A Summer of New Beginnings

Well, folks, I jumped off the ledge this summer - I resigned from my current band director position to force myself into a better situation. I'd been working so hard in a tough situation all by myself and was getting frustrated and worn out. Year after year I told myself I would leave and work somewhere I really belonged, but never got enough courage to do so. Well, until now. Have you ever felt like you belonged somewhere else - that you weren't where you really should be? That was me. 

Through much introspection and prayer, I realized it was time to make a change. I have faith that everything will work out for the best. I feel like I've made the best decision for my future - beginning a new chapter in my life.

This summer also marked the first time I visited Hawaii! It was magical. We left on June 26, 2014 and returned on July 8th. Let me tell you all about it!

First: packing. I scoured Pinterest to find lists of what to pack. 11-12 days is a pretty long trip. I did find some good tips. I'll share them with you. For my husband and I, we found it good to pack two carry-ons (with clothes and electronics) and one large suitcase that would be checked that had the swimsuits, more clothes, and bathroom stuff. 

Here's my husband with his carry-on and the large suitcase as we were checking out at the end of the trip:

My carry-on (in addition to my purse)

Click here for a list of everything I packed. Here's a picture of the collapsible water bottles we bought - these things are great!

I could just roll up my bottle when empty and put it in my purse. :) I almost forgot! We also brought heavy-duty sunscreen, some aftersun, and sunglasses from home (I forgot to add them to my list). We did purchase some things once in Hawaii though: a beach mat, 2 beach towels, more aloe vera after we got sunburned, some browning lotion to try to get a tan, bottled water, snacks, souvenirs (my husband got a Hawaiian shirt; I bought a sarong, flower hair clip, Pearl Harbor T-shirt, and charms for my Brighton charm bracelet; we also bought Pearl Harbor magnets and gifts for friends and family). 

We were blessed when it came to paying for this trip. We had built up so many airline miles that my plane ticket was only $7! My husband had to pay full price, but mine was practically nothing! I was also given Priority Access. :) In addition, we had built up so many Marriott Rewards Points that we got five days for free! We were Silver Elite members which came with a lot of perks - a room with a great view, free wifi, drink coupons, and coupons for the breakfast buffet! We are back down to zero points now, but we'll start building them back in no time.

Like I said, this was my first time in Hawaii, but it was sort of a reunion for my husband. You see, he lived in Hawaii during his middle school years when his dad was stationed at the Tripler Army Medical Center in Oahu. I'll tell you more about that later. With it being my first time, I took LOTS of pictures. How could I not? It was so beautiful!

Second: the flight. We first flew from DFW to LAX. 

This is us on that first flight. We were so excited to be going to Hawaii!

Once in LA, we got on a shuttle to our plane that we loaded up from the tarmac before flying the last leg to Hawaii. It was a lot of flying. We thankfully got upgraded to some seats in the exit row though so my husband had lots of leg room. 

Look at all that leg room!

My husband traded seats with me as we got closer to landing in Hawaii so I could see out the window. I took lots of great photos:

 

 

 

 

 

I could not get over all the brilliant colors of the ocean! The coral reefs made for some beautiful shades of turquoise.

Third: our time in Hawaii.

We were greeted by our shuttle company with a sign that had our last name on it and a flower lei for me. 

We couldn't get in our room right away (they were busy upgrading us to a room with a spectacular view), so we went across the street to the Waikiki Beach. We were hungry, so we had a sandwich and juice from the Waikiki Grass Shack Bistro which was an open-air kiosk type thing.

So, I told you our room had spectacular views? Here are some of the first pictures I took from our balcony on the 26th floor:

Not only did we have views of Diamond Head, we had views of the ocean too. 

That evening, we had drinks (free Mai Tai's with our coupons) at the Moana Terrace (a bar/grill on the third floor of our hotel) with friends who happened to vacation in Hawaii at the same time as us and stayed at our hotel the first two nights and the last night of the vacation. We got a piece of coconut chocolate cake and listened to some live Hawaiian entertainment.

On day two, I awoke to this great view (the sun rose on the left - out of view):

We then went to the Blaisdell Center so my husband could rehearse with the Royal Hawaiian Band. Steven Agasa, the concert master, arranged for my husband to conduct his "Valor of the MNC-I" with the group - a huge honor. The Royal Hawaiian Band is the oldest and only full-time municipal band in the US. 

Jared Lantzy with a double-belled baritone.

Steven then took us to the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific. It is located in the Punchbowl Crater, an extinct volcano crater. 

Then that afternoon was the Royal Hawaiian Band performance at the 'Iolani Palace. 

King Kamehameha Statue across the street from the palace

In front of the 'Iolani Palace behind the gates

The performance opened up with conch shells!

There was a hula dancer and other professional Hawaiian artists.

Gary Aiko, singer; Clarke Bright, conductor; us; and Steven Agasa, concertmaster

We then got some beach time that evening. Let me tell you, the sand was so soft and the water so warm - it was heaven on earth!

 

Before going to bed, I made sure to visit the fitness center, running a 5K on the treadmill (my first 5K). My time wasn't great, but that's okay. 

On day three, we rented an "economy" car and got upgraded to a Mustang convertible! We drove up to Diamond Head and hiked the entire path up and down the mountain (another extinct volcano). After that, we drove up the west coast.

 The hike up Diamond Head was steep with LOTS of stairs, but the views were totally worth it!

My reward after hiking Diamond Head

Rabbit Island

On day four, we first went to St. Elizabeth's Catholic Church in Aiea - my husband was trying to find the church he went to as a kid. It turns out that it wasn't the same church.

We then took the car to Pearl Harbor. We went through every square inch of the museum, gift shop, and grounds prior to taking the ferry to the actual memorial. We got there about noon, but our ticket to see the movie and take the ferry wasn't until 2:30. There was so much information to read and process, as well as so much to see. We barely got through everything in that 2 1/2 hours. 

At 2:30 we saw the informative video and then took the ferry to the memorial. I looked up on my iPhone the significance of the design of the memorial. It was designed by Honolulu architect Alfred Preis, who had been detained at Sand Island at the start of the war as an enemy of the country because of his Austrian birth. The US Navy specified that the memorial be a floating bridge over the USS Arizona that could accommodate 200 people. The 184' long structure peaks at each end with a sag in the center. It represents the height of American pride before the war, followed by sudden depression of the nation after the attack, and then the rise of American power after the war. There are seven windows on each side as well as the top which commemorate the date of the attack on Pearl Harbor, December 7, 1941. Preis describes his work, "Wherein the structure sags in the center but stands strong and vigorous at the ends, expresses initial defeat and ultimate victory... The overall effect is one of serenity. Overtones of sadness have been omitted to permit the individual to contemplate his own personal responses...his innermost feelings."

The memorial marks the resting place of over 1,000 sailors and marines.

After our visit to Pearl Harbor, we drove up to North Shore. We went in search of the Wyland Gallery. We first discovered Wy's Gallery, owned by the artist's brother, Bill Wyland. 

We then found the original Wyland Gallery.

After that we caught our first Hawaiian sunset at Kailua Beach.

We then stopped at Leonard's Bakery for some malasadas for the next morning's breakfast.

On day five, we went to the Moanalua Middle School Summer Band Camp rehearsal. This is the same school my husband went to as a kid - back then it was called Moanalua Intermediate though. Steven Agasa is one of the directors at the school and chose my husband's "On Cliff's Edge" for the band to perform at the camp. The students made him a welcome sign with his picture from his seventh grade year in the middle of the C. 

Day 6 was a busy day as we went on the Circle Island Tour which took us around Diamond Head, to the Pali lookout, the Halona "Blow Hole," Waimea Bay, Sunset Beach, La'ie Point, North Shore, the Dole Plantation, and the Polynesian Cultural Center. Our tour guide, Sandy, was awesome! She was funny and she called us all "cousins." She had a rule that whomever was the last one back on the bus had to dance the hula for everyone. :)

Our tour bus - there were only 12 of us

This is the spot Amelia Earhart first flew from

Rabbit Island

I wish we had more time here at the Dole Plantation

Dole Whip - the BEST ice cream EVER

Our awesome Tour Guide, Sandy

The following pictures were from the Polynesian Cultural Center. We were there for about 8 hours and didn't even see everything there was to see.

We took a canoe ride around the park. Our guide was great.

This was a form of checkers in the Hawaii area.

These were the Hawaiian dancers at the show in the river.

My favorite dancers were the Tahitians - they could really shake their hips.

The PCC had many areas - Tahiti, Tonga, Hawaii, Fiji, Samoa, Aotearoa
(New Zealand), Rapa Nui, & other islands.

A recipe for Tahitian Coconut Bread

We learned how to play a song on the ukelele

How to say stuff in Fijian

Tree Climbers

There was a special dinner and show. This is us just before
the show (we could not take pictures or video during
the show.

My own Fijian body guards!

On day 7, I jogged around the Honolulu Zoo next to our hotel and then we laid out (and got sunburned).

That evening, we attended the Moanalua Middle School Summer Band Concert where Steven Agasa conducted my husband's "On Cliff's Edge" for a large audience of parents, my husband's middle school best friend, Gavin Min, and their retired middle school band director, Don Tsuha. We were then treated to dinner at Uncle Bo's.

The students make a special banner for each concert

The students also create the cover of the program

Talking about his piece and connection to the school

Mr. Agasa conducting the performance

Mr. Tsuha, us, Gavin Min, and Steven Agasa

Some of the crowd outside Uncle Bo's

On day 8, we took the Pink Trolley and ate at a famous hamburger joint, Freddy's and then to the Ala Moana Mall, an open-air mall.

Most signs were also in Japanese (I think).

The trolley system was an inexpensive way to get around the island - $2 a person one-way.
Day 9 was Independence Day. It began with me making a ribbon lei in the lobby of our hotel. I got to choose two colored ribbons. The host of the class got everyone started and then taught us how to continue the chain. We then completed the lei ourselves. As we were making our leis, another lady was making matching bracelets. I chose yellow and orange to match my pedicure I got before the trip - and because I liked the bright, sunny colors together.

We then took the trolley again to eat a famous noodle joint. There was a line out the door. It was really good though.

Look at this line!

Where the noodles start.

I had the Garlic Chicken Udon Salad w/ a Vegetable Tempura Roll

My husband had the Niku Udon, a Spam Musubi, and a fried bean rice ball.

Happy customers

We took the trolley back to the hotel to get our beach attire to go to the beach to watch the fireworks that would be shot from Magic Island.

Look at all the people starting to camp out at the beaches already.

Duke Kahanamoku Statue

The most popular spot to watch the fireworks was on the Ala Moana Beach. We decided to park it on the Kahanamoku Beach - less people, but still great views of the fireworks. I decided to get in the water, but soon learned it wasn't a good idea. It was VERY rocky. My decision to get in the water unfortunately made me very cold for the rest of the evening. My husband was smart enough to stay on the beach. I was thankful I had my sarong and towel to wrap myself up in as it got cool when the sun went down.

I think it's great that you can see Diamond Head behind us.

There was a gorgeous sunset prior to the fireworks show.

The fireworks were pretty spectacular. I managed to get some video, but am only uploading a couple of the pictures I was able to grab with my iPhone.

We rode the trolley to the beach, but the trolleys were not running after the fireworks, so we walked along the beach all the way back to our hotel.
On Day 10, we dressed up and rode the trolley back to the mall for dinner. We meant to eat at the Hard Rock Cafe (we had a coupon!), but it was closed due to a private party. So, we ended up at the Cheesecake factory. The food wasn't that great, but the cheesecake was.

I haven't worn this dress in a long time (it has been too small).

We also caught a few minutes of a Moanalua MS Band Parent's performance at hotel near the Cheesecake Factory. He's the one on the right playing guitar.

On Day 11, we went to the Mass at the St. Augustine By-the-Sea Catholic Church by our hotel. There was a museum that we visited as well - learning about St. Augustine, Father Damien, Mother Marianne, and Queen Kapi'olani.

With Fr. Lane Akiona

St. Augustine statue

View of the outside of the church from our hotel.

We then had our free professional photo shoot - we got one free 8X10. We did end up buying a package where we could keep the digitals of all the pictures taken along with 6 print outs. Those pictures might be posted in a later blog. Then, we went for a walk around Kapiolani Park - about a 2.5 mile walk.

Queen Kapi'olani Statue

Selfie with Diamond Head in the background

Selfie in front of a fountain with Diamond Head in the background

We had drinks and dessert with friend, Michael Bataluna, that evening.

On Day 12, our last day, I woke up early and walked/jogged/hiked from the hotel all the way around Diamond Head - a total of 5.4 miles. The views were spectacular. I am so proud of myself for making such a long distance. My leg muscles were so sore later that day, lol.

About halfway through the walk.

Diamond Head Lighthouse

Views of the ocean along the way.

View of Diamond Head from the opposite side.

Thank goodness for water fountains!

Ala Wai Canal

Run Keeper Stats

Surfer with Seal Statue

Surfer with Seal Statue

After showering and eating breakfast, we finished packing and got a late 1:00 checkout. We checked our bags at the bell hop and walked to Tucker & Bevvy's for deli sandwiches and then to the Aquarium.

Surfer on a Wave Statue

Lots of "Dori's & Nemo's"!

We then met the other Tucker's for drinks (we used our last drink coupons on sodas). At 4:30, we got our bags and got on a shuttle to the airport.

We were all smiles, but were sad to be leaving Hawaii.

"Security!"

Waiting in line to go through security

At the gate waiting to load the plane

After waiting for a delayed flight, we got a little loopy, lol.

Photo bomb!

We were finally on the plane. We got all the way to the end of the runway and had to turn around and go back to the gate because of problems with the GPS. We had to sit on the plane an additional 30-45 minutes as maintenance fixed the problem. We then began our LONG non-stop flight back to DFW.

Once in DFW, we took the TRE to Union Station, caught the Dart to the Rowlett Station, and got picked up by our awesome neighbor to go home. We were so tired, but excited to pick up our Dottie. She was excited to see us too.

It's been four days now and I'm still dealing a little with jet lag and missing Hawaii so much. When I lay in bed, I close my eyes, turn on the wave sound on my sound pillow, and transport myself back to the Waikiki Beach. It was such a magical trip. I am so thankful for the opportunity to experience such a paradise.