Hawaii anyone?

[Moonliner]

Well ain't life a strange place. Just yesterday I was lamenting the fact that the only "vacation' I had planned for the next year was a trip to help fix up my Mother-in-laws house but that was yesterday. Now it looks like I'm off for Honolulu come the first of August. :D

Pearl Harbor, Diamonhead, Hanauma Bay, and of course that bastion of swank the Dole Plantation (you can get whipp there right?). After which I hope we'll hop over to the big island for a little volcano watching.

Does anyone have any Hawaii travel tips to share?

[Alex]

Yeah, don't go to Waikiki. And don't eat the custard filled malasadas you can get in the Ala Moana Shopping Center food court; they're really gross. Matsumotos Shave Ice at the North Shore is good but is very touristy, you can get good authentic shave ice all over the place and some of the best ones are hidden away in residential neighborhoods around Honolulu. If you won't be getting out to Haleiwa try to look one up.

If you do go to the Ala Moana Shopping Center you'll see a round, 20-story apartment building a couple blocks away. Wave at it and know that you're in the presence of one of my former homes.

If possible bring me back a chicken curry manapua from 7-11.

[scaeagles]

My wife, who was in Hawaii with her dad a scant two weeks ago, has informed me that the Dole Planation has a very short lifespan remaining. Pineapple production is so much cheaper in the Phillippines that they will be shutting their doors and most likely selling their land to developers.

I don't know the exact time frame, but it is good that you will be visiting hem soon.

[Moonliner]

Yeah, don't go to Waikiki. And don't eat the custard filled malasadas you can get in the Ala Moana Shopping Center food court; they're really gross. Matsumotos Shave Ice at the North Shore is good but is very touristy, you can get good authentic shave ice all over the place and some of the best ones are hidden away in residential neighborhoods around Honolulu. If you won't be getting out to Haleiwa try to look one up.

If you do go to the Ala Moana Shopping Center you'll see a round, 20-story apartment building a couple blocks away. Wave at it and know that you're in the presence of one of my former homes.

If possible bring me back a chicken curry manapua from 7-11.

Chicken curry eh? Tempting.

I did see pipeline beach on the map and thought about a visit but what I've been told is that the superbig curls are more of a winter thing. In the summer it's just another beach. Is that correct?

[Moonliner]

My wife, who was in Hawaii with her dad a scant two weeks ago, has informed me that the Dole Planation has a very short lifespan remaining. Pineapple production is so much cheaper in the Phillippines that they will be shutting their doors and most likely selling their land to developers.

I don't know the exact time frame, but it is good that you will be visiting hem soon.

The reviews I see say that in this case "plantation" is just another word for "gift shop" they don't grow pineapples there, you can't visit the fields or processing plants just a small patch out back where they grow a smattering of pineapples. But they do have every pineapple trinket known to western culture. :D

[scaeagles]

Ahh....perhaps my wife was misinformed and this has already happened.

[DreadPirateRoberts]

Chicken curry eh? Tempting.

I did see pipeline beach on the map and thought about a visit but what I've been told is that the superbig curls are more of a winter thing. In the summer it's just another beach. Is that correct?

Pipeline is disappointing in the summer, looks nothing like you would expect.

[Alex]

For quite a while the Dole Plantation has been a "working" plantation in the sense that they do actually grow pineapple there but mostly as a tourist attraction. The actual financial incentive to grow pineapple in Hawaii is small (same with sugar, of which not so much is grown in Hawaii any longer).

As far as big waves at the North Shore it is true that winter is better for the big waves but if you want to watch some surfing that is where you'd head any time of the year (on the Honolulu side of the island the surf tends to only be a few inches). And keep in mind that in Hawaiian parlance the height of waves is about half of what it would be labelled anywhere else.

I don't know how you and your family like to tourist. If you like to experience nature more there is some great hiking available and a good lazy drive around the island on the King Kamehameha highway is worthwhile to get a sense of the island away from the tourists.

[Gemini Cricket]

This Hawai'i Boy has a lot of advice for you. Let me compile some stuff and I'll get back to this thread. Before August, I promise. :)

[BarTopDancer]

Snorkling! It is beautiful. Banana boat rides are fun too. Find a traditional luau to attend.

And don't walk through the International Marketplace at 3am. Trust me (and Erica) on that. But if you heed Alex's advice and avoid Waikiki then you won't have to rememeber that.

Pearl Harbor was so.. I can't even describe it. Haunting is the best word I can come up with for it.

[Gemini Cricket]

Tip #1: Go out and buy yourself a nice pair of slippers (flip-flops). Don't go looking like a dork with dress shoes, black socks and shorts. :D

[DreadPirateRoberts]

Pearl Harbor was so.. I can't even describe it. Haunting is the best word I can come up with for it.

Agreed, watching 60+ year old oil droplets rise to the surface above the Arizona is eery

[Alex]

Tip #1: Go out and buy yourself a nice pair of slippers (flip-flops). Don't go looking like a dork with dress shoes, black socks and shorts. :D

In my 2+ years in Hawaii I never bought slippers. There's a reason Hawaiians have almost universally ugly feet. It's been 8 years since Lani left Hawaii and her feet are still recovering.

Of course, that doesn't matter for a quick vacation and you'll definitely want something for walking on beaches.

[scaeagles]

Agreed, watching 60+ year old oil droplets rise to the surface above the Arizona is eery
And environmentally hazardous. I propose we raise the Arizona to prevent this destruction of the fragile ecology of the harbor.

[DreadPirateRoberts]

And environmentally hazardous. I propose we raise the Arizona to prevent this destruction of the fragile ecology of the harbor.

raising arizona?

[Moonliner]

And don't walk through the International Marketplace at 3am. Trust me (and Erica) on that. But if you heed Alex's advice and avoid Waikiki then you won't have to rememeber that.


While I doubt I'd get the same kind of attention as a couple of haole hotties, I will heed your advice none the less. ;)

[Gemini Cricket]

There's a reason Hawaiians have almost universally ugly feet.
Yeah, but let's see how far you get walking on red lava with your haole feet. :D

[Alex]

Yeah, but let's see how far you get walking on red lava with your haole feet. :D

That's why we invented shoes.

Another tip: don't try to talk in pidgen, you won't do it right and you'll just look stupid. Also, don't assume that people talking in pidgen are stupid, they speak standard English just as well as you.

[Moonliner]

Yeah, but let's see how far you get walking on red lava with your haole feet. :D

Wishing to keep my tenderfoots in tact, I'll be taking a cheap knockoff of a Keen sandal (http://www.backcountry.com/store/KEN0024/KEEN-Venice-H2-Sandal-Mens.html) (I hate flip-flops...)

But of course I'll still wear dark socks. I am dork, here me roar. :D




Another tip: don't try to talk in pidgen

What the hell is "pidgen"? Or to put it in another way, OK. I won't. Whenever I travel to foreign lands I always speak dollar. That seems to work in most situations.. :)

[Not Afraid]

NO SOCKS!

Otherwise, I haven't been to Hawaii since 1971. It was amazingly primative still.

[scaeagles]

My wife lived there until she was 10 or so. Most kids didn't even wear shoes to school.

[Moonliner]

NO SOCKS!

Otherwise, I haven't been to Hawaii since 1971. It was amazingly primative still.

I'm not sure, but I don't think it is still "amazingly (http://tinyurl.com/l3ebw) primative (http://tinyurl.com/kgnmx)". At least in parts.

[Not Afraid]

WOW!

I'm sort of sad. Kauai was REALLY remote when I was there.

[Alex]

Living in Hawaii is really like living anywhere else in the United States (ignoring issues directly tied to climate and geography).

[Not Afraid]

Living in Hawaii is really like living anywhere else in the United States (ignoring issues directly tied to climate and geography).

I'm sure it is now, but in 1971 it was like visiting a foreign country - in some areas. Waikiki was certainly not that way.

[Matterhorn Fan]

I think you should take this plane: http://us.news2.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/fi/7/84/43.jpg

link (http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/060623/laf022.html?.v=57)

[Not Afraid]

That's the plane I flew in 1971 - or one just like it. How cool!

[Matterhorn Fan]

On the news they said the crew's going to be wearing the old-style uniforms, too. Sounds groovy.

[Drince88]

If you walk out to the 'fresh' lava flows at sunset - bring a flashlight --- after the sun sets, it gets kind of dark. ;)
(Not that I've ever GONE to Hawaii - but that's some advice I received once.)

[Moonliner]

I've booked the flights. We are going to be spending three days on the Big Island and then hop over to Honolulu for about a week.

We also get a five hour layover in LAX on the way out. Hummm how long are the lines at PoTC? :D

Thanks for all the good advice so far. I'm sure I'll be keeping this thread alive for awhile as I plan the actual daily events.

[Gemini Cricket]

Living in Hawaii is really like living anywhere else in the United States (ignoring issues directly tied to climate and geography).
Not to distract from Moonliner's advice thread, but I partly disagree with this statement. Hawai'i is not like all the other states. Yeah we have our Home Depots and Wal*Marts etc. but I would never compare Hawai'i to California nor Colorado etc. And it has nothing to do with climate or geography.

Living in Hawai'i, California and Massachusetts and travelling to many other states, I have come to realize that Hawai'i is a different country. Not that it is un-American (although some people there are) it's just that it was its own thing before it became a state. There's a different way of looking at things that you pick up by living there. Some call it the Aloha Spirit but it's more than that.

There's a level of courtesy that I grew up with that still exists back home that makes your life so much easier if you partake in it. ie. You use your blinkers on the highway, you wave at someone if they let you into their lane, you say please and mahalo at the grocery store etc.

I discussed this with a friend the other day. She's from Sacramento and wanted to know about Hawaiian culture etc. During the course of our conversation, I asked her if she was at a party and there was food out on a table for guests and there was only one piece of cake left if she would take it or not. She said she absolutely would and loved taking the last of something before someone else got it. I told her that growing up in Hawai'i, it's an unwritten rule that you leave it for someone else. Or you cut that piece in half leaving something for someone else who would like to enjoy the cake.
This spirit is more evident in the areas that are not tourist-y, but it still exists. It was/is a huge adjustment for me being on the mainland and still thinking in terms of Aloha Spirit... I guess it can be compared to Southern Hospitality... :shurg:
:)

[Moonliner]

There's a level of courtesy that I grew up with that still exists back home that makes your life so much easier if you partake in it

Yeah, even the hardcore druggies that Dogg the bounty hunter (www.dogthebountyhunter.com)tracks down are poilte once they are in the back of his SUV. Try that in Chicago, or LA.

[Gemini Cricket]

Yeah, even the hardcore druggies that Dogg the bounty hunter (www.dogthebountyhunter.com)tracks down are poilte once they are in the back of his SUV. Try that in Chicago, or LA.
Don't get me started on Dog... :D :rolleyes:

[Gemini Cricket]

Big Island:
1. If you can, go see the lava flowing into the sea in the late evening. Just make sure you have flashlights or leave before it gets too dark. It's really stunning to see. Follow the designated path. People have veered off the path and fallen through the crusty top into the mushy underneath... If you know what I mean.
2. Check out the black sand beaches at Punalu'u. It's surreal.
3. Go snorkelling at Ho'okena, Kahaluu and/or Kealakekua. I like Kealakekua...
4. Hike the Donkey Trail.
5. You must go see the Volcanoes National Park.
6. I like eating at the Farmer's Market or the Hilo Lunch Shop. No frills, good local food.





OMG, I'm soooooooooo homesick for Hawai'i right now.
:( :D

[Alex]

It's not worth arguing about since Hawaii is a wonderful place (I could never live there again but it is a great place), but also having lived in many places I don't find any of the things you mentioned unique or particularly more prevalent. What you describe is how most people describe Vancouver.

It also describes the way I was brought up by the descendants of Kansas farmers and descendants.

[Gemini Cricket]

Hawai'i is not just another state. It was its own country before it was brought into the United States. I think the way people act has more to do with cultural influences than just 'Oh, they're just being nice.'

[Alex]

So were Texas and California.

We can disagree, I'm ok with that. My original comment was more at the difference between 1971 and 2006 in Hawaii. Hawaii no longer exists in informatoinal isolation and the change from a mostly agricultural to a mostly service economy has done much to smooth out some of the differences.

In the more traditional native Hawaiian communities I think there are some real differences, particularly in the view of how people relate to government. And there are certainly unique things about Hawaii in general (Frank De Lima really isn't funny if you didn't grow up there), just as there are about any other place. But I find them to be differences of minor degree rather than anything truly unique. And primarily driven by geographical and climactic differences. For the most part, they aren't things that are going to be things that are noticed by tourists on a 10-day vacation (such as the political force that is the OHA and the surprisingly large seccessionist movement; or the impacts of the Bishop Estate on community building and population patterns. Or the difference in assumptions if you say you went to Punaho, Kamehameha, or Pearl City High. Or how it is that one of the most popular sports is indoor women's vollyball).

Most Hawaiians (state of residence, not ethnic heritage) I know who move to the mainland are more annoyed by the assumptions of difference (hey, you must have had thatched roofing) than asssumptions of similarity.

In the end, though, the only difference that really matters is that you can get chicken curry manapua at 7-11. As long as that remains the case Hawaii is heaven on earth.

[Gemini Cricket]

There's also really good chicken curry manapua at the Manapua Factory in Mano'a, btw.

[Alex]

Yes, but there are a lot more 7-11s. Particularly there were several on the walk home from the campus. Needless to say, I ate many chicken curry manapua.

Eight years since I had my last manapua (steam buns from Chinatown just aren't the same) and I still occasionally burst into chants of "onomatopoeia? wanna manapua!; onomatopoeia? wanna manapua!"

No, it makes no sense but I like the way it rolls off the tongue. Plus it annoys Lani so that is bonus.

[Gemini Cricket]

I don't know. I liken buying manapuas from 7-11 to buying hotdogs from 7-11... it's just not done, Alex. :D
And before Leo can denounce me as a manapua snob, I'll confess I am one.

[Alex]

I'm not. I'll get them however I can get them.

However, can I lay claim to being a malasada snob? And what a travesty are those cream-filled malasadas you can get at that place in Ala Moana Shopping Center (assuming it is still there)?

Q: How did the Portuguese burn his face on Halloween?
A: Bobbing for malasadas.

That was the first joke I learned in Hawaii, in a conversation with other students about Hawaii-specific humor (requiring knowing what a malasada is and also knowing that Portuguese take the role of Pollacks in stupid-people jokes).


The second one was a German explaining the proper pronunciation of Hawai'i (the punchline being "you're velcome"). Unfortunately I suck at remembering jokes and so don't remember the third or later ones.

[Gemini Cricket]

I'm a malasada snob, too. Leonard's used to be good but now they put too much air in their malasadas...
I like my malasadas homemade. My grandmother and mom make great malasadas.
Yeah, that Ala Moana food court malasada stand is... yuck!

And that's one of my favorite Portuguese jokes. Hysterical. :D

[Prudence]

I have no idea what you're talking about but I want one.

[Alex]

Manapua is a large steam bun like what you can find in any Chinatown though the filling tends to be different (but you can get standards like char siu). Generally there will not be a quail egg as in most Chinese steam buns (and what a suprise that was sinced I had my first steam bun after leaving Hawaii and thinking "hey, looks lilke a smaller manapua").

Malasadas are a Portuguese doughnut (Food Network visited Leonard's in a show we saw the other day and called them "Hawaiian doughnuts"; Lani and I simultaneously shouted out "they're Portuguese!") with no hole.

[Alex]

Manapua (from a Hawaii fast food chain called Zippy's; not so very good in my opinion):

http://www.zippys.com/zippys/images/products/manapualrg.gif

Malasadas (from the famous Leonard's):

http://onokinegrindz.typepad.com/ono_kine_grindz/images/Malasadas-thumb.jpg

[scaeagles]

Mmmm....manapua.....Mmmmm

[Gemini Cricket]

Holy moley! I'm starving now! :)

[Alex]

Just remember to not eat the paper on the bottom. Though if you forget and are eating the manapua while it is still steamy fresh you may not notice anyway.

[Gemini Cricket]

Just remember to not eat the paper on the bottom. Though if you forget and are eating the manapua while it is still steamy fresh you may not notice anyway.
I sit and wonder how many papers Alex consumed prior to his discovery. :D

[Prudence]

I still want one. Maybe two. I'm right on campus - old administration building - can't miss it. I take lunch around 11:30. Just hoot from red square when you get here.

[Alex]

I'll have you know that I ate no paper before discovering they were there. But I will admit to the occasional paper-laden bite after the discovery from not paying attention.

Prudence, if you're willing to drive a bit I am told you can get manapua at Uwajimaya Village. But I don't now if they're worth that drive and getting humbao on the Ave would be a fair approximation (though not quite the same).

And I dont know what the weather up there is actually like, but down here it has me in the mood to sit on the steps in front of Kane Hall, reading a book with some intellectual heft, while watching frisbee, hackysack, pretty girls, and crazy preachers.

[Not Afraid]

And I dont know what the weather up there is actually like, but down here it has me in the mood to sit on the steps in front of Kane Hall, reading a book with some intellectual heft, while watching frisbee, hackysack, pretty girls, and crazy preachers.

God, what an evocative sentence!

[Alex]

But it started with a conjunction!

[Moonliner]

Donuts? Manapua are donuts? All this fuss over donuts? :rolleyes:

Next thing is I'll find out that a saved ice is really just a snow-cone.... :eek:


Portuguese you say? Huh, I would have thought the Pollock role on the Islands would have been taken by the tourist/mainlander joke. (See above comments).

[Not Afraid]

But it started with a conjunction!

Some of the most evocative things in life don't follow the rules.


But, damnit, now I'm singing Conjunction Junction.

[Alex]

Next thing is I'll find out that a saved ice is really just a snow-cone.... :eek:


Oh now you didn't just compare shave ice to a sno-cone! I believe you have just disqualified yourself from any further contribution.

[Gemini Cricket]

Totally.

[Moonliner]

Oh now you didn't just compare shave ice to a sno-cone!

Me? Never.

I was just giving examples of the type of comments "mainlanders" might make in order to backup my assertion that jokes about mainlanders made more sense than portuguese... Yeah that's it.

[Prudence]

And I dont know what the weather up there is actually like, but down here it has me in the mood to sit on the steps in front of Kane Hall, reading a book with some intellectual heft, while watching frisbee, hackysack, pretty girls, and crazy preachers.

82 with a moderate breeze. No crazy preachers at the moment, but I did hear a group somewhere doing cheers earlier. And there are herds of people touring.

[Moonliner]

Doh! I almost forgot about Mauna Key Observatory! I just gotta take this tour! (http://www.maunakea.com/details.htm)

After all how could I go to paradise and not visit the one spot that's 30 degrees all year round?

[Mousey Girl]

And environmentally hazardous. I propose we raise the Arizona to prevent this destruction of the fragile ecology of the harbor.

My Grandmother fought this before she died. They were seriously thinking about raising it. She helped lead the fight to keep it where it is.

My dad's dad is entombed on the Arizona. My aunt had my grandma's ashes inclosed in a lei that she floated in one of the smokestacks. It was very moving and emotional to be out there. It is something I don't think I will ever do again.

[Alex]

Doh! I almost forgot about Mauna Key Observatory! I just gotta take this tour! (http://www.maunakea.com/details.htm)

After all how could I go to paradise and not visit the one spot that's 30 degrees all year round?

Ah, from your OP I assumed you were staying on Oahu. If you're going to neighbor islands too then that opens up more possibilities.

[Moonliner]

The plan has evolved since the first post. The final version is:

Fly from here to LAX, sit at LAX for five hours, Fly into Kona on the Big Island. Stay on the big island (don't know where yet) for three days, do the Volcano park, the black sand beach, and now the observatory for starters.

We then fly over to Oahu for about 10 days. Do pearl, Diamonhead, the snorkle beach, etc...

[Not Afraid]

We can have a meet at Encounters at LAX!

[Moonliner]

We can have a meet at Encounters at LAX!

I did seriously look at the possibility of sneaking out for a quick PoTC ride... but with the travel time to/from (it's middle of the day 12-5), time to clear the main gate, attraction wait time, having to re-clear security at lax, not to mention the cost of four passes, even I (and I think some of you know how obsessive I can be) was not able to tag that idea with a green light. I am half hoping the flight out to Hawaii will be delayed by a day :blush:

What's an "Encounters?"

[€uroMeinke]

What's an "Encounters?"

Theme Restaurant designed by former Immagineers (http://www.encounterlax.com/)

[Stan4dSteph]

Encounter is a nice place to meet folks. :)

[Moonliner]

Theme Restaurant designed by former Immagineers (http://www.encounterlax.com/)

Well ain't that just swankier than a pig in fresh mud.

Assuming they let kids in, it sounds like fun and unlike some people I could bring the entire clan. However we are coming through on a Sunday (July 30th) about 12:00 noon, so it might not be the best time for a quickie meet.

[€uroMeinke]

Kids are okay, and we've had meets there before for swankers in transit, so it shouldn't be an issue. You'll still have to do the airport security thing, but you'll be much closer to your flight than if you skip out to the park.

[Moonliner]

Heh, They grow up so fast. More or less.


Dad! While we are in Hawaii I want to learn to surf!

That sounds fine son, I'll see what I can find for you.

..... search, search....

OK, I found what looks like a good school right near our hotel. It's called 'Girls who surf' (http://www.girlswhosurf.com/). They offer three hour lessons for beginners.

Dad! "Girls who surf?!?" I don't want to go there!!!

Son, Stop. Think. Hawaii. Girls. Bikinis.

Oh. I guess that will be ok.

[Moonliner]

So what's the LAST thing you worry about before a trip to Hawaii?

Yup, you go it. The Weather. Why even bother to check you know it's going to be beautiful. Hell the great weather is the reason you are going in the first place, paradise on earth and all that.

But being the compulsive over-planner I am, I checked. Today's headline is: "State Agencies prepare for Hurricane Daniel's (http://www.khnl.com/Global/story.asp?S=5192173)arrival". Seesch. :rolleyes:

[Gemini Cricket]

Some restaurants to try on O'ahu:

- Wailana Coffee House: It's in Waikiki but they have the best pancakes on earth. Seriously, I love this place. It's old, kitchy, the waitresses are crunchy but it's a great retro place.

- Zippy's: Just try it once. It's the hangout that everyone in Hawai'i goes to. It's open 24 hours, too. Their chili is one of their famous items. Another, to me anyway, are their bundt muffins that they sell in the bakery. Highly recommended.

- Hee Hing: In Kapahulu. Good Chinese food.

- Rainbow's: For a nitty gritty plate lunch. It's a local surfer hang out. Love it.

- Matsumoto's: Shave ice at the North Shore. The best shave ice. If their line's too long, Aoki's is just as good and is a couple of doors away.

- Kua A'ina Burger: Near Ward Warehouse near Ala Moana Beach Park. They have great burgers.

- Farmer's Market: Again, across the street from Ward Warehouse. They have Hawaiian food there... I dare you... ;)

- Ono's Hawaiian Food: Kapahulu again. Authentic no frills Hawaiian food restaurant. They have poi. Yum yum, poi! :)

- Turtle Bay Hotel: On the North Shore, the hotel serves a great brunch on the weekends. It's pricey but the food is really, really good. Stay away from the Orange Roughy, though. They're almost extinct. :D

[Alex]

If you're going to eat in Waikiki, I preferred Eggs'n Things to Wailana Coffee House but they're both good.

The first place I ever ate in Hawaii was the Waikiki Sizzlers. Because it is open 24 hours and I got dropped off by the cab at 6 a.m. I wouldn't recommend you go out of your way to eat there, though.

I was going to recommend Sam Choy's little place on the Big Island but I can't find any listing for it and don't recall it's exact name and can't find a listing. I also see that Choy is no longer involved with the Poke Festival at the Hapuna Prince resort either. I hope he didn't close that restaurant; unlike his restaurants in Honolulu it had a good local feeling and the poke was really good.

[Moonliner]

Thanks for the recommendations (and for forgiving me my transgretions (http://www.loungeoftomorrow.com/LoT/showpost.php?p=79730&postcount=54))

They all sound good, except for the Sizzler perhaps... I'll have to add some of them to my list along with that Hawaiian classic The Pecos River Cafe. :D

[Moonliner]

It's a good thing I'm not one to look for signs in the universe that foretell of evil things.

First, as mentioned above, there was the hurricane. Now I check in to see how that went and what do I find?

Earthquake (http://www.khnl.com/)

So listen up Mother nature, GOD, Buddha, Shiba or the Maytag repair guy. I'm going on vacation. Get used to it.

Thank you.

[scaeagles]

Did I mention that I have a geographic voodoo doll and that I've been poking Hawaii?

[Moonliner]

So listen up Mother nature, GOD, Buddha, Shiba or the Maytag repair guy. I'm going on vacation. Get used to it.

Thank you.

I told you BACK OFF! You are not going to scare me (http://www.khon.com/khon/displayStory.cfm?storyID=14762). (too much)

[Moonliner]

So let's review:

Three days ago: Hurricane on the way
Two days ago: Earthquake rattles island
Yesterday: E-coli in the water.

I can hardly wait to see what today brings....

Ah, of course:


Hundreds of hotel workers protested this afternoon outside the Hilton Hawaiian Village over contract negotiations.

Bet you can't guess where I'm supposed to stay....:rolleyes:

[€uroMeinke]

You're pre-disastered - what's the chance of any of this happening again once you get there?

[Alex]

At the Hilton Hawaiian the protesters would be about 5 miles away to be on public property (obvious exageration, but I doubt the protests were noticed by guests much).

[Fab]

Are you here, Moonliner? Email me and we'll meet up.

[Stan4dSteph]

Anyone have any suggestions for places to look for cheaper airfares from the East Coast to Honolulu (HNL)?

I am thinking I'm going to have to get creative to score a deal. Some genius scheduler decided to put the concert on the same weekend as the marathon.

Also, any suggestions for inexpensive places to stay are appreciated. I will (hopefully) be going to the show at Aloha Stadium. No other plans as of yet.

[Moonliner]

I'm back.

Hawaii was way cool. I made it to the Big Island and O'ahu.

I visited the Wailana Coffee House, Matsumoto's: Shave ice, and Turtle bay but missed out on malasadas and manapua :(

I hit the black sand beach (Punalu'u) where the Honu were sunning themselves, saw lava at Volcano park, hiked up diamonhead, and drove to the top to Mauna Kea, snorkeled at Hanauma Bay Park, visited Pearl Harbor and the ohh so icky Waikiki beach. Pictures and a more detailed report to follow... Thanks again for all the pre-trip advice.

[Alex]

Glad you had fun. I assume you mean honu (turtles) were sunning themselves? Unless I'm misremembering (certainly possible) hona is a kind of tree.

[Moonliner]

Glad you had fun. I assume you mean honu (turtles) were sunning themselves? Unless I'm misremembering (certainly possible) hona is a kind of tree.

Honu (http://www.islander-magazine.com/honu.html) would be correct.

[Gemini Cricket]

Glad you had a good time. And, yes, Waikiki Beach is icky.
:)

[DreadPirateRoberts]

Glad you had a good time. And, yes, Waikiki Beach is icky.
:)

True, but some of the funnest little waves you will find. Warm water, great scenery...

[Gemini Cricket]

True, but some of the funnest little waves you will find. Warm water, great scenery...
If you're at Walls or Queens Beach, yes. But sometimes you'll be in the water there and realize that the water is murky/cloudy because of the suntan lotion coming off of the numerous tourist bodies. Makes ya wanna gag.
:D

[DreadPirateRoberts]

If you're at Walls or Queens Beach, yes. But sometimes you'll be in the water there and realize that the water is murky/cloudy because of the suntan lotion coming off of the numerous tourist bodies. Makes ya wanna gag.
:D

you won't have to worry about being sunburned, there's always a silver lining.

[Alex]

And if you're in that area you can easily walk over to Ala Moana Beach and get a more (though not entirely) local feel.

[Moonliner]

My two junior moonies did enjoy surfing at Waikiki. The waves there are perfect for beginners.

I gave it the "icky" descriptive primarily due to the crowds. We stayed at the Hilton Hawaiian village because my wife had meetings there and her work paid for the room. Even being free, the place was still a rip off. $5 for a stale bagel, $1 extra for a little pack of cream cheese, lines for everything, $15 for a beach chair, indifferent staff, etc... We went off property at every opportunity.