Terrapin Tables

Hey everybody

So, I'm back from my taxpayer-funded trip to Hawaii/random parts of the Pacific. It ended up being a 15-day trip, with only 3 days at sea (score). The constant 75 degree weather was nice, especially when I realized how much damn snow was covering the U.S. recently. Also, you'll all be proud of me becoming a regular at a bar (well, as regular as one can get in two weeks). Which honestly, is a very easy thing to do when you go every night for a week and drop most of your $90-a-day per diem (thankfully, the price came down significantly after they got to know me). And it was a local bar, so the other alcoholic regulars just assumed I was from Honolulu, and I got to hear them bitch about tourists. The three days spent on the ship was pretty an interesting experience - I got to see some neat tests (linking up to other ships, helicopter landings, etc.) The testing I did for my job was limited to just a few hours in the early morning, so I had a pretty sweet gig.

I also had the weekends to drive around the island, so I saw the entire coast, as well as the mountains in the middle. It's mostly good scenery and small towns, with Honolulu being the only real city there. Anywho, for those craving random bits of information, here's what I learned about Hawaii:

• People don't jaywalk much at all. It was three days before I saw anyone walk before the little red hand turned into a white walking dude. People thought I was nuts when I crossed the street, despite the fact there would be zero traffic at the moment.
  
• There are these stores called ABC Stores, and they are everywhere. I can honestly say there was at least one on every block, and several times, they'd be across the street from each other. There were two in my hotel alone. They sold touristy stuff and CVS type convenience items, so there's no real complaint, but I was just amazed they could turn a profit.
  
• All Hawaiian words just blend together. With only 13 letters, and weird rules like every consonant must be followed by a vowel, you get these words that all look alike, which can be confusing when driving.
  
• Jesus, don't get me started on driving. In the Waikiki area, just about every road is one-way. And with the traffic, their solution is to change traffic patterns based on the time of day. Combined with the whole words-blending-together thing, driving/navigating involves a bit more skill than here, so if you're ever there, bring a good map.
  
• Despite being a far-away island, Hawaii is just like every other state when it comes to infrastructure and technology. I was surprised to see the high-speed internet, and all sorts of different news stations available. So, although it is like a little island getaway sometimes, the only thing you really have to get used to there is the nice, constant weather.