Finding a Moment of Solitude Waiting for a Disaster
One afternoon on the Big Island of Hawaii, I found myself sitting on our balcony of the Kona Tiki Hotel, and enjoying the death defying acts of some surfers after a storm had rolled through. Right outside of our window lied a very rocky area that met the ocean. There was no beach for a soft landing, just porous and fragmented lava-rock. Depending on the time of day, the waves against the rock outcrops was obnoxious and loud. I could not imagine myself setting any foot into the water in this area.
So watching surfers be pushed into shore upon waves was like watching people sentencing themselves to a painful death. I could just imagine falling off a surfboard only to be met with the sharp and jagged lava-rock below the surface of the water. Then as I float bleeding in the water, the sharks would be circling as I tried stumbling onto the shore, only to be knocked around by the waves crashing from behind.
For those reason, I greatly was impressed watching the surfers of Hawaii. I gave tremendous respect for their dedication to the sport.
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Great Video! I was always amazed at how surfers just know when the wave is coming? Can they feel it? or sense it? Surfers are a fascinating people:)
@Alley Arch: Thanks! It was very interesting to watch, especially knowing impending danger was near.
inacents,
I am so envious of your trip to Hawaii. It sounds as though you all had a great time. I am curious to hear how you would use points to travel from the East Coast (not NY, Atlanta or Florida) to Hawaii? I am a newbie and most of the trips I have seen posted on blogs have been traveling from the West Coast. I am saving my UR points and am getting ready for my second churn, trying to decide which cards would compliment what I have as well as trying to decide if I should diversify a little as well. Thanks!!
@IAmAmy: Thanks for your question. Our home airport is out of Cleveland, although when it came to searching for rewards, we opened up our options anywhere from Chicago to Washington DC just to get the best rates, and then weighing out the pros and cons of each option. We initially booked in/out of Chicago since no availability was out of Cleveland, but later when it opened up, we called, paid the $75 change fee per ticket, and had them switched. Even with the change fee it was cheaper than traveling to/from Chicago to get to Hawaii. It’s all about flexibility and patience as availability changes as much as prices.
Our favorite program for redemptions are with United. We had good luck with using them for our trip to Hawaii, and at the time we could earn tons of miles because of the Continental merger. The great thing is you can take advantage of not only the United cards, and Ultimate Rewards (that transfer 1:1), but you also may have success getting the US Airways route by getting their cards. United and US Airways are part of the same alliance, and thus you may be able to open up different availability dependent on your airport, days, and times.
With a little bit of patience and flexibility, you should be able to find the Super Saver awards at 40,000 miles for coach tickets. Thanks and good luck!