A Taste of O'ahu

ALOOOOOOOOOOO-HAAAAAAAAA! 

Good afternoon, folks! Matt Blasing Photography is having a great 2015 so far, and there's so much to share ALREADY! To kick off this year, I wanted to share some images that I captured during my honeymoon in Hawaii a few months ago. So without further ado, I give you...

...shrimp trucks. Most people think "hula dancers," "surfers," or "big waves" when they think of Hawaii's unique culture. While those things are all prominent, more than anything, you'll see food trucks on the way up to the North Shore. If you have any reservations about eating food prepared in this truck, put them aside, because the food is AWESOME. From extra-spicy shrimp and rice to multi-colored shave ice, these food trucks have it all.

Fireknife dancers are perfect examples of skill, discipline and showmanship, and are at just about any luau you plan to attend.

This is Peter Whitney, the fireknife expert at Germaine's Luau in Kapolei.

The beaches are absolutely gorgeous at sunrise and sunset. When visiting during the winter months (i.e. January), use caution as that's the time of year when the waves are the biggest. Respect the ocean...

...like this guy. He had the look of a 30-year veteran surfer, and was the only one who seemed adventurous enough to venture out (unfortunately, the waves receded when I took this photo, not capturing the sheer height they had that day).

Most of the visitors to the North Shore beaches were met with signs like this one.

Aulani - "messenger of the chief." This is the entryway of Disney's Aulani resort, which I loved strolling by during my pre-sunrise walks (jet lag will screw with you big-time if you're a morning person). This resort is located in Ko'Olina, a resort suburb of the city of Kapolei, located about 45-60 minutes west of Waikiki, depending on traffic. Nothing warms our hearts more after a long trip than being greeted greeted with "Welcome home, Blasing ohana!"

As of today, it's only 10 months, 1 week, and 4 days until the next trip. But who's counting. ;)

Respectfully,

Matt