HAWAII DAY 5

I'd have to say Day 5 was my favorite day in Hawaii.  

We went out to sea. . .

(Ok, so the"Hang Loose" sign became way worn out by the end of our trip.  Everywhere we went, and each time someone took our picture, we were prompted to flash "hang loose," yet again.  Bear with us.)

And then under the sea. . .

with the turtles, and fish, and other sea creatures.

Tom, Tara, Brent, and I rode on THE coolest contraptions down in the depths of the ocean.  

They reminded me of something off of "The Jetsons."

They were underwater scooters, and we were able to cruise around on them under the sea. 

You stick your head inside the bubble, sit on the seat, and drive around. The idea is based on the bell theory (Remember Jr. High Science? If you tip a cup upside down, and put it in a bucket of water, it won't fill with water- same concept.  Oxygen is filtered into the bubble, so you just breath normally, and your head stays dry- other than when getting in, and out of the scooter).

They were like our own, personal submarines.

Cool, huh?

The rope you see is just attached to a buoy that floats on the surface so you don't get lost.

They took us to a crater in the ocean that attracts all types of fish, turtles, and commonly dolphins (we didn't get to see dolphins that day, however :-(

The fish would swim right up to us.

We found out what a rip current was while on our expedition, and since we don't have the opportunity to be in the ocean often (living in Idaho) it was a first for me.  I was surprised at the strength of the current-- while trying to drive my scooter one direction, the current would pull me back another direction.  I guess I always thought rip currents occurred closer to the shore.

Do you see the turtle above me?

I look mad in this one. . .?

There were divers that followed us around and took our pictures, and videoed us (and made sure we stayed safe)--- I have no idea why there are so many pictures of me, and so few of Brent.

Tom took a picture of one of the divers who was with us (our babysitter).

Brent-- really!

We all made it back safely on board!

This was a blast, and I would highly recommend it!!!

While we were out on the boat, we saw some people doing this. . .
(and check out those gorgeous mountains!)

I'm not even sure what you call it, but it looked pretty dang fun!  Superman!

These guys had jets hooked to them on a back pack, and they blew out air/water which propelled them, and they hovered above the water, in the air!

Maybe that's next on my adventure list??

It's hard to see from the picture, but the house on the shoreline, on the right side of the picture is the Kaiser Permanente estate, and it's on the market if you're interested.  It's only priced at something like $40 million.

Brent may have looked a little green.

After our scooter excursion, we headed back to the house for some beach time. 

Another one of our little friends back at the beach house.

This is what happened when Brent tried to stand up in the kayak!

Are you ever too old for floatie tubes?  I think not.

After wearing ourselves out on the beach, and in the water, we cruised around in style, and spent our last night on the town.

We were leaving for dinner, and Tom found a dead gecko in the garage, and pulled a prank on Jaime- he threw it in her lap while she was sitting in the convertible and scared the day light out of her.

We dined at Haleiwa Joes-- ocean front.

 I ate the prettiest crab salad.

They guy we rented the house from made custom surf boards for a living, and had several of his creations on display throughout the house.

I could totally get used to the Hawaiian lifestyle.  I've been trying to convince Brent we should move there, and try it out just for a couple of years. So far I haven't been successful.

Maybe a future return trip will have to satisfy me (I'll take that, too).