Destination Fiji
December 26, 2009 at 2:23 pm | In Fiji, Pacific Daily News, airlines, assignment, blogging, flying, leisure, travel, travel diaries | Leave a CommentThe Pacific Daily News sent me to Fiji to cover the launch of the new Continental non-sop flight between Guam and Fiji. I was also supposed to cover Fiji as destination for people traveling through and from Guam.
I wrote a blog while in Fiji and finished it after I came back. The tour guides had our schedule so packed it was hard to find time to write and post while in Fiji, but I tried to post whenever I got the chance.
The blog is online at the Pacific Daily News Website.
The sun sets on our trip to Fiji
December 24, 2009 at 5:11 pm | In Fiji, Pacific Daily News, Sabeto, assignment, blogging, culture, leisure, mud pools, travel, travel diaries, vacation | Leave a CommentInaugural flight to Fiji
December 19, 2009 at 2:36 pm | In Continental, Fiji, Pacific Daily News, airlines, assignment, media, tourism, travel, travel diaries | Leave a CommentThis Fiji post is hosted on the Pacific Daily News Web site with photos.
Photo courtesy of Josh Tyquienco
Deja Vu: Layover in Tokyo
July 17, 2009 at 5:15 pm | In airlines, tourism, travel, travel diaries | 1 Comment
Funny thing happened to me on my way to Guam. I almost thought I was traveling to India again.
As I got myself comfortable in the business class upper deck of the 747-400 (one of the last of its breed, since Boeing plans to discontinue the Series 400 model to make way for the series 800) and the plane was taxiing away from the gate, the captain announced that something was wrong with the plane and the flight would be slightly delayed. I didn’t think much of it as I dozed off under the warmth of a thick comforter and the lull of the massage chair.
Until two hours later I was asked to deplane…
My flight was delayed, I miss my connection to Hagatna, and as I type this sitting in the exact same Radisson Hotel where I was stuck just a few months ago, I can only laugh at how familiar this whole scenario is.
Grand Canyon of the Pacific
July 6, 2009 at 11:19 pm | In Hawaii, Kauai, Waimea Canyon, travel, travel diaries, vacation | 1 CommentKnown as the Grand Canyon of the Pacific, Waimea Canyon on the north side of Kauai has been carved out over millions of years by water and wind erosion. Although smaller in scale, the red and brown sediments are contrasted by the verdant cliffs within the same stretch, much like the Canyon of the mainland. The Napali Cliffs are so steep that the only way to see them up close is by helicopter ferry tours.
Also, although the canyon seems dry, the lookout points from where you view it are always frequented with showers. In fact one spot in particular, Mount Waialeale, is known to be the wettest spot in the world, receiving the most rainfall per year.
Kailasa in Kauai
July 5, 2009 at 6:51 pm | In Hawaii, Kailasa, Shiva, monastery, travel, travel diaries, vacation | Leave a CommentIt is said that the Hindu god of dance and destruction, Shiva, lives on Mount Kailasa with his consort Parvati.
Well Kauai seems to be an ideal place for such a heavenly hilltop abode, which explains the Hindu monastery atop Kauai’s hills.
Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami set up the monastery in 1970 when he felt the “good vibrations” of the land. Now, the site has become a veritable golden palace for Nataraja, the dancing form of Shiva. Inside the sanctum sanctorum is the golden image of Nataraja, with his sons Ganesha and Lord Subramania at his sides. Around the main hall are figures depicting the 108 dancing poses of Shiva. (No pictures allowed inside the sanctum sanctorum).
When we visited the premises in 2002, the monks told us they were in the process of planning an Iraivan Temple, which is now constructed. The monks said they brought in artisans from India to make the pillars and dome carvings as authentic as possible.
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Nandi, is the bull who acts as the vehicle for Shiva. A Nandi statue almost always adorn the entrance way to Shiva temples because he is Shiva’s loyal steed.
Dancing Ganesha on the outside wall of the main temple hall.
Dancing Shiva water fountain and pool.
A six-headed god. We assume it is Lord Subramania (Shiva’s son) since he is referred to as the one with six heads.
The ashram has such a peaceful ambiance around it, perfect for meditating and forgetting your worries. But for those who still have a lot on their minds, they can write down their problems on little peices of paper, burn it, and place it in this urn. It is said that although the problems may not go away entirely, human distress associated with the problem will be alleviated.
On the way back down from the monastery, we stopped at Opeka’a Falls.
And that’s when my phone died, so I could no longer take pictures with it. More pictures from my digital camera to be posted when I get home.
We had lunch and cruised along Poipu Beach for the rest of the day, to see the Spouting Horn (which I mentioned in an earlier post).
Kauai: The Garden Isle
July 4, 2009 at 10:45 pm | In Hawaii, Honolulu, travel, travel diaries, vacation | 2 CommentsWe woke up this morning to catch a flight out to Kauai. I love inter-island flights because it’s like riding a bus. This flight was a whole 36 minutes. By the time you’re up in the air and they’ve served you juice, you’re already landing again.
There wasn’t much we could do today, since some places were closed due to it being Independence Day (for example the Kiluea Lighthouse). But we were able to make a visit to the Wailua Falls as soon as we arrived. However, the moment we stepped out of the car and started snapping photos, it started to rain. That’s the thing about Kauai. The Garden Isle is known to be the “wettest spot on Earth” because it receives the most rainfall in the world. Surely enough, there are frequent showers here and there. Then again, it also helps keep the lush vegetation verdant and creates some rainbows often as well. After all, Hawaii is the Rainbow State.
The Wailua Falls is where the show Fantasy Island was originally shot, so the scenery may seem pretty familiar. Then again, the Hawaiian Islands are a popular site for shooting, for instance Jurassic Park and LOST.
After the falls, we drove along the beach to the north side of the island, stopping for a picnic at Wailua Beach. It was still a bit cloudy out, but that was fine with me since I’m not looking for a tan. 
We stopped to check into our condo on the way further north. After all, we’d woken up at 5 and were in need of a nap and some refreshment. We continued north past the heavenly Princeville Resort, conveniently situated facing Hanalei Bay.
From there we proceeded past Lumahai Beach (another popular surf spot and ranked on Fodors Guide of top beaches)
Our drive took us past the wet and dry caves (cave pictures, obviously, did not turn out well). We kept it simple today, but tomorrow, the plan is to visit the Hindu Shiva temple (absolutely spellbinding) and Poipu Beach.
Day 2 in Paradise
July 3, 2009 at 9:19 pm | In Hawaii, Honolulu, travel, travel diaries, vacation | Leave a Comment
Since I’d woken up early for the hike up Diamond Head, I came back to the condo to enjoy a wonderful two and a half hour nap. 
After another amazing lunch of home-cooked Indian food, we decided to try to visit the Byodo-in Japanese cemetery and Buddhist temple at the foot of the Napali cliffs on the north side of the island. Yesterday we just missed it, as the Valley of the Temple closes at 4:30 and we got there at just after 5.
Today we made sure to go early enough, and it was definitely worth it. The elegance and serenity of the temple matches that only to be found in Japan itself.
We headed back toward the city around 2 p.m. for a round of shopping at the International Market Place. You can bet on bargaining at the market, as the vendors insist they are giving you great discounts and “good price.” 
I myself was interested in buying an opal ring, but when one vendor brought the price down from $200 to $20, I was naturally quite certain it wasn’t the real thing. Needless to say, we didn’t buy it (or any other jewelery there). Still, a stroll in the market is still pretty neat because of the atmosphere. Especially in the peak of the afternoon, the banyan trees in the market provide great shade.
After some window shopping, we crossed the street over to the Sheraton Moana Surfrider, the first and oldest hotel on Waikiki Beach, and as the name suggests, it’s one of the hottest spots for surfing.
I’m not much of a surfer myself…..so we ended up enjoying some beach side refreshments and live entertainment. The Hawaiian singers were taking requests so I asked them to sing “My Girl” in between one of the hula rounds.
This girl got up in the middle of “Hukilao” and started to hula as well. It was too cute.
By the time we got back the Village around 7, there was a cultural show and fireworks.
Tomorrow, it’s off to Kauai.
Hike up Diamond Head
July 3, 2009 at 9:00 am | In Hawaii, Honolulu, travel, travel diaries, vacation | Leave a CommentI woke up at 5 a.m. this morning so I could get ready and be at the base of the Diamond Head crater by 6 when the park opens. It was just after sunrise, so driving along Waikiki to Diamond Head, seeing the gray-blue waves in the early morning sunlight was a real treat.
(View from the base of Diamond Head at dawn)
It only took about 15 to 20 minutes max to reach the highest viewpoint, from where you get a spectacular view of all the hotels and resorts along Waikiki, an isolated lighthouse just below the crater, the inside of the crater–now overgrown with vegetation and once home to the U.S. Coastal Artillery Defense System (1904-1943).
(Above: Honolulu and Waikiki as seen from the highest point at Diamond Head.)
Aloha (continued)
July 2, 2009 at 6:06 pm | In Hawaii, travel diaries, vacation | 1 CommentAfter lunch, we spent the rest of the day just driving around the island, passing along Makapu’u Point from where you can see Rabbit Island, Turtle Islands, and sometimes even Molokkkai if it’s a clear day.
Rabbit Island(it looks like a rabbit swimming in water with it’s ears tucked behind)
As the placard indicates, the Hawaiian Islands play home to Humpback whales in the winters, when the whales migrate to warmer waters. The island of Maui is most known for whale-watching. My family and I had the chance to see whales breaching, that is, literally jumping out of the water and landing on their backs or sides, in January of 2000.
But on this trip, we stopped at the Blow Hole where you get a good view of Sandy Beach.
The Blow Hole (which I think is common to many islands) is a rock formation such that when waves crash against it, water shoots through the hole resembling the “blow hole” of a whale.
There is a similar Blow Hole on the island of Kauai called the Spouting Horn, but that one even makes a noise as the water shoots through the hole.
And although we’d already gone swimming for the day, we stopped at Hanauma Bay, a popular snorkeling spot.
We kept driving to the Windward side of the island where the mountains/cliffs have so many folds and ridges, you can literally tell where lava flowed thousands of years ago. I didn’t take any pictures because that side of the island was too cloudy to capture anything good at the time. I’ll try again tomorrow.
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