A digital travel diary. · WP v1.08 · Updated
We have been away from Hawaii, especially Oahu, for so very long. The last time we visited Oahu was during the week of July 4, 2010. While in Oahu, we always stayed in the Waikiki area (Hilton Hawaiian Village).. . . . This time, Inna found excellent airfares on Alaska Airlines, but we stayed at the Turtle Bay Resort on Oahu's North Shore. We also…
Read More: Relaxing on Oahu’s North Shore
With recent surfing in Ventura, Alex and I were ready to return to surfing at "The Hook" in Capitola. When we arrived at 2:30pm, finding parking was difficult. After a few go-arounds, I found a parking spot on Opal Cliff Drive.. . . . After I parked the Lexus RX350, we waxed our boards and headed for the Hook. The waves were rolling nicely, but…
Read More: Surfing at The Hook
It's been a long time since we last visited Santa Barbara (September 1, 2012), and we decided to revisit the beautiful city during the July 4 Independence Day weekend.. . Since I had loaded the car the previous day, we could depart early (before 08:00), avoiding the usually heavy holiday traffic.. . . . On the way there, we planned to stop at various scenic…
Read More: Road Trip to Santa Barbara
Alex had been making excellent surfing progress on his 6' Firewire Spitfire board. He surfed on it in various conditions at "The Hook" and Pleasure Point in Capitola. However, on Saturday, October 13th, feeling confident about his abilities, he decided to try surfing at the famous "Steamer Lane" surfing spot in Santa Cruz (near the Lighthouse).. . Alex encountered 6-8 foot waves at Steamer Lane,…
Read More: Disaster at Steamer Lane
Alex was getting used to his Firewire Spitfire 6' surfboard and had another fantastic surfing session at "The Hook" in Capitola, CA.. . . . I also hoped to try out my used Firewire Spitfire 6'6" surfboard (45-liter) that I recently acquired, but I was too tired from yesterday's surfing to continue.. . After a short hike to Capitola, I returned to "The Hook" around…
Read More: Surfing at “The Hook”
For Alex's 16th birthday, Inna and I purchased an almost-new Firewire Spitfire Helium 6' Epoxy surfboard (since Alex has long outgrown his Wavestorm 8' board).. . . . This new board has a volume of 34.9 liters and a length of 6 feet. It was perfect for Alex (as the 25-liter board he tried at Ripcurl was too difficult to surf).. . . . Alex…
Read More: Surfing Pleasure Point on Firewire Spitfire
With Russia in the FIFA World Cup playoffs, I wanted to see the 11:00am playoffs of Russia vs Croatia.. . I decided to surf at Pleasure Point with Alex in the morning, using our two 8-foot Wavestorm surfboards. The waves were 3-4 feet high and inconsistent, but I rode a few to shore. Alex did far better, catching dozens at Pleasure Point and then at…
Read More: FIFA World Cup: Russia vs Croatia
After surfing at Pleasure Point alone, I set up two-hour, two-person private lessons with the Surf School of Santa Cruz. I had to re-schedule a few times (due to high surf) but finally settled on Sunday, April 22.. . We arrived a bit early (the lesson was scheduled for 10:00am), arriving around 9:20am (before the shop was open). The owner was there soon, and we…
Read More: Surfing Lessons with Bud
After surfing in Sayulita, Mexico, Alex and I decided to try surfing in Santa Cruz. I found a well-regarded surf sport called Pleasure Point in Capitola and a nearby shop to rent gear - RipCurl (on 41st Avenue). The rental prices are high - $25/board and $20/wetsuit.. . . . We rented two NSP 60 fishes and a wetsuit for Alex (I had my own)…
Read More: Surfing Pleasure Point
In the morning, we decided to skip breakfast and head for the famous surf town of Sayulita. It is renowned as hippie heaven, with lots of surf and yoga shops (at least that's what we were told). Alex and I had plans to surf on the beach (though the surf forecast promised small waves).. . . . The taxi ride from our Villa La Estancia…
Read More: Surfing in Sayulita
Maui time!. . We took the 8:00 a.m. flight from San Jose (Hawaiian Airlines HA45) to Kahului, Maui (OGG), arriving at 11:30 a.m. Hawaiian time. The flight lasted four and a half hours and went smoothly, without much turbulence. I was surprised that Hawaiian Airlines actually provided lunch on the plane. Most airlines charge for food and only offer peanuts or crackers.. . Once we…
Read More: Relaxing at Wailea Marriott, Maui
We decided to relax on the beautiful island of Maui, Hawaii, for the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. We had stayed at the Wailea Beach Marriott Resort and Spa many times and really liked the location.. . . After we landed at Kahului Airport on Wednesday, November 14, we stopped by Da Kitchen for lunch. Da Kitchen features interesting Hawaiian dishes like Loco Moco. I liked my…
Read More: Relaxing at Wailea Marriott, Maui