12/21/2009 – Aloha Oahu
Left New Rochelle at 5 am and got to Newark at 6 am. The airport was ridiculously crowded and had to bribe a guy at the airport (20$) to get the bags checked in. The plane left late (about 50 mins) but got in time to catch the connecting flight from Chicago 10.10 am local time. Met an interesting guy on the plane; a Navy officer in Oahu. We got some insider tips about Hawaii.
By the time we reached Honolulu it was 3:00pm local time. Weather was fantastic at about 80F. Just like Colombo, humid and sunny. Anything above 60F was heaven for someone coming from NY during mid winter.
Took the airport shuttle, 15$ round trip per person to the hotel. The hotel (Oceans resort hotel Waikiki) was okay, nothing spectacular but right next to the beach and very cheap.
Changed and hopped on a bus and went to meet Charini’s friend Watsala at Ala Moana shopping mall. Got some stuff from the Walmart like towels etc and had dinner at the food court. Tried Thai and Hawaiian stuff but since it was a food court, the food was shitty. By this time the jetlag was kicking in pretty bad. So called it a day and hit the sack at about 10 pm
12/22/2009 – Scuba Diving and fine dining
Started the day at 7.30 am with a jog on Waikiki beach. Waikiki beach as one would expect is very touristy, but not as crowded as I would have expected it. A lot of Japanese tourists.
Had breakfast at a burger place called “Cheeseburger in Paradise”. The food was okay with the highlight of fresh fruits, a rare commodity in New York
Next stop was the scuba diving lessons with Alex. Cool British dude who Charini thought was a bit rough. Unfortunately Charini didn't get the hang of it an decides to call it a day. I did two dives where I saw turtles, fish and one white tip shark. That was an awesome experience.
Got to the hotel at about 3.30 p.m did a quick change and went out. First stop for the evening was “Me BBQ”, a small joint near our hotel which serves the best Korean BBQ ever. Very cheap, about 10$ per plate but the food was out of this world.
Walked around the beach and checked out a free hula show on the beach near the surfing duke dudes statue.
The final stop for the night was “Alan Wong’s Pineapple room” for dinner. The food was great but the 10$ Korean food was way better compared to 100$+ spent here. But this place had some interesting desserts like the shaved ice with fruits and nuts. They gave us a complimentary chocolate dessert because it was our honeymoon.
Too tired again, and hit the sack at about 11.
12/23/2009 – Surfing and Maui
Went for surfing lessons in the morning at Waikiki beach. The lesson cost 40$. The instructor Todd was a 60 years old guy who went to school in New Rochelle. What a coincident. It was great fun and I think I got the hang of it after the first go. Had lunch at the same Korean BBQ place. Walked around Waikiki for about an hour and left to the airport by cab at about 4.
We reached Maui at about 7 p.m, rented a car and checked into “Maui Seaside hotel”. Not the best of hotels…. again, but worth the price. We spent about 45 mins looking for a place to eat. Everything was closed. This area was dead by about 8 p.m. Finally found an interesting Sushi Restaurant… a local hangout. Very interesting place. The waitress was like the energizer bunny without a smile. She knew all the locals by their first names and was handing them X’mas presents. The sushi was excellent. It was worth the wait. Went to sleep at about 10.30
12/24/2009 – Driving in Maui and sunset cruise
First stop for the day was the “Iao national park” - needle point. It’s a place of historical value but nothing special. Worth it since it was only 15-20 min drive from the hotel.
Went to a local open market and brought fresh fruits including Rambutan. Charini went crazy over them. Checked out of the hotel at about 11 and drove along an exciting road along the North West boarder of Maui. It’s called Highway 30. The road was winding along cliffs right next to the ocean. Often one lane with breathtaking views. A sight that we never got to experience in SL, high cliffs with lush green vegetation right next to the ocean. Stopped at an interesting road side stall which had delicious banana cake ($6 for a loaf) and a candy made out of coconut pieces Fried and coated with sugar.
We stopped at "Aloha mixed plate" in Lahaina to check out their famous coconut shrimp and the plate lunch. The food was okay not as exciting as the recommendations in the Lonely Planets guide. At this point we were running late for our evening sailing cruise. So rushed to Kihei which was about 15 miles away. The hotel we checked in was called Aston Maui Lu, which had signs of being a good hotel once upon a time. After a bunch of fiascos managed to get to our sunset sailing cruise before it left. There were some exciting food and beverages onboard and the scenery was decent. The exciting part was when the sails came up. It was our first time on a sail boat and it was surprising how stable the boat got the moment sails went up.
The rest of the evening was spent window shopping in Lahaina which is quite a beautiful small hip town by the sea. A lot of art galleries and over priced shops. The world famous banyan tree was full of character with the X’mas lighting and the birds chirping on the background. It was X’mas eve after all. But as in any other small city, all the food spots were closing down for X’mas eve. Charini found a random pizza place which had some interesting food. We tried their famous baked potato and the bread with olive oil and tomatoes. Went to sleep at about 11 p.m
12/25/2009 – Hana highway on X’mas day
The main event for the day was the drive on Hana highway. The first stop was a smoothies stall about 3 miles on the highway. The highway as well known is a scenic drive with a ton of bends and one lane bridges. Did one 30 min hike and also went for a swim in a small pond next to a waterfall. In short the Hana highway was nice, but not again fell short of living up to the expectation. I guess with the hype we were expecting more. After we reached Hana, rather than taking the same highway back we took a road that appeared to go around the south end of the country. Little did we know that most of this road was going to be a gravel road with none in sight? This road on the other hand very exciting, dangerous and scenic… just what the doctor ordered. It wound around South of the Haleakala Crater with weird landscapes. The view was spectacular. We reached Kihei at about 7 pm and were dead tired. Got some Vietnamese food and went to sleep soon after. What a day.
12/26/2009 – Spa bliss
I had arranged a snorkeling trip to Molokini crater at 6.30 am. But as we were both tired, decided not to do that. $100 wasted, but it was worth the 2 hour of extra sleep. Since we ended up having free time
went to the spa at Four Seasons hotel where we both got a 50 min massage and a foot scrub. The massage was called the “lomi lomi”, which is apparently based on the motion of the Hawaiian Hula dances. Charini loved it, especially since it was next to the ocean in a small hut with the sounds of sea. It was my first time at a spa and as I told wife, I could easily get used to this. We obviously paid for the brand name and it ended up at $400 with the tip. But worth it since it was once in a blue moon activity.
Stopped at “Café O’Lei” for lunch as recommended by the lonely planets guide. Ordered the famous blackened mahi mahi and a Caesar salad. The mahi mahi was excellent. After lunch killed some time in Kihei area before heading to the airport. Met an Indian dude who was running a jewelry shop with cheap jewelry. He was randomly chatting with us about his plans to retire in Sri Lanka or India while his new intern was getting trained in Hena Tattoos on his arm.
Our flight had a stopover in Oahu before reaching our final destination in big island. Met Jessica and Yufang (her husband) at the airport. We checked into the hotel at about 8.30p.m and then went for dinner at a Vietnamese-Chinese restaurant right across the road to our hotel. After dinner called it a day since there was a big day ahead of us
12/27/2009 – Volcanic adventures
Out rent a car company in big island (Alamo) was kind to give us a ride to the airport from the hotels. They did the same yesterday night as well. Picked up a Chevy car which looked kinda worn out but nevertheless started our journey in big island. First stop was the famous “farmers market in Hilo”. Charini saw Rambutan and went nuts again. After a breakfast in the car drove to the “Volcanic national park”. It was really foggy and smoky. The volcanic smoke was creating what they called the vog, a thick cloud of sulpher dioxide from the lava.
First stop was the “Thurstun lava tubes”. Yufang twisted his leg in the caves and I became the designated driver for the rest of the trip. We drove along the crater rim road and the Chain of Crater road. At one point when I tried to turn, the car spun almost 180 degrees. Got out and realized that the road was extremely slippery. The drive inside the volcano park was gorgeous. We saw the smoke of the lava flowing to the sea from a distance. Had lunch at a random Thai/Vietnamese restaurant. They had the greasiest shit ever, but tasty.
Had an adventure trying to find the lava tree monument park. The gps sent us on some weird roads and Yufang's iPhone navigation didn't help either. After about 30 mins of putzing around found the state park. Spent about 15 mind taking photographs and marking the register :)
The next stop were the black sand “Thermal pools at Ahalanui park”. The water was about 90F. Spent about an hour there and drove to see the lava flow from Kalapana which was about 30 mins drive from the hot tubs. The walk to the sight was a good 15 mins on lava rocks. We got there at dusk and that was one of those things that you don't have words to explain. Simply breathtaking. We were about 1/2 mile from the actual point where lava meets the sea. The viewing site was full of tourists but it was all worth it. As the night grew the colors of the lava became brighter and brighter. What a sight.
Drove back to Hilo and spent another good 20 mins looking for a place to have dinner. Ended up at “Kuhio Grill” where they had plate lunches and the pork fried rice. Left Hilo at about 9pm. The gps suggested that we will be in Kona at about 10.40pm. About 15 miles down the road realized that we only had less than 1/4 tank of gas. The road was winding and foggy. Yufang and Jessica were fast asleep. Charini and I had stopped the car to figure out where the closest gas station was. The gps was directing me back to Hilo. A couple of cars stopped by and suggested that we go back to Hilo. So we decided to drive back. The car too was a bit shaky and was not gripping the road too well. So decided to stay in Hilo and drive to Kona tomorrow. Luckily the hotel that I booked for Kona was the same chain as the one we stayed yesterday. So they changed the reservation without a fuss. Once we got to the room read about the road that we tried travelling: “saddle road” and this is what the lonely planet had to say.
“…but this 53-mile, mostly two-lane paved road was until recently was an accident-prone nightmare: frequently narrowing to one lane, winding and hilly, with blind turns, no lights, sometimes thick fog, sometime with pot holed, deteriorated pavement so bad locals dangerously hug the center line- leading to its nickname “Straddle road””.
12/28/2009 – Kayaking in Kona
Went to Alamo in the morning and changed the car to a better one which was a Chevy convertible. Had breakfast at the hotel and started the drive which we couldn't finish yesterday. The drive was absolutely
fabulous. Small winding roads and beautiful sight of Manua Kea and Manua Loa mountains. Reached Kona at about noon and paid a visit to the “Blue Kona coffee factory”. The people there were so nice and gave us a tour around their coffee plantation. Grabbed lunch at a local grocery store/ bakery since the other place we wanted to go was closed.
Then drove down to Kealakekua bay, paid 60$ to a local guy and rented a kayak to check out the “best snorkel site in Hawaii”. Charini didn't want to make the hike, which turned out to be a very wise idea. Yufang, Jessica and I kayaked for about 40 mins to get to the destination. It was a tough kayaking trip since the sea was rough and we were running with a tight time schedule. There was no beach at all on the other end and the only place to dock the kayak was on he rocks. So the descend was pretty rough. Then we realized that the local guy had only given two snorkel sets so I had to snorkel without any equipment apart from my prescription mask. Jessica had a bad entrance to the water and hurt herself on the rocks. So we had to cut short the trip and head back. But the brief look I got of the
underwater was breathtaking. The return to the shore was rough but faster because of the tailwind.
Left Kona at about 8 and arrived at Oahu at 9. Got to the hotel at about 10. Charini and I went for a quick bite at a rooftop bar called “Tiki bar” which had live music. Cool atmosphere but the food was mediocre. Went to sleep at about 11.30
12/29/2009 – Snorkeling and Luau in Oahu
Lousy start to the day. I had booked a car from a local rent-a-car place (VIP car rentals) and when I called in at 8 they had already given the car to someone else because the booking was at 7.30. So we had to get another car (Subaru station wagon with 75k+ miles) for about twice the original price.
Nevertheless picked up Yufang and Jessica and went for the snorkeling tour. Charini bailed out because she was feeling too tired. The snorkeling trip was interesting but it was a crappy overcast day. The
first stop was a dive with the spinner dolphins. The boat tried to cross the path of the dolphins and drops people right in front of them. So you literally get about 10secs to see 100s of dolphins swim beneath you. I was not that lucky and only saw about 3 or 4. But come to think of it, it was a bit too intrusive. Not something that I would ever want to do again.
The next two stops were snorkeling spots. I got down at the first but the next was too cold.
I had to drive down to Waikiki and pick up Charini and come back to the Luau. The Luau, is a traditional feast thrown by the ancient Polynesians. But this luau was highly commercialized. Entertaining with colorful dances and all sorts of variety shows like coconut tree climbing and fishing. The hosts kept calling everyone “cousin” which was wired. The food at the show was good. The “Imu pork” tasted great. We called it a day at about 10 p.m
12/30/2009 – Drive around east and north coast Oahu
Started the day at about 10 and drove along the east and north cost of Oahu. The first stop was a small Japanese café near Hanauma Bay where we had beef rice and fruit crepes. Good food for 10 bucks. Saw the famous Hanauma bay which was packed. It was a feast for the police who were distributing tickets to illegally parked cars.
The second stop was the famous Lanikai beach. Now that is what I call a beach. Emerald green water, soft white sand beaches and very few people. Stayed there for about 15 mins and decided to keep driving. The rest of the trip to North shore was not that eventful. I guess we were a bit late to see the surfers at the north shore beaches. Made a couple of interesting stops. The first one was at “Giovanni’s Shrimp truck” as advised by our local friend Watsala. Sticky plastic tables, stray cats and birds and a ton of customers. The shrimp scampi was excellent. A simple recipe of shrimp cooked with butter and garlic and spread over rice. The fresh shrimp makes all the difference. Made another pit stop at the Dole plantation and bought mangos and sugar canes.
It was about 4.30 when we got to the hotel. I returned the car and went souvenir shopping. Met Jessica and Yufang for dinner at the Korean BBQ place (BBQ Me), and called it a day soon afterwards
12/31/2009 – Lanikai beach
Since we didn’t get too much time yesterday drove back to Lanikai beach to spend some time relaxing. It was raining in the morning but nevertheless things turned out bright and sunny in the evening. I went for a swim and to check out the fish and the corals while Charini was sunbathing. After about 2 hours started heading back and had lunch in Kailua at “Aloha Salads” and smoothies at a place two doors down. .
We were both tired by the time we got to the hotel. So had a nap and went for dinner. Ended up at an Italian restaurant called “Arancino Di Mare” owned by a Japanese lady. The food was very good. There was a spaghetti dish called “spaghetti ai ricci di mare”with sea urchin sauce which was excellent. They even gave us free desserts since they screwed up our order. Watched a bit of the fire works from the Waikiki beach but mostly from the hotel room at midnight.
01/01/2010 – Back to reality
So that was the end of the journey. Our flight left Oahu at 2 p.m and reached Newark, NJ on the 2nd morning at 7 a.m with one stop over in San Francisco.
It was a great trip. Eventful, and we covered a lot. I guess come to think of it we covered too much for one trip. So back to below freezing temperatures in good ol NYC
Mahalo Hawaii….
