Hawai’i

“...we'd been upgraded to a rockin' white Chevrolet Camaro!”

COVID travel regulations were still in place (they cancelled them the week after our trip - great timing). We had to fill out a lengthy survey online in order to receive permission to travel to Hawaii. The Hawaii travel authority (or whatever it was) page stated that filling out the information in advance would also save valuable time at the departure airport for the islands(in this case, Phoenix). We were a little surprised, then, that we had to wait in a lengthy queue at Phoenix to have our COVID information processed. I honestly can't remember from which airport we departed, Milwaukee or Chicago - again, the dangers of waiting too long to start writing.

We had reached out to our friends Carl and Tish about the possibility of staying in the condo belonging to Tish's dad Lorenzo - Lorenzo had kindly offered us the use of his place some time ago. Happily, Carl, Tish and their kids were going to be there that same week so we made arrangements to see them while we were there. We made reservations at a hotel in Waikiki.

If memory serves, we didn't have any significant delays and arrived in Honolulu on time. We were, however, delayed in picking up our rental car. There was a CRAZY long line at the airport rental office - I waited outside for Paul while he went through the line. Ninety minutes or so later he emerged with the news that we'd been upgraded ("it's your first time visiting Hawai'i and it's your birthday?") to a rockin' white Chevrolet Camaro!

“...we were to learn that our hotel was something of a no-fun zone.”

Our hotel was the Moana Surfrider on Kalakaua Avenue in the heart of Waikiki. The original building dates from the Victorian Era and has a very impressive frontage on the avenue. Parking was across the street in the parking garage of a neighboring hotel complex (through an agreement between the two). It's a lovely, traditional old institution - the lobby is of a modest size, but with a very elegant staircase. After checking in, we took the elevator up to our room which was in one of the newer, high-rise sections. I can't remember if there was confusion over whether we were supposed to have had a balcony - in any case, we didn't, which was something of a disappointment. From the bathroom we had a narrow view of a section of Waikiki Beach, so there was that.

During the course of our stay, we were to learn that our hotel was something of a no-fun zone. The clientele all seemed old and ill-tempered, the food in the patio cafe ridiculously expensive, and the overall atmosphere stuffy. As a result, we pretty much just slept there. A shame, in a way. We did explore the building, though and there were some lovely spaces including a gallery of antique photos of the place in the upstairs hall of the lobby. Between the two floors of the lobby, there was an octagonal opening in which was hung a crystal chandelier. We spent a few token minutes in the rocking chairs on the front porch of the hotel - perhaps waiting for an Uber. The patio courtyard was dominated by an immense banyan tree which was lit up with different colors at night. The pool looked very inviting, particularly after dark when the underwater lights turned it into an azure jewel.

“...we watched the sun set behind the gently swaying masts of the sailboats in the marina.”

On the night of our arrival day, we had dinner at the Maui Brewing Company on Kalakaua Avenue a short walk from our hotel. On an upper floor of the building, it's a pleasant, airy space with a fun, modern atmosphere. We sat at the extreme end of the dining room at a table with built-in concrete bench seating on one side surmounted with a screen made of entwined ropes. Later in our stay, we had dinner at the same place with Carl and Tish and their family.

On one of the evenings during our stay, we were given a tour of Lorenzo's condo in a highrise a few blocks south of our hotel. Lorenzo hung out with the girls while we and Carl and Tish went to dinner at a marina-side restaurant in, I think, the same building. It was a lovely evening (as most seem to be in Hawai'i) - we watched the sun set behind the gently swaying masts of the sailboats in the marina.

On another of the evenings, Paul and I found a sushi place downtown. I can't remember whether we drove there in the camaro or Ubered. We had a wonderful meal which included an amazing dessert: deep-fried dough boxes filled with ice cream. Fantastic.

Paul and I found Hula's - a gay bar near the southeast end of the main drag adjacent to a park. Fun place. We went there again with Carl and Tish at the end of one of our walks along Kalakaua. It was fun to look out over the park from where we sat near the railing on the open-air second floor. Paul has since been following the bar on Instagram and they post some very amusing content.

Again, so angry with myself for not taking better notes. On one of the evenings, we went to another bar in downtown Honolulu - on or near Kuhio Avenue, I think. It was in a second floor space. There was a trivia game going at the time and a couple invited us to join the team they were on. It was a wonderful, welcoming experience. I think we managed to contribute a couple of correct answers. I remember learning from the couple about their situation - she was a photographer, he an actor? He told us he had been on a primetime drama - I can't remember which.

“Diamond Head is breathtaking...”

On our first morning at the hotel, we walked out onto Waikiki Beach at dawn and watched the light change as the sun came up. There was a little cove enclosed by a breakwater. A woman was standing near the water and a couple of boys were sitting on the concrete barrier at the end of the breakwater. Diamond Head loomed in the distance. It was a lovely, quiet moment.

I honestly can't remember if we went swimming off the beach. I remember sunbathing for a little while, perhaps on our first day. We enjoyed walking along the beach on a couple of occasions during our stay. One of our walks took us through a small beachside park which featured a statue of Duke Kahanamoku, the Olympic swimming medalist who popularized the sport of surfing outside of Hawai'i. It's a wonderful statue - Duke is shown standing in front of his surfboard - the day we were there, his outstretched arms were festooned with leis.

The beach really is beautiful. Diamond Head is breathtaking, and the high-rise hotels and resorts are attractive in their way. There were big yellow catamarans taking tourists out for drinks cruises and an impressive two-masted yacht made an appearance offshore. On one of our walks, at Carl and Tish's suggestion, we all bought pineapple soft-serve cups. Delicious.

“I was tempted to caution him about the difficulty of the path ahead of them...”

Consulting the wonderful Oahu tour book recommended by one of Paul's co-workers, we decided to go on one of the listed hikes near Pearl City. We had breakfast at McDonald's that day - I can't remember if it was before or after the hike - rice, eggs, and Spam - surprisingly enjoyable. The hike began at the end of a residential street in a hillside neighborhood. We found street parking a couple of blocks from the start of the path. The first part of the hike wound uphill past some sort of government/utility facility protected by a high fence with razor wire. Cresting the hill, we were treated to lovely views over the valley - deep green foliage in front of receding blue hills and dark gray clouds. Then, around and into a series of ravines with tall trees and exotic-looking foliage below. I saw some Australian pines like the ones we had in Okinawa with their long segmented needles.

The path downward steepened and we had to place our feet carefully to avoid the exposed tree roots which crisscrossed the way. In a few places, we had to climb down short drops, at some of which there were ropes attached to the tree roots to provide assistance. We eventually reached the waterfall which had been reduced to a tiny trickle by the recent drought. Still, it was a lovely little sheltered valley with terraced pools along the stream. Hats off to the older lady who had made the trek with members of her family. On our way back up the path, we encountered another family, the father of which was carrying an infant in a backpack. I was tempted to caution him about the difficulty of the path ahead of them but decided not to be "that person".

“...some cautioned against going at all...”

Our guidebook explained that some areas of Oahu aren't as welcoming of tourists as others. The area around Makaha Beach being one of them, apparently. Other information we found online was conflicting - some cautioned against going at all, some said that there wasn't a serious issue with safety. We decided to make the trip around to the western side of the island and go to the beach.

We were glad we did because the beach was gorgeous - a crescent of golden sand at the base of a huge promontory. The water was somewhat protected so we were able to go swimming. It was my favorite kind of beach visit - we sat and read and occasionally took a dip. We'd brought some seltzers with us and got outside of them in the course of our stay - most refreshing.

“What a crazy tangle of pipes, gauges, controls, and cramped spaces!”

A must-do for both of us was to visit Pearl Harbor. I'd been there on my prior visit with Nora, and wanted to see it again. Paul wanted to see it as well, partly because of his late father's interest in military aviation. As it turned out, we weren't able to see everything we wanted to see in one day and came back the next day to finish up.

Our first stop was the USS Bowfin Submarine Museum which includes a self-guided tour of the USS Bowfin submarine moored in the harbor. The museum was fascinating, featuring exhibits about submarines and the history of the United States submarine service. On display were a huge number of models, artifacts, recruitment posters, and personal items belonging to sailors who served on the vessels.

After spending some time in the exhibits (or was it before?) we walked along the gangway to the deck of the USS Bowfin and descended the ladder into the submarine. What a crazy tangle of pipes, gauges, controls, and cramped spaces! We walked hunched over at times through crew living areas, the galley, several offices, bunk rooms, weapons and engineering spaces, the engine room - it was hard to imagine what extended tours of duty must have been like for the crew. I'm not claustrophobic, but if I were, I'm not sure I'd have lasted long. It was a relief to climb back up the ladder out onto the open deck.

“We were hustled onto the launch which immediately set out across the harbor...”

Leaving the museum, we made our way over to the embarkation point for the tour of the Arizona Memorial, where we were admonished by the tourguides for not having been there earlier. We were hustled onto the launch which immediately set out across the harbor to the memorial, which is built over the sunken hull of the battleship Arizona.

The memorial is a serene place - the central section of the structure is lined with window and overhead openings which create slanting bars of sunlight across the brilliant white of the interior. In the floor is a large opening through which visitors can look down onto the wreck of the battleship. The American flag which flies over the memorial as attached to a mast secured to the wreck itself. On the water's surface one can see the rainbow colors of an oil slick that is slowly leaking from the wreck of the vessel.

The list of names of the deceased crew members is solemn enough, but what brought tears to our eyes was the list of people who survived the attack and who elected to have their ashes interred within the wreck.

“...and sat down at one of many tables dotted around the lawn”

Paul's birthday fell within the span of our stay on Oahu. We'd planned in advance to celebrate both with our (first as it turned out) day at Pearl Harbor and a luau at one of the hotels in Honolulu. So, that evening, we made our way to the Hilton Hawaiian Village Resort at what I was going to say was the northwest end of Waikiki Beach but, thank to a consultation with Google Maps, is another named beach entirely.

I can't remember whether we walked or Ubered, but we turned left onto Ala Moana Boulevard from Kalakaua Avenue and proceeded to "The Great Lawn" via Kaila Road and Rainbow Drive. At the entrance, we were given our table assignment and leis and sat down at one of many tables dotted around the lawn between the huge high-rise towers of the hotel. The stage was at one side of the lawn and was backed by a wall of luxuriant foliage and flanked by two immense Tiki sculptures. Paul and I obtained Longboard Lagers by Kona Brewing and waited for the festivities to begin.

The food was served from a buffet and was delicious. I wish I could remember more about what was served, but it was a wonderful combination of seafood, rice, taro (?), fruits and vegetables. As we ate, the show got underway. In keeping with what I understand to be a trend in Hawaiian tourism, the show had more of a historical and cultural focus than in the past. The performances - traditional songs and dances were all announced to include information about the specific oceanic culture from which they were derived. Yes, it included the classic elements one would expect at a Hawaiian tourist extravaganze, but we were impressed with amount of historical, cultural, and folkloric information included in the presentation.

It was a beautiful evening (like, I assume, most evenings in the islands) - there was a gentle breeze and the change in light throughout the evening was wonderful. Many of the latter performances in the show involved torches and there were torches burning at either end of the stage. The artificial lights on the stage, the torchlight, and the waning sunset light in the sky all contributed to an exciting atmosphere. The show ended and we made our way back through the complex to Kalakaua Boulevard.

“I was reminded of some of the spartan interior spaces on Kadena Air Force Base...”

On our second day at the Pearl Harbor complex, we boarded a bus and were driven across a bridge to Ford Island, the landmass encircled by the ring-shaped harbor. First stop was the battleship USS Missouri, on which the surrender of Japan was signed at the end of the war in the Pacific. The ship is moored with its bows facing the Arizona Memorial - the end and the beginning of the US participation in the war of the Pacific are thus represented.

The ship is immense - standing on the deck with the superstructure towering overhead and walking through the shadows cast by the enormous guns is an overwhelming experience. We spent a while strolling about the deck, looking at the view of the harbor and the mountains beyond. The site of the surrender is on a platform on the starboard side of the ship. We mounted the steps to the platform and had a look at the commemorative plaque installed in the deck, surrounded by a protective chain on four posts.

The extensive, self-guided walking tour took us through the bridge, and into many of the internal spaces within the ship, including the galley, cafe, officers' quarters, bunk rooms, offices, library, and an impressive conference room with padded chairs and table and a huge antique world map on the wall. I was reminded of some of the spartan interior spaces on Kadena Air Force Base where we lived for two years back in the early 1970s.

“...and a beautiful Republic Sea Bee like the one flown by James Bond...”

After our tour of the Missouri, we returned to the driveway and waited for the next shuttle bus to arrive. Arriving at the aviation museum, we got off the bus near the contol tower which, we learned at some point, was a repurposed water tower. It's an attractive structure with alternating bands of red and white, rather like a candy cane. The museum consisted of three areas: the indoor, curated exhibits, an outdoor aircraft "boneyard", and a hangar housing aircraft restoration projects in progress.

We began our tour in the indoor section. It's a utilitarian building with an exposed ceiling structure. I can't remember if it too was a repurposed airbase structure. The first section of the exhibition space was devoted to aircraft from the Pacific Theater of WW2. Japanese and American aircraft including a Mitsubishi Zero and a Grumman Wildcat were on display. We were astonished to read that the Wildcat had crash landed into Lake Michigan near Milwaukee and had been recovered from the lake bed decades afterwards in remarkable condition - tires still inflated and very little deterioration. If memory serves, it had been returned to flying condition. The gallery also featured pieces of metal plating from a ship damaged during the Pearl Harbor invastion.

The outdoor boneyard component of the museum might just have been my favorite as it included some of my favorite aircraft: a Bell 206 Jet Ranger military variant, a Korean Air Force F5 Tiger, an F4 Phantom of the sort that flew in squadrons over where we lived on Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, and a beautiful Republic Sea Bee like the one flown by James Bond in "The Man With the Golden Gun". I lingered around THAT plane for a while.

Our final stop was the restoration hangar. The building had bullet holes in the reinforced glass windows that were made during the Pearly Harbor bombardment and left as relics of that day. I was reminded of the bullet holes intentionally preserved at "Little Bohemia" the supper club in Manitowish Waters, Wisconsin where a shootout involving the Dillinger Gang took place. Two impressive aircraft undergoing restoration in the hangar were a Blue Angels F-18 and a B-17 bomber the "Swamp Ghost" which had been recovered from the swamp in New Guinea where it had ditched during the war. The plane is largely intact - its propellor blades bent backward from where they had hit the water/ground. The insignia is a wonderful image of Donald Duck with the words "Swamp Ghost" in scary lettering. Our visit concluded, we reboarded the shuttle and were conveyed back across the bridge to the visitors' center.

“...the interior is no less impressive in its way...”

Another trend in Hawaii tourism is to try to limit damage to natural and historical locations by capping the number of visitors per day. We had to purchase timed entry tickets for the Diamond Head park in advance of our trip. Electing to park in the lot outside the crater, we walked along the pedestrian path through the tunnel that goes through the wall of the caldera on the landward side. Diamond Head is a prominent, inconic feature of photos taken of Waikiki Beach - the interior is no less impressive in its way - a verdant landscape surrounded on all sides by the steep walls of the crater. We walked on the path along the road the led to the visitors' center where we read information about the site. Visitors are encouraged to follow a prescribed path from the visitors' center, up a series of paths and staircases to top of the seaward crater wall and then down through an observation emplacement and back down by another path.

As we negotiated a series of switchbacks on the path up the crater wall, the view gradually changed, revealing a panorama of both the interior and exterior of the caldera. Housing developments could be seen across the valley, built on the ridges leading up into the mountains. Past where the tunnel penetrated the crater wall, we could see in the distance the promontory at Makapu'u Point at the eastern end of Oahu - a spot we were planning on visiting the following day. Further up, we mounted a steep staircase which led to a corridor inside the mountain. Emerging onto another staircase, we continued up the final series of switchbacks and stairs to the viewing platform at the summit. At the top, we enjoyed sweeping views of Waikiki and Honolulu, as well as that of a lighthouse and residential development on the coast directly below the steep hillside below us.

From the overlook platform, we descended a narrow spiral staircase to a corridor inside the mountain which led to an observation post with narrow horizontal openings which looked out over the ocean. It was a rather creepy space - all bare concrete surfaces. One wonders what life was like for the personnel who manned the emplacement back in the day. More stairs and corridors led to an opening to the outdoors and a steep concrete staircase leading back down into the crater park. Retracing our steps once back on the floor of the crater, we exited through the same pedestrian/traffic tunnel and got back into our snazzy Camarao.

“...being able to stand in water only a foot deep so far from shore was kind of eerie.”

Before setting out for Kaneohe Bay and our prearranged kayak outing, we called the outfitter to check on conditions - they told us that because of the windy conditions, they were recommending that we postpone our activity. We argued that we had kayaked in windy conditions before and that we thought we'd be okay. They agreed to let us proceed with our outing. The outfitter operated out of building within a municipal park on the shore - we confirmed our reservation and were led down a path by an employee to where were provided with our boats, lifejackets, and a small anchor. Our destination was a sandbar in the middle of the bay, parts of which were above water at the current tide level. Our helper told us to keep to the middle of the channel between arms of the reef on our way out into the bay to avoid getting hung up on the coral. Conditions weren't nearly as bad as we might have feared. We had no trouble keeping clear of the coral and the waves in the bay weren't high enough to be any trouble.

It wasn't until we'd reached the sandbar, paddled a ways over it and stepped out of our boats into the calf-deep water that we could look around and fully appreciate the beauty of the location. Just behind the shore, the mountains reared up, their summits shrouded in clouds. To the north we could see the conical island, Mokoli'i, which I had climbed the only other time I was in Hawai'i back in the late 1980s with my sister Nora. It was a weirdly beautiful location - being able to stand in water only a foot deep so far from shore was kind of eerie. We basked in the sun, drank the beer we'd brought with us and enjoyed the day. Helicopters from the nearby Marine base flew overhead occasionally. There were curious little creatures, sea cucumbers I think dotted around on the sandy bottom. I took a pictures of a few of them.

After a time, we pulled up the anchor and got back into our boats. This was one of those places I was reluctant to leave. I'm getting to a stage in my life where I'm beginning to assume I won't return to many of the more far-flung places we travel to. This departure felt final. On our way back to the park, as we were going through the reef, we saw a sea turtle swimming along at the surface.

“Fluttering from a tree at one corner of the complex was a koinobori...”

After kayaking in the bay, our next stop was the nearby Valley of the Temples Memorial Park to visit the Byodo-In Temple, a replica of a temple in Japan built on Oahu in 1968 to commemorate the centenary of the arrival of Japanese immigrants to Hawai'i. I learned about the temple by way of paper modeling - a model of the original is available at the Canon website and the accompanying notes mentioned the replica.

To reach the temple from the surrounding memorial park, one crosses a footbridge from which there's a stunning view of the temple against the backdrop of the mountains. The temple serves as a place of worship, but it isn't strictly speaking a temple as it doesn't house a religious community. Near the entrance is a 3-ton peace bell suspended within a wooden pavilion. We each range the bell on our way in - it produces a wonderful, deep tone. We wandered through the temple and around the grounds, admiring the architecture, the landscaping, and the ponds filled with koi. Fluttering from a tree at one corner of the complex was a koinobori, one of the wonderfully colorful children's day windsocks made to look like a koi fish. The location was a reminder of the two weeks we spent touring mainland Japan on our way to live in Okinawa in 1972.

“While near the summit, we saw several red-crested cardinals.”

Our last stop that day was at Makapu'u Point at the easternmost tip of Oahu. Nora and I had been there as well back in the late 1980s but it seemed to have changed a lot since. The parking lot and the path up to the overlook had been upgraded and beautifully landscaped - the paved footpath winding attractively among trees and switchbacks on the way to the top. The lower part of the path hugged the edge of a pleasant valley that led to the coast beyond. There were overlooks where the path neared the cliff - some of the views were a bit vertiginous for my tastes. I had since read that there's a big problem with people leaving the path and climbing on the rocks above the water in spite of the many signs prohibiting such activity.

At the top there was a multi-tiered overlook that provided gobsmacking views of the coast, mountains, nearby islands, and the lighthouse which is situated well below the summit. I think we knew in advance how the lighthouse was related to the Chicago Exposition of 1893 - the lens, a unique sixth-order Fresnel, had been exhibited at the fair and, when the exposition ended, was shipped out to the most recently constructed lighthouse, which happened to be the one at Makapu'u Point. While near the summit, we saw several red-crested cardinals. Very handsome birds - not native, but introduced from their native habitat in Brazil.

“...and the sunlight reflecting from the crests of the impossibly blue waves.”

Again, while it would have been wonderful to have been able to take up Lorenzo on his kind offere to use his condo, it was infinitely preferable to have been able to spend time with the Daleys in Honolulu. Tish had arranged for the four of us to go on a catamaran cruise off Waikiki on one of the afternoons. We met on the beach where the brigth yellow boat had been partially drawn up onto the sand and secured with two lines to a stake in the beach. It was a delightfully simple proceeding: the boat sailed out onto the bay, we drank beer and tropical drinks, admired the amazing views of Diamond Head, the hotels of Waikiki, the surfers, and the sunlight reflecting from the crests of the impossibly blue waves.

We chatted briefly with some of our fellow travelers, exchanging information about where we lived and how ghastly the weather was there. A trio of young women lounging on a sort of elevated platform sipping drinks were a particularly jolly group of passengers. The waves were just high enough to provide just enough exciting motion. A very impressive, two-masted yacht made an appearance somewhat further out to sea. A beautiful experience.

“The return trip was what return trips should be - unmemorably efficient.”

My friend Lia shared with me a Japanese saying to the effect of: when it rains the day you leave, it's the place weeping at your departure. Perhaps Oahu was sad to see us go - we were certainly sad to leave, but excited to get back to our kitty boys. The return trip was what return trips should be - unmemorably efficient. We made it back to whichever airport it was without delay or incident. Perhaps we'll return some day. Who knows?