Little to zero baggage...

There is something freeing about leaving 99% of your belongings across the world and living from the contents of two suitcases each (and our fur babies of course)! When we look back in March and April as we were packing away 98% of our belongings away to be stored, it was ridiculously hard to decide what few things we needed to bring with us on this journey. Two months later we are sitting in our tiny studio apartment with hardly any material objects and it feels honestly quite freeing. But we would like to thank our parents for holding on to all of our stuff because we are not ready to part ways for good, haha! We both kind of talked that we wouldn't get a TV or cable for that matter because it seemed to take up to much of our free time as we stared aimlessly into the TV after a long day. There are nights I miss the background noise of having it playing or a few pointless reality shows, but it's hardly been missed from either of us. For the first time in 25 and 27 years we don't have a TV for entertainment, but instead spend every second of our free time outside and reading. Plus having one less bill to be handcuffed to is quite wonderful! We've been watching occasional movies and TV shows on netflix and hulu from our laptop which works just as well! :) By the end of the day we are ready for bed and relaxing after spending a majority of our time outside!

Last week the library of Hawaii held a huge week long book sale with every single kind of books imaginable! We spent $25 and found some really awesome reads.. which must retail for over $150 at least! There is something about having books in the apartment that really make it feel like home finally. As wonderful it feels to not be defined by things, and to instead spend our money traveling and making memories, there is something comforting about going to another place and world when reading a really good book. (Is it weird we get this excited about a good deal on books, lol).

WI representing!

There are times we miss sitting on our comfy, expensive couch surrounded by all kinds of furniture in a condo filled with possessions, but being able to exchange all of that for moments and experiences is so much more rewarding. Plus we are trying to not collect to much stuff in case our journey continues somewhere other than Oahu. Our studio has just the basics; a poker table and chairs in our 'living room' and a double high (very comfy!) air mattress that serves as our couch hang out and bed to sleep in. We also have a few patio chairs on our lanai that we eat most of our dinners. At this point it only makes sense to have the bare minimum.. but we are only a few blocks away from the luxurious resorts of Waikiki beach if we ever crave more standard living!  Our goal when coming to Hawaii was to work less, make more money and spend more time with one another to not only grow our marriage, but grow as individuals as well...and so far that is definitely the case! After spending years in a 9-5 (not that anything is wrong with that at all) I'm so happy to get away from that routine at least for a little bit at this time in our lives and able to in some ways not have a schedule or a ritual to live by.

$25.. what a deal!

One thing that makes us feel like a tourist still is we both get so excited every single time we see a rainbow, let alone a double rainbow. Locals walk by them on the streets, not even looking twice at them, almost taking them for granted. I don't think we will ever get to the point that we don't get excited to see a rainbow in the sky! This past week we were spending the morning at the beach when we noticed something strange... a rainbow literally around the sun. The call it a sun halo, but it looks like any rainbow you could imagine but hugging the sun. Some native people say that this can be a sign from the Creator indicating that it is a time of great change or transition of something on Earth (hopefully positive). It was a beautiful sight.

Ready to watch our weekly Aloha Friday fireworks!

Rainbow selfie!

Our go to sunset spot..Ala Moana park

 

 

 

It's crazy to think how fast time goes, and how much of life people spend unhappy. It's important to find time for yourself and the things that make life living even with a crazy hectic schedule.


Hang loose...

Jen & Mark

560ft atop a volcano!

 This past week we did something that has been on our bucket list since planning our trip to Hawaii, climb Diamond Head! The hike itself wasn't as bad as we thought it was going to be. We were told to go very early or very late before closing to not only avoid the large amount of tourists but to beat the heat! We left our house just before 8:00am and honestly that was cutting it close with the parking. As we pulled in the parking lot we were lucky to find the very last spot. If you aren't so lucky as we were you will just have to hang out by the entrance of the parking lot and in some sense stalk those leaving (brought us back to our University of Wisconsin- Parkside days when we had late morning classes, haha). We started our journey about quarter after eight with a backpack of frozen water (so nice to have ice cold water by the time we were hiking up the mountain). The first part of the trail was very easy on a paved path not to steep. It was about 10 minutes in that the path became not as flat and required your attention to avoid tripping from the uneven surfaces. The views going up were breathtaking.. we stopped at every single lookout point to take a deep breath and take in the scenery and the moment. It wasn't until we were almost to the top that the hike became a little more difficult. You climbed up a pretty steep set of stairs (we saw very fit people at this point getting tired, haha) that brought you to a 225 ft dark tunnel leading through the center of the mountain. The tunnel was dark and creepy, but only in a really awesome way. Once we found our way through the end of the tunnel we came to a fork in the road.. we had two choice left or right.. we luckily went left! Trust me do not go right unless you want to climb up a very steep staircase and then a tall, narrow spiral staircase (this way you will also encounter a lot more stairs, and not get the amazing view if you choose to take the left way). We did end up going down this way when we were finished at the top and found it very cool going down at least. You have to crouch down to go into the bunker and then go down the staircase. The spiral staircases reminded us of those of the Victory Column that we climbed when we were in Berlin!

The spiral staircase of the Victory Column in Berlin, Germany.

Spiral staircase in the bunker at the top of Diamond Head.

 (^Must be on a desktop to view video, doesn't always work on mobile version of blogger. Sorry for the creepy red eyes in the video too, haha it was so crazy dark in there and our dang iphone video didn't do the best job with not making my eyes look super freaky!)

Once you get to the top of Diamond Head the 360 degree views are incredible. It's almost hard to describe how amazing it feels, in a sense like an out of body experience because of the beauty. We enjoyed the view for about 20 minutes then started our journey back down! The hike down was almost worse trying to brace yourself to not tumble down. We walked as fast as possible and made it down quickly where at the bottom we enjoyed a nice refreshing shave ice! The hike itself didn't take long, but was fun stopping at all the lookout points and not missing a great photo opportunity!

One of our favorite beaches to people watch is Sandy beach. The waves are always crazy and it's so fun watching people surf and body board. It the beach with the most injuries out of any other beach in Hawai'i (we've heard a few people refer to it as break-neck beach). There's a reason we are only spectators at that particular beach, haha. When we were at Sandy a few days ago we were able to see a Monk Seal (or in Hawaiian known as; Ilio-holo-i-ka-uaua) come ashore and bask in the sun. The Hawaiian monk seal is an endangered species (there are only about 1,100 left in the wild) so it was very exciting to see him. We also saw a Hawaiian monk seal when we were on our honeymoon on the Big Island.. Maybe the same little guy followed us to Oahu! 

 

 

A few more random adventures....

We love hanging out downtown Waikiki.. We can find good, live, local music almost every night.

At the Diamond Head Bark Park!

Last week on Wednesday June 11th, we were able to see the draping of the King Kamehameha Statue in front of the Ali'iolani Hale building in downtown Honolulu (also the headquarters on the Hawaii 50 TV show fyi)! The presenting of the leis dates back all the way to 1901! King Kamehameha united the Hawaiian islands in 1810 and became Hawaii's first king. Hundreds of long strands of leis were over his shoulders as well as on the ground surrounding his statue. King Kamehameha day looks to celebrate as well as protect Hawaii's culture (dance, food, chants as well as other important pieces of Hawaiian history).

Sunset 6/17/2014

Malama pono, (take care)

Jen & Mark

Da Packers brah..

One thing we love is when we go up to people and happen to tell them we are from Wisconsin and instantly they think Packers and Lambeau Field. I am so happy to tell them we are indeed are apart of that stereotype. People in Hawaii (and generally everywhere I'm sure) think Wisconsin and they think the Packers, beer, and cheese. I love how many packer fans we've met/how much green and gold packer representing there has been so far on Oahu! Maybe opening a Packer bar in Waikiki is our calling, haha (and yes we will be waking up at 6:00am to watch games at 7am Hawaii time)! It's quite amusing also telling people from Hawaii about Summerfest! That's one thing we will miss for sure this summer but what an awesome thing to have had the chance to experience every year just a few minutes from home. Hawaii has so few big artists and musicians who come, especially when compared to Wisconsin in the summer so it's a big deal when acts are in town. Peoples faces glare over with awe when telling them about Summerfest... haha! It's safe to say that we have tried some crazy food, and already know that when (or if) we ever do move away there are Hawaiian foods we will miss SO much... but as of right now we are craving spreadable cheese... like the real kind (Merks or Kaukana). How weird that Hawaii has no spreadable cheese that we can find anywhere... it's just the simple things we miss so far. We are so Wisconsinites. But on the plus side, Hawaii (especially Honolulu) has a ton of different festivals and farmers markets all summer and all year for that matter, so I'm sure we will make do and experience different festivals here (we already attended Spam fest which for the record was crazy, but awesome)!



How cute is this shirt?!



Representing all the way in the mountains of Hawaii!

We have ruled out going to another island for my birthday next month and instead decided the first week of August (or around that) we are going back to the Big Island to celebrate Mark's birthday/our one year wedding anniversary! We stayed at the Fairmont Orchid on our honeymoon so we figured how appropriate to spend our first anniversary married in the same spot! When we were at the Fairmont Orchid we loved the bright yellow hibiscus flowers all over the property and talked about them often. It's quite ironic because a few weeks ago those same flowers started blooming all over in front of our apartment complex... meant to be? Maybe, maybe not but we are thinking so ;) The yellow hibiscus is also the state flower fyi!


We live a block off the Ala Wai Canal, and we both have been having flashbacks to the Seine River in France when we were there in September (especially at night when the lights seems to make the water sparkle). Obviously they are very different in every aspect, but isn't it funny how little things seem to trigger your memories.. that has been happening to us a bunch unintentionally comparing Hawaii to Paris and Europe for that matter. We love Hawaii because of all the history and the rich culture, similar to that of Paris and the way it felt walking along the Seine River. The mountains of Hawaii often bring us back to Germany with our families as well. It's almost as if it's so beautiful pictures of even the best quality can't do it justice! Regardless of the fact that we are in Hawaii this dang travel bug will not leave us alone! Thanks to our families for passing that down to us! ;) There is something about traveling and constantly learning that is so addicting!


Scott Shadrick Photography  (Ala Wai Canal)-Hawaii.

Seine River, Frace.






The keys to our lock that is on Lovers Bridge with us all the way in Hawaii!

Standing on Lovers Bridge overlooking the Seine River in Paris, France.

At the Neuschwanstein Castle, Germany

Neuschwanstein Castle, Germany.

One of our favorite Hawaiian beaches (that resembles Neuschwanstein!)

 





We will leave you with one of our favorite pictures taken this past week Ma Kai (Oceanside).

Aloha!
Jen and Mark








Remembering the ones who have gone..

On memorial day evening we attended the Lantern Floating Hawaii festival, along with 50,000 others there for the same reason; to remember and honor their loved ones who have passed. It was probably one of the most breathtaking and emotional things we have ever witnessed. We were not able to personally float a lantern because I got called into work suddenly but we were definitely thinking of all our loved ones we lost as we watched each lantern in the water. We arrived to the ceremony a little after six and came to a sea of people near every part of the water. We ended up walking down the shore line and found a perfect spot away from most of the chaos. From about six to seven it was the ceremony part dedicated to bringing people together as one, creating a spiritual relationship with those who passed, and about living in the moment. It was such a out of body experience,, we felt almost as if the loved ones we lost were right there with us. There was music, rituals and explaining all aspects of the ceremony. It also made us stop and think about all the blessings we do have and remember to cherish those we still have even more. I thank god every night for the opportunity he has given us with Hawaii and know it's not possible for everyone, so again it's a huge blessing.

 

 (must be on desktop to view video) ^

 

(must be in desktop to view video) ^

                                                      (must be on desktop to view video) ^
 The ceremony was even more unique because it combined so many different religions, beliefs, and ideas all into one... all 50,000 people came to that ceremony as strangers, and in some sense left together as one... all there for the same purpose to honor those they love. What an awesome thing seeing so many people come together. Prior to the floating there was music, rituals, and prayers leading up to the big event. As seven o'clock approached the lanterns were slowly starting to be put on the water once the bell sounded. The darker it became more and more lanterns filled the water. The wind worked against us so the lanterns were being blown kind of away from us, but regardless it was breathtaking. We kind of picked a lantern that we chose as 'ours' and watched it until it blended in with the other thousands of lanterns. People wrote prayer scriptures on the lantern, glued pictures, and many other things to dedicate their lantern to those they lost. It was such a surreal moment, we held hands and tried to take in the moment as much as possible. As the ceremony ended people started to leave and we instead got right up to the water which was the best part. Putting your feet into the same water as the 6,000 lanterns was pretty incredible.What was even better was that we were about a 5 minute walk from the park which made us happy not having to deal with parking, etc.
We especially thought about; Dennis Doonan, Grandma and Grandpa Doonan, Grandma and Grandpa Klopfer, Grandma Ackley-Klopfer, Grandpa Howard Ruetz, and Grandpa Jack as well our family and friends who have passed..

Lately after work we have been spending our nightly quality time at Ala Moana Beach at the tip of the pier watching the sunset as our feet dangle from the rocks. The waves have been pretty decent lately so it makes a great time watching the surfers and body boarders while enjoying the nightly sunset (who says Hawaii is expensive)! We've been substituting this for movies and going out to dinner... it's more enjoyable quality time and our wallet is happier ;). Sometimes we'll get a Jamba juice smoothie and sit out there for an hour or more. It's basically free therapy after work and instantly puts us in a better mood listening to the water and watching the sun go down!

view from our lanai =)

                                                     (must be on desktop to view video) ^
We were sooo sad to hear about the closing of Milwaukee Cupcake Company. It was always a staple during our usual Milwaukee days (and there's sentimental emotions because they did our wedding as well)! But tonight we tried the winner of an episode of cupcake wars from Honolulu; Hokulani Bake Shop. It was just as good as MCC if not better, so it made us happy :)! One thing that we have found to be huge in Hawaii is Ling Hing Mui powder (or in China, huamei). Neither of us had ever heard of it before coming to Hawaii. We first saw it at the Dole Plantation to put on pinneapple.. but as time went on we started seeing it everywhere; margaritas (we need to try still!!), malsadas (MY favorite!!), on fruit and many other kinds of candy and food! Ling Hing is from a dried a plum. It looks like a dry red/pinkish powder (kind of looks like pixie stix powder). It almost gives food a sweet and sour taste (Soo good on Hawaiian pinneapple). Don't diss it until you try it... we almost didn't give it a chance and wow would we have missed out ;)! Hawaii is one big try new thing adventure.. which is soo good for us getting out of our comfort zone!

Ling Hing Malasadas! YUM!

Ling Hing Mui Margarita!

Ling Hing Mui pineapple

We are trying to plan a trip to either Maui or Kauai for my birthday next month... we will let you know which island we decide on!

Aloha nui loa (With Love...)

 Jen & Mark