Mokoli’i - Chinaman's Hat

Here's the secret: I'm not adventurous. Also, I'm a pretty bad swimmer. And my level of anxiety in the ocean is probably clinical. So swimming to an island 1/3 mile offshore, with our kids in a raft seemed like a really terrible idea.

Despite all that, we spent an afternoon swimming out to Mokoliʻi, locally known as the very politically correct Chinaman's Hat. Because it looks like a hat. It really could be any kind of hat, but since the Chinese were a large immigrant group here, it stuck. Based on its shape, to me it looks more like "Sorting Hat Island." 

It looks so far away!

Anyway, Kyle had done it twice before, once with our son in the boat. So I had to trust Kyle. And take lots of calming breaths.

Shaka time!

Wisely, Kyle brought along a jump rope to tie to himself so he could tow the boat. It also served as a communication device in case of emergency.We had a safety briefing so if anyone fell out of the boat, someone would pull three times on the rope. Glad that wasn't an issue!

Halfway there!

Photo courtesy of the children

Spotted a honu!

Using slippers to help swim better

Made it!

View of Oahu from Chinaman's Hat

The swimming leg of a sprint triathlon is shorter than that! So if I can do a triathlon with a snorkel and goggles, and stop halfway through for a snack break, then I'm all set!

 

This guy can climb!

And so can this girl!

Secret beach!

You can see the island of Moloka‘i on the horizon - just look in the big gap between the two little islands

The clouds looked ominous, but just stayed over the mountains

More climbing

This cave was sandy last time they visited

Looking at tide pools

Found a little hermit crab

And an even littler one!

Feather duster worm: before...

...during...

...and after.

Enjoying their free ride with a free sucker

Although I'm not really a risk-taker, I'm thankful for my adventurous husband who forces me out of my comfort zone so I can experience cool things like this!

You can do it too! To access Chinaman's Hat, you'll want to park at Kualoa Beach Park (not the ranch). Any place will do, but there is a rock wall protecting the beach in some areas, so unless you want to hop over it, launch from a different spot on the beach.

Although I'm not a strong swimmer, I can swim and have done so in open water before, so please do use caution. It is possible to walk most of the way to the island at low tide, since the water is about 4 feet deep. But, there have been drownings - be aware of the time for high tide and ask the lifeguards about the currents if you are unsure.

And if you want to try it, you can always borrow our raft!

Nalu - Wave

It's not surprising that in Hawaii, most kids are comfortable in the water from an early age. It's not uncommon to see naked babies swimming underwater and preschoolers surfing. But if you live in a state where you're never more than 20 miles from the ocean, you have lots of exposure to the water. We are from Michigan, and if you're not up on US geography, it's a peninsula shaped like a mitten, surrounded by the Great Lakes. So we were used to the water. And were cool with nalu, waves. Or so we thought.

Back in 2010:

On our first visit to Hawaii, we took a trip to the North Shore to see the big waves. Unfortunately, they were so big there was a beach advisory and the kids had to be kept way back on the sand. The older guys thought they'd have fun body surfing.

Getting ready to dive in

They did have a great time, although getting out of the water was quite a dangerous task because the waves broke hard right on the shore and would proceed to suck you back in. And then hit you again. And again. Now we know better and we're so thankful no one was hurt!

Pretty sure lifeguards love when tourists do this stuff!

Back in 2011:

Despite Michigan having many lakes, our kids didn't have that much exposure to swimming. So when we arrived in Hawaii they were almost afraid of the water. The ocean might look almost the same as a lake to an adult, but for a child the waves are much bigger, louder and saltier! They preferred to play in the sand, only using the ocean to get water for their sand castles...

...and giant holes in the sand. Which, looking back are a great way to keep them from escaping!

Another haole mistake about waves. After we had first arrived, there was a big storm. Since it was winter, we thought going to the North Shore would let us see some killer waves. However, they weren't that great. And no one was surfing. That's because the wind in a storm causes waves, but the big swells you surf on come from miles and miles away. And most people don't like surfing waves in a storm. For obvious reasons of getting rained on and poor visibility, but also because it stirs up the sand and makes the water nasty. Now we know to actually listen to the weather and surf report to find out when to watch the surfers in action!

Now in 2013:

For safety's sake, it was nice that the kids were content playing in the sand without sneaking into the waves. However, we realized they might actually need to learn to swim one day. It has been a gradual process, and there might have been some long discussions about sharks, seaweed and being brave. Once they realized riding waves was fun, it was a good motivator.

Body boarding with a life jacket

They've both started swimming lessons, and although there's still a long way to go before they'll be surfing, it's awesome to watch them conquer their fears and be able to enjoy the nalu that grace our shores.

Tracie

Haupia - Coconut pudding

Did you know McDonalds has local menus? They are a really interesting cultural experience to try while traveling! In Hawaii, you can get Spam or Portuguese sausage with your breakfast. But don't worry, they still have sausage and bacon. Besides the local breakfasts, they have seasonal pie offerings - taro, banana and my favorite: haupia pie. 

It's not baked, it's fried!

After doing extensive research, haupia is traditionally a gelatin-like dessert made with coconut milk and arrowroot (a thickening agent). Although it is usually made with cornstarch now, you can find it as a topping on white cake, or cut into small squares and served alone.

Even though haupia is this specific dessert (hau - cold, pia - arrowroot), it is erroneously commonly used to indicate coconut flavor. So if you see a chocolate haupia pie, it's really just chocolate and coconut creme pie. Now you know what "real" haupia is, and that chocolate haupia pie isn't going to have any "real" chunks of haupia in it. But it's still going to be really, really good. And I'm thankful that I have one in my refrigerator right now.

In case you're wondering, the pie at McDonald's has small chunks of "real" haupia in a creamy coconut filling. It is delicious. And I'm bummed that I don't have one of those in my refrigerator right now.

I haupia get to try one soon!

Tracie

Malasada - Pączki - Awesome Doughnut

It's Fat Tuesday.

Where we're from in Detroit, it's "Paczki Day." Every year, I would look forward to the jelly-filled donuts that marked the last day of celebrating before Lent. At my last job, one of the teachers I worked with did a fundraiser and sold HOT, fresh, paczki. Wow! I cannot explain how awesome the worlds' best doughnut can taste when it's fresh like that! Needless to say, I got spoiled.

The paczki (pronounced "poonch-key") in Detroit are thanks to the sizable Polish immigrant population that was centered in the city of Hamtramck, about 5 blocks from our old house. I was bummed that since there aren't a lot of Polish immigrants in Hawaii, I would miss out on my delicious paczki.

But, thanks to the Portuguese, in Hawaii we have malasadas! First of all, I was surprised to learn that the Portuguese were a major immigrant group in Hawaii. Second of all, I had no idea that the Portuguese had their own "use-up-the-butter-and-sugar-before-Lent" pastries. So today is "Malasada Day" in Hawaii!

Since each bakery does it their own way, I can't tell a huge difference between the two doughnuts, except malasadas are irregularly-shaped and paczki were usually round. However, the fillings are very different. Paczki are traditionally filled with plum jam, but I preferred custard, strawberry or apple. Malasadas traditionally are NOT filled, but you'll find them with chocolate or custard filling, but also more Hawaiian flavors of haupia (coconut) or guava. Of course there are many ways to fill a doughnut, but I'm just trying to give you an idea.

Malasadas!

My apologies for the totally unartistic picture, but I'm trying to post things more quickly to be a bit more relevant. And I had to act fast before they were all eaten!

Obviously with the Lenten season, we have a lot to be thankful for in our Christian faith and it is a wonderful time of reflection as we look forward to Good Friday and Easter.

But today, I am thankful so many different people groups make doughnuts.

For further doughnut research:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malasada (which shows the Punahou carnival here on Oahu!)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pączki

Pau for now,
Tracie

Lā - Sun

Sometimes beach time is more important than nap time.

If you know how much I love naps, then you'd realize how badly we needed to get out in the sun!

It's been super cold and rainy in Hawaii. I mean two straight weeks of grey skies and intermittent rain. After coming from Michigan, with its 319 cloudy days a year, I thought I could handle bad weather. Well, apparently not anymore! I'm not complaining, (friends who are shoveling their way through winter) but part of the trade-off for moving thousands of miles from everything is to get some sun. Plus, after being stuck inside our family was showing signs of cabin fever. Not quite to Shining proportions, but everyone was pretty grumpy.

Last week when we saw the sun, we quickly scrapped our plans and headed to the beach. The moment we arrived, I knew we had made the right decision.

The winds from earlier in the week had died down, so it was a perfect opportunity to try out the new boat!

After paddling around, chasing birds, and running up and down sand dunes, we finished the afternoon off with a family walk. Which wouldn't be complete without the kids acting like dogs. And one child in particular actually fetching a stick with her teeth.

Another benefit of skipping naps? Early bedtime!

Pau for now,
Tracie