Jackie's Blog

09/21/11

Hawaii Five-0 is being filmed in Waikiki for their second season...it's pretty cool to see some of the filming going on out there!  

01 Aloha 1211.m4a

Please click on the link above, titled 01 Aloha 1211.m4a ...This is a song written and composed by one of my guests, Russ Smith. Below is the email sent by him, followed by the song lyrics. When you click on the link...the song will download for you...you will then need to click on the start arrow button on the play box that appears at the left top of your screen.

Thank you so much Russ!!!  I love it!  :-)

Hi Jackie!

Here’s the song that was inspired by our Hawaii vacation in room 1211
at the Waikiki Banyan.

The story goes like this…

Our family was totally excited in the days leading up to our trip and
we were looking at your website daily and dreaming about staying in
room 1211. I was riding my mountain bike home from work and thinking
about my family’s upcoming trip to Hawaii and suddenly I found myself
writing a song about it! So I finished the “Aloha 1211” song and
thought I would record part of it on our laptop right from unit 1211
when we got to Hawaii. I was also in the middle of recording an album
for Camp Qwanoes and wanted to include an island-inspired song. I
showed the “Aloha 1211” song to my co-producer and we thought it would
make a good song for the album, so we wrote new words and started
recording the song in the studio in Vancouver during March.

Our family had a great time in Hawaii and during our vacation I
noticed so many people in Hawaii playing ukulele that I decided to
learn that instrument when I got home. After our trip we finished
turning “Aloha 1211” into a Camp Qwanoes song called “On The Island”
with some different words and added some ukulele to it. I’m sending
you the “Aloha 1211” version of the song that we recorded. We tried
to mention all your units in the middle of the song!

Maybe unit 1211 will be the only unit on your website that has its own
theme song! Feel free to use it there. People might think it’s
cheesy if you hired someone to write a jingle for your condos, but
that’s not the story in this case. The story here is that a musician
stayed in unit 1211 and had such a great time there with his family
that he wrote a song and sent it to you. Might be the kind of thing
that people will hear and then say “Well, then I want to stay in unit
1211 too!”.

Enjoy!

Russ

Aloha 1211

Come to the island of Oahu
We have got a place for you
Dip your feet into the ocean
You and your family will have so much fun

You can stay here
Yes, you can play here
Yes, every day it’s true

Oh, oh, oh, on the island
Where Jackie gives a piece of heaven
Waikiki Banyan, room 1211
Oh, oh, oh, on the island
Enjoy the sun, enjoy the waves
This is the place where you can stay, aloha

Wake up to the sun on Diamond Head
Lying in your Queen size or aero bed
On the lanai staying cool
Look down to the playground and swimming pool

You can stay here
Yes, you can play here
Yes, every day it’s true

Oh, oh, oh, on the island
Where Jackie gives a piece of heaven
Waikiki Banyan, room 1211
Oh, oh, oh, on the island
Enjoy the sun, enjoy the waves
This is the place where you can stay

If it’s already booked then don’t you cry
Another option is unit 1905
If heights are ok, the view is so great in unit 3608
2914, 3401, 3406, 3605 makes you alive
2913, 2402, 704 and there’s still more

By Russ Smith

01/10/10

Sir Elton John...what a talent...! what a concert...!

Robin and I saw Elton John last night at the Blaisdell Arena...4th row BB {center stage} and what a night it was! He played for close to three hours...three hours of ear to ear smiles for us. :-) A concert to remember performed by a talent of all talents.

12/7/09

Awesome waves hitting N Shore!...50 ft waves are expected for tomorrow

10/29/09

I haven't been on my blog {as you can see} in a while...I just returned from the mainland from a couple week trip and I have to say...I am soooo glad to be back home! I have not watched the news so I am unsure of why, but the sky was a bit too bright with a glow of white today. I was thinking it was a fire...but could have been vog...I am unsure and should perhaps turn on the very little watched TV and see what is going on. Aside from that...life here in paradise is good! Just trying to get back into the groove of things. I am dedicating to myself...and to you as well... that I will get video links of all these condos put on my web site very soon. So for now...as Joanie says...."Ta-Ta"

8/21/09

Happy 50th Birthday HAWAII...!!!!!

8/14/09

Life is good here in paradise...The tropical storm has passed and the sky's are for the most part, clear. Tomorrow is going to be a day of fun in the sun...Waikiki Beach, here we come!

7/20/09

Another beautiful day in paradise!!!

6/15/09

The waves were larger than large...In Waikiki with 10 ft waves! I spent time at Sandy beach as well today and the waves were the same...the waters were really rough...waters only meant for the experienced!

6/1/08

Just below is a link to video I shot of unit 2914 T-2 please have a look. Soon I will have video links to all units.

YouTube - Waikiki Banyan unit 2914 T-2 vacation rental

5/21/09

Another beautiful day in paradise!

5/16/09

Sandy Beach was awesome today! The waves were huge! Quite a few people out there body surfing. For those of us who aren't brave enough to go into those waters...we sit on the beach and watch the daring bunch plunge within the crashing waves. Sandy Beach is definitely not a beach for beginners! It's pretty cool there though because today there was a Sea Turtle out in the water just beyond the body surfers and a few weeks back I saw a mom and a baby whale simultaneously jumping out of the water.

Interested in eating at some of President Obama's favorite eateries while visiting Oahu???  How about a taste of these!

Rainbow Drive-In...A true locals favorite!

Zippy's...Locations throughout Oahu

Indigo...Located in Chinatown

Alan Wong's...Located at 1857 King St.

Grace's Inn...A true favorite of President Obama and his high school basketball teammates!