We were blessed t0 be able to go to Hawaii. We had never been and from the moment we landed we were amazed with this place with it’s rugged, natural beauty. I couldn’t help but think of the similarity between the shorelines of Hawaii and parts of Ireland which we have previously traveled to. The green, the colour of the coastal rock formations and the sand on the beaches looked quite the same. However, there was a significant difference in temperature of the water between the South Pacific and the North Atlantic. We searched online on the VRBO site and found a nice little studio apartment to rent. It was actually the front of the house of one of the locals within steps to Sunset Beach on the North Shore. It was also a short walk to Ted’s Bakery. A very famous eatery in the area that we had heard some great things about on all the reviews of the North Shore. Everybody will tell you it’s excellent food at an affordable price. It has some of the best coffee I have ever had. It’s nothing fancy but their desserts were amazing and their plate lunches were excellent with enough food to last my wife and I for 2 meals. Before I go any further I would like to give all the credit for the photos to my wife Kathy Gordon.
Our first day we settled into our Room, purchased some groceries and toured around the Sunset Beach area. We went to a local grocery store and walked around a local market where there was live music, souvenirs to purchase. It gave us a real feel for the local community and we were struck how laid back everyone seemed. I don’t recall seeing so many people walking around in bear feet and shorts even in the grocery store. We sat on. the beach until the sun went down. Low clouds rolled in and covered the sunset on Sunset Beach but it was really nice to sit there and watch the local surfers do their thing.
The next morning we made the spectacular drive to the city of Kailua on the east side of the island. We had previously booked a kayak tour through Windward Watersports. We were told there was going to be a family of 5 joining us and Jeff would be our guide. We waited and the other party didn’t show up so we had our own private tour with Jeff. I was a beautiful day and we looked forward to getting out on the ocean. We launched our kayaks from Lanikai Beach and started our ocean voyage to the islands off the coast – Moku Noi and Moku Iki, or The Moaks as the locals call them. Jeff was very knowledgeable and an experienced guide. He knew where to go on the islands as well to do some cliff diving and swimming in the tidal pools.
We drove to Hanauma Bay and hung out with the sea turtles. When I say hung out I mean swim with them. Swim so close to them that we could barely get a photo. One swam just under me and I tried as hard as I could to not touch it as any though could harm them and they had a lot of signs around not to touch, or grab the sea turtles as well as feeding them which was prohibited.
One of the Places we ate frequently was Giovanni’s Shrimp Truck. It was basically a roadside stand where they serve fresh shrimp on paper plates. Awesome! It’s a white cube van which isn’t white anymore because they ask the patrons to sign their name with a sharpie. So our last time there we signed it. If you go and look very closely on one of the corners we are there.
A few years ago we got sucked into being fans of the television show Lost. We enjoyed the show and we heard that the beach scenes were all filmed at a locations not far from where we were staying. It’d s private area and the locals who live on the beach take their privacy seriously. It’s not advertised and there isn’t a web page but we found it by google. The place has been renamed Lost Survivors Beach Park so something tells me that the locals are losing the battle for privacy. In my opinion it’s the nicest beach we saw. The biggest reason is that we were the only people on the entire beach. We saw some sea turtles and interesting rock and coral. It’s a beautiful spot and we wish we could have stayed longer.
I wanted to finish off this post with our trip to Pearl Harbour. I have a keen interest in the WWII era and a soft spot in my heart for that generation. We especially liked the Arizona Memorial. As we entered on the memorial an elderly gentleman ahead of us stopped and saluted. It was a solemn occasion because we stood on a grave site. The grave site where over 1,700 sailors rest. Well it turns out that the gentleman was on the USS Missouri when the Japanese formerly surrendered and signed the peace treaty. We toured the Missouri as well as the USS Bowfin. This is an authentic submarine which saw service in WWII. It was cool touring the bunk areas, the officers quarter, the galley, the torpedoes and the control rooms. And very solemn.
What an amazing place Oahu is! Beauty wherever you turn. It’s a place I will never forget.
