Where in the World

In a short stint in New York City, I packed in a bunch of movies at the Tribeca Film Festival, several trips to Pinkberry, a Magnolia cupcake, and a Saturday evening performance of South Pacific starring Paulo Szot and Laura Osnes -- all of which I highly recommend. 

Having done both, I'd say living in NYC is much more enjoyable than visiting it.  In either case, there's nothing like a great Broadway show, and South Pacific didn't disappoint.  The sets and lighting truly transported me to a slow sunset on an island much prettier than Manhattan.  The performances were stellar and the vaguely familiar songs quite catchy.  I bought the soundtrack the next day and have been playing it on repeat ever since.  Yes, I am a sucker for the theatre.  I'd like to go back every night.  Do you think there are people who spend $300,000/year going to Broadway shows?  If so, how might I become one of them?

But the thing I noticed about New York was how stressed and hurried strangers seemed.  I'm not sure if I just never noticed it before.  In fact, I'm not sure I wasn't like that myself before.  I actually saw a woman argue over who was first for a bathroom stall when there wasn't even a line.  This is a person who is spending too much time crowded in subways, waiting in lines and making sure no one's getting the better of her.  Oh and trust me, if you're not paying attention, they will get the better of you.  I realized this when my cab driver decided to drive from Lincoln Center to the Village by way of Times Square on Saturday night, making a 15-minute ride take 45 (and a $8 cab ride cost $16).  And yet we still tipped him.  I might as well be a hick.  But this is how you become a "New Yorker": spend your day getting cut off, shoved and swindled and pretty soon you're getting in a cab haughtily instructing the driver which route to take. 

Don't get me wrong, New York is a truly wonderful place -- one of the best cities in the world.  For years, I had one of those "I Love New York" bumper stickers on my car.  But I think now I'd need one that says, "I Have Mixed Feelings about New York."

When I close my eyes I see waves.  I've been surfing nearly every day that we've been in Waikiki -- today was my last, and seventh surf lesson.  The surf instructors at Beach Boys tease me because most people take one lesson and then proceed out into the waves unattended to figure it out by themselves.  But after having tried that in Newport, RI last summer, I saw my week in Hawaii as a custom surf camp so I went out each time with an instructor.  I find that I learn something new each time (how to steer, how to handle the second push of a wave), and it's nice after wiping out and swallowing a heap of seawater that there's someone there who notices and shouts "You ok?" 

The first two lessons that I took were group lessons for $40/hour.  Those seem to be set up mostly for total beginners.  The lessons start on the beach to practice paddling and standing on the board.  At Beach Boys, most instructors taught newbies to get on their knees then one foot, then both feet.  As expert as such company made me feel, I decided a private lesson (at $75/hour) might help me learn a bit quicker.  So after that I chose to go for the pricier private lesson (although they did cut me a deal after I kept coming back).  I've gone out with several different instructors, all men -- Zack, Junior, and Tony.  If there are any women instructors, I haven't seen them.  I've taken the most (four) lessons with Tony, a sturdy tanned Italian guy born and raised on the island who can move quite nimbly around even on the 11 foot board he takes out with him.  As for me, I've graduated down to a 10 foot board and have stuck with that for the duration.  In fact, several of my instructors have informed me that the board I purchased in Newport, RI, an 8 foot 2 inch epoxy board is too small for me to learn on.  They all think I should be with a 9 foot 6 inch or a 10 foot board. 

Tony finds it funny, but I'm not joking when I tell him that I'm actually scared to go out each time, and yet I am totally compelled to as if I were addicted.  What can I say about surfing?  I don't think it's a sport most people learn in their mid-thirties, and I can see why.  Fear holds us back.  As I've surfed around, I've seen quite a wide age range of talented surfers from about age 7 to 77.  I haven't seen as many older women in the water as older men, but they're out there, and they're damn good. 

In Waikiki, the surfing can get quite crowded -- to the point that it's a bit hazardous.  As I finished my last lesson, the Beach Boys instructors were taking out a group of 25 newbies in already crowded waters to learn to surf.  Let's just say, I was glad I was done for the day.  Apparently there are not many surf rules in Waikiki, although supposedly you should get out of the way of oncoming surfers riding a wave.  Although this sounds simple, it can be a challenge when you have people coming at you from all sides.  It's also hard to judge without knowing the locals who can steer around you and who cannot.

One day when it was particularly crowded, I asked Tony if we could head out slightly to the left of the mob scene in the water where I saw some nice waves breaking.  He said that was where the locals surfed and it was a slightly bigger and more challenging ride, but we could give it a try.  I hadn't realized it until then that each of the breaks had a name.  Where most people surf (and have surf lessons) in Waikiki is called Canoes, according to Tony named after the canoes that take out passengers to paddle in and ride the waves.  To the left of there is Queens, an area more highly rated and more popular with the locals.  Later that day, Geoff discovered this site that lists all the breaks -- check out the difference between Oahu (http://www.wannasurf.com/spot/North_America/USA/Hawaii/Oahu/index.html) and Southern New England (http://www.wannasurf.com/spot/North_America/USA/North_East/Southern_New_England/index.html) -- a bit depressing but I guess it could be worse.

The waves in Queens were bigger, and leaned sideways a bit so the ride was more across than straight ahead.  The larger waves give you more of the downhill ride, in addition to just the whitewater push ahead.  Throughout my week of surfing I learned how to steer (with the weight of your back leg), how to stop (get down on the board and put your hands in the water, or more quickly shift your weight to the back of the board), how to fall (belly flop or back flop since the water is shallow and the bottom rocky), how to keep ahead of the wave (step forward on the board), in addition to things like finding the right wave and timing your paddling into it.  But maybe most importantly, my fear seemed to wane a little bit each time. 

If you haven't tried surfing, I highly recommend it.  When you catch a wave and ride it into the shore, it's pure elation.  It makes me think of the Woody Allen line, "It's the most fun I've ever had without laughing."

When I had first pictured Hawaii in my mind, I had imagined something along the lines of Blue Lagoon. Although Waikiki does give you the feeling that it's been crafted by Hollywood or Disney with its smooth stone sidewalks and carefully spaced palm trees - it doesn't quite match my mind's pre-conception. I had pictured the beach as a serene, romantic place, when in fact it's no less crowded than New York's Jones Beach on a hot summer day. I suppose the contents of 60,000 hotel rooms spilled out onto the beach mid-day would be anything but peaceful. But despite the throngs of honeymooners and Japanese tourists, Waikiki has its redeeming qualities. It's rare to discover a beach with fine soft sand and clear blue-green water where you can take a baby out swimming safely in relatively calm waters as well as take surfing lessons a few feet away. And I love the fact that they let everyone bring floats and boogie boards into the water (boats even wash up on shore).

We've spent most of the past few days at Waikiki Beach, although we did decide to rent a car yesterday to explore the rest of the island. With surging mountains, roaring surf and too many beaches to count, Oahu offers quite a scenic drive. Yet after being turned away from one beach after another (too rough surf at one, a Portuguese man-of-war warning at another), I think we'll stick to Waikiki for the final four days of our trip. That said, I did enjoy watching the surfers at the Bonzai Pipeline even though the waves only hit 5 feet or so today (versus the winter peak of 20 feet) and got in a quick swim in giant waves at Waimea Bay.

Our other excursion out of Waikiki was Saturday when we woke ourselves up early at 9 am (jet lag has allowed us to eat late and sleep in) for the weekly Farmers' Market at the Kapiolani Community College on Diamond Head Road. We were glad not to have missed it since we found not only tasty breakfast (hot beignets, homemade spicy ginger ales and the most buttery cranberry scones), but also some local fruit to take back to our room - mangosteens, mangos, rambutans, apple bananas (which taste like pre-ripened bananas).

For the most part, food in Oahu has been good, although you definitely have to seek out reviews from a reliable source. The guidebook we brought Oahu Revealed offers wonderfully detailed descriptions of beaches, attractions and hotels, but I've found it doesn't quite match our sensibility with food. It's hard to take any book seriously that gives an 'ono' (meaning 'delicious') rating to McDonald's, and I've found some of their recommendations off the mark. For example, Maui Tacos proved a definite disappointment with bland burritos (maybe it's just too far from Mexico here to get that right). And some of their exclusions are unfortunate, like the great sandwiches at Ruffage Foods (I had tuna avocado and Geoff had a veggie burger avocado).

The restaurants are often geared toward tourists, which often make them a disappointment. And Waikiki obviously is a serious tourist destination. Any town with a Tiffany's as large as the one here means business. And surf shops - well, take your pick. There are actually two Billabong stores across the street from each other. And there appears to be a Haagen-Daz every few blocks in case you're feeling a tad faint (which I usually am). But by far, the most ubiquitous chain here is a regional shop called ABC Stores which carries everything you might need in a pinch - suntan lotion, allergy medication, milk, and sarongs - as well as plenty of souvenirs like pins, cups, t-shirts, flower barrettes, and kona coffee. The abundance of these stores seems almost absurd - on a short walk, we counted eight of them - but they certainly do offer comfort. Everything you need is there should you need it. And I suppose that is part of why Waikiki has become what it is today.

There are many families here on vacation, and I can see why. Although it feels so much like a remote tropical destination, Hawaii is just another state in the U.S. This provides comfort on many levels - there's no problem getting money, speaking the language, driving a car, etc. In addition, the beach seems to please kids universally. Mirabelle sings "going to the beach" every morning and adores playing in the sand, swimming in the ocean, and wearing as few clothes as possible. The poor thing - she certainly doesn't realize that in a few days, we'll be back to bundling her in umpteen layers before leaving the house, only to proceed as quickly as possible from one indoor location to another.

It was our last morning in Taipei. We were a bit sad to go and not just because we had a 8 hour 20 minute China Airlines flight ahead of us. Taipei surprised us as with its varied culture, tasty cuisine and relatively baby-friendly city. Of course, we were extremely fortunate to have Allan and Susan as our hosts who helped navigate our outings, choose the restaurants, and speak the language for us. The few times we went out by ourselves, we managed with a lot of pointing (most menus have pictures) and gesturing. I realized that cab drivers were more likely to understand the word "okay" than "yes" which came in handy and not surprisingly, Geoff started recognizing certain Chinese characters during our trip. We were certainly glad we came to Taipei, knowing that as much as we packed into our week trip, there was still much to be explored. We never had a chance to take some day trip to the north coast like Yeliu which looked mystical with its sandstone formations, and we never made it to the National Palace Museum - not too surprising since it wasn't until we moved to Paris that we finally went to the Louvre.

For our last half day in Taipei, we (of course) chose to get breakfast at Yungho Soybean Milk & Porridge King. Allan and Susan met us there, and Susan (who loves peanuts) introduced us to two new dishes there - peanut soup and a sticky rice wrapped around mashed peanuts.

Before we headed to the airport, we decided to take a quick trip back to Wistaria Teahouse to buy a tea set, complete with the pot, cups, bowls and wooden spoon. We got back just in time to get our bags into our car service back to the airport.

The flight which left at around 3 pm essentially was an overnight flight since it arrived in Hawaii 6 am local time (although in Taipei that's midnight). Since we were crossing back over the dateline, it would be Thursday morning again when we arrived in Honolulu. The flight was fairly uneventful, except for one bit of rough turbulence about 30 minutes prior to landing that had me regretting deeply the decision to fly China Airlines. But it ended well, and the passenger behind us commented on our way leaving the plane how "easy" Mirabelle is. It has been remarkable, and I say this with three days of travel behind us and one day of travel left. I'm not sure if it's the preparations, the presents, the pacifier, or just the fact that Mirabelle really likes Lady and The Tramp. But overall, my fears have not at all been realized. We have all slept well, ate well and traveled well. And I think when we're back home, we'll be planning our next adventure.

On our last full day, we decided to start early with an official children's activity for Mirabelle. We had researched places to take kids in Taipei. But when we sought information online, we found several of them to be closed - including the Children's Museum of Taipei and the Children's Museum of Transportation. Susan said one of her friends with kids recommended Baby Boss, but the minimum age was three. With Mirabelle not even quite two yet, we thought that might be a stretch. We decided on the Children's Recreation Center which was supposed to be great for younger kids and appeared to still be up and running.

In fact, the Children's Recreation Center turned out to be much like an old-fashioned amusement park. It had a Ferris wheel, bumper cars, carousel, boat ride, train, and other rides, in addition to several playgrounds with swings, slides and a variety of climbing apparatuses. We lucked out since it was a warm, sunny morning during the week which meant we pretty much had a nice day at the park to ourselves along with a few other families. Unlike most American amusement parks, there were no size or age minimums. Instead, younger children were expected to be accompanied by an adult. Even on the carousel, Mirabelle got strapped in with a rope, and I held her hand while riding a neighboring horse. Geoff had read that the park was somewhat worn, and it was old, but not at all rundown. In fact, it appeared well maintained, and its age only added to its charm.

After tiring Mirabelle out (and of course eating ice cream), we got in a cab to go meet our friends Allan and Susan for lunch. Susan, who runs a graphic design business in Taipei, wanted us to meet her two employees who she calls "her girls." So we all met for lunch at Kiki Restaurant, Sichuan cuisine. We ate soft spicy tofu, hot string beans, and chopped meat with something like scallions. Susan showed us how to eat it properly, bringing the bowl close to your mouth so the chopsticks don't have far to carry the food.

Although Kiki Restaurant was a sleek modern place, they still had an eastern style toilet, which if you've never seen one isn't a toilet at all, but just a hole in the ground. It looks more like a urinal. I have yet to figure out how to use these properly, and find I have to pee extra slowly so I don't end up peeing all over my leg, the floor and the wall (you only make that mistake once). Overall, I've come across more western style toilets than eastern in Taipei. And surprisingly, I've had luck finding baby changing stations in many bathrooms which make it way more baby-friendly than Paris. But those eastern toilets still catch me off-guard.

After lunch, we visited Susan's office, a space which she bought and renovated. She had partitioned some of the space with glass walls so light could pour through while still offering privacy. Since it actually was a converted apartment, it felt homey with a kitchen and private bathroom. Susan had her own studio there which was under construction, and Allan had his own office there as well. The girls shared a third room. They had a handful of cats, Toro and Rich - although one of them named Idea had fallen out a window recently, which was not only sad, but an unfortunate metaphor. We drank some pearl milk tea, which was tasty but I just can't get used to rice balls in my drink. As my allergies to the cats started to act up, we decided to head out with Allan alone since everyone else had work to do.

First we went to RT Mart, which was an unassuming entrance that opened into an urban Wal-Mart of sorts. We bought a few things we needed for our plane ride back to Hawaii the following day and then got a cab to Wistaria Teahouse. A historic teahouse which once kept the company of artists and rebels, Wistaria is divided into two sections - a modern café with tables and chairs overlooking a coy pond and a back room with low tables and pillows on tatami mats for drinking tea in the traditional Japanese style. We chose the traditional room, and they brought us a tea menu as well as a display of neatly saran-wrapped desserts which Mirabelle proceeded to poke her fingers through. After two were sacrificed, we figured we'd better order so we chose three pots of tea and chose the desserts that had been mauled, although it turned out those were just samples so they brought us fresh ones. It wasn't long until we decided to let Mirabelle watch a movie on her PSP - it just was not a very kid-friendly place with the delicate cups, the boiling water, and the writhing flame.

Our Taiwanese host came out with the teas and a small pot, four cups, four bowls and a bunch of other tea paraphernalia. She showed us the steps for making the tea - washing the pot out with some boiling water (from Taipei's mountains), heating the cups and bowls with hot water, putting the tea leaves into the pot followed by hot water and followed nearly immediately by pouring the tea into the small cups. There was even a way to drink the tea - take your small cup and deeply inhale the aromas, then pour the tea into your small bowl, smell the tea again, and then drink. After showing us all the steps once, our host left us to do it ourselves which made for some mishaps - "No you drink out of the bowl, not the cup!" "Wait did you air out the pot?" Overall, we decided that we lacked the elegance to do this properly, although we did all agree that her being a young Taiwanese woman in a sleek tea uniform might have given her the edge in that regard. Breathing and drinking the tea simultaneously boosted our energy and relaxed our spirits, and we enjoyed a nice leisurely conversation. We ate wonderful snacks to accompany our tea - pineapple cake (buttery cake filled with mashed pineapple), mashed peanut candies (which melted in your mouth like peanut butter cookie dough) and whole roasted peanuts (so much for Mirabelle not eating whole nuts until she was four).

After about an hour or so, Susan called us to tell us she'd pick us up and take us to karaoke. Since Mirabelle hadn't eaten dinner, we stopped and got her an egg sandwich at Yungho Soybean Milk & Porridge King (yes, it's really that good). Karaoke in Taipei is nothing like America's staggering drunkards howling off-tune in sleazy bars. In Asia, karaoke is big business - there are posh private rooms with drink and food service (you have a phone to call for more). Our room that night at the Party Zone even had its own private bathroom attached. The building itself impresses with a sleek marble entrance and waiting room which leads up to floors and floors of private karaoke rooms. After singing our hearts out for an hour, Mirabelle passed out as we continued. I guessed if she could sleep through the night market, she could sleep through karaoke. And, it turned out, I was right.

We spent the day in Danshui, a small waterfront town about 20km northwest of Taipei.  The boardwalk felt much like anywhere -- crowded shops selling kitsch, soft serve ice cream stands, and amusement park games for prizes (Mirabelle won a blow-up sword).  As usual, Mirabelle was a big hit with the Taiwanese women -- one young girl even asked if she could take our picture.  It's those kinds of experiences that make you realize how much of an anomaly you are.  And, in fact, we certainly are.  I have seen a handful of westerners around, and I've seen plenty of children out and about.  But I have yet to come across any Caucasian kids -- even at the zoo, where I was sure they'd be hiding. 

The lunch place that Susan had picked for us turned out to be closed, so we went instead to The Waterfront, Mediterranean cuisine overlooking the water.  It didn't feel very Taiwanese, but the food was quite good -- pesto pizzas and grilled chicken.  I had some fruit tea -- which was tea mixed with pineapple (like tasty hot juice).  Geoff decided to eat light to save room for the ensuing street food (fishball soup, pig's blood covered in nuts on a stick, etc.).  I decided to pass on most of the street food, but I found a little shop selling European breads and I bought a delicious soft pretzel. 

The one consistency I've found is in Taiwan's contradictions.  I've never before seen a sparkling posh store displaying savon next to a dilapidated stall selling colorful plastic toys.  In general, there seem to be two distinct sides to Taipei: the sleek marble department stores versus the gritty food stalls and shops.

From Danshui, we took a boat to Fisherman's Wharf where we sat and had some tea and coffee.  Then we walked across the suspension foot bridge and happily found a taxi to take us back to Susan's car.

Our next step was the Shilin Night Market.  Night markets, popular also in other parts of Asia, are huge bazaars with food stalls, clothing vendors, masseuses, fortune tellers, etc.  Of course, we tried a variety of regional specialties -- peanut ice cream, stinky tofu (to me it tasted like it smelled: like garbage), fried flattened chicken (this was the longest line and my favorite).  Geoff, of course, opted to taste more than I -- he also had sausage in a rice bun, oyster omelet, fried fish chips.  With the clamor, lights and crowds, it impressed me that Mirabelle (thankfully) slept through the entire evening.  Although this would leave us with our continuing dilemma of what to do after she woke in the middle of the night after a full night's sleep.  Apparently, she insists on remaining on Hawaii time.  After the food-for-all, Geoff and Allan sat for coffee at an upstairs cafe (Mirabelle may have broken the record for being carried up and down the most stairs in a stroller), while Susan and I went shopping for clothes.

Susan cracked me up as a shopping companion -- her refrain would be "only 200 dollar!" which is pretty cheap since the Taiwan to U.S. dollar is about 35 to 1.  At times I found the calculations a bit too obtuse -- 90% off $2850, then converted to U.S. dollars is...?  Well, it's cheap, anyway.  I have to admit, I'm not much for food markets but the shopping market was pretty fun.  I think my favorite was a t-shirt that says, "Cheerful Step" with an aside of "happy rhythmical everyday."  I have no idea what it means, but you just have to love automated translations.

After thinking we had adjusted so easily to the upside down Taipei time zone, we found ourselves Sunday afternoon exhausted.  We decided to come back to our hotel room at around 2:30 pm for a one or two hour nap.  So imagine my surprise when I rolled over, looked at the clock and saw it was 6:30 pm.  Mirabelle was still sound asleep, and I didn't blame her.  After a half-hearted discussion to get motivated, we decided to call it a night.  Not surprisingly, we were all up for the day the next morning at 2 am -- not good, considering nothing in Taipei really opens until 9 at the earliest. 

The hot plate and pot that our friends Allan and Susan lent us came in handy as we proceeded to heat up Mirabelle some Elmo soup at 3 am.  Yes, apparently we had now officially broken every 'sleeping' rule there was: Mirabelle now was waking up in the middle of the night to snuggle with us in bed, watch television, and now, eat entire meals.  Why do I have the sinking feeling that the post-vacation weeks may be a harder adjustment for us all than the vacation itself?

Feeling like we had missed a whole day, we decided to make up for it the following day.  So we packed it in -- a walk through the city stopping for breakfast of egg sandwiches and hot soymilk at Yungho Soybean Milk & Porridge King (so good, we went for seconds), then the Taipei Zoo (liveliest monkeys I've ever seen), followed by the Breeze Center (high-end shopping and a coffee break) where we met Allan and Susan who took us to see their apartment and watch a short animated Chinese film The Three Monks, and happily completed with a fantastic dim sum dinner at Din Tai Fung.

The food in Taipei is wonderful.  We've mostly had dim sum, which happens to be my favorite type of Chinese food.  Of course, you can get dim sum in the U.S., but it's just not as good.  One thing that is noticeably different are the dumplings -- they are not thick and doughy, but smooth and light.  At Din Tai Fung, where we ate last night, you can observe them making their own dumpling dough (see the photo).  The results melt in your mouth.

Upon first glance, Taipei feels a bit like Bangkok. There are a lot of old, dirty buildings with some crazy wiring, and the throng of motor scooters creates a haze of pollution you can practically taste.

Yet, Taipei shines with innovation. Its engineering and manufacturing in technology (iPhones are made here) have contributed to the country's wealth and enabled it to emerge as a major business destination. As a result, you'll find Starbucks on nearly every corner, as well as major European brands -- Moschino, Gucci, Cartier, etc.

This affluence seems epitomized by Taipei 101, the tallest skyscraper (soon to be outdone by Dubai) at a quarter of a mile high. At the foot of the building lies an enormous mall connected via foot bridges to a maze of additional department stores.  The quantity of shops feels absurd -- could there really be enough Taiwanese (or tourists) to buy this many $200 sweaters?

We did make our way to the top of Taipei 101, despite my reluctance. The elevator ride itself was an engineering marvel -- quiet, smooth and fast. If it wasn't for my ears popping (and the subsequent dizzying view), I would have sworn we had only gone up about 15 floors.  Mirabelle, of course, was more impressed by a clever multimedia display (when you walked across the floor, clouds disappeared and a view of Taipei emerged below your feet).

We spent most of the day exploring the area around Tapei 101 and made our way to Page One, a bookstore with a large English language section, and an international food market (Jason's).  As it turns out, I didn't really need to pack all the food I did (instant oatmeal, mac and cheese, granola bars).  I wasn't exactly surprised to see Corn Flakes, but impressed to find brands like Kashi, Newman's Own and Eden Organics.  Inside that market, it felt just like any European city -- except, of course, that everything was in Chinese.

We've made it to Taipei. Perhaps it's unwise to boast when we still have to make it back, but the plane rides weren't as bad as I thought they'd be. Of course, in our three plane rides, we got pretty lucky - in the first ,we had three bulkhead seats for the three of us (even though Mirabelle at just under two was still a lap child); in the second, we flew business class; and in the third, we actually had four seats to ourselves.

I didn't think it possible to keep a toddler in an airplane seat for 12 hours straight, but somehow we pulled it off. I had read that with toddlers, it's best not to let them know that getting out of the seat was an option (like a car), but I didn't think Mirabelle would go for that. But it did work, and instead of letting her roam in the aisles, we let her jump around in her seat or on the floor for intervals. We had videos for her, but she actually didn't log as many hours watching as I would have thought. Instead, it was a little bit of everything - watching TV, napping, eating, opening her 'presents,' coloring, jumping on the seat, playing games on the iPhone, and, of course, sucking on her pacifier and pulling my hair. After about 8 hours on the nonstop flight from Honolulu to Taipei, Mirabelle asked to 'go outside,' but luckily took it pretty well when we broke it to her that there were still four hours to go.

All in all, it went well, and I was glad we had opted for the nonstop flight on China Airlines (despite their poor reputation) instead of indirect flights on Japan Air. When we arrived at the Taipei airport, Mirabelle was greeted enthusiastically by a team of Taiwanese women in a duty free shop - a fine beginning to the trip.

Until now, I've only been surfing in Cape Cod, Massachusetts and Newport, RI.  After my first time in Hawaii, I can easily say that surfing in Wakiki is a lot more fun.  The water isn't frigid; there's no seaweed; and it's a long ride in. 

All the travel books say that anyone can catch their first wave in the waters of Wakiki, which is probably true.  Of course, there are a few unwritten stipulations -- you'll need an instructor who finds and pushes you into the right waves and a 12-foot foam board that has so much inertia that it's practically impossible to tip the thing over.

This past summer, I went surfing several times a week and felt by the end of the season I had actually gotten worse.  But in Newport, I have my own board (an 8 foot 2 inch epoxy board) which is probably lighter and swifter than I'm qualified to use quite yet.  It also actually requires balance, something that is just not an issue with those giant foam boards.  Not to mention, I injured my knee jumping off in shallow water which still hasn't totally healed, and I got knocked about a few times in 5-foot waves that I just wasn't ready for.

Since I had lost my confidence a bit, I decided to start in Wakiki with a lesson and a large foam board.  It was a group lesson with three of us -- me, a woman from North Carolina who had never surfed, and a guy who said he had done it once 20 years ago.  All of us caught some nice rides and have the pictures to prove it.  In fact, the rides are so long that sometimes I jumped off early just so I didn't have to paddle back so far to try again.  It also makes for an awkward surfing etiquette problem.  In Newport, everyone spreads out side to side across a wave, but in Wakik, you start so far back that sometimes you end up being right in line with someone else.  Since I don't really know how to steer, I would just jump off if I saw I was barreling toward someone.  Our instructor was a typical surfer, young, tan and laid back.  I found it odd at first that he took his board out with us.  I wasn't sure why until I saw him catching a few waves of his own.  You've just gotta love that surfer attitude -- catch 'em when you can.

After our stint in Taipei, we'll return to Hawaii for another week.  I'm hoping to take a lesson every day where I can work my way down from a massive foam to a leaner, shorter epoxy board.