From:
[email protected]
Date: 2018-02-12
Subject: Hawai'i 2018, a travelogue
First Night in Hawai'i
Thursday, February 1st, 2018
We expected to arrive in Oahu 4 to 5 hours earlier than we did, but
we had to switch planes before taking off from MSP. Just after
push-back, it was announced that there was a problem with one of
the engines on our plane. While that was being sorted out, one of
the passengers had some sort of medical crisis. The flight atten-
dants called out over the PA, asking if there was a doctor or nurse
on board that could assist them. Helpless, Kim and I browsed the
movie options. Kim watched an episode of Huang's World and I got
through the first 25 minutes of Blade Runner 2049 when the an-
nouncement came that, due to the engine issue, the plane would not
be taking off. After killing a couple hours back in the terminal,
we boarded another plane and were finally on our way. Kim was glad
the mechanical and health issues happened while we were still on
the ground and that we didn't have to turn around or land somewhere
random.
9 hours later, we landed in Honolulu. The Honolulu airport is open-
air and feels very dated for an international airport, especially
compared to MSP, but we both appreciated the warmth and humidity.
There were a ton of lei stands there for tourists. We checked in
to our hotel around 9:30 p.m. We felt a little apprehensive when
we saw that the weather forecast included rain for most of the
week.
Waikiki
Friday, February 2nd, 2018
We got up and helped ourselves to the complimentary breakfast. The
hotel coffee is surprisingly good. We walked to Waikiki Beach --
just a couple blocks away from our hotel. Almost all of the hotels
and resorts in Oahu are in Waikiki so it's basically a tourist
zone. You can see why it's a popular area -- the beach is well-
maintained and there's an amazing view of Diamond Head. A paved
walkway runs along the street and is separated from the beach by
low berms and retaining walls. Many of the beaches on Waikiki are
hemmed in by low walls that tame the waves. In places there are
large statues. We were drawn to the statue of Duke Kahanamoku
standing in front of a surfboard, his arms outstretched and com-
pletely covered in leis.
Before lunch, we went to the Ala Moana shopping center. It's an
open-air mall with a ton of luxury shopping. The high-end stores
reminded me of Westfield Mall in San Jose. These places are usual-
ly empty except for the bored sales staff and a bored-but-suspect-
ing security guard. We stopped by Sephora to get some moisturizer.
(Kim is teaching me some skin-care fundamentals.) We had lunch
reservations at Piggy Smalls, but we were both on the verge of
hangry, so we decided to get some food. The food court had some
familiar names, but we settled on the place that was busiest:
Charleys Philly Steaks. We got a basket of their Ultimate Nacho
Fries. It was the best thing we had eaten on Oahu so far. We
walked off some of the calories at a Target which had some cool
Hawaiian murals and a ton of tchotchkes.
When it was time to go to lunch, we got in the car and drove just a
few blocks. After guiding the car into a parking stall with surgi-
cal precision, we walked to Piggy Smalls. Along with our later
dinner at Pig and the Lady, this was the best, most modern food we
had in Hawaii. The restaurant has American, Vietnamese and Hawai-
ian influences. We ordered Laotian Fried Chicken Wings [super
crunchy and tangy- yum! -Kim], umami potatoes, chicken pho, a
"phostrami dip" sandwich, a pineapple slush and some donut soft
serve ice cream. Way too much food but so, so tasty.
For dinner, we stopped by Ono Seafood on Kapahulu Avenue. It was
recommended in a roundup of best poke places in The New York Times.
Kim said the area reminded her of Eat Street in Minneapolis. There
were about a dozen poke varieties to choose from. Kim got the
shoyu and I got a wasabi flavored ahi poke. All the best food here
comes in Styrofoam boxes. We also got these canned Hawaiian soft
drinks that are ubiquitous there and range from strawberry-orange
to guava and lilikoi. It was a long-time dream of mine to eat poke
on the beach, so we found a spot where we could eat and watch the
waves roll in.
After poke on the beach, we walked to the Hilton Hawaiian Village
up the coast to see a hula show and fireworks. It was all very
touristy and there were tons of people everywhere. The show fea-
tured an emcee that would alternately sing and deliver bits of
Waikiki history. The dancers were clearly skilled and changed cos-
tumes frequently. Kim said that it made her a bit uncomfortable,
and that it felt like an American-ized 1950s interpretation of
Hawaiian/Polynesian culture -- really cutesy and sanitized. We
left early and got decent spots on the beach for the fireworks
show. They shot off tons of fireworks within the space of 5-7 min-
utes - it was very intense but fun.
North Shore
Saturday, February 3rd, 2018
We went to the North Shore today.On our way to Banzai Pipeline, we
stopped by Aloha Shrimp for some famous North Shore garlic shrimp.
It had good reviews on Yelp and seemed less crowded than some more
famous shrimp trucks. I got pork tonkontsu and Kim got garlic
shrimp. Each dish came in a Styrofoam box with two scoops of rice,
some salad and a slice of pineapple. All of it was super tasty.
We ate on these kinda janky outdoor picnic tables which were sur-
rounded by roosters and chickens, all angling to get some food from
us.
We stopped at Laie Point, a little finger of land that juts out in-
to the ocean, surrounded by unique rock formations. It is beauti-
ful here. The mountains are lush with green and their peaks mingle
with the clouds. The water is blue-green and amazingly clear. Kim
and I sat on the basalt and watched the waves for a long time.
Ocean waves, like fire, have a primal hold on my attention. We
read a placard that told a Hawaiian legend -- that the rock forma-
tions were the bones of a giant reptile that was killing sailors
until it was cut apart and cast into the sea by the hero Kana.
After that, we drove up the road to Banzai Pipeline. It was super
busy with people attending the Volcom Pipe Pro surfing competition.
Photographers here and there on the beach set their cameras with
telephoto lenses on tripods. The waves were very large and it was
fun to watch pro surfers catch some waves. The pace was very slow,
but the spectators and announcers got very excited when one of the
surfers would grab a wave. It was like watching golf but, you
know, with the possibility of death.
We left the surfers behind and went up the road to Matsumoto Shave
Ice. It was also very busy here, but the service was fast. The
ice at Matsumoto is very finely shaved and they have a ton of dif-
ferent flavors you can choose from. Kim loved her shave ice and we
both got a scoop of vanilla ice cream on the bottom. I also got
some chocolate-macadamia nut cookies (there are so many cookie
places in Hawaii). Outside, we were treated to live music featur-
ing these tiny little girls hula dancing with their teacher. It
was cute and felt less exploitative than the Hilton show.
For dinner, we went to Roy's in Waikiki. We were both pretty unim-
pressed. It felt like average but overpriced food that we could
get anywhere. The food also seemed very old-school and my poke had
a ton of membranes in it - gross. The lesson seems to be that, if
you want quality food, you have to get out of Waikiki.
Most of the large buildings in Waikiki look like they were built,
hastily, in the 1970s or so. They are all the same color and fea-
ture the same unremarkable architectural style. I think if Waikiki
were built today, it would look a lot more like Las Vegas or Disney
World. It also makes me think of Florence, the way everything is
preserved for the tourists.
Hanauma Bay
Sunday, February 4th, 2018
We got up before sun-up and went to this cafe down the street to
get some coffee and something to eat. Kona Coffee Purveyors and b.
Patisserie was amazing. Then we hopped a shuttle down to Hanauma
Bay, bought our tickets, watched a video about conservation, and
then they just set us loose in the preserve. Hanauma Bay is the
most famous snorkeling spot in Oahu because it's shallow, good for
beginners, and has tons of coral and fish. There are also many
stray cats and mongooses in the preserve which was weird and unex-
pected, but it turns out that there are a lot of feral cats on
Oahu. There are also chickens and roosters all over the place,
just wandering around.
Snorkeling was a little scary at first! Neither of us had been
snorkeling in the ocean before. Soon after starting out, Kim and I
got separated from each other accidentally and each thought the
other had been swept out to sea. Once we figured out a system to
stay together, it was really fun and interesting. Kim got some
cool video of the underwater coral formations and fish (including
the Hawaii state fish - humuhumunukunukuapua'a). I saw lots of
anemones hiding in the crevices in the reef.
We took a shuttle there and on our way back, this Southern lady was
telling everyone about seeing a Moray eel and also about a weird
story of a tour guide faking them out about driving past President
Obama's house. Naturally, Kim and I couldn't stop imitating her
later on.
After we got back from snorkeling and had a moment to recover, we
got a late lunch at the Rainbow Drive-In. It's a stand-by in the
area. I got a cheeseburger and a rootbeer float that slowly ex-
ploded on me. Kim got a crispy chicken plate lunch with a straw-
berry slush. I thought it was good food for just $20. Kim thought
it was just OK, but she liked her slush a lot.
We hid from the rain in our hotel room for a while. The rain re-
minds me of Seattle; It doesn't rain all the time, but it's more
likely to rain at any given moment. For dinner, we went to the In-
ternational Market in Waikiki, another open-air mall close by our
hotel. We ate at a place called Yauatcha. We had high hopes for
their dim sum, but it was a disappointment. Kim and I have a high
bar for dim sum after eating at Din Tai Fung. Overall, the food
scene we observed was only OK; Minneapolis is much better by com-
parison.
Kailua
Monday, February 5th, 2018
We went to Kailua and did sea kayaking with a guide, Alivia. The
beach at Kailua has a commercial ban, so we had to walk our two-
person kayak to the beach, now in pouring rain. It was not a quick
jaunt to the beach. We wheeled the kayak on its dolly down the
street for a couple blocks, onto a bike path, and then into a chan-
nel -- basically a swamp. The water was brown, stinky, and filled
with debris like coconuts and various plastic trash. We trudged
through the swamp to the beach. Then we had some help from another
guide getting onto the kayak and into the ocean.
Once we were on the water, though, it was so gorgeous. At this
point, the rain had cleared up and the sky held the most vivid
rainbow either of us had seen. Below us, the shallow water was
clear the bottom was laced with coral and sand. On a normal day,
our guide would have been leading a group of six or eight, but it
was just me and Kim today. Our guess is that the torrential rain
this morning scared other, less hearty folks off.
We paddled to Flat Island (Popoia Island) with Alivia. She parked
our kayaks on the beach and and gave us a tour. She's also a ma-
rine biologist and had lots of interesting information about life
on and around the island. Many soft-shell crabs and snails live
there. The soft-shell crabs are able to sense movement from sever-
al feet away. As we walked along the island, I could see crabs
running for cover about eight feet in front of me. The island is
also a breeding ground for birds during the spring.
We tasted the leaf of a succulent-looking plant that grows all over
the island. Our guide told us that Hawaiians used to bring these
leaves with them on trips for water and electrolytes. It was super
salty and good but we only ate one leaf each because apparently
they're a laxative! The island includes many small tide pools.
Our guide described how Hawaiians would catch fish in the ocean and
store them in the tide pools. We also got to get into one of the
larger tide pools and walked around. I saw a tiny Fiddler crab
that was no larger than a spider. We got so many awesome pictures
on Flat Island. Then we kayaked back to the beach and reversed the
kayak transport process. Somehow, slightly worse this time.
Kim and I grabbed some pizza for lunch and decided to go snorkeling
on the beach. We got some gear from the rental shop and found
parking a block away from the beach access at Lanikai. Snorkeling
was a little less eventful than it had been at the preserve, but it
was still a good time. After that, we just sat on the beach and
watched the waves roll in.
We dropped off the gear and got shave ice at a surf shop nearby. I
think it was easily as good as the stuff at Matsumoto. We also
stopped by Leonard's Bakery for a malasada, a Portuguese sugared
donut. It was hot and fresh when we finally got it and it was
pretty good. Later, we decided to go out for dinner and Kim found
a place, Gina's, where we got tasty Korean(-American) food in Sty-
rofoam containers. It was a very full day for us and I'm leaving
out so many little details. Really, you should just come out here
for a week.
Waianae
Tuesday, February 6th, 2018
We started off the day at Iolani Palace where Hawaii's last queen
lived. The palace is beautiful. It was initially the home of the
monarch and, later, became an office. It has since been restored.
The treads on the staircase are still original, and were walked on
by Hawaiian royalty. The tour gave me a new appreciation for
Hawaiian culture and history, but the tour itself was a little awk-
ward. Kim is a little more direct.
I hated the tour. We opted for an audio version (versus
docent-led) and basically got treated like a nuisance and
second-class citizens by this burly security guard.
Eventually, I lost my patience and ripped off my headset
and left. It sucked because I did want to see the palace
and learn about the history but couldn't put up with the
poorly run BS any more.
After Kim and I aborted our tour of the Iolani Palace, we drove up
to Waianae for a whale-watching tour. Our captain Liz and guide
Noelle took us out with a couple of other passengers. Again, we
seemed to luck out with a small group. It was amazing! We saw a
humpback whale, several pods of spinner dolphins and we snorkeled
next to a giant sea turtle. Swimming with a sea turtle may have
been the highlight of the week for Kim. At times, the dolphins
were swimming next to the boat, just feet away from us. The cap-
tain and guide said that the dolphins were playing with the whale.
We didn't get close to the whale, but Noelle dropped a microphone
in the water and we could hear the whale singing. It was really a
surprise.
Because there was only one other couple on our boat, we got a lot
of attention and face time with the crew. Noelle took Kim and I
snorkeling by an electric plant. The plant uses sea water as a
coolant and expels warm water which attracts a variety of sea life.
It was fascinating and there were so many fish around. Kim said
that she doesn't think she's a super strong swimmer, but she felt
pretty comfortable throughout. Unlike our earlier snorkeling at-
tempts, the water here was both deep and clear, and we were virtu-
ally surrounded by fish. I also saw what looked like a crow's nest
from a boat on the bottom of the ocean. If I recall, Noelle said
the water where we were was about 30 feet deep. I could see the
patterns in the sand at the bottom, it was so clear. We got back
in the boat and headed back to the marina. I was starting to feel
a little seasick, so this was a welcome change.
We ate at Pig and the Lady for dinner. It's in Chinatown ("a mod-
est area" as our snorkeling Southern lady would say) [blighted is
more like it. -Kim]. It was straight-up one of the scariest places
we've ever been - dirty, graffittied, abandoned looking, etc. We
were pretty nervous walking through there which is saying something
since both Kim and I have lived in urban areas for a long time and
have seen some shit. However, the food and vibe at the restaurant
made up for it. We had this amazing ahi Spanish toast appetizer
that Kim would eat every day if she could. I had a couple cock-
tails. We split a plate of squash and ricotta ravioli and a plate
of sliced ribeye with potato gnocchi. The food was excellent;
right up there with the best in Minneapolis.
Pearl Harbor
Wednesday, February 7th, 2018
This morning, we were able to sleep in a bit and got breakfast at
the hotel. I still think their coffee is pretty good. After
breakfast, we went to the Aloha Stadium flea market. We paid $1
each to get in and were pretty excited to see what was going on.
The first stand we saw was selling cheap trinkets and baubles orga-
nized into plastic tubs. None of it looked interesting to me. I
kept thinking of different ways to define "garbage." I quickly
learned that this stand was one of just a few types of stands that
encircled the stadium. I would say there were about 12 different
types of stands, each selling a variety of cheap:
* t-shirts and dresses
* swimwear
* stickers
* carved wood
* purses and bags
* jewelry
* cheaper jewelry
* cruises and hotels
* fresh fruit
* knives (for carving wood?)
* trash
* garbage
I bought some stickers, but we were, on the whole, unimpressed. We
decided to get something to eat at a restaurant on Pearl Harbor.
The food there was actually pretty decent. Again, the downmarket
food outside of Waikiki is at least as good as the upmarket food
inside Waikiki.
The USS Arizona experience was a somber one, but that didn't stop
some less mindful tourists taking duck-face selfies or doing a
split on the Pearl Harbor sign. It was fascinating to learn more
about the military history of Hawaii. The tour itself was super
organized and well run - no surprise since the Navy and Parks De-
partment play a big role in running it [looking at you, Iolani
Palace -Kim]. Seeing the wreckage of the USS Arizona under the wa-
ter was spooky and sad. About 3,000 people were killed during the
Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941. Almost half
of all casualties that day were on the USS Arizona.
After visiting the memorial, we came back to the hotel to chill out
and pre-pack. We went out for pizza at a place called Barley and
Flour. It was pretty good, but not as good as the better pizza
places in Minneapolis.
Last Day in Hawai'i
Thursday, February 8th, 2018
Our last day in Hawaii. We both got lots of sleep, maybe 10 hours,
and went for breakfast at Kona Coffee Purveyors and b. Patisserie.
This was the first time we've seen a line there. It's also the
first time we've been there past 7 a.m. The pastries there are so
amazing, and the coffee is excellent.
After coffee, we did a second round of packing, called the car, and
headed out to see the Halona Blowhole. Tide was low, so it wasn't
doing anything, but the view from the lookout was amazing. It was
also full of tourists and tour buses. After a short stay at the
lookout, we went to check out the Makapu'u Lighthouse. It was com-
pletely choked with visitors, so we abandoned that and continued
driving along the coast. We soon saw another lookout with a great
view and room to park. We walked around a bit and took some pic-
tures.
We kept driving all the way up to Kailua before turning west. When
we got back to Honolulu, we stopped at Ahi Assassins for some poke.
It was amazing, of course. We gassed up at Costco and made for the
airport.
We are very sad to leave -- it's such a stunning place. It is
crazy, full of tourists and tourist attractions, but the land is
beautiful and the wildlife is fascinating. Even though our vaca-
tion is coming to an end, we are looking forward to sleeping in our
own bed.
Birds
There are a lot of interesting birds here. Most recognizable are
pigeons; a lot of them are albino. Just as common, if not more so,
are myna. Myna are dark blue with light patches around their eyes.
They have patches of white under their wings that create an almost
figure-8 pattern when they flap their wings. There are red-headed
cardinals that have bright red heads and pointy crest feathers.
There are a few smaller birds that are smaller than a finch with
dark feathers. Some of them have light markings on their face or
chest. Also, there are the aforementioned chickens which our
kayaking guide confirmed were originally brought here for food, but
have been allowed to roam free. We haven't seen many predatory
birds, but I learned that the palace Iolani is named after an Io, a
hawk. The suffix, lani, means "royal." So, the palace is that of
the royal hawk. I've seen a few seagulls, but not as many as I ex-
pected.
KUMU
There are some fun radio stations here. My favorite is KUMU. They
play a fun mix of pop from the 80s through today. I heard a lot of
The Jets which I love. There was a lot of music that Kim liked,
too. I've never heard Kim sing along with the radio so much. I
plan to listen to it online or just crib their playlist for my own
ends.
Demographics
Kim was struck by how many Asians there were. Hawaii is majority
Asian (Around 57% of the population). More than half of the
tourists were also from Japan, by our reckoning, and there's a big
tourism segment aimed just at Japanese visitors which is interest-
ing. The rest of the tourists seemed to be from the mainland or
Australia.
