Exploring the West side of Maui

View from the top

Recently, we went to explore the West tip of the island. We drove through the center, and then up the coast and around the tip. The road was very bumpy, narrow, and high up in the mountains. This road was not well paved and the car was moving back and forth like trees swaying in the wind. There were sharp turns, and we never knew if another car was coming around the corner. It turned out to be a dangerous road, but we drove carefully and really enjoyed the gorgeous views of the mountains and oceans.

We drove by a Taro field



Hsnging from a tree branch



 As we drove on, we kept getting closer to the beach, and saw a small parking lot that had many cars. It turned out to be one of the best places to snorkel on the island. The beach was called Honolua Bay. It is a protected reserve so fishing is not allowed, which means more fish for us to see. We took out all of our snorkeling gear, and started walking. We had to walk 1 mile and a half to get to a secluded beach. The walk was  through a thick, green rainforest, and we saw many beautiful trees and flowers. We also saw many avocados, apple bananas, guava, and papaya trees.

Honolua Bay

When we finally got to the beach, we didn't dawdle, but quickly put on our snorkeling gear. There were many rocks, and we had to swim past them befor reaching the beautiful coral reef. While snorkeling, we saw many fish such as trumpet fish,, parrot fish, the humuhumunookunookuappua'a with its blue lips, an eel, and of coures the best part, a turlte. As we swam deeper in the ocean, we nearly bumped into this huge turtle. It swam so gracefully, and many people were crowding around it pushing to see it. We had never seen such a big turtle. Hannah, our little sister, was so close to it, she could touch it. Of course, touching wild life is not allowed, and we let it swim by us. 

I'ini bird

After a nice refreshing swim, we sat down for lunch on the rocks. As we sat down, numerous birds began to surround us. Most of them were chickens and roosters making loud noises, nearly taking the sandwiches from our hands. We gave them pieces of bread, so they would move away. We even saw one Red-rested Cardinal. It had a red face, a yellow beak, and a grey and white body. We quickly ate our lunch, and while eating, one lady that was sitting next to us, told us that she saw a small shark. It was a White Tip about 3 feet long!

Red-crested Cardinal

Fleming Beach

After snorkeling, we started to look for a sandy beach to play in the water. We stopped at Fleming Beach park. It had small waves, and very soft sand. We built big sand castles and deep holes. We also went surfing and rode the waves. 

Kaanapali Bay

When we finished our lunch, we continued our drive to explore the island. We came to another beach called Kaanapali Bay. It was surrounded by expensive resorts and the water was very calm. We just relaxed in the water and played Monkey in the Middle with a football. It was very fun. The teams were my Dad, Mom and brother in one team, and Miriam, Hannah and I in the other team. Our team was the one that was mostly in the middle because my Mom and Dad through the ball over our heads.



We were then ready to head back home but we first stopped in the historic town of Lahaina for dinner, and to watch the sunset. This city used to be the capital city of Hawaii during the period of King Kamehameha. The capital was later moved to Honolulu. In Lahaina, we found a nice restaurant that had a spectacular view of the ocean. We were seated and served quickly, and the food was delicious. When we left, our stomachs were full, and we were very hiper. We walked around a little, and went to a famous 137 year old banyan tree that was planted in 1873  . It was a huge tree with many branches for us to climb. 

Banyan Tree in Lahaina

Finally, the sun was almost down and all the people lined the street along the ocean to watch the sunset. Each second, the sun went lower and lower until it disapeared into the clouds. It was a clear day, so there was a beautiful sunset. We took some family photos until it was finally dark. We had a long day, and while driving home, we all fell asleep.

Have you ever been to so many places in one day?

Have you ever climbed a tree?

Congratulations to My Cousin Ron

My cousin Ron just graduated high school. He has studied and worked hard to achieve his diploma.  Ron has completed 12 years of schooling, and will be going on to college to study engineering. We all wish him the best there, and we will miss him very much.

The graduation started with many speeches by students, teachers, and the principal. They talked about the school year, and about all the students graduating. Finally, they got to announcing the diplomas. They went class by class, until finally it was Ron's class. He was second to last to get his diploma because his last name started with a Z.When they finally got to him, they shook his hand, as the principal gave him his diploma.  We all cheered as loud as could as he was called up. The ceremony went on and on, until every kid from each class received their diploma.

Celebrating at the restaurant

Ron is the middle child of his siblings. He has an older brother named Ben who graduated last year, and has finished his first year in college. Ron also has a younger sister, who will be graduating in three years. Ron is a very loving and intelligent boy. His favorite subject is math, and he is very good at that subject. He works very hard at everything he wants to achieve, and in the end, all the hard work pays off. He always plays with us, and is there when we need him. He is especially good at fixing our toys and putting things together.  I will miss him a lot when he starts college.

When the ceremony ended, we all went to a restaurant to celebrate. During dinner, we each took turns saying some nice speeches to Ron. We wished him 4 great years in college, and we hoped he would make many new friends. We also told him how much we would miss him when he goes away.

Here are some photos of Ron with the family doing some fun things together. He used to be a really small and skinny kid, and he grew into a tall, handsome and strong young man.  

CONGRATULATIONS RON. WE LOVE YOU VERY MUCH!

Showing off his "muscles"

Ben and Ron getting ready to go kayaking at Oxnard

David (Dad) Ron,  Luba, Hannah and I

Ron, Miriam and Luba

Ron, Luba, Miriam and I hiking

All grown up and celebrating New Year

Please leave some nice comments for Ron on his graduation.

Hannah's New Piano Pieces

I learned many new piano pieces over the spring months.

• Waltz Of The Flowers (from the Nutcracker Ballet'') by Peter Tschikowsky  
• Sonatina in G Major by Kuhlau
• March /Marche Op. 65, No. 10 by Sergei Prokofiev
• Dance by Dmitri Shostakovich
• Anna Polka by E. Strauss

First I played Waltz Of The Flowers ( from the Nutcracker Ballet'') by Peter Tchaikovsky. I had to press the pedal while playing the piece. This was my favorite piece because its from the Nutcracker Ballet and I like to watch the ballet. In the ballet, Clara is dancing with the nutcracker who turned into a prince.

The second piece my mother recorded was Sonatina in G- major by Kuhlau. For this piece I had to practice it slow, count, and play with strong fingers. Next my mom recorded the song March /Marche Op. 65, No. 10 by Sergei Prokofiev. For the is piece I had to keep the beat because it is a march.  I had to practice it with the metronome and it took a long time for me to learn. This  piece sounds like solders marching in a parade.

Next I recorded the piece called Dance by Dmitri Shostakovitch. For this piece, I had to play loud and quiet and also not rush the melody. My piano teacher wanted me to count out loud, but I never counted because I do not like to.  I also had to play with all the right fingers.

The final piece  I recorded was Anna-Polka by E. Strauss. For this piece, I had to count, and I to play staccato with strong fingers.  Both Dance and Anna Polka are  happy pieces because it sounds like people are dancing at a party.

I hope you enjoy the songs that I recorded. I have been practicing all of these songs very hard.

Which piece was your favorite?

Gala Finale Orchestra Concert.

In front of the performance hall

Earlier this month, I had my Final Gala concert for this year. This is my second year in Camerata Strings. We practice every Saturday morning 9:00-11:30. The conductor is very nice and chooses beautiful pieces for us to play. Everyone practices their part during the week, and she helps us put it together. After about 5 weeks of practice, she does chair placement. Chair placement is when you audition for her, and she chooses where you sit. The best players sit closest to the conductor. Everyone practices a lot during the week of chair placement. For chair placement, I got 4th chair. This was a big improvement for me because I started the year as a second violin, then the last concert I was first violin 9th chair and this final concert I was first violin 4th chair. I will now be working with my teacher to choose a new piece to audition for the symphony orchestra, which is a more advanced orchestra.

My day started early in the morning because I had to get dressed in a black skirt, white shirt, and shiny black shoes. It was a windy and cold day and our violins were becoming out of tune often. We had to leave earlier to allow time to park and find the performance hall. At 11:30 we had a dress rehearsal on stage to find our seats and practice our pieces. The performance was in a huge beautiful concert hall. The hall had very good acoustics, and you could here the echo of our orchestra throughout the entire building, even on the upper balcony seats.  Even if one person messed up, everyone would be able to hear it.  I was a little nervous when I got on stage, but when we finished and the audience clapped,I felt like we had done a good job.

We played four pieces:

• Spring Breezes(Folk Song from Taiwan) Arr Richard Meyer
• Eine Kleine Nachtmusic by Mozart
• Winter from the Four Seasons by Antonio Vivaldi
• A Grieg Portrait by Edward Grieg

In Spring breezes there were many solos played by the first chair. A solo is when only one person plays a specific part. This song wasn't my favorite because it kept repeating throughout the whole song. Eine Kleine Nachtmusic is a fast and light song.  Winter from the Four Seasons was my second favorite. It sounded like raindrops falling on the ground which represents Winter. A Grieg Portrait was my favorite because every section had a beautiful melody. It was three of Grieg most famous songs put together into one piece.



                               Here is a video of my performance.

Which piece was your favorite?

Desert Hot Springs

Miriam and our friend Yasmine

Recently, we went to the Desert Hot Springs. It was about a twenty minute drive from our hotel.  While driving, there was a sand storm, and we could hear sand hitting our car. We assumed it would be a warmer day, but it turned out to be on the cooler side. When we arrived to the hot spring,  it was very windy, but we still were tempted to go swimming. Right after our parents paid and got towels, we instantaneously jumped into the Jacuzzi. Our friends came with us. They came from Israel to stay with us for the week in Palm Springs.

 

There were eight pools, and one lifeguard that watched the largest pool. The smaller the pool the warmer it was. All the pools had fresh water non-chlorinated water, which meant we could open our eyes under water. We were very happy that the water didn’t have chlorine because we forgot to take goggles. The water temperature was 85-110 degrees Fahrenheit.  The water was very warm, and we first went into the warmest Jacuzzi to warm up from the cold wind. It felt very nice, and we wished we brought our books to read in the water.

Hannah and me playing in the pool

After staying in the Jacuzzi, we felt very hot, we went into the bigger pool which was very refreshing. In this pool we played numerous made up games such as horse training. We took turns giving each other piggyback rides, and we raced each other to the finish line. Then, we swam a few laps of the strokes until we were exhausted and famished and were ready for our lunch.

For lunch, we had sandwiches with salami, juicy and scrumptious fruits, and delicious yogurt.   Our repast was delicious, and when we finished, we jumped back into the pool.  I helped teach my friends little sister how to swim. She was only 6 and in one day, she learned how to swim without her floaties. It was very pretty at the Desert Hot Springs. When you looked out at the view you saw mammoth-sized boulders, hills, and mountains.  I felt and smelled the nice, fresh air of wind on my legs and arms, and heard the kids screaming and playing games in the pool. We played in the biggest pool for another 2 more hours until it was time to leave. We wiped ourselves, changed, and gave our towels back. I had a fun day, and thanked my mom for making it so entertaining. 

Have you ever swam in a hot spring?

Joshua Tree National Park

High on a tall rock

Recently, we drove to Palm Springs. It was about 130 miles, and while driving we saw some beautiful sights. We saw cows up at the top of the hill, and horses in barns. When we were near to Palm Springs, we saw numerous wind mills. They were in straight rows and were spinning. The wind mills produce electricity.

Joshua tree

While in Palm Springs, we went to Joshua Tree National park. It was about an hour drive from Palm Springs. We went with our friends from Israel. They came to stay with us for the week in Palm Springs. They were good climbers, and they climbed  tall rocks with us. We went to four hiking places within this National Park. We first went to Skull Rock where we climbed mammoth sized rocks and looked out at the view of the mountains. It was hard to climb and there were many sharp branches. After that, we went to Keys View. It was a beautiful sight overlooking the entire valley. It resembled the Grand Canyon, but was much smaller  The overlook at Keys View had a fault line called the San Andre’s Fault. This was were many earthquakes took place. As a result of the fault line, the nearby mountains move one and a half inches every two years, and in 3,000,000 years the San Andre’s Fault will result in the mountains moving 100 miles away. 

Next, we went to the Barker Dam. It was an endangered park, and there were many lizards and birds. We hiked a 1 mile loop to the Dam. While walking we saw an abundant number of Joshua Trees and cacti. The cacti were very prickly and we made sure not to touch them.  The tallest Joshua tree in the park is 40 feet tall, and is about 100 years old! Joshua trees don’t grow more than about 45 feet tall. The name Joshua tree was given by a group of Mormon settlers who crossed the Mojave Desert. It's shape reminded these settlers about the biblical story, when Joshua reaches his hands up to the sky to say a prayer.   One of the Joshua trees was flowering a very large cluster of white petals.

When we neared the end of the hike, we went to see a dried out dam. It was built by comboys to gather water in the desert. We also saw petroglphys in a small cave. These were written by American Indians that lived a long time ago. The writings were in all different colors. We didn’t know what it meant, but they probably wrote it to tell others where to find water and food.  This walk was challenging and was complicated because we walked on rocks and it was very hot.

The last hiking trail was hidden valley. It was a 1 mile loop, and we saw and climbed big rocks. We also saw the most Joshua trees and cacti in this part of the park. It was extremely hot so we hurried up to finish before we would burn. As we exited the park, we went to the Ranger Station. By filling filled out a small booklet about what we learned in the park, we became junior rangers. The park rangers checked our books, and then made us say an oath to protect nature. After that, we received junior ranger badges.  I was very sad when we left, and hoped we would come back next year. 

Michael climbing a tree

What interesting park have you visited?