Oahu

Honey and Roxy

Our next host, Roxy, a very nice young woman who was actually born in Hawaii, knew the island from the natives point of view. She picked us up outside Honey's condo and took us to the grocery store where we bought a few things to cook for supper. It was Valentines day so we added wine and cheese to the list.

Roxy knew the island like the back of her hand and we were soon zooming up a switchback mountain road into the rain forest. It took about 15-20 minutes to get up to her place, but when we did we were awe struck. Her little bungalow was once the gardeners house of what used to be one large property, it is now split into three. It was quite charming, though in the process of being remodeled, but the real splendor of the place was in its location. The area was carved out of the forest with just enough lawn to provide some comfortable movement and perhaps some outdoor furniture. The only other intrusion to the sea of green was a small slice cut out to reveal a view of the city in the valley below.

We were happy to find that Roxy was an animal lover, and had actually started a career in animal science before switching to work in the travel industry (she had burned out on working with animals all the time). She had several pets, one of whom Joy and I were soon taking with us on a walk through the jungle. Dolly was a strong beautiful dog that was probably originally used for pig hunting, but had become a member of Roxy's family through a rescue program.


Joy and Dolly

The forest trail we were directed to was beautiful! The trail looped and wound around the mountain seemingly up into the clouds. Joy and I were breathing hard, and our hearts were pumping, but it was worth every minute. Being surrounded by huge trees, beautiful flowers, leaves of every shape and size, and springs bubbling out of the side of the mountain was enchanting, but every now and then there would be break's in the foliage that would reveal breathtaking views of the valleys and mountains around us.


Forest Trail


Dark Place Ahead

At one point we came into a thicket of bamboo that when the wind blew made the most magical sounds. I guess it could be described as hundreds of hollow wooden knocking noises moving through the canopy sometimes coming from the left, sometimes right, front or back in a wave like flow, but that doesn't really do it justice. It was indescribable.


Bamboo Thicket

The climax of this experience occurred when we stepped around a curve and suddenly could see out into the ocean, we immediately recognized Waikiki and Diamond head. The majesty of the view was...well I guess you just had to be there. The picture doesn't really do it justice.


A Beautiful View

After our walk Roxy, her friend Tasha, Stefan, Joy and I all contributed to preparing a delicious dinner which we shared over stimulating conversation. Unfortunately we were having such a great time we forgot to take pictures!

Joy and I eventually ran out of get-up-and-go and retired to our room (yes,our own room). We even had a bed!

Overall, the evening we spent at Roxy's made me realize why Hawaii is often refered to as paradise.


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