Hard at Work

At first I thought Hawaii would be the perfect location for a conference. I was so excited we finally had an excuse to go back.

Unfortunately, I found that instead of wanting to be at the conference, I wanted to BE IN HAWAII. Regardless, I think I found a good balance between enjoying the conference and making sure I spent plenty of time with my honey BEING in Hawaii.

We loved our hotel, the Modern Honolulu. The location was an easy walk to the beach, the decor was clean and modern (surprise), and we loved their pool.  

The nice anniversary gift didn't hurt, either!

We didn't do anything fancy since the conference sucked up a lot of time. We enjoyed relaxing at the beach and the pool and walking around the strip.

I think we ate Japanese food almost every meal! I was looking forward to Ramen for months since we got back from Japan. Unfortunately, wasn't quite the same.

One of my favorites from Japan, Okonomyaki!

Curry House...interestingly, WAY more food than you get at the same place in Japan.

And Dole Whips!

Proof I was at the conference (in case anyone from work is reading this--ha ha!). 

This is me registering for the conference after some exercise on our way. Promise I have a little more class than exercise clothes at a professional conference!

We met up with some friends for ice cream. Unfortunately, it isn't as easy to meet up with friends when they live in Hawaii -- I guess we will just have to go back. Wouldn't want to lose those ties!

One of the coolest parts of my trip was re(meeting) my cousin Shannon after 20+ years. It was strange to see this little girl who was probably four when I last saw her as a masters student. Fun to catch up and notice family similarities. Do you think we look alike? I think we have the same legs (if I worked out more).

And finally shave ice. Took me until the last day of the trip to finally get some. We tried this store at the recommendation of a friend and we were not disappointed!

And then made it up to the North Shore for some more at Matsumoto, our traditional favorite.

We enjoyed some more beach time on the North Shore  (especially when we came upon some nudists with some shady behavior)...

..

...before sadly making our way back to our friends' for a quick shower and a goodbye before our red-eye home.