Mele Kalikimaka

“Aloha! Good morning!” That was the melody we heard every morning as we walked into breakfast, past the concierge desk, sitting by the pool, or even past the valet parking. The ladies chimed it, as one does with a song (…more-ninnnnnnng!). And now it’s become a steadfast mimicked saying from Dan. I’ll have to attempt to record it.

So we had a little over a week in beautiful Hawaii, what could be better? (a month?)
Dan was in charge of all the planning, prep and organization. He really did a fantastic job too.

Right off the plane (which is another story for those of you who know how I am combined with flying, let alone a 10 hour flight) we gathered our luggage, caught the hotel cab and arrived at the Kahala Resort with a welcome wagon of people whisking us away. We also had the traditional ceremony with the flower lei for me and Kukui Nut lei for Dan. It’s a good thing too. Dan was expecting those as we walked off the jet way. ;-)

Our resort was secluded on a stretch of white sand beaches that was just close enough to the city for alternate fun, excitement and shopping! And for an added bonus, it was right down the road from Tom Selleck’s house…er, er, I guess mansion is the more appropriate term.
In one of the lobby hallways, they had autographed pictures of celebrities who had stayed at the resort. There were hundreds of photos. Every president since Nixon had stayed there, including the current one 3 months before being elected, but I digress away from that subject. Among the other pictures we saw were people ranging from David Schwimmer, Tiger Woods, Ryan Seacrest, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Christie Brinkley, Alec Baldwin & Kim Basinger before the infamous custody battle, all the way to foreign dignitaries and even some sumo wrestlers….at least I hope that’s what they were famous for, otherwise I should have inquired about the diaper couture.

The very first evening, Dan and I ventured out to find some food. Being that it was pretty early there, but not really for us on Central Time, we decided to enjoy the weather and scenery and opted to walk a mile or so for a California Pizza Kitchen and the Whole Foods Market down the way. I thought it would be best to get some bottled water, oranges, apples, etc to keep in the room’s fridge. We found it with little trouble and on the way back, I was lucky enough to have a bug, large enough to have flown in from Isla Nublar’s cloning lab, crawl up my leg. What is it with me and bugs??? I swear I carry an “Eat at Joe’s” sign with me!

For the first few days, our morning and day time was spent sitting at the beach and pool enjoying the warm sun, walking the grounds, and admiring the 6 dolphins on staff. The dolphins were amazing. Dan and I giggled how their mannerisms for praise mimicked Ginger. They loved the attention and the “Hip-hip-HOORAH!” when a request was performed to perfection, as does Ginny when I hoop and holler.
In the evenings we took a quick ride into the city for shopping/site seeing/dining.
The Royal Hawaiian blocks of Waikiki were amazing. The shops reminded me of something out of Pretty Woman …Prada, Armani, Kate Spade, Gucci, D&G, etc. When you stepped a few feet off that block, you were inundated with local flare selling their goods and of course the beach scene including luau-type performances. And the surfers were still coming out of the water around 8-9 pm! That’s dedication.

We broke up the required historical visits into 2 different mornings. Pearl Harbor including the USS Arizona and USS Bowfin were on the first outing and the USS Missouri on the next. There’s only so much history to see and hear in your headset a person can take in 1 day....but all 3 are a "must-see"!!

For the afternoons/evenings of those days, we spent them driving around the island. We even got cool convertibles (Wrangler & Mustang)! We covered the entire circumference of Oahu, ate at some yummy local eateries, and also made the mandatory drive inland for the Dole Plantation and mountain scenery. The Dole smoothies were to die for! I think the Dole Plantation was a dream for Dan. We got to see and eat all the pineapple we could stand and we were able to take a train ride around the grounds. Trains, pineapples, ice cream…put your hands together! ;-)

The only bad news is we both got sick during the week. I started it off on the 2nd day with fevers and a horrible cough and Dan followed suit 2 days later. The worst thing about a small island = no Walmart/Walgreens on every corner for required meds. The best thing about Oahu = 3 Air Force Bases for us to visit the base grocery store and stock up on meds. Sssshew!
Dan’s fever hit worse than mine, or at least I was able to deal with it a tad better (“arguable,” says Dan). He was ready to get out of the sun on his worst day. Only to be forced into a cool bath to bring his core temp back down. :-(
All in all, I think we did a pretty good visit for just over a week.
We saw so many beautiful things and it was fantastic. You know it’s a good sign when neither adventurer wants to depart.

So, on the last day we enjoyed the usual beachside breakfast, took a few last videos and photos, listened to the soft waves, stepped one last step in the white sand, took a deep breath of the sweet sea air and then we packed up our things, bid “Aloha! Good Morning!” to Kahala & Oahu and flew back home only to be greeted with the unusual freezing rain Little Rock gets twice a year. Where’s that beach again??