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Honolulu and Oahu
 Introduction
At the beginning of May, we made our first trip to the Hawaiian Islands.
I was surprised how little I knew about them. The high temperature is in the low 80s in winter (very cold) and the high 80s in summer (very hot).
Evening temperatures are only a few degrees lower than daytime, so it's pleasant every evening.
In winter it's rainy season, but even in summer, the clouds build in around the islands by noon each day.
The trade winds this far south blow from the east, so the east or windward side of the islands have the most rain, while the leeward or west side have the least rain.
This is the opposite of North America, so it seems a bit disorienting.
Hawaiians were united by one King, Kameamea, in the late 1700s and share the same language, which was written down by missionaries.
The language has had a major influence and is noticed as soon as your Hawaiian Airlines flight crew starts using the phrase
"Mahalo" for "thank you" on your flight over. Hawaiian language is consistently applied, so the same names appear on multiple islands and within similar location names.
For example - "wai" means freshwater and is part of Waikiki which sits on a freshwater lagoon and Waimea which refers to a freshwater canyon.
"Napali" on Maui and Kauai both refer to cliffs. There are very few native Hawaiians left and there is a large contingent from southeast Asia and the Pacific.
Many locals cannot afford to live on the Island any more and are moving to places like Las Vegas.
There is also quite a lot of resentment toward the missionaries, as their descendants now own most of the land on the islands.
Even the pineapple and sugar cane are largely gone from the islands, as places like Thailand can produce these crops at much lower cost.
The main crops now are macadamia nuts and Kona coffee.
Hawaiian Air
The flight on Hawaiian Airlines, from Seattle to Honolulu, was 5.5 hours. Travelers from the eastern US states took closer to 9 hours. Hawaiian Airlines was comfortable. They provided a movie, but you needed to pay for earphones or bring your own. Video disc players were also available for $10.
Sheraton Princess Kahalani
The time change is 3 hours, so you’ve traveled a full day and it’s basically noon when you arrive.
The first day we walked along the beach at Waikiki. The most striking feature is that everything is basically room temperature; so many businesses don’t have windows.
The airport is open to the elements too. At the Sheraton Princess
Kahalani, you arrive at the front desk and you are still outside – the front desk faces the outdoor swimming pool and has no walls or doors.
It’s a wonderful effect. The Princess Kahalani was not exceptional accommodation, but being right on the main waterfront street of Waikiki meant that it was only a short 5 minute walk to the beach.
International Market, Waikiki
That evening we wandered the International Market and the main drag in Waikiki. Everything is open late, like Robson St, in Vancouver, BC Canada.
We heard some fabulous music, which turned out to be live from Coconut Willy’s.
We had dinner while we watched people dance and we looked out over the open second floor stage down on to the shops covered by giant Banyan trees.
It was a magical atmosphere.
Waikiki
In the morning of our first day, we were up before 5 with the time change and we went to McDonalds and Starbucks.
McDonalds had spam and rice as one of the meals on the menu. The beach was very busy by 6 am and some surfers were already finishing up and heading off to work.
That morning we went on a tour to Hanauma Bay. In future, I’d just take transportation there, as they rent snorkel gear at the site and it’s a very safe location.
The wind was driving on shore, so the water wasn’t very clear and the tide was wrong for seeing any turtles.
I did get a few pictures with my underwater camera..
In the afternoon, we walked from our hotel to the Waikiki Aquarium. The zoo is also within walking distance. We decided not to visit the number one attraction on Oahu – Pearl Harbor.
With my father being a WWII front line vet who fought in Germany and the Pacific too, he influenced me not to go.
Pearl Harbor would be about a $30 cab ride from Waikiki.
Touring Oahu
On our second day we took a rental car around the island of Oahu. The first stop was the best – Diamond Head.
It was just after sunrise and we hiked up through the switch backs, stone steps, tunnels, spiral metal stair cases and a bunker to reach the top. It was always just on the edge of my limits for claustrophobia and fear of heights.
The drive around the island had some lovely spots, including Sandy Beach,
Lanikai Beach, Waimanalo Beach, Turtle Bay and Sunset Beach.
Ironically the famous North Shore was as calm as a lake at that time of
year. We also stopped at the Dole Pineapple plantation to see a few
pineapples. The site was over run with tourists buying pineapple ice
cream.
After our rental car review of Oahu, we boarded the Carnival Spirit.
Read about our cruise of the Hawaiian Islands in the article on the Carnival
Spirit.
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