When the Diamonds and Daydreams Dance

Tropical daydreams were waltzing around my head the other day - gliding as smoothly as the clouds between the swaying palms -- and so caught up was I in their slow-step rhythm that I almost missed those enchanting dancing diamonds right in front of me . . .

. . . twirling and spinning; tossing and swooshing. . .

As if on tiptoes they twinkled across the lagoon . . .

Then teasing and tempting they raced up the sand. . .

. . . and then those diamonds, mixed with daydreams, continued to dance.

E Komo Mai to Our Hale Moana Home

E Komo Mai, (Welcome), to Hale Moana, our home on O’ahu, Hawaii.

It’s not a permanent home, it’s temporary, just a month, 1/12th of a year . . . but far longer than either of us once ever anticipated ‘living’ in this tropical paradise in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.



Over the decades we’ve gone to realtor open houses during visits to Hawaii and for decades have declared ownership of what we deemed ‘our kind of places’ to be beyond our budget. 

That was, until we discovered the world of timeshare ownership.  That was five years ago and life hasn’t been the same since. . .

Now, in the second week of our four week stay at Marriott’s Ko Olina Beach Club; our ‘home’ is on O’ahu’s western shore about 30 minutes from the Honolulu Airport and light years away from the hustle and bustle of that big city.



I’d worried – when we made our first purchase into this short-term ownership world – that we had been here only five days. What if we got bored after a week? Horrors! What if we got tired of returning to the same place year after year? (That part really isn’t a concern because you just trade your ‘home’ for one somewhere else).

My initial fears were unfounded (as they usually are) and we spent the next three years acquiring additional bits of time here. . .

This year we live in Hale Moana, the same building as our previous stays and each year we’ve had a different address within the building but all units are identical.  So E Komo Mai, or welcome, to our Hawaiian home were the temperatures are in the 80’s with sun and blue skies as compared to 'back home' where temperatures are in 30’s and 40’s:

As for what we do. . . well, we live here (and work here, for as much as we work these days).  A typical weekday finds us exercising in the morning, lunching on our lanai and then heading out to the beach or walking, or sunning, or reading or playing in the lagoon, pool or hot tub until it is time to fix dinner.  A far cry from owning homes in Mexico and spending most of our time working on them or making trips to the local hardware store. . .




Still there are those who don’t quite understand the allure of such an ownership. Ah, but those who’ve taken the plunge, all seem to be like us: having a ball at their second home ~ a home that requires no more work than writing an annual maintenance check and reserving our time.

Hope you’ve enjoyed today’s visit – on Travel Photo Thursday I will show you a bit of the island. . .you might be surprised at what lies Beyond Waikiki.  Aloha until then.

TP Thursday: Magical Mai Tai Moments

There’s no other drink that more signifies Hawaii than the Mai Tai. It’s a mixture of light rum, topped with a combination fruit juice and Triple Sec and finished with dark rum ~ always sporting a pineapple wedge.







Our time to sip a Mai Tai is as the intense tropical daytime sun slowly sets, giving way to the coolness of the evening's stars and moon.  It is a magical time of day.



We’ve been enjoying these Mai Tai moments while on the island of O’ahu.  The first photos were taken at the Outrigger Canoe Club and the third at Marriott’s Ko Olina Beach Club. 

It is once again Travel Photo Thursday so visit the many other wonderful places highlighted today on Budget Travelers Sandbox.

Hawaii Timeshare Tales

We weren't sure we would like the timeshare concept three years ago when we booked one of those five night and free car introductory packages here. We also questioned whether or not we would find it 'boring' out here some 30 minutes (in good traffic) from Honolulu.

We went to the 90-minute sales presentation with the intent of getting the Marriott bonus points they offered as an attendance reward. We ended up with the points - and a week of ownership here.

This trip is our second as full-fledged owners - and we have yet to find it boring. We've found timeshare life to be like having a second home only we don't have to worry about those pesky maintenance tasks of homeownership. We pay the annual maintenance fee and then enjoy the maid 'tidy' service mid week and watch the gardeners grooming 'our' acreas of landscaped grounds and maintenance taking care of pools and hot tubs.

It is somewhat like playing house because you can cook and wash dishes and make your beds, but the serious cleaning is done by others leaving the day free for reading books, exploring, exercising, lazing at the pool or beach or soaking in the hot tub.

We spent a good deal of two afternoons just beyond the resort, an easy one mile walk that leads to a small crescent sandy beach and dozens of tidal pools in the lava rock that borders the beach. site. Watching any number of varieties of tropical fish in this pond while mongeese played chase on the nearby rocks and a large green sea turtle swam with snorkelers just off shore is far more fun than doing housework anyday.