Dublin, Ireland- Thursday, December 31, 2009

Itin: 8:00AM: After breakfast, check out of your hotel.

After checking out of your hotel, meet with your group for a 9:00AM departure for Dublin City. You will travel across central Ireland, to the East Coast, through the towns of Ballinasloe, Athlone and Kinnegad.

Itin: On your way to Dublin you will visit Clonmachnoise, the historic site of an ancient Monastery and University, dating from the 5th century. Included are the ruins of a cathedral, eight churches dating back from the tenth to the thirteenth centuries, two round towers, a large collection of early Christian grave slabs, and three high crosses.

Ali: This was my favorite stop so far, but we had to cut it short to accommodate the 11 bus loads of people that would be coming through the small tourist site. That was disappointing because we rushed through the museum and received a 10-minute talk from a guide that we thought would be a half hour long. At least it wasn’t raining today! The cemetery was great because of the intricate stonework on the grave stones and the fact that everything was so ancient…as a novice traveler, I probably haven’t seen any ruins this old before.

Itin: Continue on from Clonmacnoise to Dublin City, where you will check into the Tara Towers and Montrose Hotels, where you will be staying for the next four nights.

Dinner at the hotel this evening.

Itin: This evening a New Year’s Eve Bash has been organized in the Montrose Hotel for your entire group! Ring in the New Year with new friends in a new country!

Ali: We relaxed in the hotel room watching movies until we went down to the party. One bar with darts, pool tables, and VH1 Classic on the TVs had a dive atmosphere and was mostly attended by students’ parents. We got our first round here because it was less crowded but quickly left because we didn’t really fit in there.

Matt: We met up with some other younger alumni in the main bar where there was a DJ playing a little before 11 and spent the rest of the evening there. We had a lot of fun talking, a tiny bit of dancing, watching the snow that “we never get in Ireland,” etc. We tried to buy a bottle of champagne just before midnight, but the huge crowd made it impossible so we just got some more Guinness.

We stayed down at the party until about 12:30 or 12:45 when we made our way back to the room. This was the earliest we’ve ever celebrated New Year’s as it was 5 hours before the US East Coast hit midnight. Happy New Year!

Galway, Ireland - December 30

Itin: After breakfast in your hotel meet with your group for a tour of Connemara, the area west of Galway City.

Drive from Galway through Moycullen, where you will visit Celtic Crystal. Continue on through Oughterard and Maam Cross, a lovely wooded town land where ancient woods give the place a magical feel. Continue on through Leenane Village, an old world village facing onto Killary Harbor – Ireland’s only fjord and was also featured in the 1990 film The Field, where you can step back in time to the era of Bull McCabe, the anti-hero, and step into Gaynor’s Pub. You will also visit Kylemore Abbey, the oldest of the Irish Benedictine Abbeys, home to a community of nuns since 1920.

Encompassing 2,957 hectares of land, Connemara National Park is mantled by blanket bog and wet heath vegetations with characteristic and varied wildlife. The park lies on the slope of the Twelve Bens Mountain Range providing breathtaking views in every direction.

Continue on to Clifden, a lovely town enhanced with spectacular scenery, it is also the largest town in Connemara. Its striking skyline is dominated by the spires of the Neo-Gothic Catholic Church and the nearby Protestant Church. Clifden has become a new popular destination, with plenty of activities for the whole family and over 5,000 years of living history.

Matt: Due to the continued poor weather of cold temperatures, high winds, and rain, we didn’t do much of what was on the itinerary today. We didn’t really stop at the sights on the list above since you couldn’t get good photos anyway and at the one extended stop (Kylemore Abbey) it was too cold to even explore for more than a few minutes.

Although not on the itinerary, our first stop was at a Connemara Marble workshop. This was a typical People to People style tour stop. We had access to good bathrooms, listened to a brief presentation about a local art/craft, and then had time to spend lots of money on souvenirs.

To be fair, it was pretty interesting to hear about the green, white, and black marble native to this region of western Ireland, but we did not make any purchases in the shop.

Ali: And BING CROSBY went there in 1966!

Oh yeah, and we stopped by a hotel that has two of the train cars from the Orient Express that have been converted for use as a restaurant! They were last used as railroad cars to carry the body of Winston Churchill.

Itin: This evening dinner will be in your hotel.

Ali: We enjoyed Mary Poppins and a nap after getting back from the tour. Then I enjoyed the Leisure Center some more while Matt had a drink in the lounge. Dinner was delayed because people tried to go to an earlier seating than they were assigned and then took longer to be served…so our nightly pre-dinner drink turned into two drinks instead. The food was pretty good but not as good as the first night. We had cream of mushroom soup, then Matt had salmon and dill sauce and I had chicken in Irish bacon and gravy. We both had apple pie for dessert- but not the American version with lots of cinnamon and nutmeg. There were little mincemeat pies too.

We watched some more movies after dinner because it was freezing rain out and there was no bus ride to the city center. Then we went down to the hotel bar for some live music and found that everyone else in our group chose to stay in as well. This made for a nice party atmosphere. I convinced our bus drivers to teach us some traditional dances (or to pretend to teach us any dances because we wanted to have fun and didn’t know how to dance to the music that was being played). Some of our friends we’d been hanging out with came out on the floor with me and before long some other UD students joined in too. It was funny looking as we all fumbled our way through the steps while the bus drivers tried to guide us, but it was a great way to end the evening and I felt like I’d taken advantage of an opportunity for cultural exchange. Hooray for a geeky music teacher moment!

UD to Ireland

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Galway, Ireland - December 29

Itin: Enjoy breakfast in your hotel.

Matt: Breakfast was much the same as yesterday although there was also some fresh fruit this time. We got up late (8:00) for the 8:30 breakfast since we had another couple hours after breakfast before the itinerary began for the day.

Ali: I didn’t eat the unwanted pig parts this morning, which was a plus. The late pick-up allowed me to go to the gym after breakfast and sleep in a little more. I like being able to go to the gym here for free and I think it helps with the sitting-and-drinking dominated itinerary…not that I’m complaining about that.

Itin: Bands will assemble in the Spanish Arch Square and march up Quay Street, High Street, Shop Street to Eyre Square where you will perform for approximately 30 minutes.

Matt: We woke up to cold and rainy weather and it didn’t improve before we left for town. We blocked up for a brief rehearsal and run-through of tunes and, like the other night’s rehearsal, things seemed a bit chaotic and thrown together. The color guard didn’t even know what music we were playing. I’m really surprised by how little attention seems to be paid to the performance aspects of our trip. It seems quite unlike Sarv and George Parks.

We also continue to be annoyed by the lack of consistency from the tour company. They post meal and itinerary times on a board in the lobby of the hotel but constantly change them with little to no notice. For example, we had been told that we were leaving for the parade at 11:30am. This morning, nothing was posted, but someone sitting near the sign told us 11:00am. When we got downstairs, it was posted as 11:30 again. This is not the style of traveler I am.

The parade worked out pretty well and the concert in Eyre Square was pretty good. The weather was terrible – cold and wet – so the crowd was small, but those in attendance were appreciative. Marching bands are uncommon in Ireland so something like the combined UD and UMass bands must have been something to behold.

Ali: There seemed to be quite a few local folks enjoying the parade, most of whom didn’t have umbrellas but were smiling and dancing anyway. I hung out with a friend we made last night as her sister was performing with Matt. We had some awesome fresh-made hot chocolate while we watched them practice, and then we fell in behind for the parade. It sounded surprisingly good considering how little they’d rehearsed, and I loved walking around Galway on the cobblestone streets with Christmas decorations and quaint stone architecture. We watched the concert in Eyre Square with some local guys, one of whom lived in Hoboken for six months recently so we had a little to talk about.

Itin: Enjoy your afternoon in Galway City Center. Coaches will return group to hotels.

Matt: Because of the weather, we were given the option of returning to the hotel to get changed. Ali and I decided to stay at the hotel and have lunch at Miso, a Thai/Malaysian restaurant. While at lunch the rain turned to snow and despite our driver telling us that Ireland gets fewer than 2 inches of snow per year, it has been snowing heavily for the past hour plus. He warned us that even a dusting of snow shuts the country down because they do not have the equipment for salting, sanding and snow removal readily available so we may wind up seeing some changes to the itinerary tonight and tomorrow.

Leave it to me to bring such unexpected weather conditions to Ireland.

Ali: Indeed- we also managed to bring unseasonable cold to Florida during Thanksgiving this year. Oh well! I’m happy to relax by the fireplace with a beer watching the snow outside. Matt and I are taking turns with the crossword puzzles and the laptop. Sigh.

Itin: Tonight, dinner and an evening of Irish music and dance has been organized for you at Monroe’s.

Matt: The tour company – Atlantic Group Tours – has been making a lot of annoying little mistakes with scheduling and planning since we arrived. Information and times have been incorrect when posted in the lobby for example.

By the time our bus entered Monroe’s, it was clearly evident that the restaurant was not designed to handle the size of our group. There were seats available for about 300 of the 500 people. Ali and I were fairly lucky when we snagged one stool at a bar in a back room. At least we had a place to lean for the night. There were others who could not even say that.

I refused to get into the ridiculously long line that was winding through the facility to get dinner so it was about two hours before we got our dinner. The food was pretty tasty, but we shouldn’t have been waiting until after 9pm for our share. In addition, we missed most of the traditional Irish entertainment since we did not want to lose our bar spot by heading into the room with the stage before eating.

We headed back to the hotel just before 11pm on a shuttle. We did have some fun at Monroe’s, but it was a disaster planning wise. Seeing as how we paid good money for this trip, I am really annoyed by how poorly the tour company seems to be handling the admittedly difficult logistics of the large group.

Galway, Ireland - December 28

Itin: After breakfast in your hotel meet with your group for a tour of the Burren District, the area south of Galway City.

Ali: Breakfast was good but the lines were helter skelter and the seating disorganized. Mingles aren’t down with that sort of nonsense. Also, don’t eat bread-ish looking circles- they are made with the leftover pig parts. One of us was particularly dismayed about that after sampling a few at breakfast. The rest was good and Ali was happy to see Wheatabix, first introduced to her by her Aussie family.

Itin: The name Burren comes from the Irish name ‘bhoireann,’ meaning ‘the stony place.’ Its geological unusual formations have laid unspoiled since the ice-age, the largest area of such in Western Europe, occupying an area of approximately 300 sq. kilometers. While in the Burren you can observe the typical limestone landforms like underground rivers, swallow holes, glacial erratic and closed depressions. The area has sufficient glacial soil to grow a wide variety of the most unusual and rarest of plants. The area also has some of the finest tombs in Ireland, if not Western Europe. There are relics of humans living here dating back almost 6,000 years.

Ali: We had a great bus driver named Robbie. We opted to sit in the front of the bus 1) to ward off carsickness 2) to be the first off the bus at each stop 3) to be able to hear and converse with the driver no matter how little everyone else was paying attention. This ended up being fortunate all around as the bus ride was bumpy, the stops short, and the microphone unreliable.

Robbie told us about how the rural, coastal landscape of the Burren has attracted well-off folks looking to retire. As a result, the farmland is dotted with beautiful homes that one would not normally ascribe to farmers, interspersed with more modest homes. The government has forbade future building of homes to preserve the open land, so property values have risen by a factor of 10 in the past decade. Older-style architecture with thatched roofs is only on B&Bs and a few other homes because 1) the old style of building with mud and other such materials did not stand the test of time 2) fighting in the past century destroyed many homes. However, we did notice there was no siding like you see in the States. Rather, most buildings are sheet rock, stone, or stucco on the exterior and many have pretty brick-work detailing the windows and edges.

Rock walls pervade the countryside because, as in colonial CT, the land needed to be cleared of its rock covering to allow for farming. The cleared rocks pushed aside were built into property and road-lining walls.

The land (again, like in CT except for the riverbeds) was still not ideal for most crops after being cleared, so livestock is everywhere instead. Hooray! Horses, cows, goats, and sheep were all over the place and they were lots of fun (for Ali) to look at. They can keep warm outside this time of year because the rocky landscape retains heat and the gulf-stream wards off snow.

Robbie taught us that the road signs are in Gaelic and English. Most town names are Anglicized versions of their Gaelic names, a pattern which applies to much of the Irish English dialect. I asked if Gaelic was taught in schools, and Robbie said that students are required to take it but only have it for about 45 minutes a day. It hasn’t “stuck” with the younger generation because it is being taught through antiquated poetry and literature instead of pop culture. Luckily, the government has sponsored a television station that dubs popular kids shows into Gaelic, so that should help reinforce it in children today. Everyone in Ireland speaks some English, but not everyone considers themselves fluent in Gaelic.

Itin: After touring the Burren, continue on to the Cliffs of Moher, one of the most spectacular sights in Ireland. At their highest point the Cliffs of Moher reach 214 meters, rising from Hag’s Head, just north of O’Brien’s Tower. From the best vantage point you can see all the way to the Aran Islands, just 5 miles offshore, and Galway Bay.

Ali: The main attraction of the day was the Cliffs of Moher, which is among the most popular tourist attractions. They are majestic sea cliffs. I don’t know what else to say. They are worth seeing.

We also learned that out of the 42 million people in the US who are culturally Irish, only 5 million are Northern Irish (like Ali’s paternal great-grandparents and their descendants). Ali is special.

In preparation for our pub excursions tonight, Robbie gave us some helpful info. It is not customary to tip the barkeep. If a native asks for a pint, they’ll get a Guiness. If the barkeep hears your American accent, they may not assume that’s what you mean. A glass of beer means a half-pint.

Itin: This evening your group will head into Galway City’s famous Latin Quarter for a finger food dinner and live entertainment.

Matt: Our coach was escorted to a pub called The Front Door. We had some appetizers, a beer and listened to music (good guy, terrible girl). Ali made friends with two girls from our coach (Christine and Michelle) when they were being hit on by an older Irish gentleman. It worked out well because we left the pub with them to explore Galway a bit.

Our next stop was The King’s Head. This was a pretty cool pub where we had another drink and talked with Christine and Michelle. Christine graduated from UD in 2009 and Michelle, her sister, is a current student there. Michelle is not in the band so it was good for Ali to make a friend that would also be watching during the parade and concert performance .They grew up in a military family and have lived in a variety of places including Maryland, Texas, and Hawaii.

The shuttles back to the hotels were leaving at 10:00 and Ali and I decided to catch one rather than staying in town and finding our own way back later on.

Back at the hotel, we had another drink while listening to a guy singing. Last call was 11:30 so we headed back to the room for the night at that point.

Galway, Ireland - December 27

Itin: Arriving at Shannon Airport, you will be met by your driver/guide. After collecting your baggage, board your coach and transfer to Galway City.

Matt: Our flight arrived about an hour late due to a mechanical issue back in Newark. Baggage pick-up and customs were a breeze, though, and we were on our way to the hotel without much delay. The hotels are organized mostly according to university affiliation so most of the University of Delaware contingent is located at the Carlton Hotel.

Itin: Arriving in Galway, the group will check into the Carlton Hotel, one of Galway’s finest hotels, just off Galway City Centre, for the next four nights.

Matt: The hotel accommodations are functional. The rooms themselves are a bit lackluster with extreme heat that is difficult to reign in without opening the windows and weak water pressure in the shower. There are heated towel racks though.

The hotel features an extensive leisure center with a gym, pool, tanning bed, massage center, etc. Ali might comment on those facilities at a later time since she actually used them.

Bar Solo is located off the lobby so we were able to enjoy our first Guinness and some sandwiches since there was no lunch provided upon arrival. We walked the area a bit to find an ATM but were pretty unsuccessful. We did pass at least one pub and some convenience-type shops that might come in handy in the future.

Itin: After checking into your hotel and some time to freshen up, meet your group in the hotel lobby for a short presentation on Galway with a local historian, to give you some insight into the city and orientate you for the next few days.

Matt: The historian’s 20-minute summary of 6,000 years of Irish history was fairly interesting and informative but since we were at least 2.5 times the capacity of the room we were in, it was stifling and difficult to concentrate.

Itin: Galway is the liveliest, most populated city on Ireland’s west coast and the capital of Gaelic Ireland. The city streets are narrow and lined with old stone façade shops. Pubs are swarming with adventurers, musicians, artists and intellectuals and the main shopping area, Eyre Square, is the heart of the city. There are many intriguing stone buildings to see, including the Spanish Arch, the last remainders of the stone walls used to protect the quays in the 16th century, and Lynch’s Castle on Market Street, a part of which dates back to the fourteenth century.

Matt: We took the buses to the hotel where the University of Massachusetts contingent is staying (Clayton Hotel) for an hour-long rehearsal in an underground parking garage. It was an extremely frustrating rehearsal as the UMass director (George Parks) ran things with little useful information. Much of the music we played through is UMass music so the students there are well-prepared for it. The current and alumni UD students, on the other hand, were having trouble keeping up with the unmarked changes and cuts. The gigantic group did put out a ridiculous amount of sound. I am not sure how good that sound was since it was so difficult to hear anything, but I am sure we will be impressive during our performances in Galway and Dublin.

Itin: This evening dinner will be in your hotel.

Matt: Dinner was pretty far behind schedule as there are three shifts in the restaurants and we are in the third shift. It was well worth the wait though.

We sat with Chris and Amy Bryan, two UD alumni, in the Bar while waiting for dinner and then shared a table for dinner itself. Although there were choice on the menu, the four of all ate the same meal: cream of vegetable soup, Irish beef stew, mixed vegetables, and Bailey’s cheesecake. The servings were huge and tasty – a great first full meal in Ireland fo’ shizzle. (Final two words courtesy of Ali)

Newark, New Jersey - Galway, Ireland - December 26

Blog Key
Matt = Matt was the author
Ali = Ali was the author
Itin = Notes come from the itinerary

Matt: We arrived at the airport 4+ hours ahead of time. By the time we checked in (to our exit row seats thanks to calling Continental ahead of time) and made it through security we were down to about 3 hours. We browsed the wide variety of food and drink choices in Terminal C and settled in to the Heineken Lounge for a drink. While there we observed a gentleman complaining about the cost of his gin and tonics after having consumed six.

When it was time to have a bite to eat, we ended up at a steakhouse where Ali had a huge turkey sandwich and I had a nice burger.

Our flight boarded on time and, after a mechanical delay, we were on our way to Ireland. Take off was quite bumpy due to rain and wind conditions and the last hour or so of the flight was also marked by turbulence. I was able to sleep in spurts, but Ali spent most of the flight watching movies, unable to get much sleep.

Updated/Changed Ireland Flight Information

December 26
Newark to Shannon
Continental #24
7:25pm-6:45am (on 12/27)

January 4
Dublin to Newark
Continental #23
9:00am-11:45am

Sarv's Ireland Blog

For those that want to stay up to date...I should be updating here as well with photos going to Facebook.

Schedule - 12/21-1/4

Monday, December 21 - AM Commons Duty, School, Get Ali's tire fixed

Tuesday, December 22 - AM Commons Duty, School, Extra Help/Screen Veteran's Day Assembly, Boys Basketball vs. Warren Hills (6:00)

Wednesday, December 23 - AM Commons Duty, School

Thursday, December 24 - Travel to Ali's family in CT with a coffee stop to see Aunt Joan and Uncle Frank

Friday, December 25 - Christmas in CT, Travel back to NJ

Saturday, December 26 - Depart for Ireland

Sunday, December 27 - In Ireland

Monday, December 28 - In Ireland

Tuesday, December 29 - In Ireland

Wednesday, December 30 - In Ireland

Thursday, December 31 - In Ireland

Friday, January 1 - In Ireland

Saturday, January 2 - In Ireland

Sunday, January 3 - In Ireland

Monday, January 4 - Travel back to US

Ireland Itinerary

Download a copy of our full Ireland itinerary including emergency contact numbers here.

We are in Carlton and Montrose for hotels.

Montgomery Final Update

Okay I've put off writing a detailed summary of how things went at Montgomery for almost a week so I should finally take care of it.

I met with the new principal for about 30 minutes to talk through some things and get feedback. This was all very positive and promising. The main differences between the successful candidate and me were his longer experience in the district and current position as an administrator. I think there was consensus that I was the stronger academic candidate, but despite Montgomery being a school district celebrated for academic success this was apparently not a priority.

All 4 interview panels selected the other candidate. Some were by slim margins, but all groups preferred the other guy. I was a little surprised by this actually, but that's the way it works I guess.

The principal and superintendent both recognize that I will probably be offered an administrative position in the near future and think it would be good to find leadership opportunities for me in the district so I don't leave. I don't really know what that means because I'm not going to run a committee or something for no extra pay just to "feel" important. Unless they are going to create a new positition, this is empty talk.

I was assured that I shouldn't have done anything differently. The principal indicated that if he had given me the questions ahead of time to prepare answers, I still couldn't have answered any better. This is supposed to make me feel better, but it doesn't really because that still wasn't good enough to get the position.

I was also assured that if another opening popped up later this year for next year, there would be no hesitation for me to fill it. This is a real possibility, but I don't buy the explanation. They would have to go through the same process as usual to accept applications, interview, etc. before offering the position and right now I don't have any desire to go through it all again at Montgomery. If there really was some kind of fast track that avoided all of that, then fine, but that seems sort of unlikely.

I'm sure we talked about a lot of other stuff, but I'm going to leave it there. That gets the main ideas out there.

Schedule - 12/14-12/20

Monday, 12/14 - AM Commons Duty, School, MTEA meeting (3:55-4:55)

 

Tuesday, 12/15 - AM Commons Duty, School, Extra Help

 

Wednesday, 12/16 - AM Commons Duty, School

 

Thursday, 12/17 - AM Commons Duty, School, Dentist (3:30)

 

Friday, 12/18 - AM Commons Duty, School, Basketball Band (6:00-9:00)

 

Saturday, 12/19 - Light Fixture Installation (morning), Dad's Birthday

 

Sunday, 12/20 -

Montgomery Job Update

I did not get the job in Montgomery.

Monty Update

I e-mailed the new principal to request a meeting to get an update on things. He replied; we are meeting at 1:30 tomorrow afternoon...

No news is...

...no news.

I don't know what it means, but it is pissing me off now.

Monty update

No news today

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Hillsborough Interview Report

My interview today lasted about 30 minutes and was led by a current Vice Principal and included teachers, a parent, guidance counselor and a district supervisor. The Principal was not part of this round so I assume that there must be another round with him down the road.

I think I did pretty well; I had the connection of the University of Delaware with one guy and People to People with another. Hillsborough's love of its marching band also came in handy. I don't have great things to say about the unique challenges of teaching/administrating middle school students so their read on my ability to adapt there is important.

They seemed really impressed with my travel experience and the ideas I shared about what I could bring from my current and prior districts regarding professional development and growth, making connections, etc.

We shall see - should hear something about the Montgomery job tomorrow.

Weekly Schedule - 12/7-13

Monday, December 7 - AM Commons Duty, School, Hillsborough Middle School Vice Principal Interview (2:00), Fern's Wake (3:00-7:00)

Tuesday, December 8 - AM Commons Duty, School

Wednesday, December 9 - AM Commons Duty, School, Basketball Band (2:30-4:00)

Thursday, December 10 - AM Commons Duty, School, Extra Help (2:20-3:20)

Friday, December 11 - AM Commons Duty, School, Basketball Band (4:30-9:30)/Midnight Madness

Saturday, December 12 - Possibly UD Ireland Band Rehearsal (3-6)

Sunday, December 13 - People to People Social (1:30-3:30)

Montgomery Update

So today I had the second (and final, I believe) round of interviews for the Monty VP position. There were 3 finalists - a current administrator, a history teacher from South Brunswick High School, and me.

This morning we had conferences, then the school day, and then straight to the interview carousel.

I met the other two candidates and we made small talk in the office before beginning. The format was round-robin with each of us going through four different rooms for 30 minutes at a time.

My first room was the teachers - representatives from social studies, English, guidance, technology, math, and physical education. I think I really nailed this room. They asked really great questions and I guided the conversation in a direction I felt comfortable with. One person in the room is a lead negotiator for the MTEA (teachers' union) and she struggled to remain neutral about some feelings regarding administration in the central office. I think I offered great, original ideas about increasing teacher morale through bonding activities, my role as an instructional leader, etc. We went over time with our conversation until someone pulled me out of the room.

Next up was a group of students. This was facilitated by one of the current Vice Principals and included one of my current students, one of my former students, a member of the marching band, and two students I have no connection with. I think I nailed this group, too. They seemed into my vision for things and reassured by my position on the role of discipline and other pertinent issues. I suggested that school spirit was an issue for us to address and they seemed to agree. I asked them to tell me what they perceive as the biggest problem in the school and their answers regarding things like drugs were pretty severe. If their perceptions are reality, then we do have a lot of work to do immediately.

My third session was with a group of parents facilitated by the Director of Human Resources. One parent was a band parent and then there was the president of the Special Education Parent Teacher Association, and two active parents from the PTSA. I had the daughter of one of the latter women last year. I successfully emphasized my talking point that we have to do a better job of getting students THROUGH college and not just TO it, need to pay more attention to the students not taking AP courses, and find ways to support students who need it. One parent asked a very pointed question that took a shot at the union. I think I successfully deflected the question and offered a decent and appropriate response. I think I did well with this group, too.

My final group was the administrators. This was the only group where I had mixed reactions. It was comprised of the superintendent (who spent the entire session texting on his phone), assistant superintendent, high school principal, high school vice principal, supervisor of social studies, supervisor of science, supervisor of math, director of humanities, and director of language arts. I believe I had two strong allies in the room in my supervisor and director. I think I answered questions satisfactorily, but the administrators were much harder to read than the other groups. They laughed at my sarcastic jokes, but kept straight faces during the more serious responses. They did not open things up for me to ask questions at the end so I added in a final statement about pushing the envelope and meeting our vision statement of being at the forefront of education anyway. I don't think anything was answered poorly, but I think they were just worn out from the process.

At the end, the principal told me that he'd come to talk to me personally next Monday or Tuesday. I think that means the final decision will come at that time (if he has his way). A week later, the Board of Ed will officially appoint the new person and then it's off to the races.

So that's that. I think I did as well as I could have. I feel good about everything I said and can't think of anything I forgot about or messed up on so now we just need to see how things fall.

Interview Update

It turns out there are three candidates left at Montgomery: a current administrator, me, and an unknown external candidate. Although I've though all along that the current administrator has the edge, reports coming my way today suggest the new principal thinks that I am an extremely strong candidate.

 

I think today could be the final round, but there could also be one more hoop to jump through.

 

 

Interesting New Job Opportunity

I got an unexpected call today from Hillsborough Middle School inviting me to come in for an interview for a Vice Principal position.

I did not apply for this job.

Last spring, I interviewed for an opening at Hillsborough High School so I'm assuming they liked me enough then to keep my resume around just in case. I did some background on the Hillsborough website and this position was originally posted on November 16 with a start date of January 1. The fact that they called me to come in suggests that they didn't like the candidates they got very much.

Hillsborough Middle School is about a 10-minute walk from my condo. All the problems a VP deals with there are on a smaller (literally) level than the high school and there are fewer evening responsibilities. It looks like they have 2 VPs for 1200 students, roughly equivilant to the ratio at Montgomery High School. The key difference, though, is that the Hillsborough position does not include being the supervisor of a department like MHS does.

In addition, school starts at 9am!

Next Round of Interviews

I have been invited to Thursday's interviews. I will do four simultaneous 30-minute interviews with: parents, teachers, administrators, students. This is the key round I think...

E-mail-A-Friend: MONTGOMERY: Vets bear witness to Pearl Harbor, Battle of Bulge

Story:
MONTGOMERY: Vets bear witness to Pearl Harbor, Battle of Bulge

   MONTGOMERY — Harrowing personal experiences from both sides of America's involvement in World War II were related to Montgomery High School students last week as part of a program honoring the country's veterans.

   Thomas Mahoney, 87, a survivor the attack on Pearl Harbor, and George Waple, 88, who fought in the Battle of the Bulge, were invited to the school Wednesday as part of a day-long Veterans Day program.

For more of this story, click on or type the URL below:

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Schedule - 11/30-12/6

Monday, November 30 - AM Commons Duty, School

Tuesday, December 1 - AM Commons Duty, School, Basketball Band Rehearsal (2:30-4:00)

Wednesday, December 2 - Parent-Teacher Conferences, School, Extra Help

Thursday, December 3 - Parent-Teacher Conferences, School, Round #2 of Montgomery Vice Principal Interviews (if selected to move on), Parent-Teacher Conferences

Friday, December 4 - Delayed Opening, School

Saturday, December 5 - Dentist (8:15), Bring Ali's car for service, Rehearsal at University of Delaware for Ireland (7:00-9:00)

Sunday, December 6 -

Montgomery VP Interview

I interviewed for the open Montgomery vice principal position this afternoon. There are four internal candidates and an unknown number of outside people. I'm pretty sure they are going to go with one of the internal candidates and I think I'm probably going to be one of the finalists, but we'll see.

Things went fine today. Nothing stood out as particularly memorable in either a positive or negative way other than that I forgot to highlight all the work I've been doing to prepare for Wednesday's Veterans' Day assembly. Most of the questions were the same as when I interviewed a couple years ago for another VP opening at the high school and the writing prompt questions were exactly the same.

If I'm one of the finalists, I'll have four 30-minute interviews next Thursday with panels of teachers, administrators, students, and parents. I think I'll do well in that environment so hopefully I'll have the chance.

Weekly Schedule - 11/23-11/29

Monday, 11/23 - AM Commons Duty, School, Interview for Montgomery Vice Principal position (1:15), Articulation Meeting

Tuesday, 11/24 - AM Commons Duty, School, Meeting with student/parent, Veterans' Day Assembly Prep

Wednesday, 11/25 - Veterans' Day Assembly, Half-day of school, Fly to Florida

Thursday, 11/26 - In Florida for Thanksgiving

Friday, 11/27 - In Florida

Saturday, 11/28 - Fly home from Florida

Sunday, 11/29

Ireland Flight Information

December 26
Newark-Dublin
Continental Flight #22
Depart 7:10pm
Arrive 6:50am (12/27)

January 4
Dublin-Newark
Continental Flight #23
Depart 9:00am
Arrive: 11:45am

Weekly Schedule - 11/16-11/22

Monday, 11/16 - AM Commons Duty, School, Assessment for Learning Meeting/Pearl Harbor Visitor Planning, Possible Football vs. Howell

Tuesday, 11/17 - AM Commons Duty, School, Extra Help

Wednesday, 11/18 - AM Commons Duty, School, Basketball Band Rehearsal (2:45-4:00), Hopewell Marching Band Banquet (6:00)

Thursday, 11/19 - AM Commons Duty, School, Extra Help, Professional Development (3:45-4:45)

Friday, 11/20 - AM Commons Duty, School

Saturday, 11/21 - Star Wars in Concert at Nassau Coliseum (2:30)

Sunday, 11/22 -

Football at Ridge

We took the Mobtgomery band to Ridge tonight for a football game. This year's seniors were freshmen the last year I taught there. When the ridge student leaders came over to say hi, they made it a point to find me. We talked for a few minutes which was really nice. I didn't really know these students all that well since I was only there for band camp and the last 4 months of the school year. After halftime the mother of a ridge graduate came to find me to tell me he was doing well and continuing with band in college thanks to my inspiration in getting him started back when he was a freshman. Then I also caught up with two parents whose kids are long out of ridge but were there my first years there. I also was able to chat with a couple former colleagues. It's funny because I know leaving was the right move professionally but I had really good personal connections to ridge that have been hard to match.

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Stupid Haircutting Person

I went to Fantastic Sam's in Hillsborough for a haircut today. I always hate the inane small talk they feel is necessary to get a decent tip. In fact, I should just tell them up front that I'll give them a better tip if they cut my hair and leave me alone.

Anyway, after Laurie got started she asked me if I was in high school. Awesome. Once I assured her that I was not only not in high school but a high school teacher, we were off and running. She immediately launched into how the teachers at Hillsborough HS treated her niece like crap while she was student teaching. I actually felt defensive for the Hillsborough teachers especially since Laurie went on and on about how teachers can be like that.

From there she went into a rant about textbooks. She couldn't understand why students can't have one copy of the book at home and one at school so they don't have to carry them. I offered that that would be awesome, but no one is going to agree to spending the extra money on books. I tried to show her the math that a book at $75 x even just 1000 students = lots of money, but she didn't get it. She told me it was a scam.

Then she asked about what I teach and what we are learning right now. When I indicated World War II, she asked what years that took place. I wonder if she would have been in the right century if I let her guess...

When talking about the French Revolution she concluded that we study it so that we can understand why we hate France or why France hates us, she wasn't sure which it was. I tried to explain to her that France paid for the American Revolution, which put France into debt causing the French Revolution (among other things) and that both revolutions led to new democracies and the end of monarchy, but her blank stare told me what I already suspected - she was too ignorant to process new information.

I started going to Fantastic Sam's because I was annoyed with a different place in Manville, but I might have to go back to Great Clips and hope things are better there.

Weekly Schedule - 11/9-11/15

Monday, 11/9 - AM Commons Duty, School, MTEA Representative Council Meeting, Montgomery Marching Band

Tuesday, 11/10 - AM Commons Duty, School, Basketball Band Info Meeting/Rehearsal (2:45-5:00), People to People Interviews (7:00)

Wednesday, 11/11 - AM Commons Duty, School, Extra Help (2:20-3:20)

Thursday, 11/12 - Nathanael Greene Liberty Fellowship

Friday, 11/13 - Nathanael Greene Liberty Fellowship

Saturday, 11/14 -

Sunday, 11/15 -

Weekly Schedule - 11/2-11/8

A little late...

Monday, 11/2 - AM Commons Duty, School, Faculty Meeting, Montgomery Marching Band

Tuesday, 11/3 - AM Commons Duty, School, Basketball Band Leadership Meeting

Wednesday, 11/4 - AM Commons Duty, School, Proctor test make-ups

Thursday, 11/5 - No School

Friday, 11/6 - No School, Football Away at Ridge

Saturday, 11/7 - Judge USSBA Northern States Championships at Allentown

Sunday, 11/8 -

Days off

Teacher's convention time and I'm trying to use my time well at home instead of in AC. I stated up late to watch the Yankees game last night. Had my rear defroster repaired so I'll be able to see out the back window this winter. getting a haircut and maybe some estimates for work on the kitchen. Made the final payment for the approaching trip to Ireland. Need to go to a football game at ridge with Monty band and then judge USSBA champs on Saturday night. Oh yeah I have a crapliad of grading to do too!


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Montgomery VP Opening

One of the vice principals at Montgomery was announced as the new principal effective January 1, 2010. Today his current position was posted. I will be applying officially tomorrow.

This will be my second time applying for a VP position at MHS. Last time around - in the spring of 2008 - I did a pretty good job, but I did not meet the particular demographic desired for the job.

This time I do.

Or at least I think I do. The biggest obstacle, in my mind, is the possibility that a current curriculum supervisor may apply for the position. He is certainly qualified and able and would allow the district to fill the position without having to also hire a teacher mid-year to take over a Social Studies classroom. I can certainly see the appeal on their end.

It is likely that there will be another opening towards the end of the school year, but I think that I am an excellent fit for this particular moment. My resume and cover letters are solid and my philosophy is aligned closely to the ideal candidate described in the job posting.

Applications are being accepted until November 16 so I don't expect to hear anything in the immediate future, but the chosen one does take over on January 1 so they will have to move pretty quickly.

Weekly Schedule - 10/26-11/1

Monday, 10/26 - AM Commons Duty, School, Marching Band

Tuesday, 10/27 - New Jersey Council for the Social Studies Annual Conference at Rutgers University (8-3)

Wednesday, 10/28 - AM Commons Duty, School, Basketball Band Leadership Meeting (2:30-4)

Thursday, 10/29 - AM Commons Duty, School, Extra Help, Hopewell Marching Band (3:30-5:30)

Friday, 10/30 - AM Commons Duty, School, Marching Band, Football home vs. Immaculata

Saturday, 10/31 - World War II Conference at Brookdale Community College, Halloween Party

Sunday, 11/1 -

Marching band in the rain

My judging for tonight has been cancelled due to the rain so I will be going with the Montgomery band to their standstill performance. Gym shows are very loud but I guess it is good for me to be with them since I usually miss festivals due to judging.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

More entries?

I have a new iPhone app that will let me update my blog much easier from anywhere. I don't actually promise to be good about keeping up to date but at least I have one less excuse now.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Schedule - 10/29-10/25

Monday, October 19 - AM Commons Duty, School, Montgomery Band

Tuesday, October 20 - AM Commons Duty, School, Montgomery Band

Wednesday, October 21 - AM Commons Duty, School, Montgomery Band, Basketball Band Leadership Meeting (5:15-5:45)

Thursday, October 22 - AM Commons Duty, School, Extra Help (2:20-3:20)

Friday, October 23 - AM Commons Duty, School, Ali's Fall party

Saturday, October 24 - Montgomery Band, USSBA Judging at Upper Moreland, PA

Sunday, October 25 -

Schedule - 10/12-10/18

Monday, October 12 - Professional Development (8:30-3:30), MTEA Representative Council Meeting (3:45)

Tuesday, October 13 - AM Commons Duty, School, MHS Band

Wednesday, October 14 - AM Commons Duty, School, MHS Band, Basketball Band Leadership Meeting

Thursday, October 15 - AM Commons Duty, School, Extra Help (2:20-3:30)

Friday, October 16 - AM Commons Duty, School, MHS Band, Football home vs. Hillsborough

Saturday, October 17 - USSBA Judging at Southington, CT

Sunday, October 18 - Return home from CT

Schedule - 10/5-10/11

Monday, October 5 - AM Commons Duty, School, Marching Band Rehearsal, P2P Interviews (7:00)

Tuesday, October 6 - AM Commons Duty, School, Marching Band Rehearsal

Wednesday, October 7 - AM Commons Duty, School, Marching Band Rehearsal

Thursday, October 8 - AM Commons Duty, School, Extra Help, Hopewell Marching Band Rehearsal

Friday, October 9 - AM Commons Duty, School, Marching Band Rehearsal, Football vs. Voorhees

Saturday, October 10 - SATs at Ridge HS, Saddle Brook High School 10-Year Reunion

Sunday, October 11 - P2P Interviews (1:oo), P2P 2009 Reunion Party (1:30)

Schedule - 9/28-10/4

Monday, September 28 - No School, Estimates from two electricians for some work

Tuesday, September 29 - AM Commons Duty, School, Marching Band

Wednesday, September 30 - Ali's Injection Surgery, P2P Interviews (6:00-9:00)

Thursday, October 1 - AM Commons Duty, School, Hopewell Marching Band, Back to School Night

Friday, October 2 - AM Commons Duty, School, Marching Band, Football vs Warren Hills

Saturday, October 3 - USSBA Judging at Frawley Stadium in Wilmington, DE

Sunday, October 4 -

Surgery Update

Ali didn't have her surgery today because they were having some power outage issues this morning. They were able to reschedule for next Wednesday so that's good...

Schedule - 9/21-9/27

Monday, September 21 - AM Commons Duty, School, Marching Band, MTEA Contract Ratification Meeting/Vote

Tuesday, September 22 - AM Commons Duty, School, Marching Band

Wednesday, September 23 - AM Commons Duty, School (Half Day), Ali's Injection Surgery

Thursday, Septembver 24 - AM Commons Duty, School, Extra Help

Friday, September 25 - AM Commons Duty, School, Marching Band, Football at North Hunterdon

Saturday, September 26 - USSBA Judging at Burlington City High School

Sunday, September 27 -

Schedule - 9/14-9/20

Sorry for the ridiculous delay since the honeymoon.

Monday, September 14 - AM Commons Duty, School, Marching Band

Tuesday, September 15 - AM Commons Duty, School, Marching Band

Wednesday, September 16 - AM Commons Duty, School, Marching Band

Thursday, September 17 - AM Commons Duty, School, Marching Band, Football @ Bridgewater-Raritan

Friday, September 18 - AM Commons Duty, School

Saturday, September 19 - Judge USSBA @ Collingswood, NJ (show time - 6:30)

Sunday, September 20 - Montgomery Band @ Somerset Patriots game for national anthem

Honeymoon Kauai

facebook Matt Mingle 5:57pm Aug 20th Honeymoon Kauai To mmingle1.email@blogger.com   I have added new photos! Matt has shared a link to an album with you. To view the album or to reply to the message, follow this link: http://www.facebook.com/p.php?i=504217967&k=Z3FUZ4RS35Z1UCGBTAV2PUY If you do not wish to receive this type of email from Facebook in the future, please click here to unsubscribe. Facebook's offices are located at 1601 S. California Ave., Palo Alto, CA 94304.

Honeymoon - Maui

facebook Matt Mingle 5:52pm Aug 20th Honeymoon - Maui To mmingle1.email@blogger.com   Matt has shared a link to an album with you. To view the album or to reply to the message, follow this link: http://www.facebook.com/p.php?i=504217967&k=Z2G2ZYVYS5YGUCGBTAV2PUY If you do not wish to receive this type of email from Facebook in the future, please click here to unsubscribe. Facebook's offices are located at 1601 S. California Ave., Palo Alto, CA 94304.

Honeymoon Day Eleven - Tuesday, August 18

There is very little to write today because we didn't do much of anything outside the condo/hotel resort.

We woke up to heavy rain, but it subsided by 10am and the rest of the day was nice despite weather reports suggesting otherwise. We really just hung around the condo all day. That included some time on the beach and at the pool, watching "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," reading, and just relaxing.

The only ventures out of the hotel complex were to dinner at Restaurant Kintaro, a good sushi place up the road, and across the street to Cold Stone Creamery for ice cream.

Honeymoon Day Ten - Monday, August 17

We enjoyed a pretty lazy morning until it was time to head out to our river cruise to a fern grotto. On the way to the boat, we stopped at a couple of scenic overlooks.

The cruise itself was a slow fifteen minute boat ride up the river with commentary to a the fern grotto section of Wailea River State Park. The landscape was beautiful, but it wasn’t much of a payoff for the boat ride. On the way back, there were performances of traditional Hawaiian music and hula. It wasn’t all that exciting, but it was nice and relaxed.

Afterwards we spent a few hours at the condo so Ali could try eating something like crackers or plain pasta to see how it would go.

Sometime between 3 and 4 we set out to drive up the eastern shore and to the northern shore of the island. We made it almost to the end of the road (literally) before turning around and heading back towards the condo. We ended up on the road for a few hours and got to see quite a lot.

We made stops in the towns of Anahola, Kilauea, Princeville, and Hanalei with a few beaches, shops, and scenic overlooks along the way. On the way back, I was able to get the real shave ice I’ve been looking for – a few syrup flavors over a scoop of macadamia nut ice cream. From there we stopped at Scotty’s, a barbeque place right on the water. Ali (extremely surprisingly) had 1/3 rack of ribs and I had pork nachos. I think Ali’s body was calling out for raw protein after a few days of very light eating due to the bug she’s dealing with.

It was time to get back to relaxing after dinner so we made our way back to the condo for the night. Uh oh – only one more full day to go before we start the journey back to New Jersey.

Honeymoon Day Nine - Sunday, August 16

This morning began a little rough. Ali hasn’t been feeling well for a few days. Symptoms began piling on top of symptoms and we decided this morning that it was best for her to see someone about it before it got worse.

We found a nearby clinic attached to a hospital that had walk-in hours on Sundays so we made our way there. They saw Ali quickly and gave her a thorough check-up with key tests included. The doctor believes that Ali was probably worn down some with the wedding planning (many honeymooners wind up in this clinic apparently) and then picked up some kind of virus on the flight over due to the weakened immune system. It took a few days to present itself. Ali was prescribed medication for nausea as needed and the indication that things should get better over the next few days.

It was good to get some peace of mind from the doctor so that we could continue enjoying our honeymoon.

We decided to explore the South Shore of the island a bit by starting at Spouting Horn Beach Park. This is another of those geysers like we saw on Maui except this one also includes a hole that air is pushed through so it makes a groaning sound. There is a folklore legend to go along with it that I won’t bother typing here. You can always Google it to find out!

We stopped for breakfast/lunch at Kalaheo Café and Coffee Co. Ali had half of a small stack of wheat pancakes and I had an awesome soup/salad combo of Seafood Chowder and Bacon, Lettuce, Tomato and Sprouts.

From lunch, we attempted to visit Kipu Falls, a small waterfall accessible only through a hidden path off an out-of-the-way street. We found the path, but it was really narrow and overgrown. We didn’t have good shoes on and despite the fact that there were other people there (we saw lots of cars parked on the road), we decided not to venture down the path. We may have missed out on a cool secluded spot, but it wasn’t the right time for that kind of mission. We did get to drive through empty roads with amazing landscape all around us though.

We made another attempt to stop for Shave Ice at the same place as a few days ago. This time we got inside, but the Shave Ice part of the shop was closed. So close!

It was time to get back to the condo and pick up Ali’s prescription so we did that and took some time to relax.

Later in the afternoon we ventured to the beach, but there was a slight rain so we sat under an umbrella at the pool reading. I finally found shave ice and had a delicious combination of melon and vanilla flavors.

We made it to the nearby Wahooo (that’s the correct spelling) Seafood Grill and Bar, which was a short walk from the condo for dinner. Ali just had Maui Onion Soup with a side order of garlic bread due to the stomach problems and I had Blue Crabmeat Chowder and Wok-Fried Sashimi with some sake. It was all very good and I left stuffed. I think I have a milder case of whatever bug Ali is dealing with so I have to be a little bit more careful about what I eat, but so far I have been relatively okay. There were a couple local musicians performing while we were there; we seem to be missing the live music that's advertised everywhere so it was nice to catch some tonight.

There is a little bit of rain in the area so we are going to relax in the condo tonight – maybe watch a movie, play some games…just chill. The main difference between our time on Maui and our time here on Kauai is the pace. We have much less planned here and so we can spend a lot of time lounging around without feeling like we are missing out on everything. We will still have time to see each main area of the island and cover the biggest attractions. It’s nice to chill a bit knowing that things will be moving quickly once we get home!

Oh - our sweet ride here on Kauai:

Honeymoon Day Eight - Saturday, August 15

We began the day with a trip to the sky to see Kauai from the air. We chose AirVentures, which uses a lightweight plane they call an Air Van rather than a helicopter for a tour of the island from above. The plane could hold six passengers and moves very slowly to allow for the tour, photographs, etc. from the air.

We were both nervous about the flight – Ali due to feeling sick the last couple days and me because I’m not a huge fan of flying even though I do it often. It was smooth most of the way, but that little plane sure does feel the wind and turbulence when it gets to some.

The island is as beautiful as everyone who visits says it is with countless waterfalls, lush landscape including the wettest spot on Earth that receives 400+ inches of rain per year, sea cliffs, beaches, you name it. The tour took about one hour before our pilot returned us to our starting point at the Lihu’e Airport.

We had planned to grab Hawaiian Shave Ice and then explore one of a couple areas in the direction we were in, but Ali wasn’t feeling well once we landed so we came back to the condo to relax.

We finished watching the depressing movie “Revolutionary Road” we started last night and then played in the awesome pool at the resort that features a long winding “lazy river” with three hot tub areas and two slides. From there it was time for more relaxing and naps before dinner. We have been sleeping way more than usual on the trip but both seem to be really tired anyway and since Ali hasn’t been feeling well we are trying to be extra cautious so we don’t have to miss any of our planned activities. It’s nice to just sit and relax in the awesome condo we have anyway!

Dinner tonight was awesome! We found a place within walking distance that had a happy hour tasting menu with wine pairings for only $40. It started with Sweet Potato Ravioli (Fresh pasta filled with Kilauea Feta cheese and roasted Okinawan sweet potato in a lemongrass cream sauce). Next was Warabi and Sausage (Local Fiddlehead fern, tomato, and onion tossed with lime, vinegar, fresh ginger and our house smoked sausage). The two main entrees were Mahi Mahi (A taste of one of our incredibly fresh fish basted with tapenade and served on orzo pasta “risotto” with lemon basil pesto) and Pork Tenderloin with Hamakua Mushrooms (served on basil red-skinned mashed potatoes with Marsala cream sauce). The only so-so course followed with blue cheese on bread slices with honeycomb. The sherry that was paired with this course smelled awful and tasted just as bad. All the prior courses came with a great glass of wine though. We finished with a trio of homemade sorbets (pineapple sage, honeydew, and watermelon mint). It was really a great meal and a great deal overlooking the water.

We spent a few minutes lounging in a nearby hammock before picking a few things up from the supermarket on the way back to the condo.

We went to the bar near our pool for fun drinks and a game of Scrabble before coming in for the night.

Honeymoon Day Seven - Friday, August 14

We spent the morning packing and getting ready for our flight to Kauai. Luckily we checked in early because the flight had been pushed up from 12:10 to 11:10 and I forgot about that change.

We were on a little propeller plane that had 12-15 rows total with first come, first served seating. The flight was surprisingly smooth and even though it was only an hour long flight, they provided water and/or coffee for everyone. We got our bags and moved to the car rental place without any problems.

The rental agent took forever, but he upgraded us from our economy car to a 2009 Ford Mustang convertible for no additional charge. This one is much nicer than the one we had on Maui with newer features and just a cleaner feel overall.

We got to our hotel earlier than scheduled so our room wasn’t ready, but we had lunch at the resort. Ali had Ahi Poke Salad and I had an Ahi sandwich. Both were pretty good and our room was ready right as we finished eating so that was perfect.

Our room here is AMAZING!

The last place was really great and the view could not be beat, but this unit is far superior. It is huge! Our bathroom has two toilets, three sinks, a soaking tub and a separate shower. We have a humongous kitchen with all stainless steel appliances, a bedroom with lanai, large living room with eat-in area and a view of the ocean. It’s really great!

We relaxed for awhile and made some adjustments to our Kauai agenda and then walked a little less than a mile to the Coconut Marketplace that includes a number of bars, restaurants, and shops. We started at Tradewinds, the highest rank attraction in Kapaa, our area of the island. We had a couple of local drafts and played some pool. We got the vibe that the locals in the place weren’t too fond of us so we walked to the nearby Hula Girl Bar, which is connected to Eggbert’s restaurant. I ordered a Mai Tai and Ali had a strawberry daiquiri. Since it was dinner time, we also ordered sesame chicken yakatori to go along with the drinks. Ali started to feel sick while we were there so we hightailed it back to the condo.

I took a detour to the supermarket to get some basic supplies while Ali headed back to the room to lie down. We learned our lesson with tons of wasted food and drink while on Maui so I only picked up some basics that I am confident we can use in five days on the island.

Well, the honeymoon is halfway over, but we are excited for some great activities left to experience!

Honeymoon Day Six - Thursday, August 13

We had a very early wake-up call this morning because we had to check in with Safari Boat Adventures at 6:30am on Front Street in downtown Lahaina. Ouch!

This is one of the highest rated and most expensive boating excursions and they addressed it head on once we were aboard and told us that we would see and do things that fewer than .1% of visitors got to do by circumnavigating the nearby island of Lanai. Most other snorkel trips and such go to a specific spot, drop anchor, and away you go. In fact, they told us to eat and drink as much as we could during the trip and there were plenty of drinks, snacks, and breakfast and lunch to go around.

Throughout the day we made three snorkeling stops and Ali and I splashed around at each one. Ali had never snorkeled before and she was really nervous before the first stop, but by the end of she was loving it and looked like a pro. Just like yesterday, our captain and first mate were constantly gushing about how lucky we were with beautiful weather and the calmest sea conditions possible. They said they have about 10 days like this a year. Now the tour guides may use these lines on all the visitors every day, but we still felt like we were getting the best situation possible again today. We were certainly glad that we pushed this activity back by a day due to Felicia as well.

Unfortunately Ali started feeling seasick when we got back on the boat from the first snorkeling stop and that didn’t go away until hours later when the whole trip was over. She felt fine while in the water at each stop, but on the boat wasn’t so good.

We took some time to relax and wound up taking a nap back at the condo before heading to Tropica at The Westin for dinner. This turned out to be the nicest meal so far with a great location right on the edge of the beach. We both ordered a tasting menu with wine pairings that was phenomenal. It started with a seared diver scallop followed by onion risotto, a fish entrée of a type of fish I cannot recall and an interesting almond-flavored dessert. After dinner we walked along the waterfront a little before heading back.

Like the most nights, I was completely exhausted and so went to bed early. I’m not sure if it is a lingering effect of the plane travel or what, but I have been unable to stay up late at all.

Tomorrow we are off to Kauai!

Honeymoon, Day Five - Wednesday, August 12

We needed an alarm clock this morning since we had a scheduled activity with Maui Eco Adventures. The tour provided coffee and a continental breakfast so we just had to get up and pack a bag for the day.

Here is what the website said about the tour:

“Do you want to see the best of the West Maui Mountains? Do you want to see Honolua Bay, Nakalele Blowhole, Kahakuloa Village, swim in Olivine Ocean pools, snap some pictures of waterfalls from a view point and be back by 12:30-1PM? Sounds crazy? It is!
We will pick you up with fresh Maui coffee to sip along the way before we drive the “back road” through several different environments on our road trip to these remote locations. You will also take a short hike through scenic lava fields. During your hike our knowledgeable guide will point out the exotic plants, flora/fauna, geology facts, local history of the area and much much more.
Of course, we will make sure to find the time to take a swim in a fresh ocean olivine pool during the hike, so bring your swimsuit! This is a great trip for families and singles alike as there is something for everyone! We provide transportation, a continental breakfast of fruit, muffins and coffee, hip packs, towels, jackets, snacks, and water on all trips. What are you waiting for? West Maui Hotel pick-ups included.”

We were a little bummed as we began once we realized that we were going to be repeating the exact drive we did on Monday morning, but it turned out to be great because it was much less stressful with another driver and we stopped and explored areas that we didn’t the first time through. Our tour maters were a woman and two older teenage boys from Ohio.

We began with a cup of coffee in the van and a fresh fruit platter and muffins at the same beach park we walked around while looking for the Sea House Restaurant a couple nights ago and then it was off to the more wild parts around the northern tip of West Maui.

Our first real stop was the blowhole. Due to the additional rain the last couple days and the higher surf, it was really going well. We even saw the highest waterfall in Hawaii off in the distance and our guide suggested along the way that he has only seen it about 10 times in the two years he has been giving these tours so we were lucky with that too. We had the option of hiking near the blowhole or taking our chances to do the scheduled hike in another spot where we would be able swim in the pools sheltered by rock formations from the ocean. Our guide warned us that the pools might be under the attack of strong waves so we might be able to swim, but we chose that option anyway under Ali’s leadership.

The hike wasn’t long, but it was pretty steep down and back up rocks and muddy paths. The pools were not too dangerous so we were able to swim and see some fish, crabs, and other marine life. The weather was beautiful for the entire tour with very little wind, no rain, and great views. Our guide kept remarking how unexpected and lucky everything was and he seemed genuine about it.

We did get a chance to swim for a bit in the pools and, as Ali described, we were in these rock grotto areas formed naturally that the expensive hotels spend a lot of money trying to recreate for their guests.

We stopped again for banana bread and then at an art gallery, which we used as a bathroom stop. Our final set of stops was to view a few waterfalls that were really pumping due to the heavy rains. We were lucky enough not to have the rain affect us directly, but some parts of the island have experienced flooding and the downpours and flash flooding warned about in the weather reports.

When we got back to the condo, we decided to relax for awhile and then go to the hot tub, pool and/or shuffleboard areas. Both of our backs are hurting from the hike, but we don’t have any other activities scheduled today until a 7pm dinner at the highest rated restaurant in Lahaina, the Lahaina Grill. We are going to pace ourselves with salad, fruit, and leftover chicken and pasta throughout the afternoon and then have really fancy appetizers and drinks instead of full dinner entrees at the restaurant later.

Before dinner, we finally visited the Banyan Tree. This mammoth tree takes up one city block and would be even larger if the county of Maui wasn’t constantly trimming it to keep it under control. We were there around sunset so heard the cacophony of the birds making getting ready to roost for the night.

We each ordered one drink, one appetizer, one salad and we shared a dessert item and our bill still came to over $100 at the Lahaina Grill. This place has been ranked the best restaurant in Maui for the last 14 years, but we actually agreed that Roy’s was a little better. The interesting mix of flavors and presentation were excellent at Lahaina Grill, but they had the room stuffed with people, which took away from the ambiance.

Our first appetizer was The Cake Walk – petite servings of Kona lobster crab cake, sweet Louisiana rock shrimp cake and seared ahi cake. We were in agreement that the ahi was the best of this group. Our second appetizer was Kalua Duck Quesadilla – roasted Maui onions and Poblano peppers. This was good and came in second place to the ahi for best appetizer.

Our first salad was Bufala Tomato Salad – Hana tomatoes, bufala mozzarella, truffle oil, aged balsamic vinaigrette, seasoned with Kilaueau sea salt. Our second salad was Warm Pecan Crusted Goat Cheese and Baby Arugula Salad – pears, roasted beets, Poha berry honey-mustard dressing. The tomato/mozzarella was definitely the better of these two options.

We were really full even without entrees so we split a light dessert – Sorbet Cake. It consisted of three layers of sorbet with cake between them and was very good. The Lahaina Grill gave us a “Congratulations” card since they knew it was our honeymoon signed by everyone on the staff. I’m sure they have to sign tons of them a night, but I still thought it was a nice touch.

We headed back to the condo from dinner and my back was not in good shape. Ali tried to teach me some stretches and things, but the best bet was to go to sleep so that’s what we did!

Honeymoon Day 3 - Tuesday, August 11

I woke up around 7:30 to the day that was going to be a washout due to Hurricane/Tropical Storm/Tropical Depression Felicia. This turned out not to be the case!

I woke Ali up to see the beautiful rainbows right outside our window. We could see the entire spectrum of color and both ends of the rainbow on the water. For awhile there was even a secondary rainbow where the colors are reversed (as we learned while looking up exactly how rainbows work and why there are SO many here in Hawaii).

To not miss our chance of good weather, we took a nice walk on the beach before breakfast. After breakfast, we went down to the pool and hot tub then laid out on lounges to read and relax. Before long some rain came in and we ran to the room (only to have the sun reemerge).

Later in the morning we went down to play some shuffleboard and our timing was off again; we wound up playing most of the game in rain, but it was still fun.

We used some of our provisions to have a nice lunch at the condo: salad, pasta, sun chips crusted chicken (Ali didn’t have many ingredients here to work with) and some wine.

By this point, it was around 2pm so we headed to the downtown Lahaina area where tonight’s magic show was held to walk around and explore. Once the sun was shining it was really hot and very windy so we holed up in Sante Fe Cantina for happy hour margaritas, a $1 taco, and lots of tortilla chips. We were probably there for an hour and a half or more before walking to Warren and Annabelle’s Magic Show.

This is the highest rated activity on Maui according to TripAdvisor.com even though it sounds a little odd. It was definitely worth it!

Upon entering, a small group of guests are ushered into Annabelle’s parlor (Annabelle is the ghost resident by the way). Think of the opening room of The Haunted Mansion in Disney World. The ghost tells us some things and we have to figure out which door the key will open. Eventually we figure out that the key goes into a book, which opens a secret door and we are in The Parlor.

This was a large room with a piano, mostly two-seat tables, and ‘20s-style jazz pumping. We opted for the Royal Flush package so we got any two drinks we wanted plus an appetizer platter for each of us, and a dessert in addition to the show. The entire evening lasted four hours! By the end of the first hour, we were so stuffed we barely ate our dessert and had to backtrack from ridiculous drinks like ice cream, fruit, Bailey’s, and whipped cream concoctions to more simple liquor and soda drinks.

For awhile Annabelle sat down at the piano and entertained us. The “trick” here was that guests could shout out requests and she would immediately begin playing the songs. We believe the piano was linked to a keyboard in an adjacent room where a real pianist was playing. The transitions were too quick and sometimes there were mistakes so our original theory of a computer roll playing the music seemed incorrect.

After two hours in The Parlor, we were ushered into the magic show. This was a slight of hand show with lots of comedy thrown in often at the expense of the four young couples sitting right in front of the magician. The maitre d asked Ali and I if we wanted to be one of those four couples, but we declined. This was probably a good move!

The show was awesome and a lot of fun. Afterwards we found the car and came back to the condo. Like the previous few nights we were in bed early, but we had a great day especially considering our original expectation for a complete wash out!

Honeymoon Day 2 - Monday, August 10

The change in time zones had an effect - I woke up at 4:30am wide awake and ready to go.

I went out into the living room and sat in a chair near the window. Around 5:45, I made some Kona coffee and woke Ali up so we could sit on our lanai to watch the sunrise. It was a great way to start the first full day of our honeymoon!

We needed some more things from the grocery store so I was out at 6:30am to a nearby Star Markets where I spent a lot of money for two chicken breasts, some rice, cold cuts, bottled water in case of the storm, a pineapple, and salad fixings. Although the groceries are expensive, it is still much cheaper than eating three meals out at restaurants everyday.

Once back at the condo, Ali made some breakfast which we also ate out on the lanai looking out at the ocean. We spent some time making adjustments to our itinerary and were able to successfully push our drive/hike tour from Tuesday to Wednesday and our morning boat trip and snorkeling from Wednesday to Thursday. Based on the weater predictions at the time, this seemed like the best way to go.

Since the weather reports were decent for the morning, we decided to head out and see some nearby sites.

Our first stop was Napili Beach. Our awesome guidebook (Maui Revealed) says that it "seems to generate more fun per square foot than any other beach in the area." We found a place to park as it began to shower. We grabbed umbrellas and took a walk on the beach in the light rain. It gave way pretty quickly and we walked along a path adjacent to the beach for a while. We found the restaurant where we had dinner reservations (more on this later) and enjoyed the area.

We had packed a lunch and the weather seemed to be clearing so we decided to continue heading north. Our goal destination was Nakalele Blowhole where the magic of the waves and erosion into the rock leads to water shooting up through a "blowhole" when the conditions are right. The ride to this spot required us to drive "over the top" of the island. The guidebook warns that "timid drivers may want to evaluate if this is for them." There were some moments where I wondered that about myself...

The drive was absolutely gorgeous and we only had light drizzle during the very beginning of it. It took about an hour and a half to two hours once we left civilization before we rejoined it. The end part of it we were able to put the top down and everything. There were moments when I couldn't help but think that Mustangs don't handle bad conditions well and I couldn't remember what the rules were for braking while driving up and down hills. There were many sharp switchbacks and hairpin turns plus long segments of up to 1.5 miles of very narrow one-lane driving. Add in the fact that some sections had no guardrails or even chains to protect the road from the cliffs and water below and you get the idea. We saw a number of roadside memorials as well. No need to be worried - we obviously made it through, but I'm not sure that I enjoyed the absolutely amazing views quite as much as I was supposed to.

We pulled off at a couple spots for sites and breaks including to see the blowhole work its magic. We stopped to buy coconut candy and "the best banana bread in the world." I couldn't get any photos to capture the road adequately, but I think you get the picture by this point.

We stopped at a McDonald's at the endpoint town of Wailuku for a bathroom stop and then bought a few DVDs at Blockbuster for when the storm traps us inside. The picnic lunch held us over for the 45-minute drive back to the condo (along regular roadways!) and our expected rainday ended up being exciting.

We caught our breath with some leftover Hawaiian pizza and then made our way to the beautiful Westin Maui for our couples massages. I had never been for a massage before and the whole experience was pretty impressive. Once we checked in, I went into the men's locker area to take a quick rinse shower, put on my comfy robe, and make my into the "Quiet Room" overlooking the water where Ali was waiting.

We were quickly met by our therapists and led to the couples room for our 50-minute massages. I don't know how it compared to other places, but it was very relaxing and peaceful. After the massage, we went back into the "Quiet Room" for some water, dried fruits and almonds, tea, and biscotti. Back in the men's locker room I attempted to take advantage of every amenity they offered. I took a nice luxurious shower under two shower heads, used their spa deoderant, pre-shave oil, shaving cream, razer, post-shave balm, mouthwash, etc.

Afterwards we walked along the path to the neighboring beachside Whaler's Village shopping center. We left with enough time to stop at a grocery store for candles in case the storm knocked out power before heading to our dinner back near Napili Beach where we were in the morning.

This is when things began to get interesting. The GPS was supposed to be taking us to Foodland Supermarket, but it turned us onto a cul-de-sac. We reloaded to another supermarket successfully and then began the GPS-led route to the restaurant. It deposited us in the parking lot for a beachside park. We parked and walked in the direction that seemed like it might make sense, but it didn't. I used the "Around Me" app on my new iPhone and it showed our position to be only a few hundred yards from the restaurant. We tried getting there on foot and had no luck finding it. Both the car GPS and the iPhone said we were in the right spot, but the restaurant was nowhere to be found. Later searching on the computer also showed the stated address to be where we were, but the restaurant is actually on another section of the road that is not connected to where we were. Hard to explain but the end result was that we could not find dinner so we backtracked to an area we saw a few restaurants earlier in the drive.

We ended up at Roy's Kahana Bar and Grill, an expensive, well-reviewed place where we still fit in with me wearing shorts and a button-down shirt. Instead of ordering really expensive entrees, we decided to order two sushi rolls and two appetizers. This turned about to be a great plan as we were full and enjoyed a wider variety of really tasty food. We may use this approach again on this trip!

Ali enjoyed a flight of three white wines while I had "Roy's Private Reserve" beer. We had one sushi roll calling the "Frying Dragon" and another called "Ahi 10" and both were extravagant and delicious. I can't really describe them except to say it different than other sushi we'd had before and really great. Our first appetizer was blackened Ahi followed by lobster and shrimp potstickers. Awesome!

After dinner, we came back to the condo to finally pop the bottle of champagne we've been holding onto since last New Year's Eve and watch a movie. We were both feeling tired so we opted for the short "Paul Blart - Mall Cop." We ended up going to bed without finishing the champagne or the movie, but that's ok!