Took a few days to see a couple Hawaiian Islands, Oahu and Kauai. Went with my Mrs'. and friends the Mikel's. We Landed on Oahu and spent 4 days exploring the tourist spots. After landing we spent the rest of the day walking along Waikiki Beach where we staying, not recommended, good place to drive into and visit but it is a tourist trap and actually filthy. We had dinner at a local spot called "Lulu's" it was good with good atmosphere and food with a great view of the beach above street level service was not outstanding though.
Day 2 we visited Pearl Harbor, went out to the USS Arizona memorial. That was a sobering experience to relive the time of the attack through videos and tour guide interps. I was most impressed by the solemn feeling in the memorial as everyone was very quiet and subdued by the feelings. Feelings of patriotism was strong among the crowd and sadness for the lives lost in that attack. We also visited the "Punchbowl Memorial". While there they were holding a service for the lost Korean War veterans, my being a veteran of that war made it special, if he chose to he could be buried there when he passes. We toured Honolulu city and seen the sights of interest; Iolani Plalace, King Kamehameha Statue, Governors estate etc.. We got of Hilo Hatties and had lunch at Big T's Shrimp truck, I guess it is famous for being in Hawaii Five-0 tv series, it was okay not the greatest. Took the shuttle downtown and we got off and walked around for a few hours just looking and shopping of course. Went back to our hotel the "Aston Waikiki Beach Resort" I would not recommend it. We booked it being right on Waikiki Beach and it was, but it did not give what they advertised, and the breakfast was very weak. We went to dinner that evening at a local restaurant "Side Street Inn" a local restaurant with great food and portions were large, a little pricey but great food I highly recommend. You have to plan on around $60-$100 per meal if you eat at decent restaurants on the Islands.
Day 3 took around the island for a full tour with the Polynesian Cultural Center as our guide. Good informative trip and fun guide. We seen all the main attractions Diamond Head, Hanauma Bay, Blowhole, Nuuanu Pali Lookout, Turtle Bay, The Dole Plantation, we finished the tour at the Polynesian Cultural Center a must do while on Oahu it gives a great history and understanding of the island people of the southern pacific. Shows are fun and entertaining as well as educational, students of BYU-Hawaii do all the shows as part of their tuition for school so all money benefits their education, which in my book is all the more reason to visit. They finish the day off with a Luau dinner and show and get audience members involved, the food is great and a lot of it, after dinner you go to the main stage and see a show production worthy of the big stages that takes you through some of the rituals that happen on all the islands of the south pacific. The highlight of the show are the fire dancers and fireknife dancers. We met up with the lead fireknife dancer Kap Te'o Tafiti after the show and took pictures, he is also a grad of BYU-Hawaii and an artist. I bought one of his paintings and he autographed it for me. This was a great day busy but so much fun we arrived back the hotel at midnight.
Day 4 we took a real adventure for most of our group and went on a snorkel tour of the west shore at Ko'Olina. It was great, although the Mrs'. got sick after a little while in the water, she did get to see a Green Sea Turtle which is what she wanted to do. I stayed out as long as they would let me on both dives. Ko'Olina Ocean Adventures treated us well we did two areas on the west shore and seen all types of fish and ocean life. Spinner Dolphins were abundant and plenty of Green Sea turtles and more tropical fish than you could count, I also seen an eel out searching for food. The boat Holole'a kai is a large catamaran with great amenities. Capt. Adam and crew made sure we were well taken care of, even the Mrs'. after she fell victim to the waves. The one thing I recommend is pay the extra for the snuba experience, I was envious of those that were doing it, but I knew we had it set up for Kauai. They had an on board photographer that takes plenty of pics and if you want you can purchase his DVD of the trip. After returning to the hotel that day we went to the beach and just relaxed. We had dinner that evening at another local spot "Uncle Bo's" real good food and great service a Korean/Hawaiian mix again a little pricey but well worth it. the restaurants are all within walking distance of the hotel we stayed at. The Honolulu zoo was across the street from our hotel, but we did not get a chance to visit.
Day 5 transfer day we loaded up and went to the airport for our transfer flight to Kauai. We boarded a turbo-prop jet and in less than hour we were on Kauai, in flight I asked our steward who was from Kauai where should we eat, beings we didn't get breakfast and it was close to lunch time and we had 3 hours before we could check in. He told of us a great "Mexican" spot in Kaapa called Monico's. It was not a disappointment. Real good salsa and chips and the fish tacos were outstanding with fresh grilled Ahi. The only let down was they charged for extra chips and salsa. We rented a car for Kauai very recommended, but not for Oahu it cost more to park the car than to rent it. We drove out to our hotel "Grand Hyatt Resort and Spa" in Poipu. This place is heaven compared to the place we stayed in Waikiki. The GHRS was outstanding with all the amenities you could want. The only thing they could have is a shuttle service for those rooms on the outer reaches of the property, which we were. The last room on level one, beautiful setting right on the beach. The beach is the resorts we could listen to the waves crashing in from our room. After arriving we set our excursions for the next 3 days, Grand Canyon, sunset dinner cruise, river cruise, helicopter tour, we already had the snuba adventure set up. After relaxing in our plush rooms, we went to dinner at Merriman's in Poipu. We ate at the pizza/burger side of the restaurant good food I tried their lamb burger and was not disappointed. After dinner we relaxed in one of the hot tubs on the property.
Day 6 we drove to the top of the Waimea Canyon the "Grand Canyon of the Pacific" it was not disappointing. The colors and waterfalls seen on this drive and small hikes tour were amazing red rock formations covered in lush green foliage was spectacular. We hit many pullout overlooks and hiked small distances to see the views from each. Reaching the top there was a cafe and large camping area, this is a local hunting and fishing area as well. Plenty of traffic on the road, steep and winding at times. We reached the final lookout and hiked to the top of the canyon at 5,140 ft. and looked down the steep cliff lines into a valley covered in green foliage. We learned later that this valley was the first inhabited area of the island. The views were magnificent and a must do on the island. Mary sis not attend this with us fearing she would get car sick, and she would have with the lay of the road. We took Bob back to the hotel and we went out touring and shopping. We went to see the falls on the North Shore, Wailua Falls and Opaeka'a Falls. both were off the main highway but worth the ride. Both had parking areas with short walks to the viewing areas. Wailua Falls you could hike down to but only recommended for those hearty enough and with strong enough ankles and knees to handle very steep and slippery trail. We went to a flea market in Kaapa and bought some souvenirs toured the back roads of the north shore area and seen the mountain used for filming King Kong up close. Kauai has been used extensively by Hollywood in many films. We picked up the Mikel's after touring and shooping the rest of the afternoon and got dinner at Keoki's Paradise again okay food, good atmosphere but get reservations sit on the hamburger grill side and you can order from both menus and suffice all group members in their choices. Ask for a table in the atrium. Another relaxing sit in the hot tub and day 6 was over.
Day 7 was packed! We started off with out Snuba adventure with Snuba Tours of Kauai, Kevin Cram is the owner and good friend. He treated us to a spectacular adventure. Bob and Mary were with me, the Mrs'. having gotten sick on the snorkel opted out. We had two other patrons join us. I had my own air tank which was nice. Mary ended up with her own as well, Bob could not handle the waves and swell and was very exhausted at this point of the trip. So we went out. I got to do my own thing for the most part. I assisted our two other divers and Mary was taken care of by Justin and Sean, Kevin's assistants. Kevin wore Scuba gear and was leading our tour and made sure we all seen and enjoyed our tour. Sean seen an octopus go into his hole, he pointed it out to Kevin, who took us over to it. Kevin got the big guy out, it sprayed ink everywhere trying to escape his grip, he sprayed multiple times and almost succeeded but Kevin managed to keep him in front of him. After the octopus figured out we weren't going to harm it he settled down and let each of us touch and handle him, very cool experience! I have fed many eels in the wild but having this guy grip onto my arm and crawl around was amazing! We took pictures and videos. We were on the tour for almost an hour to our surprise, felt like just minutes but what an experience and highly recommended! Kevin is the only Snuba provider on Kauai so book an adventure with him. We were elated with the tour. Back at the hotel we picked up Sally and made our way to our next excursion. Sunset dinner cruise on a 65 ft. catamaran. This was with Capt. Andy's tours, our Capt. Kerber and crew did it right! We had a most enjoyable experience on the ride and tour. We had the great chance of having 2 Bottle Nose Dolphins join us, a very rare sight on a cruise. They jumped and played for us around the boat for 10-15 minutes. The one was using the hull of the boat to scratch its belly and back what a treat. The dinner was spectacular with 2 inch rib eye steaks and skewers of shrimp all prepared right there on the boat. This cruise took us along Na Pali coast line which is where the island was first inhabited by the Hawaiians and met up with Capt. Cook. The scenery and narration form the crew was great. We seen water falls, coves camp sites and hiking trails, no roads in this area. The history of the area was inspiring. Movies have been filmed on this coast; Pirates of the Caribbean, 7 days and 7 nights and more. The waves at this point were getting rather large and the capt. decided not to push it any further and turned around. That is when the sails came out. The Catamaran became quiet and smooth. We sailed during dinner service and for another few miles before he kicked the motors back on. I talked with folks from AZ and Toronto and had a great time. The rest of my crew was hanging in there. After dinner and conversations I moved back to the front of the boat with Sally and enjoyed the trip back to the harbor. At the right time Capt. Kerber turned us around to watch the sunset. Got some great pics! Watched the sunset with my sweetheart. We made our way back into port and debarked for our trip back to the hotel, only after stopping at Mickey D's for something to eat for the Mrs'.....lol, she didn't dare eat on the boat. Another relaxing dip in the hot tub and day 7 ended.
What a trip! Many pictures were taken over 700 to be exact with a few minutes of video in there as well. This was a bucket list of ours and hope to return to hit a couple more of the 132 Hawaiian islands at a later date.
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