Rosy Lady

Last day on the Big Island

By this time we have been going non-stop and the tiredness really started to set in so, we decided to spend our last day on the Big Island by relaxing at the hotel in the morning and then browsing some local shops in the afternoon.

We had the most amazing dinner at Sansei a very popular seafood restaurant.  They are on some of the other islands as well and I cannot recommend them high enough (this is coming from someone who is fussy when it comes to fish and seafood).

       

We had the chef's selection which, had plenty of tasters of various dishes that I wouldn't normally have tried and I would therefore have missed out big time.  Everything was tasty and cooked to perfection.

We finished the day with a walk on the beach.  The sand was soft like flour under our toes and the ocean was warm as it pushed out over our feet and the path back to the hotel was pitch black which meant we had to feel-feel our way back in the dark but, what an amazing time we were having.  Not once did we worry about anything.  Hubby never complained about any pain (except a bit of sunburn).  It really started to feel like a new chapter in our lives after the two years of cancer worries.  We experienced so much, we laughed so much, we ate so much and we loved it all so very much.  Next stop:  Maui.

xx  
 

Volcano National Park

We went to the Big Island of Hawaii hoping to see a live volcano but, unbeknown to us, the active volcano stopped the lava flow for four months which during the period that we went.  So, we saw lots of steam, smoke and hardened lava instead, which was still interesting.

So this is the closest we got to the live volcano.  I had a strange sulphur taste in my mouth the whole day that we were in the park, which has to do with the volcanic fumes produced by the volcano.

 

We also saw several steam vents in the park.

The Big Island of Hawaii is still a growing island because of all the volcanic activity.  There was plenty of evidence of the islands' volcanic activities over the years:

Just imagine this as a volcanic lake.  Pretty awesome right?

     

We also got the opportunity to walk through a lava tube (underground tunnel formed by lava).

A very interesting day which ended with another great sunset.

xx       
 

Aloha Oahu and Hello Big Island

Our time in Oahu seemed to fly by and I felt a little teary eyed the morning we were due to go to the Big Island of Hawaii.  

I did not want to throw away the lei that we got the day before at the PCC and the Hubby had a great idea.  

 

The Hawaiian people have been telling us all week who they all live off the land (aina -island) and give back to the land.  We have noticed some statues around Honolulu covered in lei's and decided to go and place our lei's on the statue of Duke Kahanamoku  on Waikiki beach as our way of giving back to the island. 

The Duke Kahanamoku statue was created by sculptor Jan-Michelle Sawyer and in 1990 on the 100th anniversary of the Duke's birth. The statue honors Duke Kahanamoku as the father of modern surfing. 

This was our way of saying Aloha and goodbye to Oahu.

After the lush green of Oahu, the Big Island felt very different.  We stayed on the Kona side of the island.  When we landed and as we drove to our hotel, everything just looked black and burned to me with all the black volcanic rock everywhere.

   

It was a strange experience to drive on the 'wrong' side of the road (In the UK and South Africa we drive on the left).  I was so glad when Hubby agreed to do all the driving as the car's steering wheel was also on the 'wrong' side and it was an automatic (I'm used to a manual car).  He did a very good job.

But, as we approached our hotel, it got greener:

I bet these bougainvilleas at our hotel are beautiful when they are in full bloom:

     
 We had a lovely ocean view room from where we could hear the ocean.  I slept quite well here with sea breeze and the sound of the ocean.

It was wonderful to observe the colours of the sky change at sunset.

       

xx

Rainforest, rainbows and a waterfall

 We headed out of Honolulu to the rainbow valley for a hike to Manoa waterfall.  This involved a hike through a rainforest with a steady climb up to the falls.  Of course, being in a rainforest, we had some rain, but it was still a wonderful experience.

As we crossed a bridge, I noticed that someone had laid hibiscus flowers all across, which made it feel as though we were entering an enchanting forest.  I show another photo here.

 

We got covered in mud on this hike, but loved every minute of it.

You walk and climb for about an hour and when you suddenly look up, there it is:

Manoa falls.  When we drove back to Honolulu, there were rainbows over the valley and our guide told us that it was known as rainbow valley because of all the rainbows.  

xx 

   

 

Easter Sunday

We started the day by attending the sunrise service on Waikiki beach.

The service was held by various churches in Oahu who came together for the Easter Sunday.  There were lots of people but it was a very special experience for us.  Many of the familiar worship songs were sung in English and Hawaiian.  They re-enacted how the first missionaries came to Hawaii on the sea, it gave me goosebumps.  It had rained the night before and there was a rainbow behind us over the sea for the duration of the service.

After this we had a lovely breakfast before we caught a boat out to take a ride on a submarine.

The water was so choppy that we both felt a little green before we even got to the submarine but, once the wonder of the underwater world unfolded, we momentarily forgot about all of that.

 

We saw loads of fish, sea turtles, coral, ship wrecks and an old airplane wreck.   

The sea is this blue because the sand is so white and reflects the sunlight.

The rest of the afternoon we enjoyed being on solid ground and wondered if it was such a great idea to go on the sunset dinner cruise that we pre-booked for the evening.  We kept feeling like we were still going up and down.

    

It turned out to be a lovely romantic evening of steak, lobster, Hawaiian entertainment, a little dancing and watching enjoying the sunset.

Oh, I wish I was back there now *sigh*.

xx   

Oahu Part 1: Flowers everywhere

The first thing that I noticed when we got to Oahu was that there were flowers everywhere.

Orchids grow in abundance in gardens, pots and in trees.  So many varieties and colours.

The Plumeria was also full in bloom everywhere.

We saw the hibiscus in so many different colours.

We saw so many different types of flowers that it is not possible to do one post about it all so, I will have to add a few more over the next few posts.  But, I wanted to share how I noticed that the flowers everywhere translated into everything else.  Like the public phone booths:

The shops:

We were wearing floral clothes.  Hubby is now the proud owner of several 'aloha shirts', while I loved wearing a flower above my left ear everyday.  Wearing the flower on the left indicates that you're not available, but wearing it on the right shows that you are single.

I could not resist adding flowers to my nails too:

xx             

Aloha!

Thank you for your patience while I went off to have the holiday of a lifetime.  

 

We had the most amazing time in Hawaii (Oahu, the Big Island and Maui) and San Francisco.  Just when we thought it was all coming to an end, we had an unexpected week long extension in San Francisco due to the volcanic ash over Europe.  We definitely needed the extra time in this beautiful city.  We got back on Monday and have been straight back to work.  We have both needed the last few days to process all the amazing experiences we've had and to get over the jet-lag.  SF is 8 hours behind the UK and Hawaii a further 3 hours so, I am wide awake at night and want to sleep in the day.  But, let's skip the boring stuff.  I hope you wouldn't mind, but I would love to share some of our holiday photos with you over the next few posts, I have been so inspired.  If you have followed my blog for a while, you will know that I love color, flowers, nature, my husband, sunshine and good food so, as you can imagine, Hawaii was right up my alley.  

I fell in love with Oahu the day that we arrived.  It was a warm sunny day, the people were friendly, we were greeted with a Lei (the floral necklace), everywhere I looked was vivid colors, flowers and the blue of the ocean, oh, it was sO blue!  That's when all the stress and worries from the last two years just melted away.  I felt a little teary eyed as I thought how we always wanted to visit Hawaii together, how that almost did not happen for us, and then felt incredibly blessed and humbled to stand on our hotel balcony and overlook Waikiki. 

I hope you will join me as I relive our journey and capture the memories that I never want to forget and all the design inspiration from these wonderful islands.

  

I hope life has treated you kindly?

xx

Looking up

The sun came out yesterday afternoon and I couldn't resist making a start on some pruning and de-weeding in the garden.  While I was down on hands and knees, pulling out weeds, I suddenly looked up.

I just felt inspired by the light coming through the yellow petals.  This moment really spoke to me. Here I was so busy focussing on the mud and the weeds around me that I almost missed the light and beauty above me, had I not looked up.  Of course I had to stop what I was doing to grab my camera to capture the moment.

My life seems to be at a point right now where I feel constantly reminded to look beyond the stress, worries and problems of life that often feels like it is surrounding us and instead, to look up or look around us and to try and see the beauty in the ugly or to notice that when you thought you were knee deep in weeds and mud, that the sun has been shining above you the whole time and that there are blessings that blossom in abundance over you, if you would only look up.  This may not make sense to you but, that is where I am at and I needed to record this as a reminder to myself.

Hope you have a great weekend full of beauty and inspiration.

xx   

Seeing beauty in the ugly

I drove past an empty building the other day where the windows have been boarded up.  Posters have been pasted over the boards that cover the windows.  It is such an eye sore in a neighborhood but, then I had to take another look.  Someone has seen the potential for beauty in the ugly and painstakingly created these images that stir emotion as you look at each of them. 

They say that 'beauty is in the eye of the beholder' and I'm sure that someone would see this as vandalism but, I admire the creativity of this street artist.

It was a powerful reminder to me to always try and see the beauty or the positive in life, no matter how difficult or negative something seems.

I am a great believer in 'counting your blessings' and finding something to be grateful for and that has carried me through many difficult situations.  Thank you so much for the kind words regarding my earlier post to all who has supported and loved us.  

Happy weekend everyone!  

 xx

There is a time for everything

After several days of rain, we've had a break in the clouds and I just had to go for a walk in the park while the sun came out momentarily.  I have always loved the transition from one season to the next and was delighted by the early promise of Spring.

There was a sense of anticipation as though Nature is on a stage, just waiting for the curtain to open so she could dazzle her eager audience.  There were buds everywhere and green sprouts just peeking through the ground.

While the sound of water falling and splashing in various fountains around the park encouraged some blooms to take a peek...

The door of the museum located in the park and witnessing the transition in seasons reminded me of the different seasons in my own life.

The seasons of life is so beautifully described in Ecclesiastes 3.  Have you ever read it?

There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven:

a time to be born and a time to die,

a time to plant and a time to uproot,

a time to kill and a time to heal,

a time to tear down and a time to build,

a time to weep and a time to laugh,

a time to mourn and a time to dance,

 

a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,

a time to embrace and a time to refrain,

a time to search and a time to give up,

a time to keep and a time to throw away,

a time to tear and a time to mend,

a time to be silent and a time to speak,

a time to love and a time to hate,

a time for war and a time for peace.

I find it comforting to know that there is a rhythm, a balance and a season to the circle of life. My family always say "the wheel turns" meaning that sometimes you're under and sometimes you're at the top.  I have had my time of being under and going through the mud but, I believe that things are looking up.  

xx