`Ohana. As the mommy of a five-year-old, I have watched Lilo and Stitch more times than I can count—more times than I care to admit. Because of that, I know one thing… `Ohana means family. Honestly, that is about all that I really knew about Hawaii. Beautiful, warm, sunny, dreamy, paradise. These were all things that popped into my head at various times when I thought about going there. But I never really thought I would get to go. So it was with great excitement and a little bit of fear that I told the husband that we were going to Hawaii. At first he didn’t really believe me, at least I think. He just kind of stared. Then he got a really strange look on his face, one of fear, and asked, “Which Island?” “O`ahu.” He got a little faint. “I love you. Will you marry me?” “Umm, honey, we are already married.” “Oh yeah. LET’S PACK!!”
See, the hubby is not huge into beaches. He likes the ocean and hanging around on the beach as much as any computer geek, meaning “not much”, but that isn’t why he was excited. Unbeknownst to a lot of people, there is sooo much more to O`ahu. And the hubby already knew that (I hate it when he knows things like that). I heard “Beach.” My daughter heard “Beach.” The hubby heard “Pearl Harbor” and “`Iolani Palace” and “North Shore” and “Bishop Museum.”
So, it was with that thought process that we took our trip, the trip of a lifetime for our little family. Perhaps a trip that most people don’t imagine when they think HAWAII! Don’t worry, we got in some beach time, but like I said, there was so much more. Don’t fret if I seem light on details today. No, seriously, relax. You will likely feel like I breezed over some pretty amazing stuff, which I will. Today, is just a taste of the experience, there will be more in-depth coverage in the days to come. Until then, here is a little slice of our trip to heaven on earth! O`ahu.
THE ARRIVAL
After hours upon hours of travel, with my daughter who had never been on a plane, we arrived at the Honolulu Airport Thursday evening and picked up our car. The sun was setting, the wind was blowing, and the weather was perfect. We were exhausted from spending the day flying but vacation mode kicked in and everyone was smiling like crazy. We packed up the car, hit the highway (which has a set speed limit of 45 mph), and set off towards our destination, the Coconut Waikiki right by the Ala Wai Canal.
Let me be up front here. We had printed directions from the airport to the hotel, and from the hotel to pretty much every place we were going to visit during our trip. Don’t waste the time or paper, we abandoned that after the first night. Not only were our printed directions confusing but we were so busy taking in our surroundings that we may have missed a street or two. Google Maps to the rescue. The hubby booted me from navigation duty and relied on Google Maps driving directions the rest of the trip. And it worked perfectly. I personally think it is because the Goggle Maps lady talks you through the drive but whatever works.
After we checked in and did a quick freshening up we were out the door. It was late and we were starving. We strolled over a couple blocks to Il Lupino at the Royal Hawaiian Center. In case you weren’t sure, Il Lupino is an Italian restaurant. I know, when I think of Hawaii, the first thing that comes to mind isn’t Italian but variety is the spice of life. We sat outside, the tiki torches were lit, there was an amazing breeze, and the food was wonderful. After eating more than our fair share we strolled around the Royal Hawaiian Center, the main shopping hub of the area, for a little bit and then headed back to the hotel to collapse.
DAY 1: The Journey Begins
Our first full day in O`ahu started out with breakfast at beautiful Embassy Suites Waikiki Beach Walk. We met up with some new friends, enjoyed a fantastic meal, learned more about vacationing in O`ahu (and where to stay), and then it was off to our first adventure, `Iolani Palace! Built in the 1800’s for Hawaii’s Royal Family, it is the only royal palace in the United States. Talk about cool. The tour guide showed us around the palace, all the while talking about the history and the day to day activities that went on there. It was fascinating, beautiful, and we met our daily quota for using the word WOW; it was in high demand.
After the palace tour we went to lunch at the Highway Inn in Kaka’ako. All I can say is OMG. Talk about some amazing food. Even my daughter loved it (she’s in a “bologna sandwich and hot dog phase”). We started off with the Three Cheese Lu`au Dip. For our actual lunch we shared a Plantation Mixed Plate and a Smokin’ Moco. All three of us left stuffed (see above note about daughter and bologna).
The rest of the afternoon was spent touring the KoAloha Ukulele factory. All I can say is don’t knock it til you try it. We not only got to see some real craftsmen making beautiful musical instruments, the husband and daughter actually got to spend about an hour learning to play (a few notes) and ended up harmonizing with our tour guide/instructor. Remember how I said don’t knock it? My daughter has been “practicing her ukulele” on her guitar since we got home.
After convincing my daughter that we had to leave, we returned to the hotel to get beautified for the evening, and then hit the town for dinner at Heavenly Island Lifestyle. Heavenly is a natural health food café serving locally sourced and organic dishes. Note that I did not say “boring.” Heavenly was anything but boring. I am pretty sure we got to try just about everything on the menu. I’m not going to go through a list of everything we ate (look for a more detailed story to come) but suffice to say that the food was…wait for it…Heavenly. Get it? I know. I should have my own HBO Comedy Special.
Day 2: A Celebration of Beauty, Beaches, and Life
After saying our goodbyes to Coconut Waikiki, we traveled to our second home away from home, the Outrigger Reef on Waikiki Beach. Beautiful rooms, beautiful views, and right on the beach! After spending some quality time getting better acquainted with the beautiful beach, it was time to get cleaned up and drive to the North Shore.
Ahh, the fabled North Shore. No, we weren’t going for the surfing. Can you imagine me on a surfboard? The hubby about fell over in a fit of laughter at that suggestion. No, we were heading to the Polynesian Cultural Center for a Luau. The Luau featured several dance demonstrations, an actual pig roasted in an underground oven and a re-enactment of a royal procession. After the Luau we went to see Ha: Breath of Life, a stunning show featuring Polynesian dance, music, animation, and fire. `Iolani Palace painted a picture of Hawaii’s royalty; this show gave us an in-depth look of Hawaii, the people, the culture, and the circle of life.
DAY 3: Discovering Hawaii
Time for a quick breakfast and then out the door to see some lava. No, there aren’t any active volcanoes on O`ahu, but there is the Bishop Museum. The premier natural history museum in the Pacific, the Bishop Museum also features an interesting history of Hawaii’s formation and then a lava melting demonstration, complete with fireproof clothing and flowing lava.
After lunch it was time for a submarine ride. You heard me right…a submarine. Did you know there were passenger submarines? I didn’t. But there are. Atlantis Adventures, stationed at the Beachfront of the Hilton Hawaiian Village, offers trips under the sea. We did not see any mermaids, but we did see sharks, sea turtles, a few dolphins and scores of tropical fish 100 feet below the surface on reefs created from sunken ships and planes.
After our amazing submarine voyage, it was time to head to the Kai Market at the Sheraton Waikiki for an amazing dinner. A buffet featuring fresh, locally sourced selections was outstanding.
DAY 4: All Good Things Must Come to an End
Ahh, the bittersweet last day in O`ahu. We started our day with a trip to Pearl Harbor. It’s hard to describe the feeling of being there. This was the part of the trip that I had been anticipating and dreading. As for the hubby, this was a moment that he had been looking forward to his entire life. Powerful and emotional don’t even begin to describe it. The audio tour and a film take you through the events leading up to the attack and through the attack itself before you board the boat. The memorial itself is a simple contemplative setting, something that everyone should visit in their life. Words simply cannot do it justice.
After visiting Pearl Harbor we went to our final event of the trip. Swimming with the dolphins. Dolphin Quest at the Kahala Hotel & Resort offers the once in a lifetime opportunity to swim and interact with the ambassadors of the sea. Simply Magical. We then spent some time at the pool before cleaning up and heading to dinner. Later that evening we were treated to a beachside dessert. Toasting s’mores, while hearing traditional Hawaiian folk tales, followed by a nighttime crab hunt on the beach. Then it was off to the airport for the flight home.
As I said, bittersweet.
Beautiful. Warm. Sunny. Dreamy. Paradise. These certainly describe O`ahu. You could come and spend a week playing in the ocean and sitting on the beach, but you would miss so much. You can touch history that shaped our country, you can explore natural wonders, you can visit extreme natural beauty. You can meet people for whom Aloha is not just a word, it’s an outlook on life.
`Ohana means family and O`ahu is perfect for family.
Be sure to follow along in the coming weeks for a more in-depth look at our adventures in O`ahu! A couple of hashtags to keep an eye out for are #VisitOahu and #OhanaOahu.
Disclaimer: I was sent on an all-expense paid trip to O`ahu, Hawaii, courtesy of the O`ahu Visitors Bureau and its island partners to experience the island and a series of other events. Regardless, all opinions expressed are still 100% my own.
Experience and post by Heather at Pink Ninja Blog.