Obama's Winter Whitehouse

Would you believe it? We've landed at the most beautiful beach in O'ahu that was the site of Obama's Winter Whitehouse in 2008 and 2009. A local shopowner who was running a recording of one of Obama's speeches when we were browsing, confirmed that the Secret Service operatives closed off the beach to locals while the President was in residence. The beach is located at Kailua Beach Park with an unforgettable view of Moku Nui - the twin islands. We hiked to the adjacent beach Lanikai, voted #1 beach in Trip Advisor, but I vote for the former rather than the latter which is flanked by private homes with Do Not Trespass signs posted on the perimeter. We reconnoitered in the a.m. and returned in the p.m. to enjoy swimming, bobbing really, in the exquisite turquoise-hued ocean. No riptides, no curls, not a Banzai Pipeline in sight. This is the ocean to be enjoyed by the junior and senior sets alike. Small children digging to China and seniors smiling and feeling very fortunate to have found themselves here.

Obama's Winter Whitehouse with 5 bedrooms and 5 baths rents for $3500 a night or $75,000 a month - a bargain for the prez, I'm sure, but somewhat out of our price range. If you'd like to see his digs, paste this link into your browser http://www.vrbo.com/327868 We walked the beach to try to see it but weren't sure exactly which gated property it was. As you can see the owner has bragging rights so I doubt Obama will be staying there again. It seems he didn't make it in 2010; too many crises, I expect.

We are happily ensconced in a cozy studio cottage owned by a local artist, Suzanne Ball, who paints and makes lovely pottery. We had a harrowing trip in the dark upon arrival, getting lost almost immediately upon leaving the airport. Fortunately, unlike our experience in Sydney, Australia arriving during the Fri. p.m. rush hour, we arrived here on Sun. p.m. and were able to sort ourselves out after about 20 minutes. When we finally made it to the house, there were no lights - I guess Suzanne figured we'd arrive during daylight - so did we actually. We stumbled around with all our bumpf and miraculously found our spot. Can you believe there was a fellow Canadian in another unit - from Moosejaw? Wonders never cease! He told us the place was beautiful, complete with designer pool and hot tub at the back. Next morning we confirmed that this Canadian military man knew his stuff and enjoyed our homemade granola out by the pool in the Hawaiian sunshine. It feels sublime to be back in beautiful Hawai'i.
Click link for map: http://maps.google.ca/maps?q=Kailua,+HI,+United+States&hl=en&ll=21.474795,-157.738953&spn=0.527792,0.883026&sll=49.891235,-97.15369&sspn=23.430526,56.513672&vpsrc=6&hnear=Kailua,+Honolulu,+Hawaii,+United+States&t=h&z=10