09 Jan 2018
Aloha.....yes we made it intact, with only a few minor hiccups, like not checking time difference before I left Australia!! Such a dopey cow I am. Oh well I am here now and finally starting to relax on the Big Island. So far this holiday stuff (ahem working holiday stuff) has been pretty good. I found the Korean Natural Farming course, without getting lost, and sat in a barn for 3 hours with a group of 30 odd strangers, 2 large sows (and I mean HUGE) and about two dozen chocks. That was just day one, and it appears I am only person from west of the Hawaii islands. Plenty of locals and a few from the mainland US, but only me from Kangaroo country.
And then the art of driving on the right hand side (ahhh wrong side) of the road has been attempted, and without any mishaps thank god. I even found that place called supermarket heaven (or hell - depending on your sex) but found the local Walmart we did.
Is there one on each Island I wonder??
I have now been informed (by the passing local waiter) that there is a Walmart on each island, and TWO on the big island here. God damn these Americans like their supermarkets! But I must say if you want to buy local merchandise then you can't shop in the big stores - cause the 'good' stuff is really in the smaller highstreet shops. In fact I have been quite astounded at the quality of the local crafts - just beautiful. I wish I could take back more. Unfortunately the quarantine laws for Australia are a pain in the arse, especially for wood carvings. There are some hum-dingingly beautiful items here, but just can't fit them in my suitcase or sneak them past customs.
Then after my spot of local shopping I drove off to find the nearest Macadamia Orchard....OMG
250,000 trees. Yes you read that correctly. A quarter of a million macadamia trees in one orchard. Imagine how many we could plant in Australia? And Ive only got 1800!?? It would take a decade to prune that lot by hand. They also had a great little biscuit factory - food for thought here I think.
So while I am typing away on this post and sipping my latest alcoholic creation, I ponder over what is happening back in the real world...outside of this hotel bubble.....and then I just take another long slurp. Cheers.
Aloha.....yes we made it intact, with only a few minor hiccups, like not checking time difference before I left Australia!! Such a dopey cow I am. Oh well I am here now and finally starting to relax on the Big Island. So far this holiday stuff (ahem working holiday stuff) has been pretty good. I found the Korean Natural Farming course, without getting lost, and sat in a barn for 3 hours with a group of 30 odd strangers, 2 large sows (and I mean HUGE) and about two dozen chocks. That was just day one, and it appears I am only person from west of the Hawaii islands. Plenty of locals and a few from the mainland US, but only me from Kangaroo country.
And then the art of driving on the right hand side (ahhh wrong side) of the road has been attempted, and without any mishaps thank god. I even found that place called supermarket heaven (or hell - depending on your sex) but found the local Walmart we did.
Is there one on each Island I wonder??
I have now been informed (by the passing local waiter) that there is a Walmart on each island, and TWO on the big island here. God damn these Americans like their supermarkets! But I must say if you want to buy local merchandise then you can't shop in the big stores - cause the 'good' stuff is really in the smaller highstreet shops. In fact I have been quite astounded at the quality of the local crafts - just beautiful. I wish I could take back more. Unfortunately the quarantine laws for Australia are a pain in the arse, especially for wood carvings. There are some hum-dingingly beautiful items here, but just can't fit them in my suitcase or sneak them past customs.
Then after my spot of local shopping I drove off to find the nearest Macadamia Orchard....OMG
250,000 trees. Yes you read that correctly. A quarter of a million macadamia trees in one orchard. Imagine how many we could plant in Australia? And Ive only got 1800!?? It would take a decade to prune that lot by hand. They also had a great little biscuit factory - food for thought here I think.
So while I am typing away on this post and sipping my latest alcoholic creation, I ponder over what is happening back in the real world...outside of this hotel bubble.....and then I just take another long slurp. Cheers.
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