Aloha! After my parents flew back to Texas, I was hit by some sickness that seems to be going around. So for 5 days I was laid up here at the hale, with fever, headaches, coughing, the works. :( It was horrible. But, luckily I recovered in time to have a GREAT time with Lauren, Brittany and Drake!
I picked the cousins up from the airport last Mon., and embarked on a week FULL of fun! We lucked out, and Zac was actually in town the entire week that they were here! We were all so thankful for that.
Mon. afternoon we relaxed on Lanikai beach, then met Zac for dinner; Tuesday we went to Pearl Harbor; Wednesday we went to the swap meet; Thursday we went horseback riding on the North Shore; Friday we went to the Polynesian Cultural Center; Saturday we walked around Waikiki and then went horseback riding on the North Shore; Sunday we tried to snorkel, but ended up just going to Bellows Air Force Station beach; Monday we explored the North Shore and yesterday (Tues.) we just went to lunch and then to the airport. What a whirlwind week of so much fun!
Horseback riding and surfing were definitely interesting adventures! These were two things I hadn't yet done in HI. The horse lady was very stern (or you could say rude) with us, but it was still so awesome to ride on the beach and in the water. And she let us run the horses, which got the heart pumping! Our surf lesson was in Hawaii Kai, and the instructors took us in a boat out to the wave break area. It was nice to not have to swim soo far out into the ocean! After some practice of getting on our knees and then standing on the boards, we got to try some real waves. I stood up on my first wave, and all 6 after that! I was really surprised. It was sooo much fun. I hope to surf again before I leave the island. Lauren kicked wana (sea urchin) and Drake cut his toes on the coral, but all in all, we had a successful surfing lesson.
CLICK HERE for all of the pictures that I took throughout the week!
Me ke aloha,
RAWE
Doris was a multi million dollar heiress at age 13, when she inherited her wealth from her father's tobacco and hydroelectric energy empires upon his death. She married James Cromwell in 1935, who took her on an around-the-world honeymoon trip. The honeymoon sparked her interest in art, especially Islamic art, and she began purchasing pieces along their journey. The last stop on their honeymoon was Oahu, Hawaii. What was supposed to be a couple of weeks' stay here ended up being four months! She fell in love with the islands, culture and laid-back attitude. Here in HI she wasn't treated as a celebrity like she was on the mainland. She quickly purchased five acres of land on the south east coast of Oahu (Kahala area) and began planning her Shangri La. By 1937 construction had begun, and while the building itself was completed a few years later, she continued collecting art for her Shangri La until her death in 1993. 
Zac, Steve, Marisol and I later walked down to Ala Moana park for the City of Honolulu fireworks show. It was fabulous! They had some new shapes I had never seen before - planet looking orbs, happy faces and peace signs. This particular show has been rated one of the top 10 in the nation for several years. It definitely did impress. I managed to capture the finale on my camera, so 