Hawaii Cost of Living and some fun facts...

We'd heard it was expensive to live here, but we were used to UK prices where the pound was twice the dollar. So here are some prices we paid at the local Safeway:

• Half gallon of milk - $3.49
• Box of Life cereal - 7.09
• 6 Sara Lee blueberry bagels - 6.09
• bananas - $1.29 a pound
• Gas is $4.35 a gallon.

It surprises us that recycling is not a big deal here, and no one mentions the evils of plastic bags. I feel certain we'd be looked at oddly if we brought our own, like we'd gotten used to doing in Germany, Australia, and England.

But we go swimming in the ocean every day - did I mention that?

Some promised Fun Facts:

• Hawaii is the 43rd largest state, with the 42nd largest population
• There are hundreds of islands spread over 1500 miles
• It's the most isolated island chain in the world. 25% of what lives near here doesn't exist anywhere else on earth
• The mountain peaks on the Big Island reach 13,000 feet and get snow in the winter...
• It's the only state which actually grows in area, due to the volcanic activity
• The island of Oahu has three highways in the interstate system (since it was originally created for defense purposes, these highways connect the important military facilities around the island)

That's it for now! I'm going to keep playing with pictures....