Family-Vacay

Dear Travel Diary

Thursday, April 29, 2021

Today I wanted to take it easy and came home after school and lunch to relax. I had another bad night's sleep and still had to pack for the weekend. Tomorrow, right after school, we are heading to the 'vacation' with the whole family. We are going to Turtle Bay in the north.

Friday, April 30, 2021

After an eventful school day, we were supposed to be picked up by Debbie and Tony. However, Debbie messaged me before school ended, saying that they would be late. So Chantal and I didn't have to rush. During the 5-minute break, I went in search of food for lunch and, of course, came back late, but it's not a big deal here. After all, we are in Hawaii and Hawaiian time applies.

So after school, we leisurely ate our sandwiches and patiently waited for an update from Debbie. A good half an hour later than planned, we received the message that they would be there soon. And so it was; the journey could begin.

After navigating through the traffic chaos in the city, we reached the highway and drove for about an hour to Wahiawā, where we made a stop at their acquaintances' place. Here too, you could feel the hospitality, and we were served spaghetti and dessert. Shortly afterwards, we continued our journey to Turtle Bay. We left the highway and arrived in the well-known town of Hale'iwa. There, we wanted to take a dessert break at the even more famous Matsumoto Shave Ice stand. Apparently, it's the best shave ice in the area. Unfortunately, that was not only our plan, but also the plan of many others. The long queue was not worth it for us, as we were already full.

After the stop in Hale'iwa, we drove along the coast to our destination. Along the way, we caught a glimpse of the various famous beaches that we want to explore in the future. After another hour, we finally arrived at our destination and unloaded the huge amount of food from the two cars. Of course, there are 11 of us in total, but it would be enough for two football teams! After exploring the "Ocean Villa," Chantal and I also walked around the building a bit. It had already started drizzling on the way there, and the rain continued during our exploration. Luckily, the rain didn't last long, and we were able to return to the apartment dry. When the last two, Daven and Ivy, arrived, the men started the barbecue and prepared a wonderful barbecue feast.

After dinner, it was time for Beer Pong. Lehua and I played against Daniel and Chantal in the first match. It was a close tie, and despite the other team's big lead and their trash talk, Lehua and I managed to win. Girl power!

So we had to stay and play against Daven and Tony. At the beginning, it seemed like a repeat of the previous game. The men's team had a big lead, but we caught up and managed to tie the game. Unfortunately, the two of them won by a small margin, and we had to leave the field. In the third match, Daniel and Chantal vs. Daven and Tony, things started to heat up. In general, these three gentlemen are loaded with more than enough energy and tried everything possible to distract the opponent. It was a real spectacle and at the same time a workout for my abs due to the laughter. In the end, Daniel and Chantal won in overtime, with each team winning once. But now, it's time to go to bed, or rather to the pull-out sofa in the living room.

Saturday, May 1, 2021

As expected, I woke up shortly before 6 am and experienced my first chilly morning here in Hawaii, apart from the bus rides. It felt as if I were camping in the mountains. Even with a sweater, I slowly got warmer. No wonder, the air conditioning had been set to 18 degrees overnight. As I increased the temperature, I heard someone futilely entering the code at the door and kindly opened it. So it was Uncle Randy, who was sneaking out at this early hour - I had heard it correctly.

Gradually, more and more people gathered in the common room (living room/kitchen), and that was the end of sleeping. Already then, Daven jokingly asked me if I was ready for a new game of Beer Pong. Of course not, and so Lehua and Daniel cooked breakfast for us.

Almost everyone got ready for the beach/pool, and we enjoyed the mostly beautiful weather by the sea. Just as we reached the beach, we were once again greeted by a few raindrops. When Chantal and I wanted to take a sunbreak around noon, we walked back to our apartment and saw our men standing at the grill again.

We had hamburgers for lunch, and I had a long conversation with Daven about Oahu, Switzerland, and the other Hawaiian islands. He will be in Kauai for work in June and told us to get in touch with him and Ivy if we are there at the same time. He said he would show us around the island.

In the afternoon, we had another beach session, enjoying the sun and the water, which is clearly colder here than at home. When the weather started to deteriorate again, we went back to the apartment, showered, and had some snacks. After dinner, we played a poker-like game called Acey Deucey, and once again luck was not on my side. Nevertheless, as expected, it was very fun and entertaining.

For dessert, we had marshmallow cream cheese mousse with strawberries. It was a bit too sweet for my taste, but I didn't mind. As it was getting closer to bedtime, it became chaotic again, like a beehive. Suddenly, a deafening sound rang out, and everyone searched for the cause. All the fire detectors were checked - nothing. In the meantime, Debbie and Tony went to look for security to get help. Then Daven found the cause and saved us. It was the water detector, which was triggered by the puddle under the washing machine. Once again, it was quite a story!

Sunday, May 2, 2021

After I turned off the air conditioning at 3 am because of the chilly night, I was able to sleep a little longer than 6 am. For breakfast, we had two huge blueberry pancakes, once again cooked by Daniel and Lehua.

Soon, it was time to pack up and leave the apartment. We had to vacate the villa by 10 am. Then we went back to the beach/pool and were surprised by a halo around the sun. It was fascinating to see. We were also greeted by a peacock at the beach.

Around noon, we started heading back home, taking a different route so that we wouldn't see the same things again. However, we will explore this region in more detail on our own.

When we arrived home, it was a real welcome party with all the dogs. Now the world seems to be back to normal, with dog and owner happily reunited.