Aloha

Sunday, 10^th January 2016

Diamond Head at sunset

Part of the crowd

Our hotel - we are on the 6th floor on the right

Good friends

Looking back to the Pink Palace and our hotel on its right

My territory!

War Memorial Baths

Nemos, of course

Coral and anemones

Giant clam

Dancing starfish

Jellyfish

Happy being yellow

Another jellyfish

Seahorse

Hermit crab out for a walk

Shrimp

A face only a mother could love - maybe

Anemones

Patting a sea urchin

Our final day in Hawaii before flying home tomorrow.

Last night we joined thousands of onlookers on the beach to once again watch the sunset.  The colours each night are just amazing.

Today we were treated to clear, blue skies once again from early morning, no wind but the surf was much stronger today – and the riders were out in force all day.  After breakfast, we decided on a walk along the foreshore in the direction of Diamond Head, joining lots and lots of tourists and locals all out for some early morning exercise before it became too hot.  There were many groups learning hula dancing, doing yoga, exercises, playing beach volleyball or simply out for a jog.  We kept on walking past all the many statues, with the occasional stop to admire the scenery (although we seemed to have different ideas on what constituted “scenery”), look at the fish or watch a couple of large crabs battle over territory.  At the end of the pathway and park, we discovered an old War Memorial Swimming Baths and the Waikiki Aquarium.  We spent a very enjoyable hour at the aquarium, looking at the different types of fish (some were quite familiar!) and jellyfish before watching the seals being fed.  We then had a long stroll back to the centre of Waikiki, but there was always something interesting to look at.  (There does seem to be a large amount of silicone in this region!)

This afternoon, it was time to make the last minute purchases before packing the suitcases – let’s hope that they both make it home intact.

Iolani Palace

Saturday, 9^th January 2016

Diamond Head Lighthouse

Diamond Head Beach and early surfers

Outside rim of crater

Inside crater

Fire engine No 1

Tunnel through the rim

Grey and cloudy skies

Our trolley

Ala Wai Canal and Country Club

Museum Art School

State Legislature Building

Replica of the Liberty Bell

Father Damien of Molokai (google him)

Iolani Palace

Guide beside grand staircase

Lamps

Blue Room with portrait of Queen Victoria

Dining Room

King's bedroom

Music room

Queen's bed - and bathroom

Throne Room

Chandelier

Final queen's diamond butterfly clip

We had a rather cloudy and windy start to the day – breakfast on the verandah was a little breezy and cooler than usual.  We decided to make use of our “free” trolley pass today; the trolley which is exclusive to Outrigger guests but does not go to Ala Moana Shopping Centre.  The complete circuit takes nearly two hours and the first leg took us around Diamond Head, with views of the lighthouse (and a Qantas jet arriving) and Diamond Head Beach before we passed through the tunnel into the crater.  We had a quick stop for a photo and then a longer stop as two fire engines arrived.  In the case of a medical emergency here, the first response vehicle is a fire engine with a big, long ladder.  After the firemen have dealt with the emergency, the ambulance arrives!  The tour continued to Kahala and then returned to the Ali Wai Canal and back to Waikiki before heading downtown.  We alighted at the state parliament building and walked through it to the Iolani Palace.  The guided tour was very good and we had an excellent volunteer guide, who was very easy to understand.  After donning our special bootees, we were shown through the various rooms, which included the blue room, dining room, throne room and bedrooms.  Our tour concluded in the basement, or kitchen/servants’ level, where we were able to wander at leisure and view the crown jewels and awards.  Amazingly, the trolley were caught back to Waikiki had the same driver – we still have decided if the driver was a he, a she, or had had the operation.  Anyway, he/she was very entertaining, even if we couldn’t understand the majority of the commentary.

We decided to have our main meal in the early afternoon (being a bit late arriving back) and it having been strongly recommended, we dined at the Cheesecake Factory.  We now know why this restaurant is so popular, usually with long lines of patrons clutching pagers and menus each evening.  The food was very good and reasonably priced, the service just as good and a large variety of cheesecakes available for dessert.  Dinner will not be required this evening …

Waikiki Continued

Friday, 8^th January 2016

Sunset

Too many chefs ...

Enjoying the view

The hotel catamaran returning from the sunrise cruise

A new shirt

Will it fit in the suitcase?

A decent sized dashboard screen

Last night, we enjoyed the sunset from the beach before having dinner at the Shore Bird.  This restaurant is a little different in that patrons are asked to barbecue their own meat or fish, with instructions, and under supervision if necessary.  There would appear to be a number of Asian men who found the use of barbecue tongs to be a new experience.  Unfortunately, at one stage a bit of a breeze got up from the wrong direction and instead of the smoke being sucked into the exhaust fans, it spread rapidly throughout the restaurant.  It didn’t last long but the Dior perfume was a bit of a waste, being overpowered by eau de grill!

This morning after breakfast, we went for a stroll along the beach – the sun soon became very warm on our backs.  Then it was time for our pampering and being kneaded, oil and generally loosened up.  After lunch we caught the Waikiki Trolley to the Ala Moana Shopping Centre but were quite disappointed when we arrived.  The Centre is now very much like Waikiki – nothing but high end designer stores (always empty); Macy’s is about the only affordable store in the complex.  Naturally, someone decided to add to his short collection, which is now rivalling Imelda’s shoe collection!  The highlight for Himself was finding a gallery with the new Tesla electric car, having a sit behind the wheel and playing with the computer screen – a co-driver would definitely be a must.