Hawaii - Honolulu - 4Star luxury

  Honolulu, Hawaii
Friday, April 27, 2007

After roughing it in a backpackers we decided to treat ourselves to a couple of days of luxury.  We found a fabulous deal on Expedia for 50% a star in a 4 star hotel in Honolulu.

So we packed our stuff and got a lift down to the bottom of the Island.  When we got there we immediately upgraded.... you should have seen Donovan's face when we walked into our suite.  This was his first stay in a hotel ... not a bad start!  We had awesome views out over the pool and to the left Waikiki Beach.

We basically did more of the same.... charged over the road with our boards and spend the next few hours surfing!

I got picked on by a bunch of aging surfers.  I was clearly not the greatest but they never gave me an opportunity to get on a wave.  As soon as one got out the back, he'd call his mate onto the wave and so it continued ... so i thought screw'em I'm just gonna go.  That's when Grandpa #1 laid into me, apparently I'd gotten in his way blah, blah, blah, etc.   Aloha spirit my arse!   I watched them for a while, all in there 60's and 70's. I bet they've been riding this spot since they were kids.  They looked like a bunch of hoon's just with wrinkles. Funny really!  When Donovan realised what was happening he helped me get in a few waves and I could finally get on something that I could stand up on ... thanks sweetheart XX

We took a helicopter ride over the Island.... it was awesome. They filmed it as we were flying around, so you could hear the commentary in the cockpit and see the views from camera's all around the outside of the chopper.  We flew over Magnum PI's place and where they film Lost.... that was stunning scenery... these sharp mountains covered in thick, lush greenery.  We also flew by a waterfall that can now only be accessed from the air as there have been loads of landslides so you can't hike to it anymore... phew! I'm always up for the easy option! The helicopter DVD got sent directly to my Mum and Dad's in the UK, so they watched it with my niece.  By this point she's used to seeing us on the computer screen when we Skype them, so she hadn't quite worked out that when we were on the telly it wasn't the same.  Apparently, she was busy banging the TV going ''excuse me.  Auntie Sarah, excuse me.  Look at my new flip flops"  I can only imagine how cute that was.

We went to Hanama Bay which is now a marine reserve and has some truly beautiful fish and LOTS of turtles.  We made friends with one little guy, we were diving down and swimming along with him and he posed for photos (honestly!!). We must have spent 30mins with him alone. That was definitely a great way to spend the day..... little tip if you go, take plenty of water... it's a bloomin' steep hike back up from the beach to the nearest drinks vendor!

Honolulu itself is really not worth the visit.  It is purpose built high rise buildings and upmarket shopping stores specifically for the Japanese tourists .... if you want to get a feel for Hawaii get out of town.


Other than that we just chilled on the balcony of our luxury suite sipping cocktails and watching the sun go down... Mahalo