San Juan Islands Sailing

First of all, I have to tell you guys this has been the most epic summer of my entire life. Better than slip 'n slides and blackberry picking at eight, better than Latin American living at 16, better than hostel jumping at 20, and (maybe) even better than New York City last year. If you've been following this summer, you know that I spent most of my time leading a youth conservation corp team here in Hawaii and camping in some of the most remote places on the Big Island. To top it all off, I spent the last week of summer break sailing in the San Juan Islands in Washington state.

Some of you may know that we plan to drop everything in the very near future in favor of living on a sail boat. We will probably begin our adventures in the Pacific Northwest so we found a charter boat company that offered a "learn and cruise" trip to get some hands-on sailing experience. Through San Juan Sailing we sailed and lived aboard for a week with another couple and a captain who taught us to sail along the way. I am proud to say I am now a legit sailor. LEGIT. And I didn't even get sick once. For the girl who gets nauseous on a playground swing this is big news.

The sailing course included three written exams and a series of practical "tests" that we practiced at sea. Once you pass all three courses you can charter a boat from San Juan Sailing all on your own.

Most nights we anchored in a sheltered bay of one of the small islands where we could row on shore for a little hiking and beach combing. The water was stand-still calm. The other couple cruising with us got their crabbing license so we were lucky enough to have fresh crab on board a couple times. Meals were cooked and eaten family style and luckily all of us got along very well.

We also spent a night at the marina in Friday Harbor, an adorable little port town with scads of art galleries and teeny cafes. We pounded some oysters and sipped on local beer and just about died when the moon rose out of the purple sunset glow. The water is so clear around there, you can see starfish and all sorts of creatures everywhere.

Every morning we would get geared up and sail to a new anchorage. Being out on the water sailing was two parts challenging and two parts fun. I liked learning about navigation and charting and feeling pretty confident that with some practice I'll get the whole sail trimming thing down, too.

Mainly, I'm looking forward to eating fresh crab, fish, clams and mussels often and with gusto.

I spent a lot of time before this trip worrying about being a total sailor failure and letting my husband down. If it weren't for the confidence boost from leading a group of teenagers through a summer of the hardest physical labor ever, well let's just say that boost was needed.

This vacation will sustain me for a good long while.

I can still taste the oysters.

Sustainable Camp Eats

Rare and endangered ahina'ahina (silversword)

My HYCC team spent five days camping and doing conservation work at Kona Hema, an 8,000 acre nature preserve stewarded by The Nature Conservancy in south Kona. 

Ancient camp site high above the coastline

We spent most of our work hours fixing the 25 miles of fencing that keeps damaging pigs, goats, and sheep out of the preserve. 

The gorgeous ohia lehua

We also found some time to admire the pristine forest around us, including the biggest koa tree in the world and many rare and endangered plants. We were able to pick plums (non-native) an I attempted to make a pie with them, see pictured. How lucky is that? 

Plum pie attempt, topped with instant oatmeal packets

I've harped on this before and I'll do it again, it has been super important to me that my team eats as sustainably as possible on our camping trips being that we are a conservation group and all. Luckily KTA has a slew of locally grown and made products, so I've done all my shopping with them. In case you're wondering where else to find local food products in the Kona area, Sack n Save and Costco also have plenty of choices. The farmers' market wasn't an option (this year) because I only had a credit card to buy food with. 

Meals with a * by them were made using locally grown or produced ingredients. A list of locally made products I purchased for this trip is below the menu. 

Day	Meal
Monday	*Dinner: Spaghetti & salad
Tuesday	*Breakfast: Portuguese sausage, eggs, rice
	Lunch: sandwiches, chips, fruit, cookies
	*Dinner: Pork adobo with veggies & rice
Wednesday	Breakfast: Yogurt, oatmeal, fruit
	Lunch: sandwiches, chips, fruit, cookies
	*Dinner: Burgers w/sweet potatoes & chips
Thursday	*Breakfast: eggs, toast, fruit
	Lunch: sandwiches, chips, fruit, cookies
	*Dinner: Beef stew & rice
Friday	Breakfast: oatmeal, yogurt, fruit
	Lunch: sandwiches, chips, fruit, cookies

Locally made products purchased for this camping trip at KTA:

Grass-fed beef (ground and stew meat)

Pork belly

Eggs

Lettuce

Sprouts

Cucumber

Bananas

Kale

Yogurt

Sweet potatoes

Taro

Bread

Vintage Honolulu

We snuck in a couple vaca days in Honolulu before I had to report to work at my summer job this week. I'll be leading a team of 17 and 18 year olds on camping adventures on the Kona side of the Big Island, where I live. Along the way, we will be doing conservation work like building trails, planting native trees, and removing invasive species. I am more than stoked.

We stayed in Waikiki and just chilled since Dustin had hurt his back. This was totally fine with me having just finished a nightmare 2012-2013 school year, I needed some downtime.

Everywhere we went in Honolulu clues from the past kept popping up. I couldn't help but wonder what Waikiki would have been like in the '60s.

We also took some time to look at a few sailboats, we'd like to buy one next summer and plan so do a little world cruising. For real.

Aloha vintage Honolulu!

My friend Danielle introduced me to the La Mariana Sailing Club tiki bar. It is fully decked out in tiki regalia, complete with dive bar status. If you have never been, it is a must.

Of course we had SPAM musubis for breakfast, this one has bacon and egg. Nom.

For Memorial Day, Magic Island hosts an annual lantern lighting ceremony in which a message is placed in a lantern for a lost loved one, lit and set free in the ocean. (Don't worry, the lanterns are collected so they won't harm the environment). It is a beautiful way to remember and honor those that have gone before us.

We enjoyed some classy drinks poolside at The Modern Honolulu including a fab deconstructed mai tai garnished with a shiso leaf.

Even the carpet patterns are vintage.

Love the turquoise.

A rare snapshot of me. Hi!

Sustainable Sunday: Hawaiian Vanilla

Did you know there is only one vanilla farm in the entire United States? Lucky for me Hawaiian Vanilla Company is only an hour from my hometown of Kailua-Kona, Hawaii.

In addition to growing high-quality vanilla beans, the family-run farm offers tours, vanilla-themed luncheons and high tea. It turns out that vanilla can be used for much more than ice cream.

The owner's son, an expert vanilla chef, surrounded by extract. (Don't worry, he wasn't mixing us drinks)

One of the chefs demonstrated how to make a shrimp dish flavored with homemade vanilla extract. As you can see from the photo above he is a young chef, but certainly knew his vanilla facts. We then enjoyed an exceptional lunch; a chicken sandwich with two different kinds of vanilla infused sauces, salad with vanilla crusted pecans and vanilla-raspberry dressing, vanilla and spice rubbed potatoes, and washed it down with vanilla lemonade or iced tea. It was a challenge stuffing in the vanilla ice cream at the end.

Vanilla lemonade, salad with vanilla vinaigrette, and vanilla rubbed potatoes

Vanilla Arnold Palmers

Thankfully we got up on our feet for a tour of the farm, our bellies needing a walk at that point. The vanilla plant is an orchid whose blooms must be hand pollinated in order to produce vanilla beans. Harvesting just one bean is a very labor intensive process that takes many months, and if you've ever grown orchids, you know how challenging it can be to keep these plants happy. In the open-air "greenhouse" the farmers were experimenting with a new growing technique, hoping the vines would grow up moss covered poles.

Vanilla farmer experimenting with moss for climbing vines

A vanilla plant needs at least four years before it can begin producing beans. Which brings us to why there may be only one vanilla farm in the U.S. It's expensive. The costs and labor involved in mass production are great, which is why what we pay a lot per bean. But here's the deal, most beans that us common folks find at the grocery store are hard, shriveled things from Madagascar or Mexico and are basically not worth the cost. You will save yourself a lot of money by using extract.

Vanilla vines are orchids

To get the highest quality vanilla flavor Hawaiian Vanilla Company strongly recommends you make your own vanilla extract. This is mainly because extract sold in the U.S. is made mostly with water due to a strange law passed during the prohibition era. They suggest you use vodka (although rum and bourbon are ok if you like those flavors). Get your hands on 3 fresh and pliable Hawaiian vanilla beans (about $30, you'll need to special order them or stop by the farm), split them down the middle to expose the thousands of tiny seeds, plop them in a 12 oz. jar, fill with vodka, store in a cool, dark place and in 6 months you'll have the absolute best vanilla flavor money can buy. Not only that, but these beans will continue to make extract for up to 3 years, as long as you continue to refill it with vodka as you go along (make sure you maintain about an 8oz. "base").

Another owner's son, our tour guide, teaching us about hand-pollination

If you live on or are planning to visit the Big Island of Hawaii, this is a treat not to be missed. Learn more about their tour offerings here: Hawaiian Vanilla Company

Purchase Hawaiian vanilla beans and products here: Hawaiian Vanilla Company


*I was not paid or compensated in any way to write this post. I just really want you to have amazing vanilla in your lives!

How to Eat Good in Hawaii

Pineapple, SPAM, umbrella drinks. These may come to mind when you think of Hawaiian food. But friends, I am here to tell you Hawaii is so much more, it's a foodie paradise. And I'm not alone, when I asked some of my fellow Hawaii blogger friends to offer their tips on not-to-miss eats, they offered many enthusiastic responses.

1. Poke (pronounced poe-kay), raw fish salad
Geology blogger Anna listed poke as her top choice, "I didn't try it until I moved here and I was totally missing out!" Tania, our Maui fashionista, likes spicy ahi poke and lomi salmon. The great part about poke is the variety, there are so many kinds to try. If you don't care for raw seafood, give the cooked varieties a try. Poke can be found everywhere on the islands, just ask a local to point you in the right direction. 

2. Mochi, sweet Japanese rice cake
Gerrit, of Love Big Island, recommends strawberry mochi while photographer Dallas Nagata White kicks it up with mochi ice cream. Solid choices.

3. Tropical fruit
Seek out a farmer's market and you will be rewarded. Angie encourages you to go for the Maui gold pineapple, Dewi suggests poha berries (I've never had these!), Sonia stands by the breadfruit, and Doug, our resident farmer/blogger, urges you to try lilikoi (passion fruit), mango, white pineapple, and yellow dragon fruit.

4. Poi, mashed taro root
Even Andrew Zimmern dogged the sticky, purple staple of traditional Hawaiian food, often referred to as wallpaper paste-like. We know better. Ihilani suggests trying poi with other traditional luau foods like laulau, kalua pig, and squid luau. Even though he's still not a fan, Damon thinks everyone should at least try it. A way to sample many of these foods is at a luau, just be sure to choose carefully. If you are on Oahu, Jen recommends the luau at the Polynesian Cultural Center.

5. SPAM musubi, a "sushi" roll with SPAM and egg
My personal favorite. It's just not a combo you see everyday on the mainland, and it is such a great breakfast. Pick one up at any grocery store or gas station.

Mahalo to all the bloggers who helped out with these recommendations. Please leave a comment below if you have further suggestions.

Foodie Souvenir

Ever kept a shell you found at the beach? Why not save a shell from a memorable seafood meal? Simply wash and dry the oyster, clam, or snail shell and write a little note-to-self in permanent marker. I always collect shells and stones and then promptly forget where and when I collected them. The little note ensures you'll never forget that special moment.

Pictured is the shell I saved from the infamous pearl incident in New York this summer. Wish the pearl were my memento, but the shell will have to do.

This would also be cute with a little glitter and some fishing line as a Christmas ornament. Enjoy!

How to Eat Good Food When Traveling

Do you ever get frustrated when trying to find a decent meal on vacation? ME TOO. It can be especially aggravating in tourist hubs where every restaurant seems to be offering the same thing for the "best price." You get ripped off, you get crap food, you get angry! Not to worry, I've gathered some of my travel savvy blogger friends together to offer you tips on how to keep your belly happy while traipsing the unknown. 


Rachel, quippy author of Rachel's Symbiotic Life, depends on Trip Advisor for restaurant recommendations, "I can't emphasize what a valuable tool that site can be. Having so many reviewers share such insightful information really allowed us to hand pick places we thought would be a good fit for us." In her recent travels around Europe, she found that straying from the main streets and looking for places packed with locals made for a sure thing when it came to impromptu meals. Read more about her recent trip to Italy here: Food in Pisa.

Jen, making Hawaii proud

Jen, fellow Hawaii blogger of Jenkakio, spent one month backpacking through Europe with two male friends starting in Amsterdam (Netherlands).  Within a month, she visited Berlin, Poland, Prague, Vienna, Venice, Tuscany (Empoli to be exact), Florence, Rome, Vatican City, Munich, Salzburg, and Heidelberg. Dang girl, now that's getting around! Jen had the following advice:
- To save money, go to the grocery store or farmer's market and have a picnic.  Europe's groceries were super cheap and fresh.  
- Never turn down a food adventure.  I've never ate ostrich before and when the opportunity arose, I snatched one up without thinking.  Best foodie experience of the trip.
- (In a foreign country) Learn how to say "please", "thank you", "hello", "sorry", "help", and "beer" in every language you will be encountering.  Okay, maybe "beer" is not needed for everybody, unless you are me.


Jen wrote many excellent posts about her adventures in Europe, check them out here: Jenkakio. 

Jen's first ostrich

Lindsay, style savvy author of Black+Blonde, just returned from her wedding/honeymoon in Belize, where she scored more lobster than my jealous heart cares to discuss. She offers the following tips: 
"First off, I would suggest avoiding the fancy restaurants. I love me some ambience and white tablecloths, but abroad (especially in the caribbean), it's a sign to go the other way.  You end up spending way too much money on mediocre food.
Go for the hole in the walls instead. We went to this roadside restaurant in Belize and had the best meal of our trip!  I ordered a coconut creme lobster tail and ended up getting two tails plus two additional sides.  The grand total for our meal? About $30 US.

It's a long told tip, but I would always recommend eating the local food.  You never know what you're missing until you try.  While cowfoot soup didn't really sound appetizing to me, it was still one of their traditional meals.  Sometimes you win, sometimes you get sick, but variety is the spice of life, right?" It sure is, thanks Lindsay!

Lovely Lindsay and her Lobster

As many of you know, I just returned from a month long trip to New York citaaay. I depended mainly on Yelp for restaurant recommendations, but beware, Yelp is really only useful when searching for something very specific like, "$1 oysters near Brooklyn." Otherwise it can be a rabbit hole of indecision. 

I keep a bottle of water and a bag of trail mix in my purse at all times while traveling. This prevents me from impulse buying a $15 hamburger because I'm too hungry to take the time to find something good. 

Stay in a place with a kitchen, if possible, such as a hostel, condo, or AirBnB. Cooking for yourself drastically reduces food costs and it can be fun to shop at the local groceries and farmer's markets where you can find specialty ingredients you might not be able to afford at a restaurant (hello, squid ink pasta). 

Lastly, if you find a menu without a trace of English, eat there. This often points to authenticity, and as long as you don't have any major dietary restrictions, you'll be fine just pointing to something on the menu. 

Hope you enjoyed our travel tips, if you have any you'd like to share, please do so in the comments below. Happy trails!