Glad to be back in Hawaii!!!

It has been nearly a week since I arrived in Honolulu. My flight from Sydney,Australia to Honolulu was delayed. I needed to spend eight hours at the airport. This made a total of nearly 20 hours getting from New Zealand to Honolulu. The funniest part is arriving in Honolulu on Friday 12:00 noon having left New Zealand Friday 1:30pm. I spent a full Friday in NZ and Australia and another full Friday in Honolulu.

It felt so good to come home to sunny,balmy,breezy,warm wonderful green colorful Hawaii.

Although I see in both Australia and New Zealand many people of different races;native Maoris,Asians from Japan,China,Korea,Thailand,Middle Easterners,Iran,Afganistan, Africans,Indians from India, Pakistanis,Europeans from England,Netherlands,Germany,Italy,Spain,Greece,Mexico,and few Americans,etc. It is a totally different feeling from the mixture of races we have in Hawaii. I think we are very unique. There seems to be greater warmth,relaxed friendliness even among total strangers.

My two feet seemed to have been affected from the cold weather in China,Japan,Australia and New Zealand. I first noticed the skin around all my toes peeling and deep cracks forming between and below my toes in Japan. Since this was a condition I never had I decided it must be the cold weather and the need to wear shoes all the time. I began treating them with the aloe plant in NZ, but it didn't get better. Here in Hawaii my daughter Shari had me soak my feet in salt water then covered with ointment and bandage. After three days of treatment it is good. When I get home I'll walk on the beach and have the sand and ocean water help to restore the skin back to how it used to be. I look forward to swimming at Salt Pond. I didn't get much chance to swim this past year.

I had my grandsons age 7 and 5 walking from Makakilo to downtown Kapolei two times this past few days. They decided they have had enough walking for a while and refused to walk down again today. They don't often nap in the afternoon but they did twice this week. My daughter said "Good Job,Mom. It is hard to tell who is 5 and 7 and 77"

I am enjoying my two grandsons and my daughter is enjoying being spoiled.

I have three more days here and then I will be back on Kauai.

Joanne