Hi

First of all - I am sorry that it has taken me nearly a month to write again. Second of all: I have been quite busy since a month of exchange is a lot longer than a normal month (therefore this blog will be exceptionally long). Finally, sorry again… I know it is a lot of text, but nobody is forcing you to read it all in one stretch or read it all at all.... I will start out with the short version of my trip to Hawaii from November 6 to November 12 (those of you who persevere and read the whole blog entry might learn that I have actually cooked for more than just myself, that I have a striking resemblance with Axel Rose from Guns'n Roses and that the weather in Vancouver is still not as bad as everyone said it would be).

I skipped my classes on Thursday and left UBC with Stefan from Switzerland to go to Honolulu, Oahu, Hawaii by plane via Seattle an hour down the coast. We arrived at 10pm after a long flight with an old plane and got a shuttle to our hostel near Waikiki Beach (for those of you who are not familiar with the geography of Hawaii I have marked the places we visited here: http://platial.com/map/Hawaii-trip-November-2008/543234). Next morning we went out to scout the nearby area and despite all the tourists (of course nothing like ourselves) it was love at first sight. Partly cloudy, 26C and a nice breeze was the perfect weather to enjoy the beach and look at the shops. In the evening we got a guided tour around Waikiki with a staff member from the hostel. He had a lot of interesting stories and we also got to see some nice fireworks. Later it started raining (!?) and we had some excellent Häagen-Dazs ice cones. Next morning we decided to go to Pearl Harbor and two American guys, Brooks and Cameron, went along with us. It was an extremely warm day, but it was nice to see the area (despite not much being there) and get a feel of the history. After PH we went to Chinatown and saw some nasty live toads for sale (refer to photos). Then we walked to the lovely-named Aloha Tower (Aloha is the Hawaiian greeting), which was once the tallest building on the island, but of course this was before any of the charming high-rises at Waikiki… In the evening the four of us went out to eat and it was a lot of fun. Later the three girls from UBC arrived from Seattle (Verena from Austria and Meike and Conny from Germany).

To let the girls get settled we decided to take a slow start the next day and spent to morning at the beach. In the afternoon we took a surfing lesson, which was so much fun, but also very exhausting from all the paddling. All of us stood on the boards in the first attempt and we have the pictures and the insanely overpriced DVD to prove it. After the surfing we were all sore all over with nice bruises and scars so we decided to just relax on the beach the rest of the day. Stefan and I stayed to see a nice sunset. The next day we took a few buses to the east coast of the island to Kailua Bay. There we rented kayaks and spent some hours paddling in the strong winds, visiting the attraction that is "Flat Island" (lived up to its name) and doing hour-long photo shoots at Lanikai Beach. In the evening we decided to eat at The Cheesecake Factory (the most popular restaurant in Waikiki). After waiting an hour for a table we had some very nice food and drinks to go along.

On Tuesday we rented a car and drove north along the east coast to reach the North Shore. And the way we stopped at Giovanni's Shrimp Truck for a taste of the local specialties (shrimps and pineapple). The afternoon was spent on Sunset Beach playing in the big waves and admiring the courage of the surfers further away from shore. We also managed to see some turtles along the coast. After driving in a queue for 40 minutes we returned east to The Polynesian Cultural Center for a look at the culture of 7 regions in the Pacific. Stefan and I were appalled at how they portrayed the regions and made lame tourist jokes to please the Americans and the Japanese. After that we saw an IMAX movie to pass the time and spent 30 mins in a gift store to pass even more time and make stupid photos with all their crazy gift ideas. We stayed for a nice show later in the evening and it was really impressive. We finally returned to Waikiki at 10.30pm and Verena, Stefan and I had a late dinner with an ocean view and live music.

On our last day on Hawaii Stefan and I went shopping near the beach and sent the last of our postcards. We had been told a legend saying that if you leave a flower lei anywhere on the island (be it your bed, hostel, the beach or the airport) you are destined to come back in the future. So of course we paid the monopolistic ABC stores a visit and bought plastic flower leis. We left them in the arms of the Duke (father of surfing) statue next to the beach and started counting the days to our return to the island. Flight home went as planned and we were back in Vancouver at 1am Thursday morning, where the temperature was 20 degrees below that of Honolulu.

It took a few days to adapt to the weather back here, but since the rain has been scarce it was ok. Catching up with assignments, homework and getting rid of the pile of laundry was easier than expected and now I only have 1 month left here before I go back. Next week is the final week of classes and my exams start on December 4th followed by the 6th and 8th. Final exam is on December 15 and then I am of to Whistler for 4 days of skiing and saying my goodbyes to my fellow exchanges. I will be back in Denmark on December 23rd in time for Christmas.

Until next time,

Michael

PS: I promised that those who hung in there would get to know a bit more so here is the extended version of my blog:

-In late October, Jonas and I hosted the first annual UBC "Frikadeller, kartofler og persillesovs"-evening. We cooked turned 3 kgs of meat, 3 kgs of potatoes and a lot of other stuff into a 2-course meal for our friends and it was a big success. Definitely worth the effort!

-The following day we attended a UBC basketball game where Jonas and I acted as halftime entertainment (free t-shirts!). After the game I entered a draw along with a few others and won an mp3 player (which I am now trying to sell to recoup some of my financial losses from travelling).

-Then there was the infamous Halloween. One of our friends hosted a party at his apartment where everyone brought some food. Everyone wore nice outfits (some a bit creepy and some more creative than others…). My outfit was planned as a Harley Davidson biker, but combined with a pair of sunglasses I ended up looking like Axel Rose from the rock band Guns'n Roses. Later we went to The Pit where even more crazy people partied throughout the night.

-On November 4 the day had finally come: Time for my first NHL (pro ice hockey) game downtown. Vancouver Canucks were hosting Nashville Predators and I went there to see it with Jonas and Maria. The arena was sold out and there was a great atmosphere. The game was really exciting and the result was a 4-0 rout of Nashville to our delight. The massive rain fall on the way back was another story…

-After having returned from Hawaii I went ice skating last weekend to do some exercise. Bit too many people there, but it was still nice to go again. Two days ago I decided to go to Wreck Beach (same old beach as before) in a break between two classes since the weather was really nice. It was a bit cold, but still worth the effort, which I think my newest pictures prove. Today, we have had rain most of the day, but we cannot complain.

-Now I can't keep you any longer. I will make a shorter entry next time. Michael