San Francisco & Hawaii - An Introduction

There is so much in the world, so many birds to see, that it can feel daunting. I don't often travel out of Suffolk, I prefer to be a local birder, but occasionally even I need a break, and travel somewhere else in the world.
So from the 12 October to the 31 October 2019 I spent some time over in America, specifically San Francisco and Hawaii. The reason I went over was to visit my brother who lives out there and to celebrate his marriage, which occurred some months before.
It was a family holiday, we did lots of family holiday things but I was still able to get some birding in. Now downtown San Fran and Hawaii don't really have many birds, and with the case of Hawaii, all the birds are introduced. However, manoeuvring around a bit I still managed to get a bird list of around sixty species, which is the equivalent to a good day out in Minsmere. However as I haven't seen any of the birds before, expect the feral pigeons and house sparrows found there, it was a slight improvement on birding in the UK.
I spent three full days in San Fran, four in Honolulu, four in Big Island, and another three in Honolulu, at a different location, and with several days of travel, I managed to get around a bit. As the only real birder in the group I wasn't able to pursue my hobby all the time, although my family were good, and we did get out a lot to various places. I visited a lot of historical and cultural places as well, areas that have been written about elsewhere better than me, so if you are interested in places like Pearl Harbor, SF Museum of Modern Art, or SF Chinatown, then check out Google. I have done far too much on this holiday to really write about it all in any detail, it would take me months with all my hair pulled out in the meantime.
The camera I took out with me, my Canon SX50, is a trusted bit of equipment, a bridge camera and one that's getting on a bit, I may soon have to replace it. But its that level of photography, good but not great.
So over the next couple of days I will release a new post detailing the many good places I have been, similar to my normal posts. This really has been the holiday of a lifetime one that will never be repeated, I doubt I'll ever get back to the places I have visited again, so I just have this blog to remind me. I will probably read and reread them as much as you do.
It will be different to Suffolk, my normal birding grounds, but I hope you will enjoy this extra bit of exoticism and appreciate all the many birds found in the world.