Drew and Jamie part 1

Hey there. Drew and Jamie have made the trek to Hawaii! It's very exciting. They're here for an island cruise and are on Oahu today and next Saturday. As always, Drew had the day planned which was very nice. He found some great things!

I met them at Diamond Head around 9 am. I got there a little early and picked them up at the sign so I could take their bags in my trunk and drive them up to the start of the hike. The hike was as beautiful as ever, and it was a lot easier than it was the first time I did it! I'm very proud of myself. The exercise and diet may not have changed my look, but it's changed the way my body works. I wasn't anywhere near as exhausted and in need for breaks, which just made the hike a lot nicer. I made sure that once we hit the top I got a few pics of Drew and Jamie for them. :-). I didn't bring my camera this time, just the camelback and keys.

After the hike Drew had us go to Ono Hawaiian Foods in the outskirts of Waikiki. It was absolutely delicious! It's this small whole in the wall place that has all sorts of food resorts, including one for #1 place to get Hawaiian food. It was very good. The Kalua pig was the best I've had so far! We got there soon after it opened so we didn't have to wait in line, thankfully. Turns out they even have signs regarding waiting in line, so it seems like lines for often. I will definitely take futures visitors there. I think dad would want to go. It's about as authentic as you can get if you're looking for Hawaiian food. It was very delicious.

The next thing on the agenda was a walk over to Leonards to get Malasadas. I had no arguments when I saw this on the itinerary! Yes, my cousin made himself an itinerary. I love it :-). We got 6 of them and different flavors so they can try. I ended up with two Malasada Puffs which are the delicious Portuguese donuts with a filling- my filling of choice was custard and chocolate. Yum! They were very delightful. I haven't had many of these at all, so I was looking forward to this part of the trip. Drew and Jamie are definitely doing well when it comes to getting the full Hawaiian experience. Especially since they started the day with a walk on the beach! What better way to start a day?

We finished off the visit with a tour of Iolani Palace. Thankfully my GPS took me on the route that made me spot the wonderful parking lot underneath City Hall that I had completely forgotten about. Parking is so terrible, so I was very excited when I saw it and remembered that it was near the palace. The tour was quite pleasant. I really liked the throne room. I've been in a lot of old buildings and castles but I didn't realize, until today, that I had never really seen a throne room with a throne inside. It was impressive. I learned a good amount about the culture and now I can pronounce Lili uokalani!

Now I'm home, resting (very sore from boot camp on Thurs and the hike), and figuring out things before the FRG game night at 6.

It was really nice seeing Drew and Jamie. It's even better that I see them again next Saturday! What fun!

-Meredith

I want it

Cross your fingers that I at least get an interview. It's hard enough to even get a response on this island. No one allows call backs so my applications just disappear into the middle of nowhere.

I would love this one though.
http://www.hawaiianhumane.org/hhsjobs.html

hmmm

<<< Look an owl!

ok, that's all I really have for you today. John's gone officially sooo there's that. Haha. 

Drew and Jamie are visiting on Saturday and Saturday (but not inbetween) so I'll have stories after that. 

David Gallo shows underwater astonishments | Video on TED.com

David Gallo shows underwater astonishments | Video on TED.com

This is VERY cool. Octopuses and Squids are so awesome! The end is the best

Gorgeous Porcelain

So at the Nex they have these tea sets and salt and pepper shakers and other various tabletop things that are absolutely beautiful. I really want to invest in the set but it would be a pretty penny, I'm certain of it. I just found a website that, I'm 99% sure, is the same company. I don't know the name off hand, but the items look so similar that it couldn't be something else. Unfortunately the set I want isn't on the site, but you can still look to see the gorgeous things they have to offer. I love almost all of it!

Gorgeous Tabletop Sets!

110th Submarine Birthday Ball

April 11th will be the Submarine Forces 110th Birthday. Every year there is a ball for that, as well as a Navy ball but apparently Submariner's don't go to that one since we have our own. I'm not sure what the deal with that is, but the Navy ball would have been in the fall.

In Pearl Harbor, the base is so big and there are so many Submariner's that the ball had to be split up between officers and enlisted. Ours was this past Saturday and John and I had a lot of fun. We got a hotel room at Hale Koa so that we wouldn't have to drive all the way back. It was a good idea, we were exhausted! I'm not really sure what else to say about it. It was lucky that the guys were in port for the weekend since they're starting to be in and out a lot. There was dinner, which was delicious, and they introduced all the Captains of each boat. There was also a centerpiece competition, but we didn't do very well. I'm not surprised. They put the Ensigns in charge and none of us have been to a ball before so we didn't really know how much people put into each one. Next year will be better. If they put the new Ensigns in charge, I'll just make sure John tells them what they're up against! Haha.

Overall is was a good social night. I love our Wardroom and all the women associated with it. We really lucked out with the people on our boat, especially the wives.

USS Cheyenne SSN 773