I'm in a Hawaii state of mind! Join me for a pictorial romp! (PHOTOS)

[Radio_Lady]

On Oahu, from the top of Diamond Head Crater, looking down on Waikiki Beach.

[Radio_Lady]

1. Here's the photographer -- just a great site to browse!

http://www.ifa.hawaii.edu/~hsieh/

The people on the island of Kauai used to dispose of their bottles in the ocean -- brown, green, blue, aquamarine -- all got flushed into the sea. (That practice has been stopped now, thank goodness!) The tides tumbled the existing bottles until they were almost the size of sandy pebbles. You have to go to Glass Beach if you get to the island -- but you can't swim there! Scroll down to see pictures of the beach, close up.

www.ifa.hawaii.edu/~hsieh/photos_kauai.html

[trof]

2. Did you know if you pee in that water

it turns chartreuse?
Honest, it does.
Kinda embarrassing, but I don't think anybody else saw before it dissipated.
;-)

[Radio_Lady]

3. Well, urine can look chartreuse in a regular toilet if you are taking

drugs or vitamin supplements.

Nobody noticed -- pretty much everybody takes a leak in the ocean and they've been doing it for years. I think the ocean can handle uric acid, but Jacques Cousteau is said to have found tires and other terrible debris on the bottom of the ocean. We do use the rivers and oceans as our wastebasket.

However, we think the place is beautiful, at least in winter, and we're glad to share this fabulous site with you!

In peace,

Radio_Lady

[trof]

4. I have peed in many oceans.

But Waikiki is the only place this happened.
Love Hawaii.
Enjoy.

[Radio_Lady]

6. I'm no expert, but perhaps it is the lighter color of the water there

that caused this phenomenon. When you fly into Honolulu, you can't help but notice that the water is just such a fabulous color.

We used to have a backyard pool for 35 years -- kept intensely blue-green because it was outside my kitchen window on the second floor of our home. I never got the sign but used to get a kick out of the sign sold at the swimming pool supply shop:

"We don't swim in your toilet; please don't pee in our pool."

[Radio_Lady]

5. Proof that it does snow in Hawaii, 13,000 ft. in the air!

http://www.ifa.hawaii.edu/~hsieh/photos_maunakea.html

[liontamer]

7. I have the same shot

I keep it in my living room to remind me what I want out of life

[Radio_Lady]

9. Shoot the moon! We got involved with the Hilton Hawaiian Village

timeshare in 2001, when the price was right (after 9/11/01). We have also invested in Hilton's Nevada and Orlando properties.

http://www.hgvc.com

My husband is a real travel junkie -- he had thousands of frequent flier mileage points and we started with limited travel in 1980, several years after we married. The five children we raised are now grown and married, and we're officially retired and going great guns! Hawaii is just one of the beautiful places we've been to recently -- we both worked for more than fifty years, so as much as anyone, we feel we've earned it.

Hope it happens for you, too.

In peace,

Radio_Lady in Oregon

[liontamer]

11. thanks

I have three different plans to end up in hawaii, on three different time scales, but I hope to end up there soon, because Hawaii is the only place in the US that I want to raise kids.

[Radio_Lady]

12. Here are things to be aware of when considering permanent residency.

You'd better like a lot of heat and humidity, all the time, most everywhere. You are living very close to the equator with water all around. (I grew up in Miami, Florida, and can only take Hawaii's and Florida's hot weather in very short spurts in the winter months.)

You'll be intimate with so many insects and other nasty species even if you're the cleanest person in the world. (Remember, there's no winter to speak of -- things don't go dormant and everything reproduces like crazy in the heat.)

You'd better have enough money. You're in the middle of a huge ocean and everything costs more there. Living costs are extremely high. However, there is a Costco on Oahu in Honolulu, so it's not ALL BAD. But I'm told workers get paid less than on the mainland. That's because -- there are so many people from around the world who want to make Hawaii their home.

You might get "island fever" -- the sickness can set in at any time. It's the claustrophobic feeling that you've seen it all and done it all before. Well, it might be a little different on the out islands -- I'm assuming you are going to Honolulu. (My aunt lived on Maui for sixteen years teaching at Maui Community College. She couldn't wait to get back to California.) Again, the islanda are relatively small land areas in the middle of a huge ocean. Some of the natives and military can't wait to get off -- it's interesting. This is truly a place where "the grass seems greener on the other side."

You better have dark haired, dark eyed kids with lots of melanin in their skin. Redheads and blondes are more prone to skin problems despite all that we do. You can't be covered with zinc oxide all the time.

But it is just a very seductive and lovely place -- or should I say, places? Our favorite is the Big Island of Hawaii, where we have vacationed about five times since the 1980s. I love it in the town of Waimea -- elevation around 3,000 ft., cooler and drier than elsewhere. Near the Parker Ranch -- lots of horseback riding. However, you'd have to be very devoted to small town Hawaiian living to be there year 'round.

Oh, last but not least. If you make love on a beach, remember -- sand gets in to everything! Nuf said!

Good luck!

Radio_Lady

[huskerlaw]

8. Oh Hawaii...

great topic! Here are some pics from my trip last year...

Sunset Beach...




And sunset from the Hyatt Regency Waikiki...

[Radio_Lady]

10. Beautiful! It's hard to get a BAD picture in Hawaii, unless you put

your thumb in front of the lens -- or have too many drinks at the Tiki Bar!

Our next vacation there is already tentatively scheduled for the last week of March 2007 (our grandkids school break week).

In peace,

Radio_Lady