Oahu, also called Honolulu, is one of the islands in the Hawaiian archipelago. Surrounded by the Pacific Ocean, it is situated just below the Tropic of Cancer, 2,390 miles west of San Francisco, California. The island stretches for just 44 miles in length and 30 miles in width.

With a population of 905,266 in 2011, it contains one of the largest population densities.

The island offers spectacular beaches, lush vegetation, exotic plant life, stunning landscapes, world-class surfin and awe-inspiring history. With so much to offer it is easy to understand why 4.5 million people visit each year.

Not normally drinkers, we had committed to trying traditional drinks in each new location along our World Cruise. So of course while we were in Hawaii, that meant we would be taste testing Mai Tai’s.

Although Mai Tai’s were first introduced in California by Victor Bergeron (owner of Trader Vic’s restaurants) when he brought the recipe to Hawaii in 1953where he created a cocktail menu for the Royal Hawaiian Hotel and Moana Hotels. The cocktail became an instant hit and was called the “top tourist tantalizer” in 1959. In the years thereafter, pineapple juice, orange juice, and a dark rum float became commonly used in Mai Tais produced in Hawaii.

The name was allegedly taken from maita?i, the Tahitian word for “good” or “excellence”, although the drink is usually spelled as two words, sometimes hyphenated or capitalized.

The Mai Tai was also prominently featured in the 1961 Elvis Presley film Blue Hawaii.

Following our taste test we concluded we really enjoyed the sweet rum punch.

If you want to make the sunny drink for yourself, here is the traditional recipe:

Type	Cocktail
Base spirit	Rum
Served	shaved or crushed ice
Standard garnish	pineapple spear, mint leaves, and lime peel
Standard drinkware	Old fashioned glass
IBA specified ingredients	30 ml amber Jamaican rum 30 ml Martinique molasses rhum 15 ml orange curaçao 15 ml orgeat syrup (almond) 30 ml fresh lime juice 7.5 ml simple syrup
Preparation	Add all ingredients into a shaker with ice. Shake and pour into a double rocks glass or a highball glass.
Notes	The Martinique molasses rum used by Trader Vic was not an Agricole rum but a type of “rummy” from molasses.

At the beginning of each New Year our family members each choose a word to represent their goals for that year.

Words can be powerful.  They can force you to see things in a whole new way.

When words are used in an ABC adventure, they work the same way.

They provide structure or set the tone.

In this series we will explore some of our favorite words

Do you ever read a quote and find yourself instantly transported by your own memories?

Quotes stir in us a deep emotion. Sometimes we just want to elicit a feeling. Perhaps you have a great picture but you don’t have a story to go with it.  This is the perfect time to add quote.

Collecting quotes is a great way to make sure you always have words for your photos.  Quotes can be a jumping off point to telling a story or they can stand alone.

I thought I would take this month to share my pictures with you as I pair them with some of my favorite  quotes.

There are quotes for everything.

I collect quotes in the notes feature of my cell phone.

I file quotes by the last name of the author and/or under a category heading such as relationships, travel, inspiration etc.

Quotes can also encourage you to take a photo in a different way.  Give it a try this month!