Whale Tales: A sunset hula

As Hula Babe and Beach Boy (that would be us) head toward the end of our stay here, Mother Nature decided that we needed some unforgettable moments yesterday; the types that guarantee we will be booking our 2011 stay before we leave this paradise on Friday.

We were among the guests who flocked to the lagoons and gardens to watch close-up the spectacular big waves that plummetted our Western coast all day yesterday. The four man-made lagoons that dot the property remained protected with only a stronger than usual pull and push of the water from the external wave action. A recent jellyfish warning issued for several of O'ahu's beaches didn't discourage any of us from enjoying that gentle lagoon while the sun took temperatures to 82-degrees. The waves were so spectacular that the books we planned to read on the beach were tucked away for later and attention was focused on the Pacific waters.

I've written about seeing whales from our deck. That means that we have seen passing numbers of whales spouting in the waters in front of the development. However, last night a crowd-stopping show took place between the Vacation Club and the J.W. Marriott when two whales began a sunset hula, leaping out of the water and slapping tails -- torsos up, tail up, swing, sway and disappear. Travel often affords us moments of magic - yesterday, it seemed, was one magical moment from start to finish.

Kung Hee Fat Choy! Happy New Year!

Kung Hee Fat Choy - The Year of the Tiger! Chinese New Year celebrations have been underway since we arrived here nearly three weeks ago. They culminate this weekend when the old lunar year gives way to the new on February 14th. Local media have announced festivals, food events and beauty pageants as part of the celebration. Among the most spectacular is the traditional Lion Dance which is being performed around the island through Feb. 27th.

Among suggestions offered for celebrating the New Year are: wear something red (Chinese legend says that color scares away evil spirits); watch a Lion's Dance; buy some trinkets and give to friends - gift giving is a big part of the celebration; find a fireworks display - also big in the celebration.

This year with Valentine's Day and Chinese New Year celebrations falling on the same day, O'ahu has so many restaurant specials, getaway specials and celebrations that it would be hard to choose just one - unfortunately, we timed our return to Kirkland not following the Chinese calendar and will miss the weekend's festivities.

Top's Down, Surf's Up: On the Road in O'ahu

We put the top down, cranked up the Hawaiian tunes and headed out to explore O'ahu the other day. Enterprise Rent-a-Car made us another one of those incredible deals: $5 a day extra and we went from a cramped little econo model to wheels that make us decades younger when that top snaps into the trunk. Wind in the hair, sun on the face and we headed out to Hale'iwa (hall-eh-E-va), on the island's North Shore. The town,once a popular resort area in the early 1900's, is considered a Surfing Capital these days.

Had a Hawaiian breakfast - eggs, rice and Portuguese sausage - at a great little place, Kono's, and watched pickup truck loads of surfer boys and boards go past traveling from one beach to another.

Then continued around the island past Turtle Bay Resort and its expansive golf course to Kahuku, the place known for its Shrimp Trucks that line the roadway, grilling up shrimp that is served on paper plates and eaten at picnic tables along gravel parking lots. Heard a woman the other day in the hot tub speculating on the 'cleanliness' of such places. . .that silly wahine. . .they serve some of the the most mouth-watering meals we've ever eaten on O'ahu.

We drove for miles with the Wai'anae and Ko'olau mountain ranges to one side and ocean shore to the other. Didn't make it all the way around the island; so caught H-3, the freeway with an incredibly long, long tunnel through the mountain range and headed back to Ko Olina. Total travel time less than four hours.

O'ahu is more than Honolulu

If you envision this map as the face of a clock, our Ko Olina is on the lower left hand side just about 8 and Honolulu is down at the bottom in the big bay about 5 - 6. Tourist maps advise it is 90 miles to drive around the island; noting that the point on the top left of the map doesn't have a road, there you would need to hike from Yokohama Bay at the end of Farrington Highway through Ka'ena State Park and around to the north side which would bring you into Dillingham Airfield and Gliderport. We haven't been that ambitious this trip. (Double clicking the photo will enlarge it)

Ko Olina Resort and Marina, O'ahu

I've focused on the Marriott Vacation Club but want to clarify that Ko Olina is much more than Marriott. Ko Olina Resort and Marina is a multi-project development with free standing vacation homes, full ownership condo's, an 18-hole golf course, a J.W. Marriott Ilihani and a marina. Soon Disney will be opening an enormous 21-acre vacation complex located on the beach between the J.W. and the Marriott Vacation Club.

Last January ground had barely been broken on the Disney facility and this year the structural steel is giving a sneak preview of the resort that will follow. Aulani, 'the place that speaks with deep messages' is not like other Disney properties as it isn't associated with a major theme park. Plans are to open the resort -- with 360 hotel rooms and 481 two-bedroom units like those in other Disney Vacation Club properties -- in the fall of 2011.

Our 'home', Marriott's Ko Olina Beach Club last January had slowed completion of its third building Nai'a; one wing is now open and is where we spent our first week. Talk is that the second wing will open Jan. 2011. Construction on the fourth building is to begin in 2012 with completion slated for 2015.

Hula Babe and Beach Boy

Thursday afternoon marked the end of our first two weeks on O'ahu. We had spent the afternoon first at poolside and then at the lagoon beach reading and sunning. We raced back to the room to grab a brewskie and return to beachside for sunset when I remembered I had some not-yet-done dinner prep work to do. And yes, this photo was sunset.

I checked my watch and realized I had been wearing it for sometime upside down; the 6 where the 12 should be. . .you get the idea. Then as I was chopping garlic I had a second realization that I was preparing dinner in my swimsuit; but after a while on an island it seems quite normal for both culinary swim wear and upside down watches.

A few weeks ago my cousin directed me to a blog site of a woman who calls herself Pioneer Woman. I decided that we too could have different, more appropriate names for ourselves while writing from the tropics. So for the week that remains -- we will be Hula Babe and Beach Boy.

Hula Babe quit putting on eyeliner the second day in Honolulu, the mascara was left somewhat far behind a week or so ago and lipstick, ha, lipsticks in various shades haven't come out of the cosmetics bags. Sun screen and lip gloss are beauty products of choice. Beach Boy simply strips off the shirt and puts on the shades anytime he nears sand which is most of the time during the waking day.

We moved today to the larger one-bedroom unit, a snap of a move that now has us facing the ocean -a perfect place to watch for whales. Yesterday they frolicked for hours in the water in front of the lagoon, we are hoping for their return today. With that the upside down watch says it is beach time. . .aloha!

Timeshare Tales

We remarked today that being around timeshare owners is like being on a cruise ship with cruising enthusiasts, you talk about the best destinations and the best deals to be found. Timeshare talk, whether at poolside, in the hot tub or at the bar usually ends up focusing on timeshare resorts, trades, travel and again the best deals to be had.

Now 'best' can be defined a number of different ways: one is buying direct from one of the famous 90-minute sales pitches that at least in our case earned us a bizzillion Marriott points back three years ago and as I mentioned earlier, entry into 'the Marriott family" or ohana, as we call ourselves around Ko Olina. For others 'best' means a good deal or low price.

Many folks we've met own many weeks at various resorts and are sold on the timeshare concept (disclaimer: it isn't for everyone) and we've learned that many have purchased their weeks on the resale market at considerably less than they could on the primary market. Now in the midst of our third stay here we are also considering purchasing another week somewhere and have had a number of web sites recommended to us. Among those recommended sites are: SellMyTimeshareNow.com and Timeshare Users Group If anyone out there has other suggestions, let us know. . .we will share them with others in the hot tub or sipping a beverage.

Hawaii Timeshare Tales

We weren't sure we would like the timeshare concept three years ago when we booked one of those five night and free car introductory packages here. We also questioned whether or not we would find it 'boring' out here some 30 minutes (in good traffic) from Honolulu.

We went to the 90-minute sales presentation with the intent of getting the Marriott bonus points they offered as an attendance reward. We ended up with the points - and a week of ownership here.

This trip is our second as full-fledged owners - and we have yet to find it boring. We've found timeshare life to be like having a second home only we don't have to worry about those pesky maintenance tasks of homeownership. We pay the annual maintenance fee and then enjoy the maid 'tidy' service mid week and watch the gardeners grooming 'our' acreas of landscaped grounds and maintenance taking care of pools and hot tubs.

It is somewhat like playing house because you can cook and wash dishes and make your beds, but the serious cleaning is done by others leaving the day free for reading books, exploring, exercising, lazing at the pool or beach or soaking in the hot tub.

We spent a good deal of two afternoons just beyond the resort, an easy one mile walk that leads to a small crescent sandy beach and dozens of tidal pools in the lava rock that borders the beach. site. Watching any number of varieties of tropical fish in this pond while mongeese played chase on the nearby rocks and a large green sea turtle swam with snorkelers just off shore is far more fun than doing housework anyday.