Friday – 8/20/2010
Today is our wedding anniversary – ricotta pancakes with blueberries for breakfast.
Taking an early afternoon flight out of EWR.
Long lines at security checkpoint…
Got through, got Starbucks and went to our gate… still hoping to switch seats to sit together for the 10-hour flight.
Yes, switched seats… watched True Blood episodes until the laptop battery died. I think a slept a bit afterwards.
Arrived to Honolulu, got our luggage, and ran like two donkeys to the inter-island terminal (note to self – book connecting flights together next time so that the luggage is checked straight through to the final destination).
Got on the flight to Kona (Big Island) and I immediately fell asleep. Sofia later said she was keeping the flight attendants away for the entire 45 minutes of this flight.
Arrived to Kona airport, got our rental Jeep (big green 4-door Wrangler), and drove to our hotel – Outrigger Keauhou Beach Resort. Sofia had pre-programmed all locations on our GPS, so we knew exactly where to go. Checked into the hotel and went to sleep.
Saturday – 8/21/2010
Had breakfast (included with hotel booking) in the outdoor restaurant with ocean view.
Went to the Kahuluu Beach (gray sand beach, right outside our hotel). I went snorkeling and saw lots of fish. Sofia went for a swim and was not very happy with the rocky bottom. Not the best beach for swimming, but snorkeling was great.
It’s Saturday, so the beach started getting crowded. We went for a walk towards another beach (called White Sands Beach), but turned back as it was getting too hot.
Got back to our hotel, got our car and drove along the coast toward Kailua-Kona town. Passed White Sands Beach (looked nice but small and crowded – many locals with surfboards). Got to town and went to a farmers’ market. Nice pineapples…
Had lunch at Huggo’s on the Rocks. It’s right on the water, so they were mostly selling the ambiance, although the food wasn’t bad either.
After lunch, drove upcountry, into the mountains above Kona coast. That’s were they grow Kona coffee. Got to Holualoa – a little village in the mountains with several little art galleries and shops, a couple of nice coffee shops, and amazing views of the coast below. It seems some places were closed (maybe because of Saturday) and the whole village had a very quiet and relaxed, almost sleepy atmosphere. It is also about 10F degrees cooler here than on the coast, and the air feels crisp. Browsed through a few art shops, liked a few things (a few sunlit wave photos by Clark Little in particular – Gold Nugget and Flame). Then stopped at a coffee shop, sat on the patio and had great big Kona lattes with cookies, and then discounted refills of regular Kona coffee. Worked like a charm against jet lag.
Came back down to Kailua-Kona, browsed through a few shops and bought a couple of pearl necklaces – one for Sofia’s aunt, one for my mom.
Returned to the hotel, watched the sunset and a couple of True Blood episodes on the balcony, changed for dinner, and went to Kenichi Sushi – 5-minute drive from the hotel in a small shopping center. The food was ok, but not remarkable… and then it started raining cats and dogs.
Sunday – 8/22/2010
Woke up (still early, still on EST) and went for an early-morning snorkeling at the Kahuluu Beach, which was great. Some people must have thought me a snorkeling expert (perhaps because I have nice gear, especially cool-looking fins), and started asking me for snorkeling recommendations.
Had breakfast at our hotel, checked out, and drove down the coast.
The road along the coast was very scenic, and the ocean was beautiful.
Stopped briefly at The Painted Church – St. Benedict’s church painted inside with biblical scenes by the Belgian priests in late 1800’s. The surrounding tropical greenery and the view were more impressive than the inside of the church…
Kept driving down the coast until we got to the Puuhonua O Honaunau National Historical Park – ancient burial site of the Hawaiian chiefs (alii), a residence of some of the chiefs, and a refuge for defeated warriors and taboo (kapu) violators. Apparently in the ancient times, if a lawbreaker would make it there, the authorities could not punish him. The priests would perform their cleansing rituals, and the offender, now forgiven, could return back into society the next day. Stopped for a visit, walked around. The place felt very serene.
Continued the drive until we finally hit the South Point – the southernmost point in the U.S. Walked around some, took some pictures. Tried to get to the Green Sand (Papakolea) Beach, but there were no signs or markings of any kind, so we finally just declared some greenish-looking sand the Green Beach, and turned around.
Continued the drive down Hwy 11, had a quick and simple lunch at South Side Shaka Restaurant in Naalehu (cheeseburger for me, a mahi-mahi sandwich for Sofia).
Finally, around 3:30 pm, we arrived to Volcano and found our Crater Rim Cabin (directions phoned in earlier in the day by the owner definitely helped). It’s an actual log cabin with a bedroom, living room, kitchen and bathroom, and even a natural gas fireplace. The temperature here is noticeably cooler (60’s in late afternoon), so the fireplace should help, and the electric blanket too. Feels very rustic, but clean and comfortable… and it’s on a golf course! … and there are eggs in the fridge, so omelet for breakfast!
Went to the Volcanoes National Park (the active Kilauea volcano), got entry tickets, and talked to the rangers at the visitor center… What a bummer – the lava flow changed course, and the Chain of Craters road is closed. To see lava flowing into the ocean at night, we have to drive 1.5 hours from Volcano, and chances are we won’t get to see much. However, there is an open and glowing steam vent right behind the Jaggar Museum (volcano exploration museum) in the park, so the ranger advised to return after dark.
We went for a drive through the park, and walked a short hiking trail, planning to take a couple of longer trails the next day. Went to the Thurston Lava Tube – basically a long tubular cave in the lava – quite impressive. There was another cave there, but without light we did not make it far (our flashlights did not help much).
Went for dinner to a very nice restaurant – Kilauea Lodge & Restaurant – in the Volcano village. My venison dish was great!
Also stopped by a general store and bought some water, wine, cheddar cheese, and nuts.
Returned to the park after dark, went to Jaggar Museum and looked at the steam vent, glowing orange in the dark. Looked at the exhibit on volcano exploration and Kilauea history at the museum.
Went to our cabin, got under the warm electric blanket, poured some wine, and watched a couple more episodes of True Blood before finally falling asleep.
Monday – 8/23/2010
Woke up, had breakfast (6-egg omelet with cheddar for two and coffee), and went straight to the Volcanoes park. Since we are only a couple miles from the entrance, we arrive there early, way before the crowds that come on tour buses from Hilo and even all the way from Kona and Kohala coasts.
It’s still quite cool, but the sun is starting to warm up the black lava landscape, slowly and then faster as it comes up higher.
We take the 4-mile Kilauea Iki Trail hike first, descending into the crater and crossing it, then coming back up. This was great hiking, made even better by the absence of other tourists (too early). Only towards the end of this hike we started seeing other people.
Then we went for another hike, a short 0.5 mile Devastation Trail through a scorched forest on the volcano slope that was burned down during an eruption some years back.
It’s around noon now, so we got out of the park and went to the Volcano village for lunch at the Lava Rock Café. Lunch was combined with a quick strategy session, where further action plans were outlined and agreed upon.
Having thus re-energized ourselves, we went back to our cabin, changed out of the hiking attire, packed it to take with us, and drove to Hilo. The plan was to take a scenic drive up the Hamakua Coast, perhaps visit a botanical garden, hang out and have early dinner in Hilo, and then drive to the site where the lava (maybe) flows into the ocean.
We did take the Hamakua Coast 4-Mile Pepe’ekeo Scenic Drive along the coast, which was beautiful – lush tropical greenery on one side, blue ocean on the other, clear sky and bright sun, narrow road winding along the coast. Then we visited the Hawaii Tropical Botanical Garden (http://www.htbg.com/) – an amazingly beautiful valley by the ocean filled with tropical trees, flowers, waterfalls… all created through the private efforts of Dan Lutkenhouse, who bought the land in 1977 and founded this botanical garden.
With a few hours still left in the day, we decided to leapfrog ahead and drive further north on the Hamakua coast to visit the famous Akaka Falls, dubbed “one of Hawaii’s most scenic waterfalls” by Frommer’s. It was nice, for sure, but a bit crowded and touristy…
Afterwards, we went back to Hilo, trying to find a place for dinner (we decided to skip the evening lava flow viewing – too much driving and not a good chance of actually seeing much). Since we both craved good sushi, we settled on Ocean Sushi Deli… however, it was still way too early for dinner, so we went for a nice walk in the Liliuokalani Gardens – the largest formal Japanese garden outside of Japan. While there, we noticed a little building called Japanese Cultural Center, which also housed Nihon Restaurant. It looked busy, so we decided to chance it, and… it was amazing – perhaps the best sushi I ever had. Delicious poke tuna hand-rolls, a huge chirashi bowl… and a great Hilo Bay view at sunset.
Then, a drive back to our cabin at Volcano, and a couple more True Blood episodes to close out the day.
Tuesday, 8/24/2010
Woke up (still fairly early), finished off the eggs (another 6-egg omelet with cheddar for two), packed the Jeep and headed to Hilo. Stopped briefly at Rainbow Falls and escaped just as the huge tour bus was pulling into the parking lot. Headed out of Hilo, north on Hwy 19. Still a very scenic drive – all along the ocean, with valleys cutting the coastline, with the road snaking along the valleys or going above the gorges on narrow bridges. At Honokaa, the road departs from the coast and heads inland, into the mountainous “cowboy country”. We get to the town of Waimea, home of the famous Parker Ranch, founded in 1809. The sun is bright and the air is cool and crisp (we are at some elevation here). The plan was to tour the Parker Ranch and then have lunch in Waimea, however we quickly found out that ranch tours were no longer offered due to lack of demand (perhaps, if tour prices were more reasonable, they would have had more demand… just a thought). So, we had to settle for Starbucks…
Back on the road towards the Kohala Coast, and we finally reach the Puukohola Heiau National Historic Site. This ancient Hawaiian temple was built by king Kamehameha I in 1790 – 1791, after a prophet told the king he would conquer and unite all of Hawaii if he built the temple.
Hungry now, we have pretty decent pizza with shrimp for lunch at Café Pesto.
Then, we head to our hotel – Waikoloa Marriott Beach Resort, where we upgrade to an ocean-view room. The hotel is located on one of the best swimming beaches on Big Island – Anaehoomalu Bay (A-Bay) – so we go straight to the beach and jump in the water. It’s nice to be back on the beach, and they rent surfboards and stand-up paddleboards here. I am thinking I would like to try a paddleboard, but it’s getting late… I took a quick walk down the beach, and there are 3 big sea turtles just sitting there on the sand, basking in the late afternoon sun. I went back and got Sofia (who was napping), so she got to see the turtles as well…
The hotel is just one part of this sprawling resort, which also includes privately owned villas and two shopping malls with stores and restaurants… even a grocery store. We went to Sansei Seafood Restaurant for dinner (food was good, but service somewhat mediocre). Then, hung out a bit in the shops, and bought pineapple, mango, and a bottle of champagne (Moet & Chandon Brut Imperial).
And it’s time to go to sleep (helicopter ride tomorrow).
Wednesday, 8/25/2010
Wake up, have Starbucks coffee, and head straight for the Blue Hawaiian heliport (it’s only 5 minutes drive from our hotel). The blue helicopters look very nice and soon we will ride one – the A-Star – the light maneuverable “Porshe” of tour choppers, as opposed to the more comfortable “Cadillac” Eco-Star.
While waiting for our tour, we took a few pictures of helicopters landing and taking off – looks awesome.
Finally, we get our ride and there are 4 more people on the same chopper, not counting the pilot. Two seats next to the pilot, and four behind him. Well, sometimes it does not pay to be light… The pilot is a big guy, and we had to sit behind him on the rear bench, while a chubby middle-aged couple got to sit in the front seat next to the pilot… Not fair, but the view from the rear is not much worse than from the front.
At first, after take-off, we went inland above the jagged black lava fields of Kohala coast. According to the pilot, this part of the Big Island interior is often used by the U.S. army and air force for artillery training: “they take things to shoot at out there (trucks, refrigerators, etc) and then blast them to pieces”. Then we flew over the Kilauea volcano with its steaming vents and one lonely house on the slope. According to the pilot, there was a whole suburban sub-division down there a few years ago, which one day simply got wiped out by the volcanic eruption. The lava flow also closed off the only access road, so the remaining resident has to bring in all his supplies on foot. Well, he wanted to “get off the grid”, and that’s exactly what he got… We then flew further down the volcano slope, where red-hot lava meets the ocean in a wall of red glow and steam. Truly an awe-inspiring spectacle. After a few turns along the coast to make sure everybody got a good look at this amazing sight, we turned toward Hilo and landed there for a quick break. After takeoff, we continued up Hamakua coast, and then west towards Waipio Valley, a beautiful and sacred place where many ancient Hawaiian chiefs were buried. We then flew through a few smaller, but not less beautiful, valleys with sheer walls and long waterfalls. Chopper is definitely the only way to see these, and the maneuverability of our A-Star came in quite handy. After that, we flew back towards the Kohala coast and landed at Blue Hawaiian heliport.
We then went for lunch at Merriman’s (back at the Waikoloa Marriott shopping area). The place was recommended by Frommer’s, but was mediocre at best, and suffered from a fly infestation.
After lunch, we drove to check out the nearby Hapuna Beach, which was quite nice. We then went back to the A-Bay beach right in front of our hotel. No sea turtles today… But, I decided to rent a paddleboard. This was my first time on a paddleboard, and the ocean was a bit choppy, so I kept falling off. Well, it was a lot of fun anyway, and Sofia had fun as well taking pictures of me on and off the board…
Afterwards, we went back to the room and had some champagne with pineapple. Delicious!
Sansei again for dinner today (duck for Sofia, steak for me), and the service was much better than yesterday. Got back to the room, finished off the champagne, packed… very early start tomorrow.
Thursday, 8/26/2010
Woke up at 4:30 am to catch our 7:10 am flight to Maui. Returned our Jeep, got to the Go! Mokulele Airlines “terminal”, which is just a little trailer on the outskirts of Kona airport. A few single-engine and twin-engine turboprops are sitting right outside… No coffee… Talked to another couple waiting for the same flight (they are from CA, and the guy just proposed on this trip, with a very small ring).
Anyway, around 6:45 am the airline guy comes from behind his desk and says that the flight is delayed. A few minutes later, he comes by again and says that the plane has a mechanical problem, and the mechanic has been called in (apparently, this crappy airline has no mechanic on location). Finally, 45 minutes later, with no mechanic in sight, he offers to put us on another Go! flight (this one a regular jet, not a turboprop) that departs at 8:25 am, but goes to Maui through Oahu. There is really no choice, since this little plane may never get fixed… so one of the airline employees drives us to the main terminal, and we check in for the 8:25 am flight. Get coffee and wait, and finally get on the plane, happy to be on the move. The plane taxies from the gate on time (even a few minutes early), and then the captain announces that he can’t start the engine and has to go back to the gate and call the mechanic in. Boooooo!!! This airline is shit!
So, we all get off the plane… no information, no updates, nothing… Finally, Go Airlines staff starts trying to put people with mainland connections from Oahu on another flight to Honolulu, as many of them stand to miss their mainland flights. The few of us who are simply trying to get to Maui to continue our vacations are out of luck… Trying to call Go customer service brings no results. The other couple is trying to track down the original turboprop guy (to see whether maybe that plane got fixed), but get nowhere either… Finally, a Go flight crew member tells me that mechanic is on the way to look at the jet and the 8:25 am flight will most likely take off at 11:30 am (still going to Maui through Honolulu). At this point, I say fuck this, this plane may not take off at all, or may take off and then get stuck again at Honolulu… I start looking for other flights to Maui using Sofia’s laptop with Verizon aircard Internet access. There is a direct Hawaiian Airlines flight at 11:17 am, and we book it. With barely an hour to spare, we rush to free our luggage from the claws of Go airlines, check it in with Hawaiian, go through security, and get on our flight. This one actually takes off!
[UPDATE] Sofia wrote an angry e-mail to Go Airlines customer service, and they have agreed to reimburse our original tickets!
So, we finally make it to Maui (Kahului airport) around noon, get our luggage, and go to Avis car rental. The girl at the counter tries to up-sell us to a Corvette or a Mustang convertible, but we stick with our original reservation. So, we get our Jeep, this one a small two-door Wrangler model with a canvas roof, red color. A bit of trouble trying to get the bags in, since the cargo space can barely fit one suitcase. After I drop the back seats, we get both bags in successfully. But the Jeep still rattles and does not feel solid at all. The door handles and seatbelt locks get stuck as well…
Sofia wanted to buy the second season of True Blood (which just came out on DVD), since we were done with the first one. So, we stopped by Wal-Mart, just a few minutes away from the airport, and they did not have any True Blood in stock.
Tired and hungry now, we stopped for a quick lunch at a Japanese place called Ichiban. It is mentioned in Frommer’s, but it’s really just a simple neighborhood joint on a shopping plaza. I had eel (unagi don), which was quite good.
After lunch, we drive to our hotel. Because of Maui geography, we have to drive south first to then go north up the west coast of the island. Look at the map of Maui and this geography will be apparent – a mountainous region in the west, larger mountains in the east, a large valley between the two mountains, and mostly flat coastline areas at both east and west ends.
Anyway, we hit some traffic driving through road construction in the town of Lahaina, and make it to our hotel – Kapalua Villas – around 2:30 pm. Kapalua Villas is actually a collection of villas sharing a huge property on a golf course next to the ocean with Ritz-Carlton Kapalua. Our booking was for a “garden-view” villa, but when we realized how far from the ocean it was, we quickly upgraded to an ocean-view. The check-in personnel were nice enough to show us a couple of different ocean-view villas, and we picked the better-looking one. It was a two-story townhouse with a deck, with a big living/dining room, kitchen and half-bath downstairs, and a bedroom and full bath upstairs. Both floors have huge picture windows with ocean view. There is a washer and drier, so we can wash some clothes, exactly as we had planned. My mom phones in on the landline just as we start unpacking. With our flight delays and cancellations, I did not call and she tracked me down…
We finally unpack and rest a little, then decide to go find the beach. The villas are built into the side of a hill above the ocean. So, the views are magnificent, but the shoreline itself is quite far down slope and looks very rocky and rough. We got into our car and drove (for 2 minutes) to the Kapalua Beach, very highly recommended by Frommer’s. The beach is still within Kapalua Villas property, but of course all beaches are public in Hawaii. Kapalua Beach is small but nice, with golden sand, calm and clear water, and palm trees at both ends. Sofia finally got to try her new mask and snorkel. But, it’s already late afternoon and getting cloudy and even a bit chilly. Somehow, here around Kapalua it always seems more cloudy and windy…
We dry off and drive back to our villa, take a shower, and change for the evening. It does feel chilly, so jeans and closed shoes are the attire of choice.
We drive to Lahaina, which is Hawaii’s old royal capital. The town went through a couple of boom periods – first as a whaling center, then during sugar cane glory days. Now it’s full of art galleries, restaurants, bars, and shops – all lining the Front Street next to the ocean.
We were craving Mexican food, and had our sights set on a particular Mexican place in Lahaina called Cilantro (http://www.cilantrogrill.com/). It was very highly recommended by Frommer’s and won the Taste of Lahaina Award for the last 3 years. It was delicious!!! The place itself looks like a typical fast-food joint – you order and pay at one counter, pick up your orders at another counter, get your own condiments and soft drinks (it’s BYOB). But that’s where the fast food similarities stop. The Mexican food is original and very tasty. We had a few different enchiladas that evening – spinach, mushroom, and poblano; chicken mole; pork chile verde; crab and shrimp… and decided to definitely come back.
After dinner, we walked around Front Street, looking at different art galleries. At one of them, Sargent’s Fine Art, we found a number of interesting paintings, many by Russian painters. We really liked a few paintings by Gleb Goloubetski (a painter from St. Petersburg), especially the “Deep Silence of Venice”. This painting, however, was not the original, but rather a limited-edition copy (with only 100 made). The copy was sold for $3,000, while the originals of his other paintings went for around $10,000. We liked the paintings a lot, but decided that we are too tired to invest in fine art just now… and then there are logistical difficulties (shipping, insurance, etc).
So, after taking to a salesperson (excuse me, the fine art consultant), we went back to our car and drove to Kapalua. We stopped by Safeway on the way to get some groceries for breakfast. After getting back to our villa, we almost immediately went to sleep.
Friday, 8/27/2010
Today we had a sailing trip on a Trilogy catamaran to the island of Lanai. We had breakfast at our villa (yogurt with fruits and granola, and coffee), then drove to Lahaina. Found Trilogy parking, left our Jeep, and walked to the boat dock. Stopped in front of the huge Banyan Tree (planted in 1873, it is now over 50 feet tall and takes up the entire block – more than 2/3 of an acre).
Got on the catamaran, which is unexpectedly big, with quite a few other people on board with us. But, there is enough space for everybody. We soon depart and the crew (4 young guys), start handing out slices of pineapple and soft drinks. I talked to the captain, who is about my age or younger, and asked him whether there is any place in Hawaii to rent a small sailboat (like a Hobie Cat). He said not to his knowledge (too much liability), but offered to let me help his crew with the sails on this boat, when they switch from diesel to sail. Of course, at this point I had to tell him that I only sailed a Hobie Cat a couple of times in Turks & Caicos, and that was a few years ago. He mentioned that he lived in Guadalupe (another Caribbean island) for a year, but did not offer to let me sail anymore…
Anyway, they did put up a sail in a while, and it was a very pleasant sailing trip. The crew handed out sandwiches and more soft drinks. They switched back to diesel for arrival to Lanai, where we docked, got our stuff and disembarked. They offered a couple of additional options – a raft trip around the island, a bus tour of the island – but we and a few other people just went to a very nice beach called the Hulopoe Beach. There were quite a few trees if we wanted shade, and even a few picnic tables. Trilogy guys offered straw mats for the sand, and also snorkeling equipment. We had our own snorkeling gear, so we quickly went in. The water was nice – fairly calm and clear – but there weren’t all that many fish. We did see a few anyway, but Sofia was not happy with this snorkeling (and it was a bit too wavy for her taste). We spent perhaps 3 – 4 hours on the beach – snorkeling, swimming, sunbathing, walking around, eating chips with pineapple salsa (prepared by Trilogy), reading e-mail and news on our Blackberries – in other words, relaxing. Afterwards, we walked back to the Lanai boat dock, where the Trilogy crew had prepared an outdoor lunch, which was simple but good.
Soon after lunch, we got back on the boat and headed back to Maui. We were going into the waves now, and it started getting rough. Just like before, we sat in front of the boat, on the padded floor seats right after the bow tarp. Some teenagers were sitting on the tarp in front of us, and they were getting totally drenched. Very entertaining…
Closer to Maui, the crew put up the sail, and we slowly sailed towards Lahaina harbor while watching the sunset. It was beautiful.
Back in Lahaina, we had our Trilogy parking paid for until midnight. So, we went for a nice candlelight tour of Baldwin house – the oldest house in Lahaina, built in 1834 by Rev. Dwight Baldwin, an American doctor and missionary.
After walking up and down Front Street for some time, we decided to go for dinner back to Cilantro. This time, I had the house special pork chile verde and Sofia had a scallop and prawn chile relleno. Both were great.
We walked around some more, checked out a few art galleries, and around 10:30 pm drove to Kapalua.
Saturday, 8/28/2010
Today, we wanted to drive to the Haleakala (“house of the sun”) National Park. Haleakala mountain is 10,023 feet high and is the world’s largest dormant volcano. Many people drive there at 4:00 am to catch the sunrise, but we aren’t that crazy.
But, first things first. It’s a nice sunny day, so after breakfast we decide to take the top down on our Jeep. What a fiasco… The people who rented it before us didn’t put it back on correctly, and the whole top just fell apart. I could not put it back afterwards, so we decided to stop at Avis (on the way anyway), and complain. We did just that, and they gave us a cool blue Mustang convertible for the price of our original rental. How nice! This car is a real pleasure to drive.
We head towards Haleakala, with Sofia driving. The road snakes back and forth along the slope, climbing up the mountain. At some point, we pass through the clouds. Amazing! We travel the 37-mile serpentine, going from sea level to 10,000 feet elevation, in less than 2 hours.
We get out a few times on the way to take pictures, and it gets increasingly cold and windy. Good thing we have at least our hoodies with us. At the summit, it’s cold (around 55F) and extremely windy. I can only imagine how cold it is here at sunrise… But, we are above the clouds and the views are absolutely amazing. Too bad it’s so cold and we can’t stay longer. Next time, we’ll come better prepared, perhaps to hike the many wilderness trails in the Haleakala dormant crater.
It’s time to start our descent, and this time I take the wheel. It’s a thrill to drive Mustang on this serpentine road. I’m very happy we switched the Jeep for this car. Sofia is tired and she falls asleep while I drive down the mountain.
At this point, feeling quite hungry, we stopped at Kula Lodge and Restaurant for lunch. The place is built into the side of the mountain (foothills at the bottom of Haleakala really), and each outside table is in a separate gazebo, many on different elevations. So, each table feels very private. The surroundings are beautifully landscaped; there is a small waterfall and a big stone fireplace/oven where they make pizza. The inside is nice as well, all done in dark woods, with a view of the countryside below. Anyway, we sat outside and had Maui cattle burgers – mine with bacon and blue cheese, and Sofia’s with sautéed Maui onions. Seems simple, but those burgers were very tasty.
After lunch, we checked out the store next to the lodge, and Sofia was amazed to find New York style flatbreads with seeds and spices – exactly the brand that she sometime buys in the city. We immediately bought a pack. There was also a very nice lamp, and a live-size French bulldog carved out of solid wood. Sofia almost got that bulldog, but he weighted over 20 pounds, so we had to leave him behind.
After lunch, we drove south to check out South Maui coast – Kihei and Wailea. Kihei is mostly mid-level hotels and condos, whereas Wailea has more expensive luxury hotels. The south coast of Maui has several nice beaches stretching along it, but I wanted to see one particular beach called Oneloa Beach (or Big Beach). It was very nice – long and wide, and not crowded at all this late in the day. The only facilities they had were extremely dirty portable toilets, so Sofia did not change into swimsuit. I did, and went for a swim a couple of times, while Sofia napped.
Around 5:30 pm, it started getting chilly. We left the beach and drove towards our villa, stopping on the way to take pictures of the sunset.
We had a dinner reservation at the Pineapple Grill, located on Kapalua property. According to Frommer’s, “if you had only a single night to eat on the island of Maui, this would be the place to go”. The restaurant lived up to its reputation and more. I had a tuna steak (crusted with pistachios and wasabi peas) and Sofia had a fish special served on a bed of sautéed vegetables. Both were delicious, as was the desert – upside-down Maui pineapple cake with Whaler dark-rum sauce and macadamia-nut ice cream).
After dinner, we packed our suitcases to prepare for tomorrow’s drive to Hana, and went to sleep.
Sunday, 8/29/2010
After breakfast, we stuffed our bags into Mustang. This was somewhat of a challenge, as the trunk barely fit one suitcase. The second one had to go on the back seat. Still, much, much better than the crappy little Jeep Wrangler we had before. We check out of Kapalua and embark on the epic journey to Hana.
The road to Hana runs along the northeastern shore of Maui, snaking along the coast for 50 miles past amazing seascapes, waterfalls, botanical gardens, and rainforest hiking trails. It passes over many one-lane bridges and involves lots of blind hairpin turns, often combined with inclines or declines in the road. It is a beautiful drive, as long as you relax, don’t rush, and enjoy the scenery.
Before starting on Hana Highway, we stopped in the town of Paia, at the Hookipa Beach Park – one of prime windsurfing spots. There were a few surfers and windsurfers out in the water, and a couple of vendors selling trinkets in the parking lot.
Then we started our drive on Hana Highway. We stopped quite a few times – twice for rainforest hikes to small streams and waterfalls, once to visit a beautifully landscaped botanical garden with peacocks and nene (Hawaiian geese), and many times just to take pictures.
We arrived in Hana around 3:00 pm and checked into our hotel – Hotel Hana Maui. The hotel is actually a collection of little cottages spread over a vast hillside overlooking the ocean. There are a couple of pools, hot tubs, a gym, yoga classes, etc. The hotel also offers horseback riding and kayaking trips, and a shuttle to Hamoa Beach. Well, we are here for one night only, so we change and go to check out the village.
The entire Hana village has a very quiet, serene atmosphere. There are no chain stores or fast-food joints. There is just a Chevron gas station and Hasegawa’s General Store (celebrating its 100’s jubilee), one hotel (ours), and a few B&B’s. Hasegawa’s is amazing – it is a true general store, selling everything – from food and fresh produce to tools and PVC pipes. And just as well, since there is no Costco or Home Depot for miles.
But, first things first… First we went to check out the closest beach to our hotel – Hana Beach Park. It was a small gray-sand beach, with mostly locals hanging out there. There was something that looked like a big meeting, which then turned out to be a gathering of the local outrigger canoe club. In a few minutes, the meeting was over and they were in canoes and out on the water. Hana Beach was supposed to be good for snorkeling, but with clouds rolling in we decided not to get in. The water looked a bit rough as well…
Then we actually drove backward on the Hana Highway for 10 minutes to Waianapanapa State Park to look at its black sand beach and lava formations (sea cliffs, lava tubes and arches, etc). Here the water was really rough and there were only a few people in the water. The views were great though, and we took several pictures.
Then we got back in the car and went to look at the Red Sand Beach, which was visible from the hillside next to our hotel. As we looked at that beach, it started raining a bit, so we drove to check out the rest of Hana village – Hasegawa’s store, gas station – and stopped at a fruit stand to buy a pineapple and a mango. The fruits were delicious, although the woman who sold them was a bit weird… or maybe just in tune with Hana’s sleepy atmosphere.
Returning back to our hotel, we made dinner reservations at its restaurant, and went for a dip in the pool and hot tub.
Dinner was nice – on a terrace overlooking the ocean – but the food was unremarkable (not bad though).
Monday, 8/30/2010
Had a nice breakfast at our hotel (included in booking) – eggs benedict with salmon.
Then we checked out, got gas, and drove south on Hana Highway. A few minutes later, we reached a sign for Hamoa Beach. Parked on a little grassy patch on the side of the road, next to somebody’s truck, got our beach gear, and walked down stone steps to the beach itself. Hamoa Beach was very nice – fine gray sand framed by tropical greenery and palm trees. For guests of Hotel Hana, there was an attendant who provided beach chairs, towels, and free waters. Also for hotel guests there were indoor showers and changing rooms, which we were planning to use later. We spent about 4 hours on this beach – swimming, relaxing, reading, napping (in Sofia’s case). The great thing was that even as the day progressed, the beach never got all that crowded. It felt very peaceful and serene, just like the rest of Hana… Finally, around 1:00 pm, we regretfully said goodbye to Hamoa Beach. Took showers, changed, got back in the car and kept driving south.
After about 45 minutes, we drove up to the Kipahulu entrance to the Haleakala National Park. As you may recall, we visited the Haleakala mountain summit on Saturday, and our entrance tickets were still good (they are valid for 3 days). It did not matter that this was a different entrance into the park. So, with those tickets, in we went. The place where we were now was called Oheo Gulch, and it offered great hiking opportunities. There were nice waterfalls less than ½ mile from the parking area, flowing into several freshwater ponds (so-called Seven Sacred Pools). Apparently, this was a popular place, because there was a whole bunch of people heading that way from the parking lot with towels, and quite a few people coming back looking like they went for a dip. In any case, we decided to go check out the bigger waterfalls first. After a fairly easy hike (about ½ mile), we have reached Makahiku Falls, and then several nice overlooks for viewing and taking pictures. We continued uphill on the Pipiwai Trail, which got progressively harder – steeper, more rocky and muddy. This part of the hike was about 1.5 miles, but it took us well over an hour (perhaps 1.5 hours). Somewhere in the middle, we bumped into a couple and the girl recognized Sofia – apparently she was a recently hired project manager from New York Presbyterian IT. Those NYP people are everywhere! So we walked with them for 10-15 minutes… There were still beautiful views from several high overlooks (most marked with “Danger! Fatal Drop!” signs). The trail passed through an amazing bamboo forest the likes of which I have never seen before. Tall and thick green bamboos were growing so close together, they were almost forming a wall of green. They were so tall and the trail so narrow, it seemed we were walking through a bamboo tunnel. Also, as the wind periodically picked up, the trunks would slam against each other with a sharp cracking sound. After we emerged from the bamboo forest, we had to cross a couple of shallow streams, basically looking for rocks sticking out of the water and stepping from one to another. At the end of the trail our reward was waiting – a sheer 400-foot stone wall with a magnificent waterfall – Waimoku Falls. We were a the bottom of the wall, next to a large freshwater pool formed by the Waimoku Falls, and we just stood there and marveled at the sight. After taking a few pictures and resting a bit, we had started our hike back. I was once again amazed by this incredible bamboo forest.
When we got back to the parking area, we were quite tired. Nevertheless, we decided to go and take a look at the Seven Sacred Pools, which was an easy 10-minute walk. The waterfalls and the ponds were nice, although crowded, with people swimming and climbing over the rocks. It was still a very beautiful view – a narrow valley cut in the mountain, waterfalls, pools of water on several different levels of elevation, and at the end of it all a bright blue ocean. Neither one of us had any desire to dip in these ponds. I generally don’t like to swim in fresh water, I prefer the ocean, and Sofia generally does not like to risk wetting her hair. Plus, there were some signs about bacteria in the water… So, we took a few pictures and headed back to our car.
It was already after 4:00 pm, and we still had a long journey ahead of us. For that night, we had a hotel reservation at Plantation Inn back in Lahaina. We also had a 7:00 pm dinner reservation at Gerard’s – a highly recommended French restaurant at Plantation Inn. I know, we already stayed in Kapalua for 3 nights and hung out in Lahaina enough. However, we wanted to stay in Plantation Inn for one night because it looked like a very nice romantic hotel. It did not make sense to stay there longer because it was not on the beach.
Anyway, coming back from East Maui to Lahaina, we had two choices – head back north through Hana and Hana Highway, or try our luck on the southern route. The southern road around Maui – Piilani Highway – is narrow and winding, partially unpaved and partially very badly paved, with plenty of blind turns and one-lane bridges. It is sometimes completely closed to traffic, usually in the wet season. I have asked a number of people, both at the Hana Hotel and at the Haleakala Park ranger station whether this road is open and whether a Ford Mustang can take it. They all told me that the road is open and currently dry and that Mustangs travel on it all the time. So, that’s the road we took. It was a very slow journey, as the paved portions of the road were arguably worse than unpaved, and I did not want to rush. The scenery was beautiful though, if a bit dry – the road snaking along the shore through seemingly uninhabited countryside, with the mountain rising on another side. Where the slope was not too steep, we could see old lava flows with some grass and shrubs growing. We saw many cattle and even more “Cattle Crossing” signs on the road. We also saw several black goats (not sure whether they were wild or domestic). After about 1.5 hours on this road, we noticed that it moved away from the shore and became a bit less winding. The pavement also got smoother, and I hit the gas. It was still deserted – no people and no cops, very few other cars – so I drove the Mustang as it’s supposed to be driven. We flew through this stretch of Piilani Highway, but then, due to the peculiar Maui geography, we could not just cut across to Wailea and Kihei and drive up the west coast to Lahaina. No, we had to first drive north on the Kula Highway and Haleakala Highway, getting almost all the way back to the airport before turning back southwest towards the coast and Lahaina. We realized that we would be a bit late for dinner, so we called ahead to warn them. The drive took longer than we had expected, however we were still glad we went through the southern Maui – the drive was an experience in itself, the scenery was nice, and it was better to spend time going slow due to road conditions then due to late afternoon traffic on Hana Highway, as the crowds of day-tripping tourists all decide to head back to West Maui at around the same time.
We were back in Lahaina around 6:50 pm, checked into the hotel (which was very nice), took a quick shower, and came out for dinner at around 7:30 pm. The restaurant was nice, however they recommended Sofia a quail pie (made with puff pastry) for the main course, and she did not like it a single bit. The escargot appetizer was good though, and my main course (local fish) was very tasty as well.
After dinner, we went for a stroll through Lahaina’s Front Street, feeling quite at home here. We had a long day behind us though, so we did not stay up long.
Tuesday, 8/31/2010
We had a flight to Honolulu in the late afternoon (around 5:30 pm), so we still had more than half-day in Maui. After breakfast at Plantation Inn (included with hotel booking), we enquired about late check-out. They tried to say no at first, but I explained that “late check-out” does not mean 3:00 pm instead of noon. It just means an extra hour at the most. So, the manager relented and gave us check out at 1:00 pm. This now taken care of, we grabbed our beach gear and drove to Kaanapali Beach, about third-way between Lahaina and Kapalua. It is a 4-mile-long stretch of golden sand dotted with many high-rise hotels. We actually thought of staying here for our first three nights in Maui, but renting a villa for the same price or less a bit further away seemed like a better deal. Anyway, we quickly found free public parking behind one of the Kaanapali hotels. Again, in case you forgot – there are no private beaches in Hawaii, so all hotels and resorts must provide public beach access and at least some public parking, however limited. This parking lot was very limited – only 10 spaces or so – but it was early (around 9:00 am), so there were still a few available spots. We went straight to the beach and dropped on the sand. We went for a swim, then walked a bit along the beach. I noticed a beach activities counter in front of a hotel, and they rented stand-up paddleboards. The water was very calm, so I decided to try again. I rented the board for an hour, and took it out. This was an amazing experience! The board was larger than the one I tried in Waikoloa Marriott on the Big Island. The board there was just a large surfboard and the waves were pretty strong. The paddle they gave me there was also a bit too short. No wonder I kept falling off... This board here was a true SUP board (stand-up paddleboard) – larger and more stable – and they actually took the time to measure how long a paddle I needed. A totally different experience. I went quite far away from the shore and had tons of fun paddling along. Sofia took a couple of pictures, however I was so far that she had to use digital zoom. I had so much fun with this board, I decided to definitely go again on Oahu. Having returned the board, I went for a swim again, and soon it was time to get back to our hotel.
We drove back to Lahaina, took a shower, packed, and checked out. It was right around 1:00 pm – a good time for lunch, and we were only two blocks away from our old favorite Mexican place – Cilantro’s. So, we parked there and enjoyed our big plates of delicious Cilantro’s Mexican specialties.
Afterwards, we drove out of Lahaina and headed towards the airport. We still had some time to spare, so we decided to stop at the Iao Valley State Park, which was just a quick detour on the way to airport. This lush valley cuts through West Maui mountains and affords visitors many beautiful sights without strenuous hiking. There is a paved 0.35 mile loop that takes you through the lush rainforest, along the quiet Iao Stream, and opens up to the views of Iao Needle – a pointy rock which was formed through erosion and which reaches about 2,250 feet above sea level. The mountains here are geologically older and not nearly as tall as Haleakala, so they are heavily forested and look very green. The Iao Valley also had rich history – here in 1790, King Kamehameha the Great engaged his enemies in a battle for control of Maui. When the battle ended, so many dead bodies blocked the Iao Stream, that the brook was temporarily dammed.
Anyway, this was supposed to be an easy stroll, but just on 8/31/2010 the park entrance was closed for repairs! This meant no vehicles could get though. However, it’s not like anybody was guarding the entrance. So, we left the car in a nearby parking lot and went towards the park on foot. The walk was about 0.75 miles uphill and it was hot, but once we got to the park it was shady and cool in the rainforest and by the brook. The views were nice and the Iao Needle was impressive. This park had a very quiet and serene atmosphere, perhaps because it was closed and there were just a handful of intrepid visitors like us.
We left the park around 2:45 pm and headed to the airport. Dropped of the car, checked our luggage, and got on our flight. This being a Hawaiian Airlines flight (not Go or Mokulele), it was not cancelled, but only slightly delayed.
We got to Oahu almost on time, around 6:15 pm, and got our rental car – this time, a gray Mustang convertible. We already had experience stuffing our suitcases into its limited cargo space, so that was easy. We got Halekulani up on our GPS, and drove there. The traffic was pretty bad, but Sofia did well with urban driving.
Halekulani is right on Waikiki Beach, on a relatively quiet dead-end road. We drove up and the parking attendants immediately got our luggage out of the car and went to park it. This was only the beginning of outstanding service and awesome experience we had in this hotel. I was never this impressed by a mere hotel, and I stayed in nice hotels before. Halekulani was a step (or several steps) above all of them, even better then Bellagio (in Vegas).
In Halekulani, they complete only the briefest of formalities at the front desk. They keep you there for literally two minutes – long enough to take your name and a credit card imprint. Then, a hotel employee takes you up to your room, giving you a brief tour of the hotel and its facilities on the way. The check-in is completed at your room. The hotel is built on a fairly large property and has 3 mid-rise buildings with 400 rooms total. So, unlike other huge high-rise hotels on Waikiki, it never seemed crowded. Most of the rooms have at least partial ocean views and decent outdoor spaces.
Our room was pretty large, with a huge deck. The bathroom was also large, with a soaking tub (no jets though) and a separate shower. The sink had the same Gröhe faucet that we have at home, which impressed me immensely. I said that we should be able to stay here as long as we want, since they have the same faucet as we have at home. The sizeable closet was accessible both from the room and from the bathroom, and the supplied bathrobes and slippers were high-quality soft terrycloth.
So, after getting to our room we completed the check-in procedures, and then the porter brought our luggage. We unpacked and hung up our clothes, since we were staying here for 5 nights, and went to explore. It was getting late and we were getting hungry, so we decided to go for dinner to Halekulani’s casual outdoor restaurant called “A House Without a Key”, after a famous detective novel. It was Tuesday, so they had a grill night, and it was great. We sat at one of the tables close to the ocean, had cocktails and then I had grilled shutome (Hawaiian swordfish) and Sofia had a surf-and-turf burger with crabmeat.
After dinner, we went for a stroll through Waikiki’s main street – Kalakua Avenue and its surroundings. There were people everywhere – shopping, dining, and just walking around. The shopping looked great – a huge Royal Hawaiian mall and a duty-free DFS Galleria. Duty-free and tax-free shopping in the U.S., without an international plane ticket… amazing! In addition, a bunch of smaller stores and designer boutiques, from Chanel to Diesel. There were guys on the street handing out coupons for indoor shooting ranges. I picked one up, and apparently there were several shooting ranges right in Waikiki, and you can shoot fairly exotic weapons there, including an Uzi and an AK-47. I am too tired after a long day, but perhaps I’ll try this next day.
We were actually both tired, so after about an hour of walking around we headed back to the hotel and went to sleep.
Wednesday, 9/1/2010
We woke up fairly early and decided to go snorkeling at Hanauma Bay Marine Life Sanctuary. First, I went to get the car and Sofia went to grab a couple of coffees at Starbucks on the corner. It turned out to be down a one-way street from the hotel, but after circling around a couple of times, I finally picked her up and we headed down to Hanauma. It was not a long drive, and we were there just after 9:00 am. It was important to get there early, because once the parking lot fills up, you have no place to park and can’t go in. Also, it’s far better to snorkel when it’s not so crowded yet.
After we had parked, we had to wait a few minutes to see a mandatory informational video about the marine life at this nature preserve. Then we headed down to the beach. Snorkeling was good, once you got over the apprehension of swimming over the reef. It was quite shallow and the water was very clear, so it felt like we were swimming right on top of the corral. In reality, we would probably not touch the corral even if we were to try standing up, except maybe in a few spots. However, it seemed very close. Anyway, once I started swimming over the corral, I saw tons of different fish. They were many different varieties – big and small, colorful and just black, some similar to Caribbean and some very different. I definitely enjoyed this snorkeling. Sofia was not as impressed though.
Although the water was warm, it was not bathtub warm, and after some time snorkeling we felt chilly. As it were, it was not very sunny that morning, so it was hard to warm up after getting out of the water. We went snorkeling again after a while, for another 20 minutes or so. Then, after drying up, we took an outdoor shower to get the salt water of, changed, and headed out.
We continued driving up the east coast for a bit, getting out to see the Haloha Blowhole and Sandy Beach – the famous bodysurfing beach, which is so dangerous that there is always an ambulance on standby there.
Afterwards, it was around noon and we were starting to feel hungry. We both had a craving for dim sum, and Sofia noticed what looked like a good dim sum place in Frommer’s called Panda Cuisine in downtown Honolulu. I called them and confirmed that they served dim sum until 2 pm. We punched them into our GPS and drove there. The drive took about 20 minutes and we found a parking spot right in front of the restaurant. The dim sum was really good with a good variety. I even had smoked barbecue pork!
Anyway, after dim sum, we went to Walmart across the street and (finally!) picked up True Blood Season 2. Sofia was very happy.
Then, we drove towards Chinatown, parked, and went to explore. As it turned out, we had parked a bit far from the actual Chinatown, but we did get there eventually, after a 15-minute walk. It was very lively, with lots of little shops selling everything – live fish and other seafood, meats, fresh produce and fruits, and of course souvenirs. We bought a bag of lychees and a dragon fruit, walked around some more, headed back to the car, and drove back to Halekulani.
I wanted to go tan and maybe swim, but Sofia was a bit tired. So, I went to the pool and she stayed in the room to take a nap.
Down by the pool, the service was superb. The attendants offered not only towels, but also soft terrycloth covers for chaise longues. The beach was right outside a small gate, so I could simply get up from my chaise, walk a few meters, open the gate, and I was on the beach. On the way back I could use the shower right next to the gate to wash the sand off my feet. How very civilized! I went for a swim like this a few times, and in between swims simply relaxed, tanned and listened to “The Passage” on my iPod.
Sofia, as it turned out, in the meantime took a bubble bath and a nap, got the DVD player installed, and watched a couple of True Blood episodes.
It was getting late in the afternoon, so I got back to the room, took a shower, and we went for a walk. We had a dinner reservation at Nobu, right across the street from Halekulani, however that was later.
For now, we had some time, so I decided to go shooting. I still had the coupon I picked up the day before and I easily found that range – just three blocks away from the hotel on Kalakua Ave. I shot a .22LR Ruger rifle, a 9mm Springfield XD-9, a .45 Glock 21, a .38 S&W revolver (medium size model), a huge .44 S&W Magnum revolver, an M-16 rifle, and a Beretta CX-4 Storm carbine. This was a lot of fun, although a bit too quick. All I had to do was shoot – the range attendant would load all firearms and hand them to me.
Sofia, in the meantime, went shopping at the Swarovski store, but did not buy anything. Then, we went to the Diesel store and I bought a pair of blue jeans. Sofia tried a couple of pairs as well, but did not like any of them.
Finally, it was time to go for dinner. We were not very hungry, so we got a fairly light dinner at Nobu – just some appetizers and sushi rolls. Both their drinks and their food were very good, and the atmosphere was great. The service, however, was somewhat erratic. For example, the waiter kept dropping things at the table next to ours. One of those things was a soy sauce bottle, and I was lucky I did not get splashed. I think those waiters were just trying to be very fast…
After dinner, we went back to the hotel and watched a couple of True Blood (season 2) episodes (same ones Sofia already watched earlier that afternoon).
Thursday, 9/2/2010
Today, we decided to just relax in Halekulani in the morning. Also, I saw a board rental on the beach right outside of the Halekulani pool gate, and I wanted to try the stand-up paddleboard again. First, I went to grab Starbucks, while Sofia was getting up. However, I suspected that at a hotel of Halekulani’s caliber they must offer complimentary coffee in the morning. And of course they did. So, I grabbed a couple of cups, took them upstairs, and we had coffee with fruits on our deck.
Then, we grabbed sunscreen, our iPods and some reading, and went to the pool. I immediately went to enquire about the paddleboard and rented one for 1.5 hours for just $25. The ocean was very calm, at least close to the shore. I took the board out pretty far, where it was more windy and wavy, so it would be more of a challenge. Once I was far enough out, I paddled east more or less parallel to the shore towards Diamond Head Crater. Having gotten into the rhythm of the waves, I could pay less attention to the task of staying upright and more attention to the surrounding beauty. The view of Honolulu skyline from the water was amazing. I could see the huge Diamond Head really close, and all the Waikiki hotels, and further behind them, small white houses on the hillsides against the backdrop of perfect blue sky. All of this beauty reminded me of Rio de Janeiro... There was a small yacht out there in the ocean with a middle-aged couple going snorkeling. I exchanged a few words with the guy, and all of a sudden I saw a pod of dolphins jumping in and out of the water, really close to my board! I’ve never seen dolphins this close. And they just kept jumping in and out of the water, circling around the boat. The guy told me those dolphins came by the day before as well, circling his yacht the same way. Amazing! Anyway, after that, I paddled west along the shore, still quite far away from the beach. This was a perfect solitude – ust ocean, sun, my board and paddle, and I. There were a few other paddle-boarders out, and a few snorkel boats. After a while, I noticed three huge sea turtles. They were just laying there flat on the surface, periodically raising their heads, taking a noisy breath and then lowering their heads back in the water. I got so close to those turtles that I could almost touch one with the paddle (but of course I did not). After a while, the closest one finally got spooked and dove deep out of sight. Soon the other two had followed. I paddled along some more, practiced some turns… some people from a snorkel boat waved at me… then my 90 minutes were running out, so I headed back to the shore. Got back and turned in my board, and went back to Halekulani pool.
We spent another hour or two there at the pool, then changed, got our car, and headed into town. We liked yesterday’s dim sum at Panda Cuisine so much, we decided to go back there for lunch today. It was just as good as the day before.
After lunch, we got some Starbucks frappuchinos, and drove to Iolani Palace – the Hawaiian royal palace. Because we were staying in Halekulani, we had free admission to Iolani, however we had to wait until the next admission time. This was ok, since we had to re-park our car anyway, and finding parking in downtown Honolulu was not easy… Anyway, Iolani Palace was very small by the standards of European royal residences (just a big house really), but still very interesting. It was built in 1882 by King David Kalakua, who spared no expense. The project lasted 4 years and nearly bankrupted the Hawaiian kingdom. David Kalakua was apparently a very well-read and well-traveled king, and he wanted all the latest technology on his new palace. For example, Iolani Palace had electricity from the start, and before the White House and the Buckingham Palace… We also learned a bit about Hawaiian history, especially the last years of Hawaiian monarchy. The last Hawaiian monarch – Queen Liliuokalani – was held here as a prisoner after she was deposed in a coup led by U.S. Marines on Jan 17, 1893. The coup was organized by wealthy U.S. sugar planters and missionary descendants, whose influence the Queen was trying to curb. I suppose, U.S. government’s history of interfering in affairs of other countries goes that far back in time…
After the palace visit, we drove back to Halekulani. It was late afternoon, and I went for a quick swim and back to the room. We took a shower, changed, and went outside to watch the sunset. We took a cocktail table in House Without a Key, had some specialty drinks, and watched a beautiful sunset. Then, we decided to stay there for dinner, and it was a grill night again. So we simply switched our dishes from the other night – Sofia had my shutome, and I had her surf and turf burger. Both were as good as before…
After dinner, we went for a walk around Waikiki, then watched a couple more True Blood episodes, and went to sleep.
Friday, 9/3/2010
Today our plan was to go to Oahu’s North Shore. We woke up fairly early (around 8:00 am), got complimentary coffees and drank them downstairs with some bananas. Then we got our car and headed out. We first went through some little local Waikiki streets and then got onto H1 going northwest. The H1 highway in Honolulu is a bit confusing, because it tends to divide abruptly and then rejoin, but with Garmin’s help we found our way to H2 north. The H2 highway runs through Oahu’s central valley, which is a primarily agricultural area. The highway ends about 18 miles outside Honolulu, around the town of Wahiawa and Schofield Barracks, and becomes a quiet two-lane country road. Schofield Barracks is a large military base, and it is supposed to be quite beautiful, with wide boulevards and Art Deco buildings. During the Japanese attack on Dec-7-1941, their planes first strafed Schofield before continuing on to bomb U.S. Navy ships at Pearl Harbor. Of course, it’s a military installation, so we couldn’t visit it even if we wanted to. Anyway, a bit further north we passed the Dole Pineapple Plantation, but decided not to stop. Somehow a pineapple history tour just did not sound enticing enough…
The road continues north as Hwy. 99 or Kamehameha Highway, and leads to Haleiwa – a famous surfing town on the North Shore. The big waves of course are in the winter, and that’s when the town allegedly comes alive with all the surfers. Now in the beginning of September it felt a bit empty. Frommer’s raved about the breakfast in Haleiwa, and we were planning to eat here. However, although a couple of breakfast places looked ok, we simply weren’t hungry yet, just an hour after our morning coffee. Plus, none of those breakfast places looked like anything special…
So, after a brief walk through Haleiwa’s main street, we headed east along the North Shore’s Hwy. 83. Less than 30 minutes later we arrived to Waimea Beach – a nice and quiet golden sand beach. There were very few people here and it felt very different from the urban Waikiki Beach. When we parked, we noticed a bunch of wild chickens and other small birds running around in the bushes next to the parking lot. Among them, there was a reddish stripy cat, and they were totally oblivious to it. I guess they were all friends, the cat and all the birds…
Anyway, we spent about an hour on Waimea Beach, swimming in calm water and basking in the late morning sun. After a while, it started getting a bit too hot and we headed out.
We continued along the North Shore, stopping a few times to look around and take pictures. It got cloudy and a few brief summer showers passed through (according to Frommer’s, it rains twice more on North Shore than in Honolulu). So, we had to close and re-open the top of our Mustang a few times. We started getting hungry, however we did not see any interesting places to stop for lunch. We had passed Turtle Bay Resort a while back, when we weren’t all that hungry yet, and we did not feel like having a big long lunch anyway. We passed the Polynesian Cultural Center, but did not really feel like going in. It would be a long tour, and the parking lot was crowded with big tour buses, so we had a good enough excuse to skip this. And rightly so, because just a few miles down the road there was a much better attraction – shrimp farms. We stopped at one of them – just a tiny building with a covered outdoor seating area on the side of the road, with several large shrimp ponds behind. They cooked the shrimps to order, with several choices of spicy sauces. The shrimps were large and delicious, and we had a great lunch!
After lunch, we continued driving around the island. We visited the Kualoa Beach Park and took some pictures of the small islet offshore and the surrounding mountains. Then we also visited Kailua Beach – a long tree-lined beach in the town of Kailua – Oahu’s largest beach town. The beach actually looked very nice, but it was very cloudy and windy. So, we walked around and headed out on the Pali Hwy (Hwy 61). Less than 30 minutes later, we have reached the Nuuanu Pali Lookout, a mountain pass at about 1,186 feet above sea level. It was very windy here, but the view of Oahu’s windward side was absolutely amazing. Apparently this used to be a popular place for launching gliders, and there was this plaque there:
An international soaring record was established here on December 18, 1931. William A. Cocke, Jr. remained aloft in a glider called the Nighthawk for 21 hours 34 minutes, a new U.S. and world endurance record for motorless flight. Cocke’s Nighthawk launched from the John Galt Gliderport, located a short distance northeast of this marker. Illuminating the path for Cocke and his Nighthawk along the cliff face during the night was the U.S. Army’s 64th Coast Artillery Battery. This marker is dedicated to the people of Hawaii who helped make this flight possible, and to the thousands of glider pilots inspired by the feat.
Not sure whether the “John Galt Gliderport” had anything to do the “Atlas Shrugged” protagonist… I was not able to find anything online about this…
After the Pali Lookout visit, we continued driving on Hwy 61, which led us back to H1 and to Honolulu pretty quickly. Back in Halekulani, I went for a quick swim while Sofia relaxed in the room. We then took a shower and went out.
We went for dinner to a sushi place on Kalakua Avenue, which was ok, but not remarkable. While walking around before dinner, we also discovered a Cheesecake Factory restaurant, and made plans to go there for lunch the next day. This part of Waikiki was more crowded with tourists and felt a bit Vegas-y. We were very glad that we were staying in Halekulani and in a more classy part of Waikiki.
After dinner and a walk, we headed back home and went to sleep.
Saturday, 9/4/2010
This morning, we took our beach gear and went downstairs. Grabbed a couple of chaises by the pool and had coffee. Then, I rented a paddleboard and headed out for 1.5 hours. I did not see any dolphins this time, but did see a few big sea turtles. I was having a lot of fun paddle-boarding, and I would surely miss it. It’s not the kind of activity that you can easily do in NJ…
After I got back, we spent some time by the pool and went swimming a few times. Once, while swimming, we saw a big sea turtle swimming right next to us. Sofia even got scared at first. Maybe it was one of those turtles I made friends with while paddle-boarding earlier?
Around 11:00 am we ordered and ate a quick snack by the pool, and then went for a long walk along Waikiki beach. Once again, we were amazed how much better the pool-and-beach setup in Halekulani was compared to other hotels on Waikiki, and how much less crowded Halekulani felt.
After the walk and a swim and another swim, it started getting hot and we started getting hungry. So, we went for lunch at Cheesecake Factory. Sofia had Vietnamese shrimp rolls and I had fish tacos. Both dishes were tasty, the service was great, and we had a great table with a view of Kalakua Avenue. Unfortunately, we had no space for cheesecake left in our little stomachs, so we just went to look at them, and they looked positively mouthwatering.
I told Sofia that, by the way, there is a Cheesecake Factory in Edison in Menlo Park Mall, and promised to take her there when we are back in NJ.
Now I wanted to shoot some very specific military automatic weapons, and Sofia wanted to go shopping in DFS (duty free), so we did just that. I went back to the place where I shot on Wednesday. This time, I selected an Uzi, an MP-5, and an AK-47. Of course, I shot all of those on single-shot, not full-auto, but it was fun anyway. I liked MP-5 the best… Uzi was too short and hard to control, and AK-47 had vicious recoil.
While I had my fun with the military-grade weapons, Sofia bought a bottle of Jadore perfume in DFS. We have also been looking for sunglasses for her, and she noticed a Pucci pair that she liked. We decided to go look at it together later.
While waiting for her, I got a Starbucks frappucino to share, and we went back to Halekulani to spend some more time at the pool and on the beach.
In the evening, we had a dinner reservation at the Orchids restaurant in Halekulani. I had onaga (ruby snapper) and Sofia does not remember what she had. I though the dinner was quite good, and the view of the ocean just a few yards away was magnificent.
After dinner, we went for a short walk on the beach, and then back to the room for some True Blood.
Sunday, 9/5/2010
In the morning, after coffee, I again rented a paddleboard for 1.5 hours… last time for a while. Once again, it was an amazing experience, and I got to see a couple of turtles. It was a bit more windy and wavy away from the shore than the other day, and I had a great workout maneuvering the board.
After I turned in the board, I noticed a guy with a bulldog coming ashore right next to Halekulani. The bulldog was medium-size and very muscular and he kept running from one end of the surfboard to another. It was quite an entertaining sight, and a small crowd had gathered, watching and taking pictures.
At this point we were quite hungry and decided to go for Halekulani’s buffet breakfast. It’s good this was our last day, because we may have wanted to go for this breakfast again and again otherwise. There were all kinds of fresh fruits, eggs made to order, smoked salmon, and other good stuff. Great breakfast!
We had to check out at 1 pm, but the hotel provided courtesy suites where we could store our hand luggage and even take showers. Since our flight was at 7:50 pm, this was great. The porters took our luggage to store downstairs, while we stuck our carry-on bags in the courtesy suite lockers, and went back to the beach for the last couple of hours of sun and ocean.
Later in the afternoon, we were still not hungry after that big breakfast. So, we just went to Cheesecake Factory and got a couple of cheesecakes to go. We also went to DFS and got those Pucci sunglasses for Sofia.
After that, I took a shower in the courtesy suite. Then we changed for travel, checked in for our flight online and printed out our boarding passes on the courtesy suite computer, and headed out.
Said goodbye to Halekulani and the ocean, got our car, drove to the airport, turned in the car… and thus ended the vacation.
Oh, and on the flight we made the flight attendant jealous by eating Cheesecake Factory cheesecakes. And we also watched True Blood episodes on Sofia’s laptop until it ran out of battery.
