Oahu07

Never mind about the bread. A nosy co-worker (love ya Bob), was looking over my shoulder as I re-read my post. He saw the question and immediately said (taro bread). If this is correct, thanks Bob. If not, what is the bread called?

suze

taro root is blue-ish, like "poi"

MelissaHI

If you google "taro bread," you will get a plethora of results.

http://tarobrand.safeshopper.com/5/2.htm?547

DebitNM

I am glad if my "food for thought" were helpful. One last thing and then I will be quiet. Not knowing your legal situation with daughter's father...I would make sure I had his permission in writing and if you need to get some type of court involved thing, be sure to do it. A bit of time taken now to ensure you don't have a problem down the road.

Debi

Jen253

Hi There
I grew up in Hawaii and my family still lives there so we get back every 9 months or so. Thought I would add a few things. These are generalizations but mostly true. People in Hawaii speak English; you won't ever need to speak another language. You may have some difficulty understanding the Pidgin English at first.

Also, no one yet as warned you about traffic--it is very bad and be warned. Traveling from Pearl City to Ewa Beach can take you over an hour; more during rush period. I'm not clear on whether or not you plan to live in Ewa and send your daughter to school in Pearl City (the Pearl City school would probably be an easier transition for your daughter) but you should consider the travel time.

That said, I agree with most of what others have said--racism does exist but if you are a positive and polite person and treat others with respect, you will find that the local people are warm and friendly. The cost of living is high but when I compare it to San Diego, it is on a par. In fact, most of the time, our gas is more expensive than Hawaii's.

Good luck and keep an open mind! Hawaii is a great place to become exposed to rich and diverse cultures and food. Sample as many different kinds of cuisines as possible. You're getting there in the summer--you can try to check out the 50th State Fair (held in Pearl City in the summer, I think) where you can try all kinds of different foods. In winter, check out the Punahou School carnival (a long-time local favorite).

Postal

I lived on Oahu for three years, both my kids were born there, and I have been nack several times on vacations.

I pretty much agree with everything I've read in this thread. We bought a house in Makakilo City (just north of Ewa Beach) when we arrived there and planned to retire there when my husband and I retired from the Army.

We chose to return to Florida for three reasons: The racist hostility of many of our neighbors (including toward our kids, who were born there), the poor schools (which I know HAVE improved), and the terrible "rock fever" that overcame us on a regular basis no matter how much inter-island traveling we did.

You've already heard about the first two problems, so I'll explain the last one. On the mainland (the 48 states), it's easy to pick up and drive away for the weekend - to another state or to a special area of your state.

On Oahu, you can drive around the entire island (except for Kaena Point) in a matter of hours. Even though we loved Oahu, after awhile we hungered for those weekend trips to another state. Flying to the other islands for a long weekend seemed like such a hassle (and expense) compared the freedom we experienced on the East Coast of the U.S.

I hope you love Oahu as much as I did when I first arrived. But I liked it less and less after the first year, and once we had kids, we decided they'd be better off here. Still, it was a unique, wonderful experience of my life and I'm glad I had it. Hawaii remains a wonderful place for me to visit, but I know I could never live there again.