Plough and Stars

To begin, watch this video....



Now that you're smiling already, I'll begin. Plough and Stars is an Irish pub that has a pool table and a neighborhood feel. A group of old men played their guitars and banjos the entire time we were there. I guess one of then is the "banjo" guy from 49ers games. I'll try to post a video later. Overall- super chill, fun atmosphere.

Biscuits & Blues

What a fun pick tonight. I don't go to nearly as much live music as I should or used to see. Yelp assisted me in finding Biscuits & Blues, which made for the perfect night out for my friend from college, C, and I to check out. Located between Union Square (tourist central) and the Tenderloin (watch your wallets), this jazz/blues underground restaurant holds a variety of characters - young, old, foreign, or slightly crazy. They serve Southern, Louisiana inspired dishes and drinks. Simple with a kick of spice. Very reasonable prices that will sneak up on you after ordering a few drinks. Also, a small cover charge, depending on who is performing.

Justa Peach & Louisiana Lemonade

Worth it. I had a blast - much needed after a stressful day at work. C won in ordering stronger drinks, but I can't say I didn't enjoy my super sweet iced tea (with a kick of vodka of course). My jambalaya was fantastic. Filling and the perfect amount of spice. Even better was Kevin Russell - tonight's entertainment. Musician in his 50s or 60s that definitely rocks it out now as strong and hard as ever! He began with heart felt blues, but eventually steered into some rock, which you could tell was his passion. I couldn't stop smiling, moving to the beat, or trying to sing along. During the last song, some guy who must be a regular stood in front of the stage and started to do a tap-like dance you'd only see in a movie or perhaps the streets of New Orleans.

Only downside to this place was that I wanted to dance, but there wasn't a dance floor! In spite of that, I will be back. I suppose I could have joined the random guy, so I guess not having an official dance floor is just an excuse.

On another note, C and I discovered that every credit card has either V, AMEX, MC, or DISCOVER only visible under black light. Wisconsin licenses have wavy lines and California licenses have a bright hollogram if your picture, also only under black light.  Yes, random, but now you know!

Hawaii Day 2: Hapuna Beach, Ukulele Festival, Lava Lava Beach Club, Manta Ray Snorkeling

Another beautiful, long day on the big island has come to a pleasing end. Apparently, I brought strong winds with me, but they did not stop us from enjoying each moment. (The Trade Winds constantly sweep across Hawaii, but not normally this ferociously!)

Acai Bowl

This morning began very differently than yesterday. We had a leisurely morning, no rush to leave the hotel. Since I'm still on Pacific Coast Time, I was up early anyways and enjoyed mimosas with breakfast on the water as the sun rose. We later enjoyed Acai bowls, which are delicious.  Acai is grown in Brazil, but popular here!

We eventually made our way to the most popular white sand beach on the island: Hapuna. Not hard to see why with its long stretching sands reaching out towards the blue water and picturesque palm trees. Bonus... its easily accessible and has showers. Super strong sun as I learned yesterday, so I made sure not to miss any spots with the sunscreen.

Next stop was the annual Ukulele Festival. Two stages of young and old musicians showing off their ukulele skills. We got to learn how and make our own leis and watch a kid youtube star perform live! (See below with link to youtube video)

              

Onwards to a late lunch at the Lava Lava Beach Club. Perfect spot on the beach in 'Anaeho'omalu Bay to enjoy happy hour, hot wings, watch the sun start to set, all while having our toes in the sand listening to a cute, talented singer play. We were also surprised by seeing another giant sea turtle in the water by the rocks.  Better yet, as we watched the sun begin to fall, two whales decided to play in the distance - jumping far out of the water, sending visible splashes in the air.

Poke at the Lava Lava Beach Club

            















Final activity of the day: kayaking snorkel manta ray tour. I was so giddy about this adventure ever since I read about it while planning the trip.  A told me it is on Discovery's top 10 things to do before you die list. I was so nervous at the possibility of not seeing the rays, since everything else on the trip has gone so well. Some coworkers of A joined us for the tour.  We kayaked out into the bay, pitch black without flashlights. After getting anchored, we floated in the night waters, face down. The guides use flashlights to attract plankton to lure in the mantas. While waiting,  our guide dove to the bottom to show us various fish and bring us urchins to touch. I had kind of a religious moment in the water as I internally settled with the fact that we were not going to see the main attraction. You can't control nature! And then he came! (Lesson #2 patience). I was scared and star struck and intrigued all at the same time. His bony rib like white belly gapped from the main part of his body and he constantly did back flip after back flip.  It was like an underwater dance. He got so unbelievably close to me and seemed inches away the entire time. Wow. Below is a video I grabbed on youtube of the view scuba divers get, just to give you an idea of how impressive the whole experience was:

Great end to the day. We both were sea sick,  so are happy to be home to sleep.  Goodnight!

 

Aiden - Youtube Ukulele Star

Talented musician at Lava Lava Beach Club

Hawaii Day 1: Volcano, Green Sand Beach, Luau, and More!

Vent in the crater at Volcano National Park

Yesterday was a wondefully long day. The purpose of this trip was stay/visit with my friend, A, from college while exploring the big island together!

A and I woke at 4:15am this morning, on the road shortly after,  in order to reach Volcano National Park by sunrise. Our strict schedule filled quickly due to the number of activities that we wanted to fit in on the East/South side of the island. Below is our itinerary - I'll add more details/links later but for now enjoy the pictures :)

6:30am sunrise at Volcano National Park. Lava tube, hike, steam vents, giant crater. We ended up not being able to do the hike we intended to because we ended up in the wrong spot. It still made for a nice hike and turned out to have a better view of the crater than the trailhead we'd been searching for. We did manage to have enough time to find the Thurston Lava Tube in the middle of the rainforest before we had to hit the road.

8:30am hit road for green sand beach

Lava Tube

9:30am get sidetracked at an awesome black sand beach called Punalu'u where we see two giant sea turtles. It was significantly warmer at sea level and I felt elated to be in such a breath-taking place. (Photos at the end of this post!)

10:20am reach the south point of the island - Mahana Bay.
     -- 1 hour hike to the Green Sand Beach (we were told it would take 2.5-3 hours! We must be speedy hikers :) ) Beautiful trek along the coast with numerous photo worthy shorelines of waves crashing against the rocks. I saw too many people making the hike in flip flops or dresses - do yourself a favor and wear tennis shoes. And suncreen while you're at it. (My neck is a little raw this morning! ) If you're not up for the long hike, locals will take you in 4wd vehicles for about $10 each way.

     -- We enjoyed the beach, water, and well deserved re-energizing snacks while taking countless pictures. This beach could not have been more majestic. There are only two Green Sand beaches in the world. Here and in the Galapagos Islands.  If it hadn't been for the unusually strong wind whipping the sand painfully into our skin, we would have stayed longer.

Finally reached the Green Sand Beach!

It's really green!

12:30pm finished the hike back to the car and drove to the most Southern point in the US. (Hawaii is the state closest to the equator - a little trivia knowledge for you)



1:30pm stopped at Pebble Beach, off the beaten path, on the drive to Kailua-Kona. Literally made up of all pebbles and violent waves rolling them around making the sounds a little more intense. The drive to the beach from the highway is super steep - you drop over 1000 feet in about 1 mile.

5pm arrive at the Luau after a quick shower stop at the hotel. Other than taking 45 minutes to get in - it was adorable and fun!  Food was delicious - and they even demonstrated how they traditionally cook the pig on the islands. See the picture below of the beast after the process: They marinate and stuff him, light some hot coals, cover it all with banana leaves, protect everything with a tarp, before burying it under layers of dirt. After cooking all day - you have a tasty dinner :) We we able to see the sun setting on the beach before tiki torches lit and the show began. "Lava and Legends"  took us through different cultural dances of the islands of the South Pacific. This is my cup of tea - I could watch shows like this daily and never tire of them. When they performed dances from New Zealand, my heart jumped a beat - that was where I first saw a cultural dance and brought back fond memories! The grand finale gave us a fire twirling Samoan man - damn - forgive me but that was hot in more ways than one!
 

After a local bar filled with dancing vacationers, I retired to the hotel and immediately crashed. (I tried to write this last night but it wasn't happening! )

Overall an amazing day.  I can't believe the number of climates we saw in one day.  A told me that the big island of Hawaii has 13 of the 15 types of climates in the world. I know today we saw: tundra, rainforest, desert, beach/tropical,  snow on the top of the mountain, maritime, and probably more. 

That's it for now! See photos of the black sand beach & more from the other experiences below. Aloha!

Waves Crashing on the hike to the Green Beach

Difficult drive to the Green Beach

More Luau

  

Steam Vents in Volcano National Park

View on the hike to Green Beach

Chinese New Year Parade, Stock In Trade, Comstock

One of my absolute favorite things is a parade! The streets are full of people and families in good spirits, anxiously lining up long before the first band starts marching. I loved being a band nerd in high school, participating in our local parades (Clarinet, in case you were wondering), so maybe that's why I look forward to hearing the kids play music, everyone dressed up in bright colors, and the theme of each parade shinning through! 

Of course, this parade did not disappoint - after all, it's the Year of the Snake! Happy Chinese New Year! (I actually learned in the cab ride home tonight, that the Chinese New Year Parade originated in San Francisco to draw tourism, and people from China have come just to view it. Parades have now started in China to celebrate in imitation!) So I stood for and hour and a half, just to watch the first 45 minutes of the parade, before rushing to my next stop of the night. Perks of watching from the parade's beginning point: the awesome firecrackers they set off (see picture of bright sparks below!). Also, as I began looking for a cab to dinner, I was able to walk down Market Street and see all of the floats that were waiting to start the route, including the Big Dragon that comes at the end (another lesson from tonight's final cab driver: it's bad luck to go to the parade and not see the Dragon! So, I'm glad I passed by! Also - these kids spend all year prepping for this parade - it is like a sport and an art and an honor. Super cool). So I got to see most of the 3 hour parade within an hour!

See a few pictures of the parade below! I felt like an amazing photographer in the moment, only to find that most of my pictures are garbage. I guess that's not my calling!

Next stop of the night: Stock In Trade. Brand spanking new bar/restaurant in the Marina district. It is absolutely huge. Perfect for large party gatherings/birthday celebrations. There were about 9 of us tonight, so it worked out well. Oh - and they have a Bocce Ball course set right in the middle of the bar. I apologize for the horrid picture, but you get the idea. The food was good, nothing to write home about, but decent. Server was nice and overall good experience. It's loud, so I think I'd only return for large group outings/bocce ball :) Or maybe just to get hammered :-P

Huge dessert - like an elephant ear with whip cream.
Or maybe it was ice cream... not sure.

Last stop for this girl was Comstock. Very cool, classy bar. The picture pretty much says it all. Also - live string music from above your head (see blurred picture [sorry!]). I'd return to this one. Food going to tables looks pretty tasty too! As always, I have to be the responsible one and get some shut-eye for work in the morning. Night, night!