good evening. it was another circle island day. the weather couldn’t have been any better. surf in the morning, and drive around this beautiful island….

we went to go eat at romy’s today. it’s a 1.5 hour drive and a 1 hour wait but all worth it!!! the kahuku prawns are the best! lucky me, i got the vip for phone orders so if i call on the way out, my order will be waiting for me. i seen these tourists from the mainland sitting on the table waiting for their order. the were getting impatient and started to complain to each other. i walked by them and said “don’t worry, it’s worth the wait!” the prawns there are that good!!!

if you are standing in the back of this line, the wait from standing in line to getting your order is over 1 hour. but you know what? it’s worth it because there is no other place in the world you can eat fresh kahuku prawns that good….

we surfed bowls this morning. the waves were small and perfect!!! kelia came by to lend a helping hand and i was stoked to teach surfing with her. she’s just so natural and knows how to do it. thanks kelia… check out this monk seal just hanging out all morning long….

after eating shrimp, we ate waiola shave ice, then munchies frozen yogurt at ward, then leonard’s malasadas in kapahulu. i haven’t eaten so much sweets in my life. i better go work out tonight… but i’m glad ai-chan enjoyed it all….
have a great evening….

Circle Island with the Ueno’s.
So Fun Day!!!

good morning. 6:15 am and the waves are pretty much flat. it’s the smallest i’ve seen it in a while in town. looks like winter season. you can find a waist high wave if you wait long enough. if you want a little bigger wave, you’ll have to go around the corner to sandy beach. i’m going surfing anyway!!!
i’ve been watching closely the weather charts off the philippines and there are no typhoons. it’s already the end if july and usually there are about 10 or so. this year has to be the slowest ever. the weather guys say this typhoon season is going to be late. um… i’m on standby and was planning to go back tomorrow but my friends are saying “it’s freakin hot in japan and the waves are flat, you should stay in hawaii.” i’ll take their advise but as soon as i see something, i’m on a flight because i don’t want to miss the first swell of the year….

i was a lucky guy and got a spread in surfing magazine before. this is shikoku. this is where my eyes are set on right now. i still can’t forget that day! the waves were 8-10′ and BARRELING!!! i was riding a 7’0 gun and that board ended up breaking in 2 pieces. chris van lennep took this photo while swimming with his fish eye camera in the huge surf. at that time, i thought he was nuts!!!

one of the coolest things about traveling is experiencing the culture and the people. til the day i die, i will never forget the smiles on these kids faces when we pulled up to their little village on a remote island off the philippines. when they seen us, they fan down the mountain like ants. they couldn’t speak our language, we couldn’t speak theirs. but we communicated through our smiles. who said the philippines is dangerous? to me, it’s one of the friendliest places on earth…

luma is on the left. she’s been my personal chef when ever i go to the philippines. she can cook you anything and every meal feels like a 5 star restaurant. abbey is on the right. she was a guest on our boat and was really kind to all of us. gosh, i miss the philippines and i think this is the year to go back. i’m already making some calls and sending emails to make it happen…
*and last, HAPPY BIRTHDAY KAIRI!!!