Unbelievable day for mailboxes!  There were so many unique ones that I had to pick and choose the very best ones to show you.  Double click the picture and name all the things that you see on top of this mailbox.

My husband made the suggestion to do a community at a time to feel a sense of accomplishment when it is done.  Thinking it a great idea, I'm continuing to explore Niu Valley blocking out 3.56 more miles in this area.  Originally a dairy farm, lots started to be sold and housing put up!  With no sewers at first, septic tanks needed to be emptied upon occasion.  Of course, eventually, the sewers were put in by the City and County of Honolulu.

A shark, a fire truck (why do I see a rabbit?), a glassy wave and a Hawaiian warrior are only some of the creative mailboxes I saw.  Please drive (or walk) through this area and see for yourself the inventiveness of the residents here!

Rain was my constant companion and even though uncomfortable, yielded interesting photos because of it.  This road is Anolani and it gradually slopes upward to views of the ocean and surf.

The wet sidewalk made this name (word?) more prominent.  If not for the rain, I may have missed this sight.  I wonder who did it and how they did it?  What do you think...name or word?

Japanese love the world of miniature!  These gardens had miniature people in them.  Please double click the photo and see the detail!

The sun peeked out for a moment and highlighted the bold colors of these bromeliads!  The colors were so bright that I saw it from quite a distance!

Yes, that is EXACTLY what I did after seeing this yard ornament.  Try it yourself!  Don't forget about my CONTEST!  Details are on the blog of Sept. 20th with the contest ending on the 28th.  Enter and be a part of the drawing!  Aloha! (Bye!)

CONTEST!  CONTEST!  CONTEST!

Enter my contest by posting a comment on what you enjoy most about my blog starting today continuing to Saturday, September 28, 2013, and win 5 lovely refrigerator magnets!  I will have a drawing of all participants on September 29 and will mail them to the winner!

P.S. The quarter is not included!  I just wanted to show you the size of the magnets!  Post your comment and be a participant in the drawing!  Good Luck!

First seeing the gaping mouth of this Alligator (Crocodile?), more and more animals came into view as I approached.  I guess this resident is a wannabe zoo owner!  Well, its a lot easier (no excrement clean-up) and cheaper (no feeding them!) this way, yeah?  Hmmm...why the leg?  Food for the Alligator?  By the way, the "pueo" is an "Owl!"  Did you find it?

Travelling way out east to Niu (coconut) Valley, today's walk totaled 3.59 miles down it's lush interior surrounded by verdant, green-walled ridges.  Why here?  Because I have NEVER been here before.  Passing this valley many times driving on Kalanianaole Highway, somehow I've always wanted to check it out, but didn't.  Thanks to "the Walking Hawaiian" blog, desire has become reality!

Peaceful and panoramic, Halaki Street was a pleasure to walk and to view.

Too much "bird droppings" decorations?  I would like to call this, "The Porcupine mailbox!"  Double click to see the spikes!

Where's the Chinese Theatre?  These two driveways are ready for celebrities to sign!  I think that the residents are a little "star-struck," don't you think?

Quite unique, this '62 French Citroen drove past four times during our walk (I walked with my friend, Robbie today.)  The owner lived in France for three years attending college.  He also had another newer version in his garage.

Paying homage to Monet, the lily pads, weeping willows, surrounding hills and the reflection of clouds on the water made for a gorgeous gate. You must double click the photo to see the details!  Painted and signed by Clark M. Takashima in 2007, maybe you should check online for other works by him.  As I have made a desire become reality, think of something you always wanted to do and do it!  A Hui Ho! (Until we meet again!)

Thoroughly motivated to walk the remainder of Ka'ahele, I didn't take into consideration how challenging it would be!  This unwelcome sight stunned me, so I decided to look elsewhere so I wouldn't get discouraged!

OKAY!  Now we're talking!  This open field is called, Ka'ahele park and the Waianae range was fully visible.

It was not one of my longer jaunts, but, it was one of the more difficult ones!  Hoofing 3.91 miles to complete this sinewy street, reaching the top had me in a celebratory mood!  Closing the month of August with 14.84 miles and totaling 537.95 miles since starting "the walking Hawaiian," I know that every step brings me closer to my goal!

Past the end of Ka'ahele is a locked gate, where a trail would continue to a view of the Windward side of the Island.  Of course, people always find a way around it!  To the right of the gate was this skinny dirt path that wraps around and ends up back on the trail beyond the gate!

The area above the gate owned by Towne Development of Hawaii , is slated to become a "Zip line" that would travel down through the valley ending at the bottom.  The residents I spoke to are ALL against it!  So, keep your eyes and ears open to see who will win out! As you can see, that would be a spectacular sight for the zip-liners.

Pay attention when you walk this sidewalk!  The branches extend over and hang so low that you could smack your head on it!  Did you notice that the owners braced the trunks?  Is it to raise the branches or to save the tree from falling down?

Not the first time I've seen a putting green on the front lawn, I guess that this is not as unusual as I thought it should be!  Well, I hope that it has improved his/her game!

I'm not sure if it was due to lack of oxygen (walking up the hill) or inattention that I didn't notice this on the way up!  The wrought iron twisted a quarter turn and created an interesting pyramid pattern looking down it's length!  See how a slight twist can alter the dynamics of this fence, maybe a slight twist of attitude could make or break your day!  Make it a GOOD twist! E Malama Pono! (Take good care!)

Today came up with some cool mailboxes.  A "treehouse," with trunk, branches and leaves provided the framework for this mailbox.  I believe that you slide the door open to put the mail in and the yellow-orange ball on the side is the flag.

Hand-painted red and white ginger graced this mailbox on all sides.  Truly, an artist must reside here!

Continuing my trek in the Newtown sub-division, further up Ka'ahele I huffed and puffed! 
Due to the profusion of dead-ends, the total mileage tallied 5.33 because of backtracking.  I must say that most homes had spectacular views and were very large in size.

Yup, all the homes that you see in this picture is where I went today! My view of Ka'ahele and my determination to continue!

This handsome young man, Brian, has been a resident here for 12 years.  When asked where he comes from, he replies, "Aiea!"  A transplanted kama'aina,(native born) we talked about cars, surf and living in Hawaii, of course!

Serene and natural, these well-kept gardens in their yard conveyed beauty and order.

Painting lane dividers in your driveway was a definite first for me to see.  Well, it is a LONG driveway and you could use it as a guide to back out of!  What do you think?

What does nylon stockings, water bottles and plants have in common?  I don't know, but, here it is!  Double click the picture to see it up close!

My personal opinion is that the bromeliad is decorative enough with the interesting leaf patterns.  Imagine my surprise when I came upon a blooming bromeliad!  The pink petals are actually bracts, or modified leaves, so I guess it's just more of the same, yes?  Even though life can be "more of the same," you could embellish it a little!  Do some embellishing today!  Aloha nui loa!(All my love!)

So what are these "orange" things next to the crosswalk?  Well, they are flags to wave high above your head so that you are visible and won't get run over by speeding cars.  You grab a flag, cross the street, then put the flag in the container on the other side after crossing.  What a great idea, and you bet I used it!

Ka'ahele street is steep and curvy!  Blind spots litter this street and due to it's length, people speed up and down it.  By the way, yes, I walked up it!  Too bad I couldn't run so that I could catch my breath!  HaHa!

Nice picture of the spiral, yes?  Sorry!  Trying to save space for pictures, so I can't help it if the spiral gets in the way!  I know that it doesn't look like much, but as you can see in the previous pictures, 2.41 miles became a daunting task!

This neighborhood consisted of Duplexes, terraced on the ridgeline.  I noticed that many owners utilized every inch of their property.  The combinations were impressive to behold!

Strange things crossed my path too!  Why is that light sconce encased in plexiglass?   What is that strange antenna?  And why is there two side extensions sticking out from the wood post?  I would be interested in knowing what you think!

Then, I come across panoramic views of lush valleys!  It just makes my day!

Turtles festooned this tiny front yard, obviously the residents favorite animal.  I was reminded of my "walking Hawaiian" goal.  Slow, but steady, really seeing the land and meeting the people of this beautiful aina!(land!)  Think like a turtle today!  Take it all in!  Aloha! (Bye!)

The color may say it all!  You guessed it!  It's called, "Black Point."  A lava rock peninsula jutting off of Diamond Head, it was known as "Kupikipikio" to the Hawaiians.  If you look south of the Diamond Head lookout, this is the sight you will see.

Further to the left is this "walkway."  Made of lava rock with waves crashing on it, I don't think that I would like to explore this area!  HaHa!

Yes, I'm switching areas again to the southeast and near Kahala.   Only residential homes are what I came into contact with. The X's are areas that I couldn't walk due to a locked gate. This is a "cliffy" spot and although I only garnered 3.17 miles for today, it was an up and down exercise! 

For example, here is one part of my journey.  What goes down, must come up!  The waves were cranking and the views helped to motivate me while walking.  The most renown resident was the wealthiest woman in the United States, Doris Duke.  Her home, "Shangri-La" is now offered as a tour from the "Honolulu Museum of Art," for a nominal fee, of course!  Duke Kahanamoku swam in her pool training for the Olympics.

A reflective, glass, garage door made a tranquil view!  Hey!  There's a "Walking Hawaiian" in there too!  HaHa!

I have to add these in my "beautiful gates" collection!  I thought that the 3-D take on the first gate added interest.  The flower, I think is called, "Cup of Gold," and it does seem to be that color!

The second gate had a REAL ship's steering wheel, which was encased in glass!  But what I really liked was the interesting shadows the gate created.  Make sure to double click to enlarge the picture and study the driveway before the gate.  Totally Cool!!

Whoa!  Somebody has a lot of green garbage!  Isn't there a limit?  Maybe this is the "community" pick-up area and everyone needs to put their garbage here?  What do you think?

Do you remember in a previous blog,  I told you that "Hawaiian TelCom" was once known as "Mutual Telephone Company," and I showed you the original building in downtown Honolulu?  These cover plates are the last vestiges of the original name of the Hawaiian Telephone Company (M.T.Co.), and older neighborhoods may still have them around.  Well, I found this off of Kahala Ave. on my walk today.  Tell me if you find any in your neighborhood!  A Hui Hou! (Until we meet again!)