Page 10 Saturday 8/12/2023 - Honolulu Here We Come
This morning we arrived at Honolulu and we were very excited about our plans for the day. We am going to visit the Ala Moana Shopping Center, which is the largest shopping center in Hawaii. After that, we are planning to have lunch at the Elks Lodge on Waikiki. Finally, we are going to visit the Royal Hawaiian Hotel, which is located right on Waikiki. We are really looking forward to it!
Honolulu, on the island of Oahu's south shore, is capital of Hawaii and gateway to the U.S. island chain. The Waikiki neighborhood is its center for dining, nightlife and shopping, famed for its iconic crescent beach backed by palms and high-rise hotels, with volcanic Diamond Head crater looming in the distance.
Honolulu at 5:00 am!
The port was already busy!
The cruise dock was near downtown !
Did You Know? - Honolulu means 'Sheltered Harbor'
Honolulu means 'calm port' or 'sheltered harbor'. 'Hono' means port and 'lulu' means calm or quiet. Sandy Island shelters the natural port. The 'sheltered' part has nothing to do with the weather though.
In fact, Honolulu sees an average of 90 rainy days each year, more than the US average. The rainiest time to visit is December, with ten days of rain on average, while the driest time to visit is August, with just six
We decided to order room service for breakfast since we're going to be in Honolulu until midnight. It's nice to have a lazy morning and take our time enjoying the food without having to rush out of the hotel. There's no need to hurry since we have all the time in the world to explore the city later.
Time to dine! Oink!
We watched the busy ships going about their business while we dined in style fourteen floor above the city! (Actually nine floors, the waterline is on the 4th floor and there is no 13th floor).
The "submarine" was being towed for its busy day!
The famous Aloha Tower
Did You Know? - The Aloha Tower is a retired lighthouse that is considered one of the landmarks of the state of Hawaii in the United States. Opened on September 11, 1926, at a then astronomical cost of $160,000, the Aloha Tower is located at Pier 9 of Honolulu Harbor.
It has been, and continues to be, a guiding beacon welcoming vessels to the City and County of Honolulu. Just as the Statue of Liberty greeted hundreds of thousands of immigrants each year to New York City, the Aloha Tower greeted hundreds of thousands of immigrants to Honolulu.
At 10 stories and 184 feet (56 m) of height topped with 40 feet (12 m) of flag mast, for four decades the Aloha Tower was the tallest structure in Hawaii. It was built in the Hawaiian Gothic architectural style.
If you get the correct angle, you can actually see what time it is!
We had some shopping to do so we decided to head over to Hawaii's largest shopping center. We opted for a cab ride and enjoyed the two-mile journey to our destination. The scenery was breathtaking, with palm trees lining the streets and the ocean in the distance.
As we arrived at the shopping center, we were amazed at the size of it. There were so many shops to choose from, we didn't know where to start! We spent two hours browsing through stores, trying on clothes, and picking up souvenirs to bring back home. It was a great day out and we were glad we decided to take a cab to get there.
Mary thought she saw her car on vacation also!
Did You Know? - With over 350 shops and restaurants and over two million square feet of retail space, Ala Moana is the largest open-air shopping center in the world. The Ala Moana shopping experience also includes live Hawaiian music, hula performances, a play area for children, and much more!
The name Ala Moana means "path to the sea," which is fitting due to the shopping center's proximity to the sea.
His and her Hawaiian attire was needed; we found them here!
The shopping center is outdoors so they had plenty of decorations including a koi pond.
The shopping center is huge and they have everything!
Yes, even an Apple store where we stopped to visit.
Hollywood Mary incognito!
We again got a taxi for the two mile journey to the Elks on Waikiki
Traffic was like LA!
Honolulu Lodge 616 of the Benevolent and Protective Order of the Elks is now more than 119 years old. Elks in Hawaii began in 1901, with no home at all, when the Lodge address was "Hawaii, TH" for Territory of Hawaii.
The Elks has prime real estate!
Protecting the lodge from invaders!
We were on the water line; splish splash!
Lunch was quite amazing.
Complete with a bottle of champagne to celebrate us!
The camera went on automatic and colorized the most beautiful thing it saw!
The view was spectacular!
Surfers were everywhere.
The famous Honolulu Buzzard came to visit and leave us a little present!
My geometry teacher went to Hawaii. When he came back, he was a tan gent.
Burger time; hey, we are on vacation!
The burger was excellent!
How exactly to you get from California to Hawaii? By crossing the specific ocean.
Chomp!!!!! The sound scared the fish away!
Our server was pretty good with the camera!
This is what happiness looks like!
Then, all of a sudden the wave hits and we get a little damp!
About every 4-5 minutes wall of water exploded in front of us!
"Dear! Did you order two glasses of sea water?"
Someone is having a good time!!
"This is like going to the aquarium!
"Why does the champagne taste like sea water?"
We had an amazing table!
Talking to the sea!
The big ships head into Honolulu
Harbor.
Now we are off to the Royal Princess Hotel
The sea almost got her!
The tide was coming in!
We could not pass up a blueberry dessert!
One last smile while we are still sort of dry!
Awaiting our taxi!
The greeters/doormen called our taxi!
"Be careful, I have my eye on you!!"
Built in 1927, the iconic Royal Hawaiian, a Luxury Collection Resort, ushered in a new era of luxurious resort travel to Hawaii.
The front door!
Rather elegant!
Right on Waikiki
The most coveted spot on Waikiki Beach is at The Royal Hawaiian – within the billowing sanctuary of private beach front cabanas or from luxurious guest rooms showcasing unrivaled panoramic views of Diamond Head, Waikiki Beach and the sparkling Pacific Ocean
We met a neighbor of ours who was from Villa Park!
I do not remember what it was but it certainly was!
(It was reported that Paul downed six of these little puppies)
I had one of these also!
Not the drink, the umbrella!
Love the outdoor bar with Waikiki just a few feet away!
The guy next to us was from Villa Park! It is a small world!
We walked down the beach at Waikiki . That's Diamond Head in the background.
Did You Know? - Diamond Head is a volcanic tuff cone on the Hawaiian island of Oʻahu and known to Hawaiians as Lēʻahi . The Hawaiian name is most likely derived from lae (browridge, promontory) plus ʻahi (tuna) because the shape of the ridgeline resembles the shape of a tuna's dorsal fin. Its English name was given by British sailors in the 19th century, who named it for the calcite crystals on the adjacent beach.
Tuff cones are sometimes called ash cones. When heated rapidly by lava, water flashes to steam and expands violently, fragmenting huge amounts of lava into plumes of very fine grains of ash. This ash falls around the volcanic vent, creating an ash cone. Over time, the ash weathers into a rock known as tuff
There we a few people on the beach
Wall to wall hotels.
New friends; new adventures
Rumor has it he assisted getting my pickled body into the cab!
Mary got me home, somehow!
We really had a wild night last night. We went to the Elks and had way too many cute little umbrella drinks. We were having so much fun that we ended up buying drinks for a lot of new friends we made. But, by the end of the night, Paul was completely plastered. Mary had to call a taxi to take us home, and I don't even remember how the two gentlemen got me into the car. I think it's safe to say I'm taking it easy for a while.
Getting to the ship was a no brainer but getting this body up the gangplank was a chapter out of Laurel and Hardy! The deck hands were mostly Philippinos weighing in at 100 pounds on a good day. Their assignment, should they choose to accept it, was to get a dead drunk two-hundred pounder up the gangway without him falling backwards and crushing the staff. I do remember a lot of flashes going off. They probably thought I was staging this event; I was not! I prayed I was not on ship-wide TV the next moring.
By the time I got to the room (in a wheelchair, I might add) I was getting sober. That was a good thing, otherwise the iPhone would have been fish food!
Honolulu is beautiful at night!
We departed at11:00 pm according to the Aloha Tower which was painted in red lights this evening.
The wind blew the smoke right over our suite until we turned around and headed out to sea!
A magnificent view!
Goodbye Honolulu; It was good to know you!
The night lights were quite amazing
The boats looked tiny as we headed to the breakwater.
The inter-island freighter was getting unloaded.
Great name for a ship!
