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.

Cable cars!

By Christine

This morning we took our time in getting ready after two very busy days. We went to breakfast at 9am and then set out for the cable car stop. We have one very close to our hotel and got on and bought the day pass. It was so much fun and Tina was very surprised that I stood on the siding board for the trip! She was convinced that I would stick to the safety of a seat. We travelled to the bottom and then up to the top station and then down again to the stop we wanted to get off to go to the shops that were recommended to us in the Market St area of town. There we looked through the department stores and ended up getting another bag to take some of the shopping we've done home! Then we walked South for another half an hour looking for the Vans store that Tina wanted. Turned out that the shop she was after was actually in the shopping mall next door to the shop we started at! We got the shoes and had a lovely lunch in the food court before heading back for an afternoon siesta and refreshment in the room in order to be ready for going to the baseball later.
We caught the Bart (bay area rapid transit) train straight there. Steve had researched it all well and it was an easy commute. The game was so much fun! It went by quickly - there is no gap between innings! We ate the traditional sausage in a bun dinner there and cheered for the home team - the Oakland A's. They won in the last innings of the game which made it so much more exciting - 3 to 2. After the game we walked out with the throngs and walked straight onto the train and were home in 25 minutes! So glad that we got to experience it.

Alcatraz and Fishermans Wharf

Thankfully we booked out trip to Alcatraz before we left Australia as they are sold out until August. The "Rock" looks very close to the mainland but you can see how fast the current is going The ferry trip out takes about 20 mins and they give you a brief history on the landing before you head off to explore at your own pace. The tour includes an audio tour which guides you throughout the buildings and give you heaps of background information on the daily life of an inmate and the escape attempts. The cells were 5' x 9' and aside from meals they were only allowed out for two hours a week and could have only one visitor per month. The inmates believed the fantastic view they had made it even worse. After a couple of hours we caught the ferry back to the mainland.

The afternoon was spent in and around Fisherman's Wharf. There were heaps of people there and there are lots of shops, bars, museums and other attractions there. We stared with lunch at Boudins which is a famous sourdough bakery that has been in operation since 1843. The bread lived up to its reputation. We then went to a few shops, tried to get a cable car ride but it was having mechanical problems then went and had a few drinks at a bar on Pier 39 which had great views of the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz. It was a clear day about 21 C but at about 3 pm the fog rolled in from the ocean and within about 30 mins it was so thick that we couldn't see the bridge any more. It took about 2 hours to clear into a fine day again. Apparently this is normal for SF ! We watched a juggler show which was very good before heading off for dinner at a Hamburger Diner.

We then went on an open top double decker bus night tour. As it was only 13C it was freezing but very informative and we went to places that weren't on the day tour.

We left the hotel at 8 am and got back at 9 pm so it has been a long day.

Hop On/ Hop Off!

I slept well but Steve & Tina heard a lot of the street noise at the beginning (and some of my noise too apparently!). We felt like we slept in because of the time difference and at 7.30 we went down for the free continental breakfast on the 2 nd floor which was very tasty. We then started out and walked down to the Fishermans Wharf area to catch the red bus. It turned out to be a 45 minute walk and we got straight onto the bus. As the bus took off it was absolutely freezing! We had windbreakers on but they made little difference! As soon as the bus made a stop it was calm again. SF is such a different looking city. We really enjoyed seeing the sights today. It is so different from one side to the other. Took lots of photos especially when we got off after we crossed the Golden Gate Bridge and looked back over the SF skyline. We completed the loop and then went around again to the 4th stop which was Little Italy for lunch. It is such a lovely vibrant neighborhood with door to door restaurants. We chose Pinocchio's as they had a very reasonable lunch menu. Steve and Tina had the lunch special of a bowl of minestrone and a plate of any of 6 different pastas for $13.95. It was a large serve too! I enjoyed a grilled pannino with prosciutto and fresh mozzarella . We then walked back to the hotel. We freshened up & then joined the walking tour of Chinatown that was included with the bus as it took place at 3pm and just 50 m from our hotel. It was very informative and included a look at a fortune cookie making factory and a great tour of a shop that sells thousands of different teas. We sat and had a demo on brewing and tasted 6 different teas. Each has different medicinal properties and taste! Even Tina tried them all. We have now got back to the room and will set out for a walk around Union square which is right next to us. It is the heart of the financial district and has all the swanky shops. We'll have tea in Chinatown.
We did all of the above. Bonus was that as we approached Union Square there was a live band playing. When we got there the band playing was actually quite older players all a bit "hippy" with tie-died clothing and long hair! Entertaining to watch. We then chose a Chinese restaurant that had a lovely view over Chinatown. Had lots of photos in the foyer of famous past diners that included Presidents Bush and Clinton, Arnold Schwarzenegger etc. They didn't ask us to pose with the owner! Had a little walk after eating and now it is time to retire.

To San Francisco

After a Diner breakfast we wandered around for a final couple of hours before getting on the airport shuttle to JFK for the trip to San Francisco. We were very sad to be leaving NY and Christine and Tina especially so but looking forward to SF.

Luckily we got to the airport early as there was an issue with our tickets which took a few phone calls to Qantas and about 45 minutes to sort out. We sat on the tarmac for an hour due to some storm but due to a fast flight got in on time. Christine had booked us into a trendy arty hotel in SF and it certainly turned out that way as the photos below show ! The room has an obsession with boobs which is freaking Tina out a bit. On the way in from the airport we got a good view of the hilly streets of SF like the movie car chases and the cable cars which people seem to be allowed to hang out of.

After a quick walk around we had an early night. It was very different walking around the sparsely populated streets here compared to NY.

Last full day in New York

This morning we left the room got some breakfast and had it sitting in Times Square. It was going to be a very warm day, by breakfast we were already seeking out the shade. We took the subway up to Harlem. We had a glimpse of it on the hop on/hop off bus tour and were keen to go back and have a walk around. It was very interesting to see, walking to the famous Apollo Theatre where so many famous musicians got their big break. Found a huge department store that had amazing clearance sales. I got some miraclesuit bathers for $34 that cost $279 in Perth! We walked for quite a while before going for lunch to the famous Sylvia's restaurant. It is featured on many shows as the home of "soul food". We all had the fried chicken, which was very tasty. We then took the subway back and got off at the Lincoln Centre. There you find the ballet theatre, the Metropolitan Opera House, the Philharmonic's theatre, a broadway theatre, 3 other theatres and the famous Julliard School of the performing Arts all in the one location. We wanted to do the tour, it was 1.30 by now and the next tour wasn't till 4 pm. Steve and Tina were not at all interested in going to visit MoMA ( museum of modern art) and so the philistines went back to rest in the room and I walked to MoMA and spent 2 hours there battling huge crowds to see all the exhibits. I'm sure they were escaping the heat in the air conditioning - couldn't be possible they were all fans of some very bizarre art! Glad that Steve didn't come as I can just imagine what his description would be!! I then walked back to Lincoln Centre and met Steve there, Tina deciding to stay and rest in the cool room! ( it was getting to 95 degrees and the humidity is huge). The tour was really good, another thing that we wouldn't have done had it not been on the card but were glad that we did. The guide was very knowledgeable and entertaining. The tour took us into the theatres as well as having all the art around them explained. Steve and I then decided to walk all the way back and did so amongst the traffic of offices closing time along Madison and 5th Avenues. Very interesting just walking along and people watching! I have now sat down for a short well deserved rest before we head out for dinner.

We had dinner at a NY Steakhouse called Broadway Joes which has featured in a few movies such as Sweet Charity. After dinner we went for a walk up to Rockerfeller Centre for the last time.

Food on Foot

Today we started with a light breakfast then headed off for a "Food on Foot" tour. This tour takes you to places in Midtown that are where the locals eat. The tour went to 6 places over 3.5 hours and included a falafel from a Turkish cafe, fried shrimp balls from a Japanese sushi bar, cupcakes or pastries from Amy's cafe, New York pizza, apple pie or New York cheesecake and lastly American hot dogs. At each stop you got a history and a chance to mingle with the other people on the tour which was half the fun.

Later in the afternoon Christine and Tina went shopping while I went to see Madison Square Garden which unfortunately was closed for renovations. It sits above the large Pennsylvania Station but doesn't look that big or impressive from the outside.

For dinner we went American Italian in a street called Restaurant Avenue. It is on 46th St between 8th and 9th ave and has 38 restaurants covering most cuisines. The restaurant we went to was like an upmarket Freo or Leederville Italian but probably better quality and a little cheaper even after tips.

After a busy week we'll be having an early night !