Hawaii 2012

I had great intentions of updating the Website on a daily basis as I had done on most of our trips. It doesn't look like that is likely to happen because of the schedule we created for ourselves. We have very few evenings and only a couple of mornings free... not enough time to sit and write the commentary, select the and edit the photographs and upload the pages to our host server. Complicating this further is the lack of consistent Internet connections. I have decided that I will write the commentary while the memories are still fresh in our minds and add the pictures later. As it is, this is being written two days after the fact.

This morning was a relatively easy. Norwegian Cruise Lines has a cruise orientation and continental breakfast so we decided to attend. A shuttle bus took us from the Marriott to the orientation venue. We were a little suspicious when we were the only ones on the bus from our hotel. When we arrived at the orientation site, it turned out that we were the only ones to attend. This worked out to our advantage because we got some good advice from the individual running the orientation.

In mid afternoon we took a bus to Paradise Cove for a Luau. We got our second look at the Honolulu rush hour... not a pleasant experience for a driver. Believe it or not, Honolulu is considered the most congested city in the U.S. according to a recent survey. At any rate, the rush hour was factored into our departure time and we arrived at Paradise Cove in plenty of time for the festivities. As you walk in to Paradise Cove you are greeted by a photographer and two of the Hula dancers (one female and one male) and have your picture taken and get a tropical drink. There are a number of demonstrations of Hawaiian crafts and traditions. This was followed by a Luau dinner and entertainment by a group of traditional dancers. It was a fun evening.

The pictures below were all taken with Susie's camera. Lighting at the after dinner show was less than ideal for photography. I might have had better success in capturing some of the pictures if I had not left my camera at the hotel. I can't explain, even to myself, why I left the camera behind.

Susie tried her hand at making a flower bracelet