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Topic: The Manuscript (04/29/10)
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TITLE: The Aloha Diary | Previous Challenge Entry
By Barbara Culler
05/04/10 -
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July 4, 1985-THURSDAY. Because I was excited, and the environment uncomfortable, the five hour flight to Honolulu seemed more like ten hours. The haze of cigarette smoke did not know it was in the non-smoking section and hovered over my head, aggravating the cough I had from the tail end of a cold. Speaking of cold, I felt very chilly. You know, when it was 110 degrees yesterday, thoughts of wearing a sweater did not occur to me.
When I entered the airport terminal, my hosts for the week- my friend, Siree, husband Teiko and 18 year old daughter, Kiki, greeted me with a fragrant lei of pink carnations and tiny white pehake flowers.
Before heading “home”, we explored the rugged coastline and marveled at the power generated by the wind to create the blow holes - ocean water erupting like geysers through the openings in the rocks.
FRIDAY: Walked a quarter mile to Sandy Beach - a misnomer. Large jagged rocks jutted out of the water, deferring any desire to swim. I explored further up the coast, and ended up back at the blow hole from yesterday’s adventure. Feeling hot and thirsty, I was enticed by iced cold lemonade from a Hara Krishna sect group that had a booth of propaganda. That lemonade tasted so good!
SATURDAY: Siree and I went to Waimea Falls Park. There were exotic flowers and birds, but the best part was the waterfall. It flows from a creek and drops 45 feet to a freshwater pool. The water was somewhat dirty, but I didn’t care. Posing for photos below the splashing waterfall, I postured like a movie star from old time movies.
We lunched in a delightful restaurant called “The proud Peacock. “ True to its namesake, noisy cocks strutted about the grounds. We even peeked in on a private wedding party. Oh how lovely that would be to marry in this paradise!
We then went into the city of Waikiki and experienced a sensory overload of shopping, colorful lights, people, fragrances and music. The stunning sunset was golden against the blue gray ocean and multihued sailboats dotted the horizon.
SUNDAY: Went with Siree to her church and was over-dressed and uncomfortable in my skirt and nylons.
In the afternoon, we toured the Bishop Museum which contained interesting Hawaiian artifacts and no air circulation.
MONDAY: Went to the beach, and wrote out 24 postcards. The wind kept stealing the postcards and then tossed my postage stamps into the ocean. Well, it was quite a sight to see me amongst the rocks in the water, trying to capture those soggy squares! Each time a wave ushered them within my reach, I missed and back out they would go. Eventually I was able to salvage them.
TUESDAY: Kiki invited me to go snorkeling with her at Hanauma Bay-for a whole hour.
WEDNESDAY: Awakened at 2:00 AM by the smell of smoke. The crater behind the golf course in Siree’s backyard was on fire. Helicopters with dangling buckets attempted to douse the flames
Went to Sea Life Park and observed marine life shows. We ate sandwiches, which made us sick and left with bad headaches and nausea.
THURSDAY: Siree dropped me off in Waikiki and I had a grand time exploring the International Market Place, watching Hula shows, shopping at Hilo Hattie’s, and touring the Dole Pineapple Factory. Of course, I bought a lot of souvenirs!
FRIDAY: Siree and I went to the Polynesian Cultural Center, which is a tourist attraction run by the Mormon Church. Here, college students put on shows and acts that showcased various cultures of Hawaii. I flirted with one of the half-naked “natives”
SATURDAY: Spent the day by myself, snorkeling at Hanama Bay.
SUNDAY: My last night in Hawaii; we participated in a luau on the beach in Waikiki. It all was very ROTIC- that is romantic, without the man!
MONDAY: Teiko dropped me off at the Honolulu Airport and I waited two hours for my flight home. There’s no place like home, but this trip was a dream come true. I have 15 rolls of film to remember it by!
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I'm not sure how on-topic this is--it's really more of a transcript or travelogue than a manuscript. I'd love to read a whole story based on some of those incidents, though!
I liked how you made the equasion in paragraph two, excitement plus discomfort equals lengthening perception of time. I also liked 'Sandy Beach...a misnomer...' and, 'museum (had) interesting artifacts and no air circulation'.
It's the sort of grouping, or coupling of opposites, which I found incredibly amusing, and which I enjoyed so much.