Farewell and Hawaii

Our bedroom with Giraffity

The closing social was great this year.  It was fun visiting with everyone and the food was great.  The steak was very tender and the fruit plate was the best tasting fruit I have ever had.  The next morning, we had breakfast at home.  Adam asked if he could say a prayer before we ate.  Eddie was fine with that and Adam said it in Japanese.  After he was done, Eddie asked Adam to say it in English also.  So, we had two prayers for breakfast.  We said our goodbyes at the town hall and got on the bus to Nagoya.  The school children were mostly crying and had a hard time leaving.  They had some great experiences here.

The whole delegation and Ibigawa students

We stopped at a very nice hotel for a lunch buffet.  I've eaten so much food since the race.  At the buffet, the children were asking for a flavor of ice cream. The server would put on little scoop in a bowl and give it to them.  It was not an American size.  Then, I asked for three flavors and got three scoops.  The students were very jealous.  Then, Aaron came along and asked for all six flavors.

Saying Sayonara

From there, we visited a castle and another temple.  Then, we went to the airport.

The four St George Champions

Our flight landed in Hawaii at 10:00 am.  We had a 12 hour layover and took advantage of it.  We drove up to the North Shore.  Our first stop was Matsumoto's Grocery Store.  That is the first place that started Hawaiian Shave Ice.  We had ice cream in the bottom and condensed milk on the top.  It was perfect to refresh us after the flight.  Then, we body surfed at Waimua Bay for a long time.  We got slammed into the ocean floor a few times, but it was worth it.

Next, we went to the Kahuku Grill for hamburgers.  Bryant, the smallest of all of us had two very large burgers.  That was a great place to eat.  The Hawaii Temple was next on our list.  We wandered the grounds and toured the visitors center.  The lighting was good for some photos of the temple.  After a couple more stops at lookouts and Costco, we made it to the airport.

The flight was so tiring.  I did sleep a bit, but felt like I woke up every three minutes with a new sore spot and would have to adjust to get comfortable again.

The shave ice place.  I think it's the first one ever.  We got
there right before the crowds came.

Aaron having fun at a castle.  He was allowed to be on this
one.  The Japanese people nearby thought he was pretty
funny.

The castle in Nagoya

Enjoying our shave ice with ice cream and condensed milk.

At Waimea Bay for body surfing

The Cowboy Burger at Kahuku Grill.

Outside the Hawaii Temple

The sun starting to set behind the temple.