Reno?

Never been to Reno, unless you count flying to the airport and driving to Tahoe. Visiting UN-Reno. To my surprise, it is a very nice and large campus and full of construction. I just assumed Las Vegas would be the bigger campus. Guess no one goes to school in Vegas. :D

With only a handful of hours of sleep in me this past two days and a brief cruise through downtown via a shuttle, I had no desire to go to the "strip." Avis did give me some motivation by giving me an Eclipse to drive. Was suprised they had imports in their inventory. So far, the ride is stiff and suprisingly noisy (comparable to my own car). I chose to go to a local BJs instead of downtown.

I've been told that Reno controls its growth and is a great city. From first glance, I wouldn't necessarily agree. Staying in the burbs at a Hampton Inn did change my attitude. Nice enough hotel, recent construction and had great water effects in the lobby area. (Shouldn't they keep that kind of thing in check given the scarcity of water??) The difference between downtown and the rest of Reno is amazing. The mixture of pho shops, xxx shops, and casinos reminds me of downtown Vegas. The rest of the city reminds me of Orange County - tract housing with dollops of retail for good measure. Although the people in Reno don't always match their surroundings....but who am I to judge?

Aloha!

I'm in Hawaii for a week. Stayed in Waikiki,Oahu and did a day trip to Big Island. Due to the size of the group, I've deviated from hotel lodging and found a vacation rental for the week. Very homey, I found a 2 bedroom 1 bath condo for reasonable prices. The only downside is the traffic noises in Waikiki. I've forgotten how much goes on during the early morning hours and that most Hawaiians lack central air in their homes. (It existed but it was cooler to have the windows open and allow the trade winds to come through.)

On the Big Island, flew into Hilo and visited the Volcano Park. Had breakfast at Ken's Pancake House. Best ever of the week! Don't know if it was the combination of timing, hunger, or food but it hit the spot for everyone. You can't miss it, Hilo isn't that big.

The park was a pretty cool place with lots of hiking trails. Didn't get to do much trail hiking but drove around the perimeter of the volcano ridge. Of course, no visit is complete without a stop at Big Island Candies, I should buy shares in this company..... :D

Spent alot of time in the water and sand in Oahu. I think I've filled my quota on fried pies from McDonald's, malasadas from Leonard's, shaved ice from Waiola Market. The only thing missing is my favorite shack for spam musubi. I guess the restaurant wasn't doing well and have closed down. :( For some strange reason, my parents were very attracted to Chinatown. On an island full of asian people, they still wanted to go to Chinatown....

Of course, my brother's craving for sunrise pictures motivated him to wake up at the crack of dawn and head over to Diamond Head on our last day. I must say it was a nice picture;however, I enjoyed my morning at the spa and wouldn't give it up for a sunrise.... ;D