DAY 1: Fly to Honolulu with a layover in Portland (no pics taken--Scott was shocked)
DAY 2: Explore, try to attend church, & relax
drinking a delicious ginger limeade our first day on the beach
a pretty LDS church in Honolulu--we tried to attend but were too late due to stake conference
Scott standing next to a statue of King Kalakaua in front of our hotel
our first Hawaiian sunset together--super romantic!DAY 3: Dole Plantation, North Shore, Polynesian Cultural Center, & Hawaii Temple
Scott learning about pineapples on our train tour at the Dole Plantation
eating the best ice cream in Hawaii--Dole Whip--YUM!
watching the surfers on the North Shore
Scott LOVED watching the huge waves!
Samoan guy at the PCC cracking open a coconut
the coconut cracker climbed this tree like a monkey--totally awesome!
canoe pageant at the PCC
We took advantage of the tram tour that took us to the beautiful Hawaii temple and to see the campus of BYU-Hawaii.
delicious luau at the PCC (I actually like this pic of us)
night show at the PCC--gotta love the fire dancers
our hotel room--I loved the tropical decor
Scott relaxing in the room
We spent most of our nights with me looking up our next day's adventures on mapquest and Scott watching the Australian Open.
our mini-kitchenette really came in handy--we saved a lot of money by eating breakfast in the room and packing snacks & sandwiches with us
the view from our balcony--it was a 7-minute walk to the beach through this beautiful park--Can you see the ocean beyond the trees?Day 4: Beach, pool, beach, shop, & eat
our beautiful park and beach--Ft. DeRussy
our pool was a little chilly but still fun and relaxing
Waikiki Beach was a 5-minute walk from our beach. Here Scott is participating in his favorite Hawaiian past time--tormenting pigeons. He would lure them closer with pine nuts and then throw sand on them. Good times...
gorgeous sunset at Waikiki Beach--Scott claims that I am obsessed with sunsets, and maybe I am :)
shopping & dinner at the International Marketplace--I loved my macadamia nut-encrusted opaka paka, but Scott didn't love the shrimp that he had to peel or his tough steak.DAY 5: Pearl Harbor, Aloha Stadium swap meet, & sushi
Scott looking at the sunken USS Arizona from the memorial deck
Pearl Harbor was a much more sacred experience for me than it was when I was 10 years old.
eating a shaved ice at the swap meet--Scott also thinks I'm obsessed with taking pics of food, and okay, I am :)
It rained lightly part of the afternoon (the only time), and we saw this rainbow from our balcony.
We played Solitaire & War while it rained. Playing cards in Hawaii is a Clayson family tradition.
a rainy, cloudy afternoon made for a beautiful sunset
We walked all over Honolulu before we discovered this yummy sushi place near our hotel.DAY 6: Beach, whale-less whale watching, & steak
We went on a fun whale watching cruise, but the whales were hiding. Don't worry--we got a rain/whale check. (That's Diamond Head Crater in the background.)
another beautiful Hawaiian sunset--nothing beats watching the sun sink into the ocean
GORGEOUS!
Scott grilled us some delicious steaks.DAY 7: Diamond Head Crater & snorkeling at Hanauma Bay
These are just 99 of the almost 300 stairs we had to climb, in addition to regular trails, to get to the top of Diamond Head Crater.
The view at the top was well worth the trek!
Doesn't Scott look thrilled to have made it to the top?
Hanauma Bay is a gorgeous nature preserve.
I know I look like a weirdy. We saw tons of beautiful fish and even a sea turtle. Way cool & fun!
It was a hazy day, so the sun actually set in the haze. Kinda cool.DAY 8: Beach, whale-ful whale watching, drive around island, & more beach
our last day on our beach
one last pic of Scott tormenting pigeons
This time we saw plenty of whales on our whale watching cruise. Super fun!
The bright blue blob is a baby whale--super cute!
We started our drive around the island with a quick stop at the Dole Plantation for more ice cream and a pic of the cute baby pineapples.
We had to get shaved ice at Matsumoto's to eat on the North Shore (note the lack of huge waves in the background).
Matsumoto's puts ice cream & black beans at the bottom of their shaved ice. Sounds (and looks) nasty, but it's surprisingly tasty!
The prettiest part of our drive around the island was the super green east coast and Pali Lookout. Gorgeous!
We ended the day and our time in Hawaii on the dry, ugly northwest coast, but the beach was still pretty. Let's just say we were a bit nervous to find ourselves in the ghetto of Hawaii.
Apparently, a lot of people have died on Nanakuli Beach. Needless to say, we barely touched the water.DAY 9: Loooooooong trip home
After an all-night flight from Hawaii to Portland, we were delighted to eat a delicious omelette breakfast in the airport. I didn't get a "drunk Mexican" picture of Scott on this trip, but I did get this "crazed Cougar fan" pic. Good thing Scott loves me. :)
One last pic on the flight to SLC. Scott was a little sleepy.If you made it to the end of this post, you are a real trooper. Mahalo! We had a fabulous time in Hawaii, and we have plenty of pictures to help us remember it forever!
11 comments:
I made it too the end, and enjoyed it too! Makes me wish I was in Hawaii instead of buried in 20 inches of snow with 10-20 more coming tomorroe night! Aghh!
i am totally jealous. fantastic pictures. i'm glad that you guys got to go, it looks like so much fun.
Brings back some fond memories. You saw way more than I did on my one and only trip to Hawaii, but I did see some of what you pictured. I love the sunsets.
Looks fun and I also am totally jealous. Maybe someday...
I love the sunset pics...I'm a fan. And I think Scott mostly just looks sweaty after the hike up the peak. Just sayin'. Looks like a fun trip! Good for you both.
I loved the pictures, especially of the food! What a fun and beautiful trip. You guys are quite the travelers; Wish we could tag along.
So fun! Now I REALLY need to get busy planning my own trip to Hawaii...anything to get out of this yucky cold weather here.
Your hawaii post did not disappoint, despite the two week wait for it to appear :). Looks like fun!
Glad you had fun...sure didn't look like you were thinking of any of the people you left beind in cold, cold Utah. And...um...all the pictures, except one, that I took while in Seattle last week were of food. This is why we are friends!!
What a wonderful trip! So glad you got to go!
Looks like fun! And I love food pictures too :)
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