Heading Home

Monday we were up to go our for a walk and grab a coffee, before picking up some macadamia nuts at the grocery store, and having a quick walk on the beach.

We met up with the bride and groom for breakfast before heading in a cab to the airport. While taxing to the runway we again passed by Hickam Air Force Station and saw a couple of C-5 Galaxy and C-17 Globemaster III transport aircraft on the tarmac.

There were also a couple F-22s under canopies and a lineup of them in behind some trees.

Like that we were up and away from Hawaii on our 6.5 hour flight back to Calgary.

Last Day in Hawaii

On Sunday we were up for a coffee on the beach. The Honolulu half-half-marathon was underway and there were lots of runners.

We got back for a quick breakfast and boarded our bus to Hanauma Bay to go snorkeling. It was pretty sunny and decently warm so we were excited when we got there and through our mandatory video and down to the beach.

We got changed and found a decent piece of sand to put our bags then worked our way into the water. It is very shallow and you are not supposed to touch any rocks or coral, only sand, so there is a fairly lengthy swim from shore out in just over knee deep water.

We got out to the deeper parts and saw lots of fish. Maybe not in the quantities at one spot as when we were on the north shore, but more in total. It was nice getting to some deep spots and seeing the much larger fish.

We went to the outer portion of the rocks through the centre channel, and got to some of the deeper sections, again providing bigger fish to see.

We were having a bit of issues with our masks so worked our way back in through the channel to get back to shore. The strong current signs were very accurate as we were swimming hard to stay in place as the pull went out and then powered forward in between. During the time the current was pulling our the fish just went along for the ride. One big fish came really close and avoided Anne at the last second.

We ended up renting  new masks and taking a break before heading out on our second tour out. This time we stayed inside the main rock and found a deep hole with a bunch of parrot fish. It was crazy to hear how loud their beaks were when they were eating off the rocks.

We headed back in, and after our second warm up and rest break the camera stopped working for our third and last time in the water. We again went out through the channel, but getting cold, tired, and somewhat unmotivated we didn't stay too long before heading back in to shower, change, and make it to our van to the hotel.

We were thinking that mid-afternoon would be the best time to get into Duke's, a legendary restaurant in Hawaii. However, even then they weren't seating for dinner and the bar was absolutely packed. I ended up picking up a Hawaiian shirt on our way back towards the hotel and went out to Lulu's for a late lunch of fish-tacos. After looking and looking through Waikiki for them, we finally found some, and they were delicious.

That evening we went to another luau (I know, two in two nights). This was one of the premium attractions on our Go Oahu card, so we went just for cocktails and the show. It was up on a hill overlooking Honolulu and had a fabulous view.

Amazingly we had the same announcer as the night before, but the sound system and seating was better. And we had a drink in a pineapple.

The show started off quite differently than the last luau. The costumes seemed authentic, they started with the history of Kamehameha and his conquest of Oahu, and lighting and sound was different and exciting. After our hopes were raised, it returned to the Hollywood style of neon-green grass skirts and little to no explanation of the dances, other than what island in Polynesia they came from. Again the fire dancer was exceptional, and overall the show was good.

We had a much more engaging and fun bus ride back to the hotel than the night previous, then got everything all packed up before heading to bed.

Activities on Oahu

On Saturday, we were up seemingly very early for our Makapuu Lighthouse hike. Getting on the bus by 7 was a little bit tough after the wedding reception the night before. It was not really a hike, as there is a paved path to the top. Being a weekend, there were many people on the trail, and the view of the bay and lighthouse from the top is pretty good.

On the way back we scrambled down the slope to the tidal pool and blowholes along the coast.

It was crazy how intermittent and strong they were.

Felt like a dragon was breathing underground.

We took our time getting down so didn't have much time at the bottom before having to hustle to scramble back up the cliff and make it to the van for our pickup. The included breakfast at the hotel ended at 10:30 and we managed to get back at 10:27 and get the last order in.

After breakfast there was a bit of a break in the hotel for a quick nap. We headed down to the beach and rented surfboards to paddle out in the calm to just get the feel of it and try to get up on the board. There was more back-flops and belly-flops than anything. Thankfully our rash-guards cushioned things somewhat.

From there we got dressed up and joined everyone for the bus trip out to Germaine's Luau. We got there and saw them pull the pig out of the sand, underground roasting oven.

Dinner was good, the pork and beef was delicious.

After the dinner was the show and there were some good dances. The fire dancer was impressive. And one of the wedding attendees won the audience participation portion and was absolutely hilarious.

It was back for a quick drink and then off to bed.

Hinds Wedding

Friday we slept in a bit before having breakfast at the hotel. I headed off to find a barber for a beard trim and Anne went with Stephanie for a manicure. We got all dressed up and then boarded the chartered bus and headed out to Sherwood Forest Beach Park for the wedding. Everybody was looking classy, and had were wearing bright, cheerful colours. 

The wedding was beautiful. The setting was elegent, with a touch of Ukrainian tradition for Sophia, and Hawaiian tradition for their destination. There was a little cloud and a light breeze that made it comfortable. The sky, over the blue ocean, over the sandy beach made for some great photos. 

We took the bus back to the hotel and had a quick lunch before having a couple drinks in the hotel room and getting ready for the reception. 

The reception was at the Coconut Club lounge on the 21st floor balcony of our hotel which offered stunning views and again great photos. 

The wedding and reception were quite wonderful, and I am so happy for Sophia and Cheah. 

Oahu and Wedding Meet & Greet

Thursday was the day before the wedding, and there was a Meet & Greet at the hotel bar in the evening. We were up early to go to Diamond Head for the hike to the top, almost compulsory for those visiting Honolulu.

Diamond Head is an extinct volcano caldera that the US Army used to defend Oahu in the early 20th century. They had buildings in the crater and pillboxes and artillery spotting points up towards the summit. As such the hike used the old infrastructure, tunnels and a spiral staircase, to get to the top.

The trail is only 1.6 miles round trip, gaining 560 feet of elevation. The view from the top is pretty good.

While we were on our way up there were four US Army Black Hawk and one Chinook helicopters that had landed on the field inside the crater. There were a bunch of new recruits that were training on exiting the helicopters and on working with radios when they weren't doing that. It was fairly obvious that this was one of their first days with the helicopters as they were moving very slowly and being shown the same thing multiple times; even a couple placed their packs upside down when the exited the choppers.

We got back to our hotel while it was still decently early in the morning. We got all packed up and checked out and stored our bags there until check-in time at our last hotel. During this time we had booked a catamaran sailing tour. The marina was a fair bit away but we had time so walked and checked our some stores along the way. Getting there, we had a couple choices for lunch from food trucks. We were tight on time so picked the one with the smallest line (not always the way you want to pick your lunch place) and came away with an amazing hot dog to share. 

The catamaran was a very fun time. I don't think either of us had sailed before and it was so nice quietly slicing through the waves. We sailed all the way east to Diamond Head, used the engine to turn us around, then sailed back to the marina. 

There was a bar aboard that poured some very strong drinks. The Long Island iced tea had to have some extra soda added to it to make it palatable. The bartender was not all that excited to be doing his job until the fishing lines they write trailing behind the boat caught something. They reeled in a stout, yellowfin tuna.

Once back on land it was decided to try and walk off some of the drinks before cabling the rest of the way back. We grabbed our bags from the old hotel and walked them the four blocks down Kalakaua Ave to our new hotel, where the wedding was taking place. We got checked in, then headed down to the beach to try boogie boarding. The swells were too small to catch a wave, but we had fun in the water nonetheless.

Got cleaned up at the hotel and headed to the Meet & Greet in the hotel bar. It was a nice setting with appetizers, champagne, and many Mai Thais. After that was done, we joined Stephanie and Big Tom for a couple drinks before heading off to bed.