Day 1 Shopping in Waikiki
Malc & I arrived in Honolulu at 12 midnight. We were starving when we arrived at our hotel that we went and walked around and found a 24 hour diner.
The next day, we went straight to Waikiki's famous shopping mall, the Ala Moana Mall. We
planned to get lunch and browse for a couple of hours, but we ended us window shopping for 7 hours!
We went back to the hotel around dusk, and then walked across to the beach and spent some time checking out Waikiki beach at night.
Day 2 Bishop Museum
We were still in Sydney time and woke up at midday. We strolled along the streets of Waikiki, did a little window shopping (again!) and had lunch.
We then caught the local bus or THE BUS to the Bishop Museum. The museum houses an extensive collection of objects belonging to the Hawai'an royal family. The collection also includes cultural objects from South Pacific islands.
While at the museum, we attended a screening in the planetarium of how the ancient people of the South Pacific travelled by sea between islands using only the stars and the sea to navigate. These journeys lasted for months.
Day 3 Makaha, Yokohama Bay & the North Shore
We woke up early to check out and pick up our rental car. After almost 30 minutes queueing under the sun, we finally got the keys to our car. While waiting, I kept mumbling "I hope we get a Japanese car, I hope we get a Japanese car," alas we got a yellow PT Cruiser. The drive was on a shaky start when the airbag warning lights would not turn off, but after awhile, Malc & I just ignored it.
Onwards we drove to Makaha, where we booked a night at the Makaha Resort & Golf Club. The hotel was up in the mountains and is surrounded by a lot of greenery. Malc was so excited to find out that there were more than 40 tv channels in the hotel.
But we came to Hawai'i for some beach time. So we drove to Yokohama Bay. There were not a lot of people around and we enjoyed a few hours relaxing under the sun and taking in the beautiful scenery.
We did not get to swim a lot though because the waves were quite strong. So after a few minutes, we gave up fighting the waves.
Late in the afternoon, we drove to the fabled North Shore of O'ahu. Our first stop was Hale'iwa, a quite surfing town that boasts the best shaved ice in the whole of Hawai'i, Matsumoto's Shave Ice. We did not have to ask for directions where Matsumoto's was when we saw a long queue formed outside one of the streetside stores. And true to it's claim, Matsumoto's shaved ice was heavenly.
Just as the sun was about to set, we headed to one of the North Shore beaches and watched the sunset. After that, we drove back to Makaha. We arrived back at the hotel late at night and the kitchen was closed, so we made a dash to town and raided the 7-11 for some chicken teriyaki and onigiri.
Day 4 Yokohama Bay, Pearl Harbour & Byodo-in Temple
Early in the morning, we headed back to Yokohama Bay for an hour or so of beach time. We got back to the hotel and checked out at midday and made our way to Pearl Harbour.
Maybe because we were not Americans, we did not really feel any strong emotions during our visit. Though, the memorial was nicely laid out and the presentation was very well made. We also visited the site of the sunken Arizona.
After Pearl Harbour, we headed to Byodo-in Temple. The drive was amazing as we went through a tunnel and emerged in between steep mountains. It looked like we were in New Zealand. The temple itself was located in a memorial park where there were cemetaries for different faiths. The temple was in the Japanese section of the park.
After a few minutes at the temple, we headed back to Waikiki and barely made it in time to meet up with Malc's Army Escort who assisted him while attending the Pacific Area Special Operations Conference (PASOC). After registering for the conference and getting out of our beach clothes, we joined the rest of the conference attendees for cocktails. But not after posing for photos in our hotel room.
Day 5 Hanging out
Malc was at the conference all day and I went around running errands - picking up Malc's slacks and my trench coat from alteration. I also spent a few hours at Ampy's A Day Spa (1441 Kapiolani Boulevard Suite 377, Honolulu, Hawai'i phone: (808) 946-3838). The therapist at Ampy's gave me the best facial ever.
I went back to the hotel and waited for Malc's conference to finish. We then joined Malc's collegue Mark for dinner at the local Chinese.
Day 6 Trolley tour
While Malc was the the conference, I took the trolley tours around Honolulu. I took the Red Line which went around Waikiki and Honolulu. And then the Blue Line which traveled from Waikiki to Diamond Head and then east to Makapu'u.
After savouring island life for the last few days, I said goodbye and aloha to Hawai'i. Malc stayed on for a few more days until the end of the conference.
Malc & I arrived in Honolulu at 12 midnight. We were starving when we arrived at our hotel that we went and walked around and found a 24 hour diner.
The next day, we went straight to Waikiki's famous shopping mall, the Ala Moana Mall. We
planned to get lunch and browse for a couple of hours, but we ended us window shopping for 7 hours!We went back to the hotel around dusk, and then walked across to the beach and spent some time checking out Waikiki beach at night.
Day 2 Bishop Museum
We were still in Sydney time and woke up at midday. We strolled along the streets of Waikiki, did a little window shopping (again!) and had lunch.
We then caught the local bus or THE BUS to the Bishop Museum. The museum houses an extensive collection of objects belonging to the Hawai'an royal family. The collection also includes cultural objects from South Pacific islands.While at the museum, we attended a screening in the planetarium of how the ancient people of the South Pacific travelled by sea between islands using only the stars and the sea to navigate. These journeys lasted for months.
Day 3 Makaha, Yokohama Bay & the North Shore
We woke up early to check out and pick up our rental car. After almost 30 minutes queueing under the sun, we finally got the keys to our car. While waiting, I kept mumbling "I hope we get a Japanese car, I hope we get a Japanese car," alas we got a yellow PT Cruiser. The drive was on a shaky start when the airbag warning lights would not turn off, but after awhile, Malc & I just ignored it.
Onwards we drove to Makaha, where we booked a night at the Makaha Resort & Golf Club. The hotel was up in the mountains and is surrounded by a lot of greenery. Malc was so excited to find out that there were more than 40 tv channels in the hotel.
But we came to Hawai'i for some beach time. So we drove to Yokohama Bay. There were not a lot of people around and we enjoyed a few hours relaxing under the sun and taking in the beautiful scenery.
We did not get to swim a lot though because the waves were quite strong. So after a few minutes, we gave up fighting the waves.
Late in the afternoon, we drove to the fabled North Shore of O'ahu. Our first stop was Hale'iwa, a quite surfing town that boasts the best shaved ice in the whole of Hawai'i, Matsumoto's Shave Ice. We did not have to ask for directions where Matsumoto's was when we saw a long queue formed outside one of the streetside stores. And true to it's claim, Matsumoto's shaved ice was heavenly.
Just as the sun was about to set, we headed to one of the North Shore beaches and watched the sunset. After that, we drove back to Makaha. We arrived back at the hotel late at night and the kitchen was closed, so we made a dash to town and raided the 7-11 for some chicken teriyaki and onigiri.Day 4 Yokohama Bay, Pearl Harbour & Byodo-in Temple
Early in the morning, we headed back to Yokohama Bay for an hour or so of beach time. We got back to the hotel and checked out at midday and made our way to Pearl Harbour.
Maybe because we were not Americans, we did not really feel any strong emotions during our visit. Though, the memorial was nicely laid out and the presentation was very well made. We also visited the site of the sunken Arizona.
After Pearl Harbour, we headed to Byodo-in Temple. The drive was amazing as we went through a tunnel and emerged in between steep mountains. It looked like we were in New Zealand. The temple itself was located in a memorial park where there were cemetaries for different faiths. The temple was in the Japanese section of the park.
After a few minutes at the temple, we headed back to Waikiki and barely made it in time to meet up with Malc's Army Escort who assisted him while attending the Pacific Area Special Operations Conference (PASOC). After registering for the conference and getting out of our beach clothes, we joined the rest of the conference attendees for cocktails. But not after posing for photos in our hotel room.Day 5 Hanging out
Malc was at the conference all day and I went around running errands - picking up Malc's slacks and my trench coat from alteration. I also spent a few hours at Ampy's A Day Spa (1441 Kapiolani Boulevard Suite 377, Honolulu, Hawai'i phone: (808) 946-3838). The therapist at Ampy's gave me the best facial ever.
I went back to the hotel and waited for Malc's conference to finish. We then joined Malc's collegue Mark for dinner at the local Chinese.
Day 6 Trolley tour
While Malc was the the conference, I took the trolley tours around Honolulu. I took the Red Line which went around Waikiki and Honolulu. And then the Blue Line which traveled from Waikiki to Diamond Head and then east to Makapu'u.After savouring island life for the last few days, I said goodbye and aloha to Hawai'i. Malc stayed on for a few more days until the end of the conference.
