HAWAII

Hi, Welcome to Hawaii

Honolulu

The Hawaiian word "Aloha" means, Love, Mercy, Compassion, Pity, Loved One, To Love, Greetings, and Good Bye. It is a word that has to do with deep feelings and emotions.

Giving a "Flower Lei" as a gift also expresses the same meanings as the word "Aloha". Traditionally, the gesture of giving a "Lei" is accompanied by a kiss on the cheek to show it is presented with feelings, emotions, and sincerity.


 

Waikiki Beach

With only four days in Hawaii we decided to stay in the most famous place, Waikiki Beach on the island of Oahu. When we arrived at Honolulu airport we were greeted at the with the traditional greeting of The Lei.  This made our time in Hawaii very special.  We were then taken to our hotel in Waikiki Beach where we had time to relax after out long flight and start the next day feeling very refreshed.

Although it would have been easy to spend the whole week in Hawaii without ever leaving Waikiki Beach we ventured further a field and booked some tours. We did the grand circle island tour, a sunset cruise on a catamaran, and the stars and stripes tour which included Pearl Harbour, punchbowl and the USS Missouri.

History of Pearl Harbour

On 7 December 1941 Pearl Harbour was surprised by a massive Japanese attack. Although a huge fleet of aircraft had been spotted on the radar no action was taken because they were thought to be some anticipated friendly aircraft flying in. This was a devastating mistake because in just one day about 2400 people died in Pearl Harbour. A number of ships were hit but the most devastating hit in terms of loss of life was that of the USS Arizona which was sunk with 1177 crew members on board. Back on land there was an interesting museum with stories from survivors and items rescued from the ship and there was an informative video.
 

Stars and Stripes Tour

This was a tour steeped in history! We visited Pearl Harbour and the Visitor centre which commemorates America's entry into WWII. We first enjoyed an excellent film of the 1941 Pearl Harbour attack, which showed actual footage of that horrific day
It was well done and gave some context for the events leading up to the attack. Before the film the Park Service employee made a speech emphasizing that the bodies are still buried in the ship, considered buried at sea, and we should keep our voices low and treat the place as a cemetery. He also pointed out how this huge ship sunk in about 9 minutes, about the time it would take to travel out to the ship. People just gasped and then there was a silence as we all shuffled out towards the boat.

The Navy launch, took us out to the memorial. The feeling onboard as we headed towards the memorial was very sombre. When we boarded the USS Arizona memorial, we were surprised by how little you could see of the remains of the ship. Jutting out from the water was the massive foundation of one of the turrets for the guns, and a couple other hunks of metal, and beyond that you could see only a little of the structure of the ship. There were still small globs of oil forming on the surface of the water, apparently still trapped in the boat, over 50 years later. At one end of the memorial is a large stone wall with the names of all the servicemen who were killed and their ranks carved into the stone. 1177 men on the USS Arizona died that day. The names of another dozen or so were added later, shipmates who had survived the attack but had been buried with the rest after they had died later. That was interesting.
 

USS Missouri

We also took a tour of  the battleship USS Missouri where the armistice ending the war was signed. The USS Missouri is a famous battleship which is moored next to the Arizona Memorial and is now a museum. The USS Missouri had a notable life as it was the site of the Japanese surrender on 2 September 1945 which ended World War II and it then participated in the Korean and Gulf Wars before being decommissioned in 1992.

We got on the tour bus, which took us across to the island in the middle of the harbour - Ford Island, and let us off at the ship. This really is a huge ship!! It's 887 feet long, weighing 45,000 tons (58,000 fully loaded). It carries 2.5 million gallons of fuel. The guns mounted on the deck were gigantic and could shoot 23 miles away with accuracy. Incredible. We were on a guided tour and I felt  that it really made for an interesting part of our tour. Our guide was very informative and kept everyone totally focused on this historic ship.

I thought it was pretty good, we were allowed to go through lots of sections of the ship. We saw some of the sleeping quarters, which were ridiculously tight. The bunks were three high, each one maybe two feet apart from the one above or below it. We saw the captain's quarters, which doubled as their office. I suppose they were downright luxurious compared to the crew, but still pretty minimal. I was surprised at how big some of the rooms were, like the mess hall. We went outside and up the main tower. They let us into a small gunnery room where you looked through a periscope to aim the guns. They had pictures showing when Japan had signed the surrender treaty aboard the USS Missouri. Apparently, the ship had been retired but they redeployed it for the Gulf War.  I felt this was really worth seeing.

On the way back to Waikiki the tour took us through the Punchbowl military cemetery which was once covered with thousands of white crosses that have now been removed to make cutting the grass easier!  We had a full guided tour by one of  Hawaii's WW11 veterans and he really was very informative.  We had great views over Honolulu and diamond head crater, once we had completed the long walk up the hill which I have to say not everyone completed as it was a very hot day and no shade available. There are buggy carts available but these are very much in demand for people who need  assistance with walking.

Magic of Polynesia- illusionist show

The Magic of Polynesia is a major stage production combining the style of Las Vegas and the warmth of Polynesian song and dance with the mystifying illusions of illusionist, John Hirokawa. This is in my book the "Ultimate Stage Spectacular" of Waikiki entertainment. This was an amazing evening out with illusions that I can only describe as mystifying. All I can say is we sat in awe of this wonderful illusionist.

Halona Point

Now anyone who knows me will know I (Jan) am a true romantic. And this photo below is one of those romantic moments.  This is the beach where Deborah Kerr and Cary Grant, filmed their famous kiss in the film names "An Affair To Remember"  ... it is also famous by the way for it's blow holes, but that didnt sound as romantic as two movie icons ha ha ha

Byodo-In Buddhist Temple

This beautiful Buddhist temple is a replica of the 900-year-old Byodo-In located in Uji, Japan. It is located in one of the most peaceful locations in O'ahu - the Valley of the Temples. The valley is situated against a back-drop of tall cliffs and is landscaped with traditional lush Japanese gardens and koi ponds. Inside the Byodo-In Temple is a nine-foot Lotus Buddha. Outside is a three-ton, brass Peace Bell. It is the largest wooden Buddha carved in over 900 years and is covered in gold and lacquer. Beside the temple is a 5-foot, three-ton brass Peace Bell. The deep tone of the bell sounds a message of calm and peace. As you can imagine lots of people rang that bell so it wasn't too quiet when we visited. We alas refrained ha ha!

Alii Kai Sunset Dinner Cruise

This is apparently the world’s largest Polynesian catamaran and it cruises along Waikiki’s historic coastline. As romantics we had to sip a cocktail as the sun went down.Then you really do get to see the lights of Waikiki, a view of Diamond Head and that spectacular sunset was really worth waiting for.

We enjoyed a party atmosphere. We had to sit at long picnic-style tables, which felt a little daunting at first but we were told it was so that we could mingle with others.        (OK if you get people who wish to talk ha ha ha) The all-you-can-eat buffet featured spaghetti, grilled chicken, roast beef, steamed fish, an assortment of salads, rolls, an assortment of desserts, and one (meanies) standard cocktail. Entertainment was an authentic Polynesian show to start the evening off with, and to follow, there was a contemporary band for your dancing and partying pleasure, I may add also at this stage that audience participation was also called for, so drink plenty!!
 

We had a fantastic time in Hawaii, yes it has the mad and commercial Waikiki Beach but it also has areas of astounding beauty. Hawaii was very special for us, we can now say we have now visited one of the romantic places in the world. Hawaii is one of those places everyone should be allowed to visit at least once in their lifetime as I am sure it has something that will capture everyone's heart.