We've had so many wonderful friends and family peoples visit us on Maui - we've had a blast hosting!

This photo of a painting of Neil's regular walk up a nearby road named East Kuiaha, was painted just around New Year when Bruce & Deborah Edwards stayed with us. Bruce's work is found here.

Buzzzz-click, snap, whirrrrrrrrrrrrere back!

I could write 20 pages full of excuses for "failure to post." But we'll spare you. We've had guests for 3 of the last 5 weeks, THANKFULLY! When guests come we basically jump in on their vacation and have lot's of fun and get distracted from house hunting, plus good food and fabulous fellowship. Next guests in about 2 weeks. So, in the process of moving through this, the Blog has been pushed down the priority ladder a few rungs.


Speaking of guests, we went on  a whale watch with Tracy's parents: Ruth & Eric. Some folks have mentioned that they are anticipating some good photo's. Welllllllll - let me tell you what I found out. When you go on a whale watch you should either go as a sightseer or (in my case) a photographer, but not both.
I had my 400mm (equivalent) lens on the camera so I could get some really good closeups. What that means is that you spend the whole trip looking through the view finder at a very small patch of water (because the lens is so zoomed in you don't get much field of view). The result is shots like this:

Don't forget you can click on the photo's to enlarge them!

And this:

And that was about it for me.........always missing the good part, when they breach. The sightseers had the best day so far according the boat crew. 7 breaches, 3 whales, perfect weather, calm seas and winds - da best!


I did catch one breach, but way out there and very out of focus:

                                                                      

So, it goes. I got some tips from another photographer at a camera shop the other day which I am anxious to try next time - next time I go and choose to be the photographer, that is.


So, among the sightseers on the boat were these happy folks:

That's Tracy's Mom and Dad, Ruth and Eric and Tracy herself! It was 8 in the morning as we headed out of Maalaea Town into Maalaea Bay where the whales were rumored to be.

'Twas a happy day...................................for the sightseers!

Many thanks to the Pacific Whale Foundation for a really good day. We have joined the Foundation as a way to support their efforts in studying and protecting these magnificant creatures. Also, we get beeg discounts on future whale watch trips for all our friends, family and, of course, for us!

Paul and Laurie were our first friends to stay with us and we learned a lot about Maui because of them. We'd been spending all of our time settling in to our first home so we hadn't done much exploring until they arrived!

This was the afternoon of the second day.

On the trip, we stopped about a million times, to view rainbows, waterfalls, beaches, bays......