Insights from Hawaii

Day 4, October 26

Look at this "bird of paradise" flower! Unfortunately, this photo does not do it any justice. The details and intricacies of this flower are breathtaking.

We woke up to a cloudy day this day. The forecast showed sunshine all day, but the satellite via internet showed rain . . . I still did my morning routine since it was not raining yet . . . and as always, it was still warm outside.

Initially, I struggled with feelings of disappointment about the rainy weather because I so appreciated the sunshine and warm weather. I think the depressing feeling came more from the thought "what if it rains all week?" We have friends who went to Kauai last year and they said it rained all week. That's tough.

I quickly became aware that the mind was doing its thing again--worrying about the future. I brought my attention back to the present moment and accepted the weather for what it was. I realized it was important to let go of any expectations of sunshine and allow myself to make the most of whatever weather we were given. It's not like we had any control over it anyway. Living in Montana, you certainly learn not to depend on nice weather for your happiness--unless you happen to LOVE cold, snow, and wind 8 months out of the year. Why should a vacation be different? Besides, unlike Montana, Oahu is always warm--rain or shine. That really makes a difference for me.

By noon it was pretty clear that the weather was going to be cloudy and rainy most of the day. So we decided this would be a good day to drive around the island. We got in the car and headed for the north side of the island, or North Shore, where many of the world famous surfing beaches are such as Sunset Beach, Waimea Beach, Bonzai Pipeline, etc.

The drive was nice, especially since I was passenger, not driver. I enjoyed looking at all the landmarks and driving through the small, older cities via the original highway. It's interesting to note how the population is so concentrated in just a few major cities on the islands. The rest of the island looks very native, historical, with old huts or cottages turned into shops lining the highway.

On the way to North Shore, we decide to stop at Dole Plantation. Again, I was mainly attracted to the plants and flowers surrounding the tourist attraction. We are not much for tourist sites but it looked so inviting and we could see fresh fruit stands. We enjoyed walking around the gardens, looking at foliage and flowers, taking pictures via the life-size displays. (See hula pineapple girl) We actually had a lot of fun.

The Dole site offered garden tours and a plantation train but we decided to watch a pineapple-cutting demonstration instead. The demonstrator was a very sweet and gracious Hawaiian lady--and the samples were delicious!

Soon we head for the North Shore beaches, stopping at a few along the way. The waves were large, but not nearly as big as they get in winter. Apparently they get 30-35 foot waves! Surfing competitions are mainly in December-January, and I would love to see them, but of course that also means more stormy weather--less conducive for my kind of vacation.

We make one more stop on the way home at a very quiet beach on the east side of the island. It was still cloudy but not raining. Looking at this photo (below), it looks like it would be chilly out but in reality it was probably about 75 degrees. Very comfortable. We talked and read for a while on the beach and enjoyed the peace, then drove back across the island via the Likelike Highway, observing the thick rainforest and odd-looking flat-topped trees. Another peaceful day in paradise.

Come back tomorrow for more pictures and insights from Hawaii . . .