I can’t believe it’s been nearly a month since my last post. Which reminds me, if any of you are within the sound of my voice the next time I idiotically tell my traveling companions, “Oh, I’ll organize all our pictures,” you must promise me to grab the nearest newspaper, roll it up as tightly as you can, and give me a good, solid smack. Turns out, between the five of us, we took nearly 1,400 picture, and that doesn’t count the five full DVDs worth of video that Carole shot. Thankfully, making something of Carole’s footage is a project for another day. As it was, compiling the photos, organizing them chronologically, labeling them, and getting them burned onto DVDs for everyone took forever. It didn’t help that my nearly six-year-old computer was waaaay too low on memory and was making threatening-to-explode noises the whole time. I got a wicked new computer out of the deal, but that’s a story for another day. Anyway, the good news is the pictures are done. Finally. And I’m anxious to share the last half of our Hawaiian adventures with you.
The last time I wrote, I believe we’d just arrived in Honolulu. While not all of the pictures I’m sharing in this post were taken on the same day, together they give you a good overview of where we stayed in Waikiki. In subsequent postings, I’ll take you to Pearl Harbor, some of Oahu’s beaches, and then to the North Shore. In my final post on Hawaii, I’ll share some of the photos we took of the glorious sunsets we were lucky enough to enjoy…then, I’m going to tackle the videos. Sigh.
The first picture is the entrance to our condo, a 50-yard long arbor draped with orchids. Ahhhhh.
Our view off the lanai was both beautiful and entertaining. For example, the morning after Halloween, the beach was littered with revelers who’d chosen to just lie where they’d fallen the night before. Most days, we enjoyed watching the surfers, the paddle-boarders, and the variety of ships and small watercraft that were ever present. Unfortunately, we couldn’t hear the surf over the other noises of the city.
The pinkish-color building in this photo is The Royal Hawaiian which was one of the first two hotels to open on Waikiki Beach in the late 1920s. Besides its iconic appearance, The Royal Hawaiian is famous for being the home of the world’s first mai tai and Shirley Temple cocktails. I have nothing to report concerning the latter, but I can tell you without hesitation that a Royal Hawaiian mai tai takes no prisoners. And that’s all I saying about that.
At one point, we tied a brightly colored shirt on the railing of our lanai so we could tell which lanai was ours. Unfortunately, we didn’t get a picture of it and counting up that high makes me dizzy. You can just guess where we were.
Our view of Waikiki Beach at street level was just as entertaining as from high above. You see all kinds and people from all over the world. Thankfully, we saw very few thongs or Speedos.
This guy is Duke Kahanamoku, the most famous surfer and swimmer in Hawaii…ever. He was also an eel wrestler. According to the January 29, 1913, issue of the Long Beach Press, Duke wrestled a ten-foot eel “to the death,” losing the index finger on his right hand in the process. Clearly a stud muffin of the highest order. Today, he stands watch over Waikiki, holding leis and taking pictures of tourists from a video camera posted high on a pole in front of him.
Walking along Kalakaua Avenue, the street that runs parallel to the beach, is a study in juxtaposition. Sunbathers in flip flops (or slippas, as the natives call them) stroll beach tote-to-Prada bag with shoppers in three-inch stilettos. Name any high-end retailer in the Western world. It’s on Kalakaua Avenue, right next to a McDonald’s, Burger King, or ABC convenience store. Hmmmmm.
One of our last mornings in Waikiki, Mother Nature treated us to a rainbow that started downtown and arced right out into the water. Stunning!
Next, our trip to Pearl Harbor. Aloha!
Salty But Sweet 