Hawaii Tsunami

Well it’s official -- we got the T-shirts!

Things were pretty intense over here yesterday.  It got so bad at one point they started rationing things!

So we grabbed our two cases and headed for the hills or should I say the third floor of the timeshare!

We were glued to the TV for the update of the approaching Tsunami.

 

 

As the 11 o’clock hour approached we headed to the 7th floor to get a good view of the wave. And we waited and waited.  Some of us lost interest in the mighty wave.

  OK it’s 12:30PM. Where is this wave???  Oh wait, it already hit and we missed it!! So let’s look at the devastation down at the pool area.

Well, you can see the waves managed to come ashore and stack the pool furniture in nice neat stacks. All the roads to the airport were closed until after 3PM.  Melanie, Vernie and the kids had to make new arrangements to get back home because their flight was cancelled.  The next flight available for them is Monday.  So they are toughing it out by spending two more days here in Hawaii.  I guess I should end for now and go have some spam (only 24 more cans to eat)!!!

Hau'ole Makahiki Hou (Happy New Year)

Why are we wishing you a happy new year in February? Because it’s the beginning of the Chinese new year. Wednesday afternoon Bill and I walked over to Whaler’s Village, a shopping area along Kaanapali Beach, where a special Chinese new year celebration was taking place. A performing group from Oahu had flown over to Maui to showcase the traditional Chinese ways of bringing in the new year.

First, the warm-up, which consisted of many different types of kung fu moves.

A demonstration of weapons followed.

The show ended with the entertaining Lion Dance.

As the year of the Tiger begins, let us wish you Happy New Year one more time, in Chinese this time --- Gung Hay Fat Choy!

Tuesday in Hawaii must be Tacos

Well we left the blowing snow, freezing temperatures and icy roads; stories and photos that is, from our friends and relatives who live on the east coast!  So here we are in Maui, Hawaii not a (snow) flake to be found.  

We spent our first night in Maui easing into the island mode.  We drove over to Kihei for dinner.  On our way over Cindy saw a sign that a guy was holding advertising authentic Mexican food and her quote was” yea right, I come all the way to Hawaii for Mexican food”,  Well the photo below is where we had dinner!

  You may not be able to read the sign but it’s Fred’s Mexican Cafe!  Fred’s has a special every Tuesday we like to come to; Taco Tuesdays!  So we do come all the way to Hawaii to have Mexican food. :-)  After dinner we sat to watch the sun go down with a few of our new friends. All the Canadians that are not at the Olympics were watching the sun go down with us in Hawaii.

After dinner we went back to our condo to watch the local news and weather.  The weather guy told us that there would be a change in the weather and that there would be “a real bite in the air” tonight.  It may get all the way down to 62 degrees.  So there east coasters we’re suffering just as bad as you are!  I better end for now. We are headed for the beach to do a little whale watching.

Fun in the Snow

Bill and I spent the past week in Tahoe. We drove up on Sunday morning to join the Romios family for an excursion to a nearby sledding hill. What fun!

First up, Taki & Heather test the hill

Next, Heather with Nikos sled side by side

       

Olive observes the action from the sidelines          

                

then ditches the car seat for a ride on the sled with her brother

Sledding wasn’t the only activity. Bill and Nikos had a snowball fight!

Sadly, Taki and Heather had to go to work on Monday, so they bundled up the kids and headed home after a late lunch. Bill and I met up with Greg and Jack, former colleagues of Bill’s, to ski at Heavenly until Friday. The conditions were superb all week. There were NO lift lines, so we got lots of runs in everyday. We were too busy skiing to take photos!