Meat & Cheese.

SliceNY editor put together 2009s top pizza pies. My New Years resolution is to try them all. First stop
Veloce.

No garbage pizza in 2010!

Funky Fridays #68.

Merry Christmas Y'all.

Can't Ban The Snowman.

Funky Fridays #67.

Hawaii Day 4: Oahu to Maui.

Seems like an eternity now with the winter weather here and spending last weekend digging out my cold weather gear and putting together my snowboarding kit for another season of Ride Fridays.



Oahu was rad- it's nice to have all the amenities with a walking city. We only stayed here a few days, but we maxed it out. Full beach days and all parts of the island were explored. Waikiki is as tourist as they all say it is, but within only a short drive, you can hit some amazing beach spots. Kailua is one of my favorite beaches. So for the price of a skate deck and grip, we hopped onto a short flight to Maui. Holla.



Landed in Maui and headed south to Kihei, our hotel spot. Dropped our stuff of real quick and headed down to the nearest beach. It was super super windy as the travel books warned. As we would learn, the optimal beach time is from 8am-12pm. Shortly after noon the wind picks up and quite a bit to make chilling on the beach quite impossible unless you like eating sand. It worked out though since we were still on East coast time, got hungry around noon and we could travel around the island in the afternoons. As much as Oahu was touristy, I felt like Maui was more so with strip malls. We did find the local spots to eat and the most remote beaches to drive to. Maui would be our home for the next week.

MPC Party

Funky Fridays #66.

Hawaii Day 3: Pearl Harbor to North Shore.

It was our last full day on Oahu, so we decided to get our tourist on.

First Stop: Pearl Harbor.



Earlier this week marked the anniversary of the bombing of Pearl Harbor. That day is a testament to the dependability of American laziness. Need to get out of town traffic free? Want to get your Wal-Mart/ Home Depot shopping out of the way? Need to jack some new rims for your Civic? Do it on a Sunday-where the majority are enjoying sleeping in, nursing a hangover, basically luxuriating in laziness. Shit, I personally make it a point to not get on a train nor drive a car or cross the street.



Anyways, after that whole H.Bomb thing our differences were squashed and Americans gladly enjoy SONY products and Japanese happily wear trucker hats on their vintage Harley Davidsons. Full circle.




It was cool to walk the grounds, read up on the boats that were previously stationed here and get the full history lesson from my Navy Pops. Thanks Dad.



Second Stop: DOLE Plantation.



After getting schooled, we headed North to really get our tourist on. On to the DOLE pineapple plantation we went. The space is pretty small considering and after taking the hint from the Flip necklace vendor we skipped the bullshit train tour of the plantation and goofed off around the grounds.







Found out that one of the main pineapples imported are from the Phillipines, goldfish can really grow to the size of your foot if you give them enough space, and Pineapple Express is not only a movie about weed, but a major tourist attraction. Our boredom was starting to develop until we found the cafeteria. The menu didn't just have hot dogs- it had all the local Hawaiian fare that we all gre to become very fond of. I ordered the Hawaiian staple: the Loco Moco. Supposedly originally designed for the surfing population the meal consists of rice, a hamburger patty, mushroom-onion gravy, & a fried egg on top. Delicious.









The Mahi & pineapple salsa salad was apparently delicious, but I was too into my kit to taste it. And what better to wash down that crazy meal than some pineapple soft serve ice cream. Amazing to say the least. We wandered around the shop for a bit trying to digest before our drive to the infamous North Shore.

Stop Three: North Shore/ Sunset Beach.



I was hyped to finally able to see the infamous North Shore. There were a few contests going on but it made for some great surf watching. We settled on Sunset Beach to cop a spot. The waves were 15-20 feet, not like the record 40-50 foot waves they are experiencing right now. So craze.



The waves were still pretty impressive. Just swimming was pretty rugged. Pops and I were shook after our first swim because the pull was pretty strong. So the swim was similar to Tablerock in Laguna. Jump in. Jump out. But it was pretty rad to say the least. Super chill beach, great surf to watch, def one of the highlights of the trip. We stayed for a bit and made it home just a bit past sunset. Today was a good day. Two in but we felt like we had been there a week. On to Maui.

Hawaii Day 2: Waikiki to Kailua.

As I mentioned before, waking up every day around 4-5am would be the program for everybody. A plate of eggs, turkey bacon & rice and a hot cup of Kona coffee would be the on the table by 4:30. For our days in the Aston Waikiki, we were welcomed to a nice view of the sunrise & dawn patrol surfers. Retarded to say the least. I didn't mind the Backyardigans blasting in the background if I could still hear the waves crashing. Piff.



Mike & my Sis had toured all the islands in Hawaii for their own Honeymoon, so they knew all the local non-tourist beaches and snack spots. Waikiki is hella touristy so chilling on their beach was a no go. Daisy mapped out a small local beach on the east coast of Kailua.




It was a cool drive through the mountains passing through tunnels down into town. We arrived and were greeted by a local family also there for a beach day and their vanity plate which said it all.



My dad and I raced towards the ocean and jumped in. It was our first Hawaiian Beach Baptism and we were so hyped. After a bit we commented how we wished it was little more warmer. We happened to forget it was only 7 in the morning. Kailua is pretty tight. Super mellow surf with a mellow sandy bottom. Perfect first day beach.





The passing clouds made for some brisk swimming so we hopped out for some nap time and play time with Mr.Dylan. Our hotel concierge was more than happy to gift us with some beach toys. Mahalo! The Hawaiian Flip connection goes a long way.






It warmed to a perfect mid morning with sunny skies and view that killed. As the noon hour came, more clouds passed over and our appetites were ready to sample some local flavor. Daisy read about a local joint known for their hospitality, cheap prices, and generous portions called K&K BBQ. Bring it on!




The place was very unassuming tucked in the corner of a small mini mall in between an ocean kayaking touring group and a surf shop. Really it looked like any corner Chinese food spot. But after peeping the menu and reading about the various plate lunch specials all including various forms of Hawaiian BBQ and fried fish, we were hyped.



Jilllian & I shared two lunches: BBQ chicken & fried Mahi & mine- BBQ & shrimp both each around the 8$ mark. It was a joke once we saw the portions. HUGE. Even the 300lb local bruddahs seated next to us brought take home. I was hyped to realize this would be the general lunch meal for the week.



We tried to hit another beach up a bit on the same coastline, but were greeted to some dark clouds which after about 10 minutes, dumped on us. We should have taken more consideration to the locals who were running towards their car while we walking towards the beach.



Oh well, we left the stormy east side and made it back to our hotel. The weather was fine back in Waikiki so we decided to jump in the water for a bit and walk around and see what was up.



The Waikiki strip is a cross between the Mall of America and 5th Avenue. There's everything from Applebees to Gucci. It was odd to see for sure, but my sis talked about how their LV store used to be one of the highest grossing when the Japanese ecomomy was booming, yen was up, and they would come to Hawaii to vacation & shop their asian asses off. Seemed crowded enough for me but storekeepers were saying it was really more so.



The Hawaiian Cookie Company was one of our first stops as they have free samples and encourage you to get down. So good. Sure do miss some pineapple macadamia cookie craze & and iced Kona coffee to wash it down. Proper.



It was odd to be pestered with street merchants advertising for shooting ranges. Dunno what that says about your average American visitor and Hawaiian gun laws, but apparently that's one of the things to do here. No thanks. We did manage to find Aloha Army, a local streetwear boutique selling local brands like In4mation and others. I was hyped to get my HI kit proper and support the local brands. Mahalo guys.






I could have geeked out in the store & shot the shit with the store owner forever, but soon we got a call from Mom that Dylan woke up from his nap and was asking for Mama & Papa. Also Mom's spaghetti & meatballs was on the table. Again we crushed dinner & passed out around 7pm. However, I woke up around 10pm to lights out & antsy pants. Headed out to wander the now rainy neighborhood. Other tourists were also wandering around trying to deal with their jet lag as well. Stepped into the Element store to watch skate videos to try & break down my mind and to field interrogating sales people. "Oh wow, New York? Must be great to live there." I'd trade any day, but grass always greener as they say. Ended up at Haagen Dazs near the hotel to grab my late night snack: a pineapple coconut waffle cone. Sat down to people watch pissed I didn't dive into a Big Island Dazzler, but there's always next time.