"Ua Mau Ke Ea O Ka Aina I Ka Pono" - "The Land Shall Perpetuate Itself In Righteousness". This is the motto of the state of Hawaii. I like that a lot. If I had to give it a motto I would say, "The Land Of No Worries". What a great week. I love this place and could easily adapt to live there for the rest of my life. Although I was excited to see Leah again, I was otherwise depressed to come home...back to the cold...back to life. I apologize for the length of this blog entry. I hope you enjoy the pictures 1/1000th as much as I did taking them.
Me and my favorite Wahine at our favorite restaurant, Lulu's.
ALOHA! Let the shopping begin!
Us and Duke Kahanamoku
The Godfather of Surfing, Duke!
We went to Hawaii with nine other couples from our neighborhood and ward. It was a fun group. It was a very fun trip and I think our lodging added to the experience. We rented a big home in Kailua that had a very open and fun layout. This is Sarah in our room.
We were a ten minute walk from Kailua Beach. We had the beach mostly to ourselves. Paradise!
We enjoyed sleeping in the sand and sitting in the sun.
Life is better with sand between your toes.
Beautiful flora everywhere
Kim H. at Laie point on the North Shore
The view of the Valley of Temples
Banging the Gong of Good Fortune at Byodo In Temple
The Group! We are so blessed. We live in the greatest ward and neighborhood ever! Orchard Hills and Meadowbrook RULE!
Brian B., Kevin F., and Sherrie B. at the Buddha statue
Buddha
Peggy H. admiring the jungle fauna
I hope this wasn't disrespectful
Byodo In Temple
This bamboo was 50 feet tall at least
Laie Point. That huge hole in the rock behind was punched out by a sunami.
Kevin and Janette
Janette sitting on the sharp rocks. Ouch!
Beauty!
Brian B. venturing toward the water
Peggy H., Janette F. and Lisa G.
Wade being Wade
Greg B., Sherrie B., Jenny F., and Andra B.
Sarah thought it would be a funny picture if I covered the "ssa" on the Marquessa sign.
Polynesian Cultural Center - We had a much more fun time this visit. Of course we decided not to waste our money on the Ambassador program that proved to be a waste of money last time.
He climbed to the top of this 50 foot palm tree in about 1 minute.
Brad M. and Lisa M. We are always happy to have them around. I love working with Brad in the YSA Bishopric. He is a great example to me. They both are so generous.
Blacky's feet were cooking so he covered them up.
Sarah enjoying the Canoe Parade
Hang Loose, Hawaii!
Tahitian Dancers
Curtis and Deena V.
She is so photogenic....but don't tell her that!
Wade wants to do his hair like this.
Brad M., Lisa M. and Sarah
Us at the Laie Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
Brad at the Temple
Kim H., Lisa G. and Andra B. getting their boogie on the dinner cruise
Happy Valentine's Day
Lonnie L. and Rachel L. celebrating Valentine's Day in Hawaii.
Eric F. and Jenny F. We had a fun time on the trip, partly due to Eric's planning and research.
Us with Diamond Head and Waikiki in the background.
Brian B. and Andra B. These two are always so much fun. We jokingly call them the first couple of Meadowbrook.
Wade G. and Lisa G. These two waited until the last minute to book the trip. We are glad they did. Wade is always the life of the party and Lisa is always fun. She also has an addiction to soda so I didn't feel so alone.
It is hard to see, but in front of the 2nd sailboat from the right is a big whale tail.
Diamond Head
A humpback and a baby humpback swam right up next to us while we were eating.
Sarah's the Queen of the world!
The line up at Banzai Pipeline
This was our favorite thing...just sitting on the beach. The sand on the North Shore is the greatest in the world. I could sit in it and watch the surf all day long.
Curtis, Deena, Janette, Sherrie and Sarah showing off their coral findings
Waimea Valley
Peggy H. and Kim H. fought the whole trip. HAHA. Just kidding. I like to tease Peggy Poo! These two were a great addition to the group. We had a blast getting to know them better.
There are some old ruins in the Waimea Valley. This hut is not one of them, but is built next to them.
This is a shrine to the ancestral Hawaiians
The sacred Waimea Falls
Blacky swimming in the sacred pool
Wade and Lisa enjoying the beauty
Our favorite place on the island, Haleiwa Town
Shark's Cove
Waves crashing at Shark's Cove
Wade, Sherrie and Sarah waiting once more for breakfast at Boot's and Kimo's
Brad, Lisa, Janette and Lisa waiting for some Mac Sauce
Andra, Eric, Lonnie and Rachel hoping there is some Mac Sauce left at Boot's and Kimo's
Kevin strategizing his Mac Sauce consumption
The lighthouse lookout
Kim looking for whales
It was relaxing to sit here for an hour looking for whales. Of course, they appeared so small from here, but there were dozens.
Sarah overlooking Sandy Beach from Halona Blow Hole
The beginning of a pineapple
The adolescent pineapple
The full grown pineapple
The Pineapple Express
Where am I?
At the North Shore Surfing Museum at Haleiwa Town
Art...is Gallery
Art....Is Surf
The Artis Family. Ronnie, Stevon, America, Praise Jesus, Victoria, Peace, Martis and Artis. A very talented, musical and talented family. You can check them out here, http://ronartis.com/
Local and Pro surfers donate broken or old boards to the Artis family who then turn them into art rather than send them to landfills.
Sarah loves the Strong Current store in Haleiwa Town. I think she sees the future of her Mahalo Board Company there.
Anehole from Pali Lookout
Lonnie and Rachel were a fun couple. They just go with the flow.
Sarah at Pali Lookout
If you couldn't tell, it is very windy there.
Looking down on Kailua from Pali Lookout
The entry way of our rental
Germaine's Luau. Fun as usual. A little cool, but still fun.
Brian and Andra
Isn't she hot?!
Sarah and one of the performers
Brian, Andra, Lisa and Wade getting drunk on their two ticket mixed virgin drinks
Bringing the Kahlua pig from the imu
Kevin and Janette. They were much relaxed on this trip.
Curtis and Deena were a great addition as they are foodies like us.
Honi Honi time!
The backyard of our rental
Kamaka Ukulele representin'!
Our last day on Lani Kai beach thinking about seeing our little wahine, Leah again.
There were dozens of huge sea turtles swimming in the water here.
Lani Kai Beach
If I don't make some serious life style changes, I will be wearing this size 28xl shirt next time.
Moana DNA performing at Lulu's. What a great send off.
The famous photo of the biggest day ever on Oahu. Greg Noll is the man!
Much Mahalo Hawaii. We will miss you!
6 comments:
Wow Marque, you've got some amazing photos there! You could seriously sell some of those prints. I wouldn't mind hanging one on my wall.
And Sarah looks gorgeous! Glad you had a great time in paradise, and I'm trying to get over the jealousy! :)
OH! Looks like so much fun!!!! The beaches in Kailua are the best!
Looks like a blast. Glad you are back safe!
So awesome! It is great to enjoy your trip vicariously. The pictures are so good I feel like I was there....except the food. Can't taste it~
Doesn't it suck coming back to snow:) Looks like you had such a good time!
Boy you have to look at the pictures several times to really feel like you have seen them.
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