waikiki - neither of which sounded great. After further research when planning this trip it seemed there was much more to the island and I definitely found that to be true. Honolulu is definitely a big bustling city but the rest of the island is spectacular with gorgeous beaches and two mountain ranges providing some great hiking. With two weeks we had plenty of time to visit all parts of the island and still manage lots of relaxation at the beach in cabanas or lounging at the pool. My friend Julie came along for the two weeks and my son and his wife joined us for the second week. A fun group that got along great!

We stayed at the Marriott resort at Ko Olina. Ko Olina is about 20 miles up the coast from Honolulu on the leeward side of the island. It’s a more private area with 4 resorts one of which is the Marriott. Each resort has a lagoon that creates an amazing calm beach great for swimming. You can even snorkel right by the rocks of the lagoon and big turtles and monk seals were spotted in addition to lots of fish. With 4 resorts and a shopping/restaurant area it offered us lots of food and meal options.

It’s hard to remember Christmas is right around the corner when you are surrounded by palm trees, but they made an effort to be festive in a tropical way. A beautiful Christmas tree with a large fish coming through it!

They offered sunrise yoga on the beach every morning at 7AM and I took advantage of it almost everyday. What a great way to start the day! One morning I was greeted by a rainbow as it had rained a bit during the night. Every morning was beautiful and special in its own way.

I celebrated my birthday on the island - how lucky am I? The resort had a fun water area at one of the multiple pools and it had a great water slide. I figured if I went down the slide that would prove I wasn’t really that old. 😂 Here is proof!

Tom and Anna treated Julie and I to a beach cabana for the day. We took full advantage and thanks to the cover this very fair skinned person was able to spend the entire day on the beach. So lovely! Thanks Anna and Tom!

I also discovered I really like Piña Coladas! Tastes like beach vacation in a glass! Yumm! I’m still willing to try new things.

Now onto the activity part and exploring the rest of the island! We did a couple of nice hikes. Diamond Head is the iconic volcano crater that defines the Honolulu skyline and most likely the most popular hike to do on Oahu. It’s about a 2 and a half mile hike and takes roughly an hour and a half. Lots of fairly steep stairs at the end to get to the top but worth it for the view extending for over 20 miles. You do need a reservation to get in to do the hike so don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Here’s the view from the top!

Hike number 2 was just Julie and I before Anna and Tom arrived and we hiked to the top of Makapu’u Head located at the easternmost point of the island. Said to be one of the most likely places to see whales at the correct time of the year - December to April. Another hike of about 2 and a half miles but very easy to walk on a nicely paved trail. Eagle eyes Julie spotted a whale right off the rocks which was so fun! Very hard to get a picture but in the upper right is my best shot. We watched the whale frolicking and flipping their tail in and out for awhile and then continued on. The two islands in the picture on the lower left are Rabbit Island (larger of the two) called that because a local resident used to raise rabbits there in the 1880’s and Kaohi-ka-ipu Island (smaller island) which looks dark and burnt most likely because it was formed from the last lava flow and so is relatively “young” by lava standards. Bottom right pic is the beautiful view of the windward side of the island from the top of the hike.

It’s hard to think of Oahu and not think of Pearl Harbor. History and in particular World War II is an interest of mine for quite some time now, and I have read quite a bit about many areas involved. Visiting Pearl Harbor was a priority for me and everyone else wanted to spend a day there as well. So I did the research luckily and booked our visit a month in advance. You can easily spend an entire day there. The USS Arizona Memorial is the single most popular site on Oahu and there are just 1300 tickets available per day. The memorial is free but the tickets are timed so get online and reserve your tickets well in advance. Another popular site there is the USS Missouri Battleship. The deck of the Missouri is where the Japanese signed the surrender agreement bringing the fighting in the Pacific to an end. Lots of other places to visit and see but the rest costs money. You can pay per site or buy the Passport to Pearl Harbor for one price which is what we did. We learned so much and it really made it real for us. The memorial is a very somber place resting over 1,177 young promising lives cut short in the attack of 1941.

Here are pictures from the USS Missouri Battleship. It is the last battleship ever built. The picture top right is the spot on the deck where the surrender agreement was signed. Until you are up close it’s hard to imagine how big those guns are!

Julie and I really like cemeteries so took a couple of hours another day to visit the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific at Punchbowl. Another very moving place where 45,000 men and woman killed at Pearl Harbor and other conflicts in the Pacific Ocean are buried. At the end there is a giant statue of Columbia holding a laurel branch with a moving quote from Abraham Lincoln that he wrote to a mother of five sons killed in the Civil War. A moving tribute to so many that gave their lives for freedom. The bottom left is a view from the cemetery as it sits on top a hill overlooking Honolulu.

Jurassic Park was filmed on Oahu and if you want to see why take the H3 Highway that cuts through one of the mountain ranges getting you quickly from one side of the island to the other. In the middle you go through a very long tunnel and depending which side you started on the weather could be totally different at the other end. Sunny on one end and raining on the other! And you will be looking for dinosaurs for sure.

I had read about what looked like a very cool Japanese Temple so talked the group into making a trip there. Noticed that in the same basic area there was a botanical garden. We decided to stop at the garden first and we’re glad we did because it turned out in our opinion to be better than the Japanese Temple. Wish we would have stayed there longer and skipped the temple but that’s just our opinion. Here are a few pics from the Ho’omaluhia Park Botanical Garden on the windward side of the island. So many beautiful trees and plants.

The Byodo-In Temple. A replica of a 1,000-year-old Buddhist Temple in Uji, Japan. The cemetery it’s in was pretty cool to see but the temple itself just took a few minutes to get through. Luckily my people didn’t hold it against me as the drive was pretty and the garden very nice.

Julie and I drove up to the North Shore to see what are considered the biggest waves on the island in the winter, and where the best surfers hang out. We did see some pretty big waves but not the gigantic ones that you hear about. You have to pay close attention and monitor the information sites to time it for that but they were still bigger than any others we saw. And it’s a very local area with just a two lane road and cars parked every which way. Tiny local restaurants so a whole different vibe. This picture is from a video I took trying to capture the waves and surfers and I’m the first to admit not my forte. The surfer is on the far right.

Other fun things: out for a walk and saw some men climbing the palm trees cutting down the coconuts - most likely so that they didn’t fall on our heads! Seeing them climb the trees with their spikes, cut the branches with a machete and then slide down the rope to the ground was fascinating! And then they would cut the tops off the coconuts and give them to anyone that wanted one to drink the milk. Yes that’s what I call fresh 😊

Animals we saw: Chickens and roosters all over the place. Often right at your feet when you were in a restaurant. Lots of noisy birds especially at sunset. And the mongoose. At first I thought they were odd squirrels (or less scary rats😱), but then found out they were mongoose. Introduced to many of the Hawaiian islands from India to control rats in the sugarcane fields. They weren’t super effective against the rats (not a problem now because they grow very little sugarcane anymore) but very effective in killing snakes. So no snakes to worry about. They really seem to be afraid of people so you just see them running from bush to plant but I did read if cornered they will attack. So clearly I left them alone! Here you go in case you’re curious what they look like.

Much more pleasant was seeing monk seals lounging on the beach. They are well protected so as soon as one is sighted the volunteers are called out and immediately rope off the area so they aren’t bothered or people don’t get too close. They just rest all day and then in the evening roll back into the ocean.

Usually I take lots of pictures of the food I eat in great detail. If that’s your favorite part of my trips you will be very disappointed. We ate lots of good food but it wasn’t really my focus. Fish tacos, fish sandwiches, great fresh salads and lots of fruit. We had a kitchen so kept food there for grab and go which worked out great. The thing I remember most were these amazing açaí bowls right down the street in an amazing coffee shop. I wish I had one right now😋

Tom had read about a great hot dog place outside of Honolulu so we decided to stop after our Diamond Head hike. Featured on Diners, Drive-ins and Dives apparently - why not? Turned out to be great!

But my most favorite place of all and totally a reason to fly 12 hours again was Leonard’s Bakery serving Portuguese donuts called Malasadas. LIFE CHANGING! I can almost taste the cream filled with plain sugar coating!

Where did I get all my great info? This book right here! The best books if you’re going to any of the Hawaiian Islands! Guaranteed!

It was a fantastic two weeks. Watching the sunset every single night was magic. Every one was different but beautiful in its own way. Thanks Anna, Tom and Julie for being my great companions. Memories I will cherish forever💕 Olaha🌴