All posts filed under: Likes

Tempting Ohia Lehua Blossom

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Saturday evening was the culmination of the Merrie Monarch hula festivities, but not the end to the awareness of the rapid ohia death which is plaguing the island of Hawaii. Many of the hula halaus respected the unspoken ban of using the lovely ohia blossom in their hula attire as it could jeopardize future generations from enjoying the beauty of this flower.  The ohia has a significant meaning for hula and not being able to use it in abundance in the festivities was a crutch for many, but also allowed the kumu hulas (hula teachers) to think outside of the box on using other native plants and/or flowers. Until the ohia are healthy, many hula practitioners as well as lei makers will not be entering the forest on the island of Hawaii as frequent as before.  If anyone is visiting the Island of Hawaii, take note of the poster below from Rapid Ohia Death awareness group: On Monday, Hilo International Airport was flooded with flowers and leis left behind by visitors who could not remove …

B is for Books

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While my dear friend, Rogene, is a Capricious Traveler, I tend to enjoy planning and learning as much as I can about the country I will be visiting.  Although I lose track of time perusing through travel books, I don’t always retain everything I read.  Hence, I often can be found carrying one of these guides, as they have come in handy especially when I cannot speak the host country’s language.  I think it’s so important to know the basic greetings and phrases when going to another country.  I love how these guide books are like the traveler’s CliffsNotes so everything you might need can be found in there. Though I don’t normally carry my travel book when I am actually visiting landmarks while abroad, during my visit to Greece with one of my friends the travel book became our bible.  Since we were stranded and didn’t have much with us, it helped us as we navigated from island to island.  I guess now with modern technology travel books might be obsolete as more and …

Quote Me

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Day 4: EBOOK: 365 WRITING PROMPTS Do you have a favorite quote that you return to again and again?  What is it, and why does it move you? “Laughter is an instant vacation.” – Milton Berle Every day I experience a good day or a yucky day.  On the yucky days I think back to all the silly moments I have been through and I laugh.  The most noted one with the Holoholo Girls is our photo shoot.  I may not be able to relive that same experience nor take the break I am so longing for, but through that simple gesture of laughing and smiling, everything is all better.  So, the next time you find yourself in the slumps and just need a break, think of a funny time, and laugh out loud!

Two Cents Tuesday Challenge: Wishes

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“What are your wishes for the coming year?” For one of their last prompts of the year, Across the Bored had me thinking about how I could make my wishes come true.  Lately, as I reflect on what is most important in my life, I wish I had a clean bill of health.  Both my parents and I have fallen ill.  Whether due to old age, hereditary traits, or our lifestyle, we each are facing some challenging decisions in the coming year.  I just wish we didn’t have to worry about which path of treatment we need to take. Deciding whether to proceed with an intrusive surgery, or opt to try Chinese Herbal Medicine, or opt to do nothing and ride it out, has been on my mind the past few months.  It seems that during this festive holiday season, I usually am faced with some life changing experiences I never knew I would ever have to face.  I don’t know how much more I can handle without caving in.  I think my stress level has really …

Share Your World – 2013 Week 45

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What was the most important event in your life last week? Last week involved a series of hospital and doctor visits for my entire family, including me. But, I think the most important one was my dad’s successful recover from his lung biopsy.  The area where they punctured his lung is still tender, but he is in good spirits. Who was your favorite singer or music group in high school? In high school, I loved listening to what ever was playing on the local radio station, KBIG FM.  But, my last year in high school, a few friends and I drove over to the other side of the island – Kailua, Kona, to see Maxi Priest in concert!  That was the highlight of our senior year!  One of my favorite songs from Maxi Priest: Name the foreign countries you’ve been to. I have been very fortunate to have visited a few countries, mainly in South America. Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, China, India, Japan, Greece, Paraguay, Peru, Rapa Nui, Seychelles, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Tanzania, and …

Weekly Writing Challenge: Snapshots

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Afternoon Delight Throughout the entire day my appetite was ginormous.  As we were headed home, I turned to my husband and told him I was craving an ice shave. Maybe because it was a hot day and I was feeling overheated, I just needed something cold and refreshing.  We took a slight detour and headed for the North Shore and stopped at Aoki’s Shave Ice.  Luckily, since it was a Monday afternoon, there was no line!  We parked next to the building and went inside.  Greeting us as we walked through their door, was a huge sign with very clear instructions on how to order.  I guess since they catered to many tourists, they must have been tired of explaining how to order.   While the girl behind the counter started to scoop soft mounds of shaved ice, I asked for a scoop of vanilla ice cream and an order of sweet azuki beans, too.  I don’t normally order such a large treat, but this time, man, I could not resist.  As she trickled the sweet …

Share Your World – 2013 Week 42

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If you were the original designer of one existing corporate logo, which one would you select? I love  .  And everything that they stand for.  Walking into any one of their stores gets me excited to see the selection of their outdoor clothing.  Their gear packs nicely for a long trip. I love how their logo is the outline of the Andes mountains found in South America. If you could have your own TV channel, what would it be about? I definitely would have a TV channel that involved travel and adventure.  Episodes would include trying new foods, witnessing cultural festivals, and meeting the locals.  I don’t have a TV in my home, but when I do travel, I usually have the travel channel playing the entire time I stay in a hotel. If you were on a small island, who would you want to be with? And where is it?  How big is it? Well, I live on an island already. But I guess if I had to pick a smaller island, I would …

Stuff We Love/Obsess Over: Heirs

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I swore never to watch another k-drama again, yet here I am, about to write an entire post on the K-drama that takes up 2 of the 5 hours I set aside every week to decompress and watch TV. You can’t know how it infuriates me that I’ve succumbed to this drama and after 14 episodes, with 6 more to go, I’ve decided to stop wasting energy on this love/hate relationship, and just go with it. So this is me, going with it. Kim Tan (Lee Min-Ho) is a chaebol and the illegitimate son of the large business conglomerate, Jeguk. We meet him at the start of the drama, living alone in California and surfing to his heart’s content. He’s not entirely alone, save for a few American friends. As a side note, there is a bit of English at the beginning of this drama, but the English speakers have an intonation and cadence that sounds like English language drills.  Cha Eun-Sang (Park Shin-Hye), flies to California from Korea to attend her sister’s wedding. She arrives to find her sister’s …

Come Fly with Me…to Greece

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One of my most memorable trips was to Greece, where I participated in the first SWY Global Assembly to see old friends and make new ones, “Once a PY, Forever a PY!”  The adventure began the moment we landed in Athens, Greece.  Since we had arrived a few days prior to the GA, our host informed us at the airport, we had the option to go sailing or to visit with another SWY member and his family in Aegina, Greece.  We decided to visit Aegina, as it was only a short ferry ride away. It was a fabulous journey getting there, meeting with a local Greek family, and consuming delicious foods!  This is where I tried a “Greek” salad engulfed with huge chunks of feta cheese.    We also went swimming for the first time in the Aegean Sea.  The water was salty and warm.  But after traveling on a plane for almost two days, it was so refreshing and relaxing. Later that evening, a huge storm approached Aegina. Looking out to the calm Port of …