Week Nine and Ten - Cliffs, Turtles and Warriors

My time in Hawaii is well over half way through, and I 've started to act like it. I'm trying to cram in any and all activities into the little remaining time I have left. Class tends to get in the way of many of my plans, but I'm managing. These last two weeks have been the busiest of any weeks here. And by busy I mean I do a lot of things I want to do and don't have as much time to sit around or go to class. So, in this case, busy is good, not bad.

Two weekends ago, we finally made the trip to the North Shore. We rented two Chaminade vans, piled in and found our way to Waimea Bay. The beach was gorgeous and bigger than most Hawaiian beaches. I'd have pictures, but that weekend I realized my camera battery was dead, didn't have time to charge it and didn't bring it along. I'm still getting used to carrying around a camera, I guess. I might never get used to it. I'll try harder.

It was an overcast, cloudy day, and even rained later in the day, but our morning at Waimea Bay was a good one. For a bay, Waimea was actually very deep. I first entered the water chasing down a football that sailed over my head. I took four steps and suddenly couldn't stand. It got deep. In a hurry.

Waimea also featured a 40-50 foot cliff jump into the open water. I was hesitant at first but then realized I'd never have the chance to something like that again. Unless, of course, I went crazy and cannonballed off the Roberto Clemente Bridge. It was a weird experience. As I was falling I found myself wondering why I was actually still falling. I thought I would get to the water in a hurry, and I remember thinking, "Wow, I'm still falling" about half way down. Somewhere there exists four frames of me jumping and free falling into the water, when I get my hands on those, I'll be sure to share. I also made sure to tell my mom about this jump because she needs more to worry about, right? Her response: "I'm glad you're telling me after the fact." Ya, me too.

I even saw my first wild sea turtle right off the shore at Waimea. I later saw two more at the famed Hanauma Bay on the southeast side of the island. Hanauma is held as a nature park that is renown for its amazing snorkeling and picturesque landscape. It's a $5 dollar fee to get in, if you aren't a resident, like we are, and nine more dollars to rent snorkel equipment, which we already have. Naturally, we spent the morning there for free.

The snorkeling was amazing. If you ever find yourself hanging out on Oahu, that has to be on the top of your list of things to do before you leave. The coral was everywhere and so were the fish. Ed and I stumbled upon the largest fish I have ever seen in person. It literally weighed around 45 pounds. It could feed a family of four for a weekend. The highlight of the adventure were the sea turtles though. We found two and followed them around for awhile. Sea turtles, like me in Hawaii, don't do anything. They just swam around, snacked on some green algae and just enjoyed their day. I wish I could live everyday like a sea turtle. Being so close to marine wildlife was kind of surreal, and it was a lot more interesting than I even expected. Just another day in Hawaii, I guess.

I also got a chance to go to Sandy's Beach this past week. This beach is not for the faint of heart. Seriously. Hide the women and children. I was terrified. The waves broke right on the shore and by broke I mean crashed down with no regard for human life. It was a beautiful beach, but it sure was dangerous. A lifeguard told us that Sandy's beach was number one in the world for head and neck injuries this past year. After being there, it made sense. Garrett, Luke, and I tried our luck, and ended up having a good time. That is until the last wave we took on for the day struck us down and punished us for even pretending we belonged in the water. There were plenty of locals who seemed to have a great time getting obliterated on boogieboards. They either knew what they were doing, or could take the pain. Either way, I commend them, and for now I know not to mess with a 12 foot wall of water about to crash down on my head. Because, like the Steelers over the Browns, the wave always wins.

This past weekend I attended my first University of Hawaii football game at Aloha Stadium. We had great seats eight rows behind one of the end zones. I have never sat so close to a football game before. It was raining, which seems to be a theme lately, but the game ended up being a thriller. That stadium was not even close to capacity due to the constant rain, but it didn't seem to matter. That place was rocking. It was surprisingly loud. One of the louder venues I've ever visited.

The Warriors won with 20 seconds left on a diving touchdown catch. Final score: UH 38 Nevada 31. I managed to charge my camera and have some pictures from the game. I'll have those up shortly for you to check out.

On Sunday, I saw comedian, Demetri Martin at the Pipeline Cafe'. He was great. If you don't know him, google him or look him up on Youtube. You won't regret it. He's really dry, but extremely clever.

As you can see, the past two weeks were pretty hectic. I don't lie. I'm sure there are things I'm forgetting because I don't write anything down, so if something comes to mind I'll either add to this post or start up another.

My parents will be here in a little over a week and a half (Nov. 7). They'll be spending 10 days here in Honolulu, and I'm excited to show them some of the things I've had the pleasure of experiencing over the past two and a half months. We'll lay at the beach, snorkel, dad might surf and maybe we'll even go hiking. Diamond Head is an option, that is if it's not closed. It's been closed the last week. I'm not sure how or why you would close a hiking trail, but they have. It better open before I leave though. I'm excited for my parents to get a break from it all too. They deserve it. Two hardest working people I know. I might not have done anything to deserve this trip, but they certainly have, so we'll make the best of it.

Until next time, Aloha.