LIFE IS A BEACH...

Cousins,

I'm nursing a Tazo Lotus Green Tea "a decaffeinated tea with the subtle essence of lotus blossoms" and have slathered my body with Banana Boat After Sun gel. I am spent. We all are spent. We all are...actually, slathered in After Sun gel. We are the carcasses that "FUN" has left behind in it's fearsome, fun-filled wake...

Today we broke in our snorkel gear, which we rented from Snorkel Bobs - "If you can't say you wished you rented from Snorkel Bob instead...it's probably because you've drowned." I think that's their motto...but I'm really bad at paraphrasing. Today we hit two spots, Ko Olina and Kuilima Cove.

Ko Olina was a very pleasant little nook of a place just perfect for Charlie to get used to all the snorkel stuff on her face and feet. Now, we could only use a waterproof camera for this day, and it's not digital, so we don't have the exact pictures ready, but I've found others that will help you get the picture. Thank you.

This is what Ko Olina looks like. Just nothing less that a dollop of the good life. Charlie donned all her gear and was ready, and after choking a few times, started to get the hang of things.

Now, it must be pointed out right here and now that Charlie had taken swimming lessons earlier this summer for the sole purpose of being able to go snorkeling. So this was again a very proud moment for Mom and Dad. She took the whole experience with ease. Never panicked or freaked out...even when her snorkel filled with water...which it did many times. In fact, the very first outing at Ko Olina where I took her very far out...I could swear I heard singing. And the song was familiar. Charlie was bobbing in the ocean for the first time, snorkel adorned, and was humming what I could swear was "Tequila," punctuating it occasionally with a high pitched "OOOOOOO" whenever a tropical fish swam by.

Chase...did not snorkel. We rented for her what is called a "Lookie Board." It's a boogie board with a plastic portal to see into the water.

Now, naturally, the waves at Ko Olina weren't that big. In fact, there were no waves at all - which is what made it so perfect for everyone to start off with. But I'm sure if Chase knew this maneuver was a possibility she'd force me to make it happen.

I myself have not snorkeled for about ten years or so, and had forgotten the odd sense of claustrophobia you can experience while floating around with a mask on that prevents any peripheral vision...but I quickly acclimated and felt very accomplished after my first dive.

Tiffany was the biggest snorkeling question mark of all. For some reason Tiffany has been prone to getting sea sick of late. While whale watching in Monterey last year she was the greenest I'd ever seen her in all the time I've known her. So visions of Tiffany releasing huge plumes of violent underwater vomit, thus causing a swarm of stupid frenzied tropical fish who thought it was a free meal...hundreds darting in and out of this aqua puke cloud and my poor wife in the middle of it...well, that scenario has come to my mind more than once. But, alas! It was all for nothing. Tiffany rocked Ko Olina like a pro.

Okay, I know I know...we weren't jet skiing. But it's 11:53pm and every muscle in my body is calling me a total jerk right now...to my face.

After Ko Olina we tackled the North Shore for some shrimp trucks and Matsumoto's. The shrimp truck we ate at was called MACKY's and claimed to have won the 2005 "Battle of the North Shore Shrimp Trucks." Nuff said, right? Time to eat!
After we yum yummed we hit Matsumoto's, which I have to say is like the PINK'S HOT DOGS of Oahu. Big line. All the books, by the way, said the line moved at a crisp pace, so no big deal. That line was so long and so slow that we had time for two different "pee emergencies" where one of us had to get in the car to whisk one of the girls to a store that allowed us to use their restroom...TWICE. When we finally did get it, both Tiffany and Chase were not impressed at all. Charlie and myself enjoyed our respective shaved ice, but we didn't feel that it opened our minds to a whole new meaning of life. The ice was fluffier...the flavors were wider in variety. The rest is just because you have to if you are at the North Shore...I think. Maybe I'm wrong.

After shaved ice it was time to terrorize some more fish, so we went to Kuilima Cove. This is what Kuilima Cove looks like.

That was precisely what we were looking out at. Brilliance. The waves were friskier here. And the swells really tried their best to pull you out as far as they could, but the sights were top notch. I myself had a run in with a sea turtle. Our conversation went like this:

Me: Oh! Damn! A SEA TURTLE!!!

Sea Turtle: Christ.

And the sea turtle swam away. It was a moment. But other than sea turtles we saw puffer fish and tangs and...just watch Finding Nemo...most of those guys, but not CGI.

So now I must lie down. We invaded the waters of Oahu, and are claiming victory. But be warned...there will be more action.

Mahalo.