Hawaiian History and other stuff

Hawaiian History in a nutshell:

-the Polynesians discovered the islands about 800 AD and lived here undiscovered until Capt. James Cook dropped in in 1778 (although that is disputed).
- Cook got into a dispute with the locals, lost and ended up being eaten
- Several explorers, traders etc. brought along gifts like smallpox and influenza and almost wiped out the native population
- A kingdom was formed, overthrown, replaced with a republic and eventually Hawaii joined America

During the time of the monarchy and after, a few fine buildings were constructed. The Iolani Palace is the only royal palace in the U.S. The Aliiolana Hale, across the street, served as the primary government building.  We visited both sites yesterday. Now, theses sites are better known to those of us who watch Hawaii Five-O as the home  base  for Steve McGarrett and the gang.

Other stuff:

Since we enjoyed it so much the first time, we went back to California Pizza Kitchen for dinner. Salad photo attached for Diane :-)

We spent some time at the beach which ended rather abruptly when I stepped on a sea urchin.  The water was a bit rough and after swimming out past a rocky shoal I stepped on what I thought was a rock. When the pain got worse I had the kids take a look (I'm sure it was quite comical watching me try to keep my balance in the water on one foot). Scott pulled out a couple of spines and I headed into shore for a closer look. Long story short- no bad reaction, just a bit of pain as there are several bits that will have to work themselves out over time.