Category: Oahu Waikiki Honolulu Adventures

Aloha – Wednesday, March 12/14

AMAZING DAY! (No, I didn’t meet “The Boys”….). We booked the Majestic Circle Island Tour with E Noa Tours for a discounted rate through Fun Hawaii. Pick-up was at 7:15 AM – first time in months that we needed to set an alarm…

We had a great driver/tour guide who humorously and informatively took us through Hawaiian history and explained the geography of the island.

First stop – Hanauma Bay

The bay, just east of Waikiki is a nature preserve home to green sea turtles, coral and over 400 species of fish. It is closed every Tuesday to give the fish a day of uninterrupted feeding.

On average, over 3000 visitors come each day to take pictures, walk on the beach, snorkel, and/or swim.

Second stop – Halona Blow Hole Lookout

As waves roll onto the shore, they hit the rock formation and then a spray shoots high into the air through a cave in the rock, looking much like a geyser.

Third stop – Sandy Beach and famous movie beach locations (From Here to Eternity, Pirates of the Caribbean)

During the filming of Pirates of the Caribbean 4, our guide told us while he was there Johnny Depp got out of his car and greeted people, but Penélope Cruz specifically avoided people and took off.

Fourth stop – Dole Visitor Center

We stopped for a bathroom break, some refreshment, and a look at the gardens. Todd and I enjoyed a glass of fresh pineapple juice and a bowl of pineapple ice cream – yummy.

The gardens showcase various pineapple plants. Hawaii’s agriculture once ruled with pineapple and sugar. Today that “kingdom” has lessened and agriculture includes coffee, cocao beans, tomatoes, and tropical flowers.

Fifth stop – Waimea Valley

The Waimea Valley is 1,875 acres with over 5,000 plants from more than 200 plant families, including rare and endangered species.

Numerous birds and call this peaceful retreat home.

The Noni tree’s pungent fruit has excellent health benefits.

A 2 kilometer walk leads to a 45 foot waterfall.

While enlarging the parking lot a few years ago, excavators came across the remains of a temple dedicated to the god Lono.

Sixth stop – Sunset Beach, North Shore

A year round temperature of 23°C and an expansive wide sandy beach speckled with palms, draw numerous beach goers.

In the summer months the water is crystal-clear, calm, and safe.

In the winter months, it’s an experienced surfer’s paradise with long waves swelling as high as 6m to 9m. Fun factor: high / Danger factor: high

Seventh stop – Fumis Shrimp Shack

Fumis Shrimp Shack is an expansion of their nearby Shrimp Truck. They use their own farm-raised fresh shrimp.

They offer numerous shrimp plates from garlic sauce, to lemon butter, to hot & spicy, to coconut breaded. Todd ordered the hot & spicy – delicious (according to him) with just the right “kick”.

I ordered pork  – a lightly breaded cutlet. Both dinners came with 2 scoops of rice, a green salad, and a slice of pineapple.

Eighth stop – Filming location for Jurassic Park

Currently crews are preparing the area for the filming of the 4th Jurassic Park.

Ninth stop – Byodo-in Temple

The temple is a replica of a 900 year old Buddhist temple from Kyoto Japan. It was built in memory of the first Japanese immigrants that came to Oahu to work in the sugar plantations.

It is customary for visitors to ring the 1.5m bronze and tin sacred bell prior to entering the temple. Ringing the bell will purify the mind of evil spirits and temptation. It is said that ringing this bell will bring you happiness, blessings, and a long life.

Inside the temple, a towering Buddha (almost 3m tall) sits. It is thought to be the largest figure carved outside of Japan. Once carved, it was covered with cloth and painted with three applications of gold lacquer. Gold leaf was later applied over the lacquer finish.

Numerous feral cats roam the landscape enjoying the serenity.

Tenth (and final) stop – Nu’uanu Pali Lookout

click picture to view full size panorama

This is the point of the final battle where King Kamehameha finally won the struggle to unite the Hawaiian Islands under one rule in 1795.

Those opposed to the unification were driven over the 915m cliff above the Oahu coastline to their death.

Todd and I can’t believe how fast 3 weeks have gone. We are totally going to miss this weather AND the amazing views. (Already planning for next year….).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Aloha – March 7 – 9/14 Weekend

Friday afternoon was a shopping day. We went back to Walmart for made-in-Hawaii shirts for both of us, then off to Don Quijote’s to restock groceries. On the walk back Todd remarked that I should slow down to “island speed”, but with the heavy backpack, I just wanted to get back. – Good thing…. The sky over the water was black and you could see it was raining. We just got into the room, when the floodgates opened…. Even in the rain, this place is beautiful – still able to sit out on the balcony and enjoy the warmth, waiting for the rain to pass….

This weekend is the annual Honolulu Festival. Its purpose is to promote understanding, economic cooperation and ethnic harmony between the people of Hawaii and the Pacific Rim region.

The festival includes dance performances, traditional art demonstrations, and crafts from Japan, Australia, Tahiti, Philippines, Taiwan, Korea, Hawaii and the rest of the United States.

The festival culminates with a 4 hour parade down the main street in Waikiki followed by fireworks.

For lunch on Saturday, in between watching festival performances, we ate at a Grill in the Ala Moana Center.

Todd finally got to try Ahi Poke – a famous Hawaiian dish made of raw tuna (I had pork sliders….).

Saturday’s dinner was at the well-known Marukame Udon. There is always line-ups to get into the cafeteria-style Japanese diner. We waited over 40 minutes in line.

I had the beef udon and Todd had the curry udon. We also had some various tempuras. Todd quite enjoyed the flavour of the udon; I thought it was okay, nothing special (although tempura was quite good….).

Monday, March 10/14

Most mornings, after coffee, we head over to Ala Moana Park and walk about. The green oasis stretches out into the ocean and is peppered with trees. It isn’t unusual to see people fishing or doing Yoga, Tai Chi, Qigong, or other exercises.

The park is also a “hot spot” for wedding photos. Throughout the day, numerous couples are in the park getting their wedding photos taken.

For dinner we went to The Chart House. We were a little leery on going there because of some of the reviews on Trip Advisor, but we were so glad we did.

click picture to view full size panorama

We each ordered from the Sunset Menu ($30.50 each included soup or salad, a choice of entrée and dessert). We started with a Caesar salad (one of the best we have had in a restaurant). The entrée consisted of asparagus (cooked perfectly a la dente), a 9 oz. striploin, and a generous portion of garlic mashed potatoes (with chunks of roasted garlic throughout). So good….so filling. We brought the Crème Brule desserts back to the condo for breakfast…

Tuesday, March 11/14

DIAMOND HEAD – we caught the bus outside the hotel/condo building just after 9AM (…after coffee and last night’s Crème Brule….).

After an uphill walk from the roadway to the entrance, the trail is about 1.3 km of switchbacks consisting of uneven rock and mud terrain with and elevation gain of 560 feet.

The first tunnel is preceded by 74 concrete steps and followed by 99 steep steps. Then 52 metal spiraled steps took us to the summit.

The views are amazing!

click picture to view full size panorama

BTW – the elusive “Boys” (Hawaii Five-0 cast) were filming at Diamond Head today! Off in the distance we could see the set, but (alas) no way to get near it…

After seeing this sign and thinking…..Oh my god “The Boys” must be close by  !

Doesn’t Cindy look exhausted after frantically looking around the park for Steve McGarrett or Danny Williams…

Like climbing Diamond head wasn’t enough exercise !

 

 

Aloha Tuesday, March 4/14

Just after 3AM – We awoke to voices of a woman and man talking to each other saying that they were in the room and we didn’t even know it. We both bolted upright! Holy crap….turns out Todd didn’t log out of the radio station on the computer when we went to bed, just closed the lid, so when the computer “woke up”, the radio began to play…..

For the morning we wandered over to the Hilton Village while our condo was being cleaned. We checked out some of the numerous stores and wildlife on the property. (We think the one Penguin was feeling a little left out of the fun….).

While taking pics of the parrots, my celebrity status was once again resurrected – a Japanese woman asked Todd to take a picture of her and the parrot, then a picture of her with me…..

Dinner was at Moose McGillycuddy’s… It was Tacolicious Tuesday. I tried the chicken and kalua pig tacos (at $2.95 each). Pork was delicious….

Todd had shrimp, sirloin, and calamari tacos (at $3.95 each). He was partial to the calamari. Did I mention the great deal on draft beer? – $3 each – great price!

Wednesday, March 5/14

Each time we have passed the Santouka Ramen Restaurant in the plaza by Don Quijote’s supermarket, it has been lined up out the door. Today, we decided to venture there closer to 2PM once the noon rush had subsided. Great idea – no crowd and yummy food.

The menu is limited to mostly various ramen dishes. I ordered the Miso Ramen and thoroughly enjoyed the flavours.

Todd ordered the Saimini Ramen, a spicier bowl (Yep, for those paying attention – includes Spam, the Hawaiian favourite….). Both bowls contained all fresh ingredients including delicious freshly made ramen noodles.

Then…. Chief’s Luau = FUN! Chief’s Luau has only been around for one year, but in that time, it has been featured on Amazing Race and its popularity continues to grow.

It is held at Sea Life Park on the edge of the ocean looking out to Rabbit Island.

Upon entry we toured the shark tank and turtle pond.

Prior to the show beginning, guests could practice spear throwing, weaving, fire-making, or the hula.

The show opened with the unveiling of the pig, cooked umu style – pig placed on hot rocks and covered with leaves for cooking.

The Pig cooked for supper !

Dinner included purple sweet potato (interesting colour), poi (bland, but that’s normal), taro flour bun (good purple carbo), mixed veggies (including zucchini, onions, and carrots), white fish (okay, I did try it…didn’t finish it), chicken on a skewer (ate that), and of course, the pork (had seconds…so good).

We were introduced to various cultures/dances from Tahiti, Samoa, New Zealand, and Hawaii.

Throughout the show audience participation was encouraged.

The culmination included numerous performances using fire-sticks.

Lots of Dances were performed !

The show was fantastic! Decent food, humour, audience interaction, and showmanship made for a great luau….

Another Great Day !