Hi People:

Our temperature is -20 degrees Celcius (that's 13 degrees below 0 Fahrenheit if you keep score that way). I've just shoveled another inch and a half of snow off the driveway, for the fifth time since Saturday morning. I think I'm ready for a respite. I've never been to Hawaii. Can you direct me to a couple of introductory Web pages about Hawaii - preferably with pictures of beach and palms and people who are not wearing three layers of clothing. Suggestions for cheap fares would also be appreciated. Thanks from wintry Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

-- Dirk Smit (dirk.smit@shaw.wave.ca), January 11, 1999

Answers

Gee, I don't know if I should tell you the following with your cold and depressed mindset.

If you have the guts, take a look at (http://www.surfline.com/scripts/ surfreport.cgi?Surfsite=southshore) for live cam shots of Ala Moana and Kaisers (surf spots on the south shore of Oahu---close to Waikiki). I use this before I decide if I should take my board to work so I can go out at lunch. It's hard to make out individual surfers, but trust me, you can tell it's sunny, what the waves are like, and that definitely nobody is wearing a 3 layers of clothing. There's also a link to Pipeline. (Remember it's live so you need to figure out the time difference---just in case you get a black screen.)

Now if you looking for a place to stay, try the following instead of the hotels in Waikiki (http://planet-hawaii.com/bnb-honolulu/). There are some really neat bed and breakfasts that aren't too expensive--- well for some of them, at least you get the homey accomodations for the same price as a hotel.

Lastly, use infoseek and type in "cheap tickets" and you get tons of listings for airline ticket prices. I don't really know what the route would be from your iceberg ;)

To further help motivate you, it's sunny and 81 degrees Fahrenheit right now. Could you tell me what that would be in Celcius, please ;)

-- Billy Bosnoda (bosnoda@lava.net), January 12, 1999.