Week One Wrap Up

I’m writing this on the plane from Hawai’i to LA at the end of day 8 of my trip. The week long visit to Hawai’i felt too short, as they always do. The week consisted of three and a half days in Waikiki and three and a half days in Waianae on the West side of Oahu. I chose to stay on Oahu despite many recommendations to go to other islands in order to make the most of my limited time on one island and save the additional airfare.

After a nine-hour flight, which did feel short when you’re used to 14-15 hours to the US, I exited the airport into the warm, humid air of Honolulu. It was a welcome change from Melbourne’s winter, which started two months ago. I was so ready for some heat. I had the pleasure of flying in on one of Jetstar’s new Boeing 787 Dreamliners. I’ve wanted to fly on one of these since visiting the Boeing factory near Seattle two years ago, and the plane didn’t disappoint. I experienced less of the customary dryness of a long-haul flight and the ride is wonderfully smooth. The only downside was that Jetstar has really crammed the rows of seats in making it squishy even for smaller people.

After landing I caught the cheap and easy city bus into Waikiki – one of the first chances to capitalise on my small bag since they don’t allow luggage on the city bus. After checking into my hostel – the wonderful Polynesian Backpackers – I went for breakfast at a local favorite in Waikiki, Lulu’s. As soon as the food arrived I remembered about giant American portion sizes. It takes about 3 days to get used to ordering smaller plates or something to share. Hawaiians sure do know how to make delicious pork – the local speciality is Kalua Pig. The rest of day one consisted of lying on the beach trying to stay awake, succumbing to a nap, then a couple more hours trying to stay awake until an appropriate bedtime.

Day two I jumped on one of the tours operated by my hostel, which took me on a circuit around the south-eastern corner of Oahu, including Kailua Beach, Waimanalo beach for a swim, and the Halona Blowhole. This was the first opportunity I had to take in the landscape of Hawai’i and it captivated me. While Oahu is not considered Hawai’i’s most beautiful island it still has some stunning vistas. It’s all sharp mountains, yellow sand and clear, turquoise water. Every time you turn your head you have a view worthy of a postcard. Needless to say my camera got a workout this week. Dinner was back in Waikiki at Surf & Turf Tacos, which are not the best in the world but the best in Waikiki and worth a visit.

Day three was a visit to Pearl Harbor and the mighty USS Missouri. She is a huge vessel and a formidable battleship. It’s amazing to stand on top of the ship picturing the 16-inch rounds being fired from the guns. After the morning at Pearl Harbor I travelled into Chinatown in Honolulu. Apparently a lot of tourists from Waikiki don’t venture into this part of the city, but I recommend that if you have time you make the effort. There’s plenty to look at, little markets to browse, and of course some great World War II-era history. If you’re into tattooing, you can visit the original shop of Sailor Jerry, aka Normal Collins, best known as a bit of a maverick and modern tattooing pioneer. Personally I can thank him for inventing purple ink.

Day four another tour from the hostel, this time to the North Shore. The North Shore is known for big wave surfing in the Winter months – this is where the big wave contests of Hawai’i are held. You can see why the waves would get so big – the drop off is huge and the reef close to shore. We first visited Haleiwa, which has been maintained in the style it was built in. It’s rather touristy and very busy, and honestly while nice enough it was not my style. After Haleiwa we began our tour of the beaches, stopping at Turtle Beach, named for the amount of turtles regularly near the shore. We saw about six, including some babies. Then on to Waimea Bay for some swimming. There’s some great rocks near shore which provide snokeling opportunities and it’s a very popular spot with locals and tourists alike. Then we stopped by the Banzai Pipeline to see what it looks like in Summer – I tell you the waves in the Winter time must be a terrifying sight. They come very close to shore – everyone agrees the surfers are mad. We finished with a visit to one of the areas where Jurassic Park was filmed. After the tour it was back on the bus to the airport to collect the hire car and drive up to Waianae.

Day five was my first day in Waianae. I stayed in an AirBNB, hosted by Johanne, Lynn and Gino who are absolutely lovely and real advocates for the Western side of the island. The West is not known for being touristy, and it does have some social problems and relative poverty. It struck me as the last place on Oahu where you could still find real Hawaians who hadn’t given in to change for the sake of tourism dollars. If you want to get out of Honolulu to somewhere without resorts, head up to Waianae or Makaha. Today was pretty much a catch up day for paperwork and accommodation bookings, but of particular note was the excellent breakfast at Hannara Restaurant. It’s a local favorite and quickly became mine too.

Day six was my first attempted snorkel on the island at Kahe Point. There’s some pretty impressive snokeling and scuba diving there, but it is not recommended for beginners due to the rough beach entry point and the considerable swimming involved. I managed less then half an hour, but did see some lovely fish. The day also helped me to appreciate the beauty of the Leeward coast with a drive along the highway to the end of the road and back. Dryer than the Windward side, the West has it’s own share of jagged peaks, golden sand and achingly beatiful water. There is plenty of reef on this side, which just adds to the beauty. Plus, no crowds, just locals having beach BBQs and chilling with a few tunes.

Day seven was attempt at snorkel number two. Working on some advice from local suba divers, I decided to travel back up to a spot near Haleiwa called Shark’s Cove. It being Saturday, it was so incredibly busy the few hours I planned to be there turned into one hour. Shark’s Cove was a popular snorkeling spot, but there’s so much to see in the metre-deep tide pools and a little 5-15 metre deep bay that you don’t feel crowded. There are an immense amount of fish, including many tiny babies, and fish of every colour of the rainbow. None of this was quite as exciting as the turtle, however. As I was swimming with my head down I could hear muffled excited shouts and put my head up to see what was going on. Sure enough, I heard “TURTLE! TURTLE!” from a group near me. I swam over and for about 10 minutes got to hang out with a little fella about 50cm wide swimming about, eating some algae from the rocks. It was an absolute highlight, as turtles always are, but even more so to be just a couple of metres from him.My AirBNB hosts recommended I make the effort to watch the sun set over the water before I left the western side, so I made that my evening’s mission by sitting at Electric Beach using a photographer’s patience to wait an hour and a half to capture the light as it changed throughout the evening. They were so right. I had a cloudy evening and the most stunning oranges, reds and purples I’ve ever photographed.

Day eight was a travel day. Never the most fun, but thankfully they are spaced well apart. An early start, Starbucks, driving, more Starbucks (necessary to cope with the USA’s tedious airport security), and now the plane. Ahead lies LA, Detroit, Chicago, Austin, New Orleans and Memphis for the next 21 days. Ok, so maybe the travel days are close together, but they are part of the adventure after all.