Day 7 - June 30 - Honolulu

I focused on downtown Honolulu today and visited the Supreme Court building and the Iolani Palace. It just happened that they had a performance of the Royal Hawaiian Band at the palace ground today. The history of the Hawaiian natives is similar to that of the indigenous people of North America. When their fortune was threatened, the American blatantly overthrew the queen and the Hawaiian kingdom in 1893. It became a US territory first and became a state in 1959. Today, only 6% of the population is native Hawaiian. 37% is Asian in which the Filipino is the biggest group. The rest is Caucasian.

There was a "farmers' market" right in downtown pedestrian street but their prices were not the same. I continued to walk to Chinatown. Not very big but the usual shops. I managed to find a hidden away market which sells all kinds of cheap eats (mostly Filipino food) and fresh fruit smoothies. I spent $5 on a big plate of combo fish and $4 on a big papaya smoothie. So good! The walk from Chinatown back to the hotel took 45 mins and covered 2 miles.

Yi was free starting at 3p so we went to do the Diamond Head. First time for Yi. We then walked back to Waikiki beach to look for the baby seal that was born two days ago. On the way, we passed by a mango tree and an avocado tree in people's front yard. They are so blessed to have these fruit trees right in front!

We guessed the wrong spot to find the baby seal. By the time we went to the right beach, it's almost sunset but we were able to see it. Did not know that baby seal has black fur when born and then changes to brown color later. The mom would stay with the baby for 7 weeks and that's it. Baby will be on his/her own after that!

Day 6 - June 29 - Honolulu

Day 2 on my own and a very ambitious agenda: snorkeling at Hanauma bay, then hike along the highway all the way to Makapuu lighthouse and to Sea Life Park to catch a bus back.

Bus 22 is called the Beach Bus for obvious reason: its route along the south coast covers many beaches. It's so popular that the whole bus was jammed pack after the Waikiki stop all the way to Hanauma bay. This bay is extremely popular and it has caused the snorkeling quality to deteriorate significantly despite the compulsory "education" video everyone has to go through. It's a good idea but it's in English only. Why? Lots of tourists have no ideas what it's about. There are a number of translation machines available but no time was given for people to get them on before the video started.

I was quite disappointed at the quality of the snorkeling: very murky and no fish at many spots close to shore; crowded and frequent run in with others; expensive admission $7.50 and locker rental $10!!! Despite all these, I still managed to snorkel across most of the bay and saw a whole bunch of fish. Surprisingly, I saw more big fish on this snorkel than most others, sometimes even close to shore. Also, I saw quite a few endemic fish which only exist in Hawaii!

After the snorkel, I hiked along the highway to Makapuu lighthouse. We drove along this stretch of highway last year but walking on it I found many sights and sceneries that I missed last year. The wave actions were just mesmerizing and the eroded patterns were just beautiful. Many people risked their lives climbing on cliffs and dangerous terrains for selfies. I even spotted a big fat seal lying on a rock sleeping.

I took the Kawai seashore trail after Sandy beach and found many unplanned sights like the beautiful and isolated shoreline and Pele's Chair, a sea stack which resembled a chair. The view back were just as incredible. I could see the Hanauma crater and Koloa crater plus the Diamond Head crater all the way back.

The hike up to the lighthouse was steeper than expected. I almost ran out of water at the end. The view was just spectacular. They said you can see Maui and Molokai on a good day.

By the time I arrived at Sea Life Park, it's already 4:30p. I saw bus 22 but made the mistake of waiting for bus 23 instead. I didn't know bus 23 would change ID to 57 and go north loop instead. So I got my grand tour wish semi-fulfilled. By the time I got back to hotel, it's already 6:30p and Yi was worried sick.

For dinner, we tried a poke spot which also served good maki rolls. Very yummy poke bowl which restored Yi's faith in the dish.

Day 5 - June 28 - Honolulu

Yi started her conference today so I explored the city by bus on my own. First stop is Manoa falls and only one bus ride away. The problem with public transit is its long freq. 60 min between buses. I was surprised at the number of tourists taking the same bus. The trail was pretty damp and slippery due to its popularity. The scenery is not great and the falls is the smallest I've seen here in Hawaii. Just a small ribbon and the area is so congested. People ignored the roped off signs and bathed/soaked in the tiny pool with kids. Making matter worse, there were about 40-50 military styled people there hiking/camping out, all shouting various slogans, taking group photos. Very unpleasant spot. I left as soon as I could.

I waited for over 30 mins for the return bus to show up. Some people waited much longer. On the way back, a young Japanese couple asked me in Japanese for direction. I figured out they had missed the final stop (where I got on the bus) due to the loop nature of the bus route. I suggested for them to get off and walked back up. It's faster than riding the bus all the way back and then up again. They took my advice and jumped off. However, I wondered if I gave the right advice... what if they got lost?

I transferred to another bus for Leahi (Diamond Head) and hiked up to the summit in the sun and heat. Totally different environment from the earlier hike. This trail is very popular with tourists and were very crowded. All kinds of groups (youth and elementary school) jammed the trail. The scenery is excellent giving a great view of Honolulu plus the south coast line.

For dinner, we tried out a pho shop which also served great oxtail soup. Compared to our first night dinner at the mall food court, we found meal is cheaper and better outside the mall. Overall, Honolulu (and Hawaii as a whole) is a very place to live. Paradise has its price, I guess.

Day 4 - June 27 - Kauai

We have half a day left in kauai before our flight back to Honolulu in the afternoon.  Due to road closure and poor weather, we decided not to try the Kalalau lookout again. We first visited two waterfalls. The Opaekaa falls supposedly is a must do and is just 8 min from our hotel.  It was a big disappointment since the lookout is so far away and the falls is so puny. The next one which wasn't on tour book list is Wailua falls.  This is much more decent.  We even got our unexpected breakfast there: a lady vendor was selling very ripe passion fruits 4 for $1 plus her home baked mango, coconut, and chocolate loaf for $5.  They were very good, esp. the passion fruits which were actually sweet, not sour like those sold in market.

We visited an interesting historic town we drove by yesterday: Koloa.  The houses and old town were all well preserved and documented the lives of previous generation, mostly Japanese and Chinese immigrants who came here to work on the sugar plantations.  The trees which were planted 100 years ago are now so hugh!

Last spot we visited is the harbour of Lihue.  Despite it's a working harbour, the beach there is still very scenic.  We stroked up an interesting conversation with a young man there.  Originally from Texas and now taking a leave of absence of several months to come vacationing here, he got a room for $900/mo.  He bought a 4th or 5th hand scooter to get around the island carrying his surf board.  He's digging for turmeric as a living. He rented out his house in Texas in the meantime.  Work style of our next generation!

Flight to Honolulu was uneventful but the trip to hotel is not. It's the first time we tried airport shuttle in HNL. The trip only costs $19 for the two of us, a great deal comparing to taxis or even other shuttle companies. We waited at the wrong spot initially due to unclear instructions. Glad he didn't drive off. After failing to pick up a second booked passenger, we had our own private shuttle!

The hotel Ala Moana is only ok, very bland decoration. The city view is incredible though, esp. at night. Like many in this city, it's a combination of hotel and private condos. Housekeeping staffs are all unionized and their pay is $31 including benefits!🤑😱.  No wonder hotels here are so expensive!

Day 3 - June 26 - Kauai

We spent today exploring the south and west side of the Kauai island.  Traffic was less heavy than I anticipated.  Once past the Lihue area, there was no traffic jam at all.  Along the way, we stopped at numerous small towns to check them out, mainly for places to eat our brunch.  To our dismay, most of the stores were still closed and only a few opened at 10a. We found a very colorful Mexican takeout place at Hanapepe and ordered some fish dish and shrimp taco (Kauai west side is known for its farm raised shrimps). It's wasn't as good as advertised. Shrimp was good but fish was way overdone.

We drove inland from Waimea up the canyon drive.  It was absolutely amazing to see a grand canyon in the middle of Pacific ocean.  The west side of Kauai had totally different climate than the north and east. As with all Hawaiian islands, the high mountains would strip the cloud and rains from the east so the west side is a dessert.  Over the eons, the Waimea river eroded the high desert land into a beautiful grand canyon.  The iron content in the rock had made the canyon so colorful that our jaws just dropped!

Leaving the canyon, we continued to drive to the summit which actually overlooks the Napali Coast on the northwest side of the island.  Too bad the clouds started to roll in at the Kalalau summit or else the view of the Kalalau valley and the Napali Coast would be even more stunning.  Even so, the glimpse of the coast and the sheer drop of the mountain down to the valley below is sublime.  There was a boat cruised by along the beach, a helicopter doing its fly by tour thing below us, birds soaring the sky below us... just amazing view.  We actually planned to come back tomorrow to try again before leaving but weather didn't cooperate.  Oh well, something to look forward to if we come back.

Driving back, a rare traffic jam made us decide to visit the Kauai coffee farm instead.  We learnt how coffee are grown and harvested and roasted info different kinds.  Yi had a field days trying out all kinds of coffee samples.

Next stop is the blowhole at the south shore.  It was just high tide (I timed it right) and it didn't disappoint. There are actually several blowholes.  The ground below the surf must be all hollowed out as one gigantic hole had already collapsed and many others made loud hissing sound every time a wave rolled in.

After dinner nearby, we strolled on the Poipu beach to take in the wave action. To our bemusement, part of the beach was roped off to protect two monk seals from their nap!  They were totally oblivious to the human commotion around them and just snoring away. So funny!