Happy 15th Tina!

Today we had an early start - not because Tina wanted to make her birthday as long as possible - but because we were off on a Pearl Harbour tour. The tour was great and much more than the one we did 20 years ago. As well as the USS Arizona memorial there is now two new museums and you get a tour of the battleship Missouri which was the ship that the formal Japanese surrender was signed to end WW2. It was great to see the guns and inside of this ship. On the way back we got a tour through Honolulu seeing such buildings as the Hawaii Five O office.

The rest of day resumed its normal pattern with a swim in the afternoon, happy hour, dinner and a walk through town afterwards.

Tina was very happy to be in Hawaii for her birthday and doesn't want to leave - she's not the only one !

Going Home

We are now in a place where none of us want to be - the Qantas Club at Honolulu Airport !

After buying some duty free alcohol at US prices (about 30% less than Aussie duty free) we're waiting to board.

Christine's highlight is everything New York right down to the automatic toilets, soap, water and paper towel dispensing ! She has always wanted to go there and it was even better than she thought. She really enjoyed SF and Hawaii as well, particularly the afternoon swims and happy hourS!

Tina's highlight was the whole holiday with exception of the flight to NY and the "boobie room" in SF.

For me the final leg in Hawaii was probably my highlight. We came 19 years ago and said we wouldn't need to come back but I would recommend to everyone that if you go to mainland USA then leave some time for Hawaii on the way home because as the whole package it is the most relaxing place I've been to.

We are looking forward to seeing Alex again and comparing travel stories. We spend the night in Sydney tonight and catch up with friends and will get back to Perth on Sunday.

Surfing USA

Tina and I had a surf lesson on Waikiki Beach this morning. It was successful and we were able to stand up surf fairly easily. Having big boards and the gentle swell of Waikiki certainly helped but we were both very happy to be actually surfing. The only problem I had was that sitting on the board waiting for the waves made me sea sick and I had to come in 5 minutes before the end of the lesson. We both had a great time but were a little sore and had some rash by the end.

Christine and Tina went shopping while I laid done to get over my sea sickness then we had a late lunch. Tina then had a nap while Christine and I went for a walk round.

The rest of the day went to the usual script of swim, spa, happy hour, dinner and a walk but each was tinged with sadness as we knew it would be the last time we did each.

At the end of our time in both NY and SF I was ready to move on but this time I'd be happy to stay here for quite a bit longer. Tomorrow we head home and lose the day we gained on the way over.

Happy 50th Stevie!

Today we woke early thanks to the alarm because Steve had booked the tour to Pearl Harbour. After we woke, showered, and we're ready to walk out the room Steve remembered that I should check the tickets to see if we needed to bring photo ID (cry big here for all tours etc). Not only did we need to bring the said photo ID we needed to bring it on the 25th , the day he had booked the tour for!! So we were all ready to go and 24 hours too early! We went down to breakfast instead and then came back to the room and rested and then walked to Ala Moana, the
largest shopping centre in Hawaii.
We walked around for ages and got the bargain that Steve wanted, for the pasta making attachment for our Kitchenaid. At home it costs $330 and we got it today at Sears department store for $168. We enjoyed lunch in the food hall and saw the end of the daily hula and cultural show. we caught the link trolley bus back as the pasta attachment was quite heavy!
We then embarked upon the rest of our daily pattern of beach, showers, cocktails and dinner.
Steve had talked all day of wanting lamb for his Birthday tea but did a thorough reconnaissance and found nothing. He then said "doesn't matter, we'll eat anywhere" however after cocktail hours we walked past a well knowned (here) place and managed to get a great table last minute and we had one of our best meals ever. Steve had the lamb chops that he was hankering after and Tina and I shared three entrees. To seal the night Steve ordered the apple pie dessert and it was huge and delicious he said. He had lovely day.
Tomorrow we' ll get up again at 5.45 for for Pearl Harbour and Tina's birthday!

On Hawaiian Time

All of us had s bad nights sleep due to the three hour time change but after a full buffet breakfast at the hotel we set off to the Hawaiian version of the premium outlet shops. These were a disappointment compared to the New York ones but Chris and Tina found a couple of things to buy.

When we got back to the hotel it was straight to the beach for a swim which put us back in relaxation mode. We had an early dinner then went to the hotel for a couple of Mai Tais (Chris) and Margarettas (Steve). After a walk around the strip we headed back for an early night.

I think the blog will get a bit repetitive over next few days - morning activity ( tomorrow Pearl Harbour), beach, drinks by Pool, cocktails at happy hour, dinner, walk and bed.

The photos below show the view from our floor over the hotel pool and out to Waikiki Beach as well as a view in the other direction to the mountains.

I've worked out being in Hawaii means I prolong getting to 50 by the most amount possible however tomorrow I'm on the other side of 50 !

Aloha!

We had set the alarm this morning for 6am and allowed us time to shower, shut up the luggage and check out and be ready for the 7 am pick up for the airport . Tina was not sad to leave - she never warmed to the decor of her room! the flight check in and boarding and flight went smoothly and we had landed in Honolulu before you knew it! Steve and I didn't remember the huge long walk to the baggage claim - it seemed as if we walked for miles! Straight into a cab and checked straight into our room and then it was straight into our bathers! We went for a walk for the length of the beach and then back long the main road. It seems a lot more refined and classy than we remember from last time. The hotel's location is sensational and the suite is very comfortable. It is a king sized bedroom and then the separste lounge room has a pull out bed just like in New York. Two big extras here is the complimentary buffet breakfast every day that includes cooked to order eggs etc. the other thing is the two hour free happy hour every day from 5.30 to 7.30pm. there are free cocktails, mixed drinks, wine, beers etc as well as snack foods! We went down and had a swim in the ocean and then came back to the pool area. We are one block only from the beach. While we were swimming in the sea a HUGE turtle came and swam between us! Gave me quite the startle you can imagine! We then showered and went to the cocktail hour and then wandered into the main strip and got just a light tea at the international market food court. We are now back in the room quite early (8.30) but with,the 3 hour time difference we are feeling a bit tired as it is 11.30 for us. earlier Steve went tot the hotel desk and booked us in for the Pearl Harbour tour on Tuesday as it was sold out for tomorrow.

The Ferry Terminal

By Steve

After a lazy sleep in we got ourselves organized and headed to the Ferry Terminal for their Saturday Farmers markets. We had been told by a few people that this is where the locals went to get their produce and arts / crafts and the number of stalls and variety was impressive. The produce wasnt cheap eg tomatoes and most veges $7.50 / kg but they looked good quality. The highlight was the porchetta roll we had for lunch. This was served from a van that had 4 - 5 ft long pieces of porchetta on a rotisserie with the juices falling onto roasting potatoes at the bottom. To make the roll even more flavorful they wiped the cut roll lightly over the carving board to absorb some more of the juices. I can't remember ever having a better meat roll in my life !

By Steve

We went back to the room for a quick nap while we watched a bit of baseball then went back to the Union Square area and roamed around for a while. We were thinking of a cable car ride but the line was huge as per the picture below. Then we went and had a few drinks at the Irish pub near the hotel before heading into Little Italy for some soup and Pasta.