Hi All!
Today I took TheBus alone to Manoa Falls, a nice short hiking trail outside Honolulu. The hike went through a thick forest, and ended in front of a beautiful waterfall.
At the end of the trail, I met a nice group of girls from Hawaii and the mainland. They continued on the Ahualama Trail, so I went with them. After about an hour we turned around and returned to the trailhead. In the meanwhile I chatted with one of them, we exchanged e-mail addresses. So, I invited her to read my blog (If you’re reading this — Hi Michelle!).
I planned to go to Diamond Head in the afternoon, but they told me at the hotel that it closes at 18:00, so I’ll probably go tomorrow. I think I’ll skip going to Hanauma Bay tomorrow as I have a flight to catch back home at 21:20.
Back at the hotel, 50 First Dates was on TV — a stupid comedy set in Hawaii. It was interesting to see when I understood most of the Hawaiian references. So, now I’m back in the hotel updating my blog.
By the way, now that this a blog, you can comment — so please do!
May 20th, 2007 at 07:15
Posted by
epsalon |
Hawaii, Travel |
4 comments
Hi all!
Yesderday was the first day of the conference. I started the day by volunteering at the conference registration desk. There were very fewregistrations, so I mostly used the wifi to browse the net and chatted with people at the desk. For lunch I went to the Ala Moana shopping mall and ate some chicken with Itai and Vince (and others).
After lunch, I had my poster session. I put my poster near the entrance of the hall, so I got many visitors. Some of the visitors went to my poster specifically. For example, Kate Larson, who tought my paper in a course she was giving was very interested in my new results, and all the usual suspects (David Parkes, Toumas Sandholm, Michael Wellman) paid a visit as well.
After the poster session I was late for the next session about Multi-Agent systems. There were some interesting talks (and some less interesting), and I asked a question or two.
In the next session, I gave my talk. I added a slide in the last minute due to what I’ve seen at the poster. However, during the talk a found some small mistakes (text that shouldn’t have been in the slides), but none were noticed. After the talk I got positive feedback from several people about my
talk and my work. I refered everybody who was interested to my website.
In the evening, there was the conference banquet, or Luau. A Luau is a traditional Hawaiian feast with Polynesian entertainemnt. The Luau at AAMAS featured a cast from the Polynesian Cultural Center. The show was entertaining and showcased traditions of the various islands of
Polynesia.
May 17th, 2007 at 21:34
Posted by
epsalon |
Hawaii, Travel |
no comments
Hello all!
Today I woke up early and headed towards the USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor. This is a unique place, as it is the only place on US soil which was attacked in WWII. Moreover, this was a devastating surprise attack by a nation that was in the midst of peace negotiations, that marked the US entry into the war.
The memorial itself is one of those “free ticket” sites, where you have to come early and wait in line for a free ticket redeemable some time later. Also, for “security reasons” you have to check your handbag and pay $3, and if you want an audio guide it’s an additional $5.
So, I took the audio tour through the small museum that told the story of that day, December 7th, 1941. How the RADAR operators saw the incoming barrage of Japanese planes and their superior officer disregarded it, how Isoroku Yamamoto who planned the attack did not agree with its goals, and more. Then, my time came and I saw a film about the attack and visited the memorial itself.
After visiting the free memorial, I bought tickets to visit the USS Bowfin submarine and the brand new Pacific Aviation Museum. The audio tour in the USS Bowfin was interesting and provided insight on life aboard a submarine. The nearby museum chronicles the history of submarine warfare from its conception to present day.
Interestingly enough, although nuclear warfare was mentioned in the Bowfin museum and the American victory in WWII was mentioned repeatedly there was no mention of Hiroshima or Nagasaki. Interestingly, there were much less Japanese tourists here than in other places in Hawaii.
The aviation museum was interesting, albeit small. It included real refurbished aircraft from the time, from both the American and Japanese sides. The most interesting exhibit was of a small civilian general aviation plane (Aeronca 65TC) that was in the air over Oahu when the Japanese struck. Remarkably, it managed to land safely in what later became Honolulu International Airport.
After this historic tour, I rode TheBus back into town, and visited the world’s largest open-air shopping mall, and the largest shopping center in the United States. I didn’t buy anything, but I got a free scoop of Ice Cream at Haagen-Dazs.
Tonight was the opening reception of the conference, the main excuse for me being here. Met some of my former acquaintances, including Vince, and came back to the hotel.
Tomorrow will be a long day. I’m volunteering from 7:30 to 12:00, then after lunch I present my poster, then another volunteer session, then I give my talk and at night I go to the Luau.
May 16th, 2007 at 11:16
Posted by
epsalon |
Hawaii, Travel |
no comments
Hi All from Holiday Inn Waikiki Hawaii!
Today I decided to visit downtown Honolulu and chinatown, and the famous Waikiki beach. So, I took TheBus to downtown. It turned out I picked the wrong day to do so, as most sites are closed on Mondays. I did however see the state capitol and venture into chinatown, which is just like any other chinatown in the US. I concluded my downtown excursion with a visit to a botanic garden including a guided tour by a botanist.
Then I took TheBus back to the hotel and took a walk to the all-so-famous Waikiki beach. To my disappointment, Waikiki beach is exactly like the promenade of Eilat — many huge hotels, several steet vendors selling overpriced food and water gear, and lots and lots of people on the beach, and an abundance of beautiful women. All in all, really nothing to see. The only thing different is the dormant volcano in the background, but it seems most of the tourists are much more into the ocean than the mountain.
So, I hopped back on TheBus, and returned to the hotel, where I can surf freely without even entering the ocean, thanks to the hi-speed Internet connection.
Tomorrow I plan to absorb some American history at the USS Arizona memorial at Pearl Harbor, and maybe climb Diamond Head.
P.S. No photos from today, as I didn’t bring a camera and Itai is on Kauai.
May 15th, 2007 at 09:14
Posted by
epsalon |
Hawaii, Travel |
no comments
Aloha from Hilo International airport!
In 90 minutes I am going to leave Hawai’i. No, I’m not returning home just yet, I’m just flying to a different island - Oahu, where Honolulu is located.
But enough with the future, let me tell you what I did today. I woke up aftee 12 hours sleeep in our nice room in Patey’s Place and went online to chat with friends and family (that’s you!). Itai, in the meanwhile, tried to book a flight from Kona to Kauai (another Hawaiian island) and rent a car there. Finally, at around 7AM we drove the airport, where Itai booked and boarded the flight.
I came back to the hostel for more rest and Internet, and then at 10AM finally checked out and headed back towards the Hilo side of the island. I decided to take the south route through the Volcanos National Park, as I felt I didn’t get my share of geology.
On the way toward the park, I stopped again at the black sand beach with sea turtles. This time I felt better, and chatted with a nice girl on the beach. Turns out she’s from the SF bay area, so I’ll keep in touch with her. I also added her to the list of people getting these reports (Hi Shira!).
I arrived at the park at around 1PM, saw a film about Hawaii’s volcanos and took a short guided walk through a rainforest and to the caldera. The ranger guide explained about the native Hawaiian vegitation and animals, and how they adapted to living on barren volcanic rock.
After this tour, I decided to go again down chain of craters road, and take a 2.2km walk down to see some petroglyphs, that is ancient (900yr) graffiti in hardened lava. On my way back up chain of craters road, I stopped several times to look at the huge craters visible along the road. As I don’t have a real camera, I took few photos, and these will not be available online soon.
From the park I headed back to the airport, returned the car with almost no gas, and checked in for my flight, which will depart in 73 minutes.
That’s all for now, Alon
May 14th, 2007 at 07:53
Posted by
epsalon |
Hawaii, Travel |
one comment
