One of the main rules in our life is to not make plans...well we made plans for weddings, camping, concerts and month of family and friend time.......As you all know NONE of that happened and we jumped on the first plane to Hawaii!! WELL maybe it was the SECOND plane to Hawaii because the first flight got cancelled and we had to change airports completely so that we could make it on time! No worries we made it fine, jumped into the first dented up, non labeled white van and headed to the Waikiki Banyan.
We opened the door, dropped our suitcases, opened another set of 3 sliding doors and passed out on rock hard twin beds. It took us a couple days to unpack but eventually we made this our home away from home.
We had the weekend off so we decided to take advantage of some of the sites around town. With no transportation we walked and walked and walked until our baby legs couldn't walk anymore! We saw diamond head, the king and queen palace, beaches, farmer markets and the hospital where we would be spending a lot of time. By the end of the week we realized we needed bikes or a bus pass, now we have both!
Work was going to be work as usual only problem was we had to work 4 days a week, so we decided we were going to make the best of the little time we would have off. Here are some of the adventures we have already been on:
1. Hanauma Bay
This is a nature preserve that is completely AMAZING! We saddled up our gear and headed to the bus stop where we met a new friend who gave us some tips and said by the end of the day we would be smiling ear to ear like idiots...boy was he right! We snorkeled until we saw every fish under the sea and then we headed up the hill and around the corner to check out Sandy Beach. We took the quickest route the highway, but we didn't have a car so we walked in the gutter and got some real friendly remarks and numerous honks. Whether is was because we looked so good or we looked like damn fools we are not positive. You can decide.
2. Gay Bar
One of our new coworkers invited us out so we decided to check it out. Gay Karaoke bar how could that not be fun! Hawaii does it different, so you just sit around and pass the mic around the bar..pretty fun stuff!
3. Maui
Halfway through our second week of work we decided we needed a vacation, we had not gotten Internet hooked up yet so we had to head to the foodpantry to plan the trip. After a couple hours we had a flight in 24 hours, a jeep, and a hostel. Probably the most planning we have ever had before we went somewhere. We basically took Maui over for a couple days. We circled the entire island in our rented jeep with our top down and the heat up if it got chilly, we even managed to take the off roads that are not recommended for tourists. We spent the day on the Road to Hana where we saw the red sand beach, black sand beach, lava tubes, the seven sacred pools, waterfalls, and the most famous banana bread on the island (DELICIOUS!).
Then we woke up bright (actually dark) and early and head to Haleakala National Park to watch the sun come up..which was so breath taking so we turned it into our own photo shoot.
We ended the week at the Sheraton hotel where we snorkeled, saw our first turtle and jumped off the BIG black rock! We headed to the Marriot to rinse off in their pool because they had the best slides and waterfalls. It happened to be Jenn's Birthday so when the 18 yr old boys asked how old we were we just laughed and said toooooo old for you!! As we were walking to the car we realized that Jenn had probably left the keys in the car in the ignition. Sure enough thats where they were along with bird poop and the crumbs to the leftover famous banana bread...with little time to get the car returned we cleaned it up the best we could, put the top on, and sped to the other side of the island..don;t worry we had our seat belts on.
4. Parental units come visit
The night we got home from Maui was also the night Sara's parents flew in. This was a full week of minimal sleep and exploring the island. They saw some stuff on their own, but we did get to head up to the North Shore. We snorkeled, saw more turtles, jumped off more cliffs, and ate at the best shrimp truck stand! Yummy in my tummy! We also made the trek to Kailua for some sun and sand on the windward side.
All in all their visit showed us that we need a cook and a made so we could have home cooked meals before and after work with the refrigerator always filled! Thanks again you guys are the best!
5. Hiking
Oahu has soooooo many hikes to explore the nature of the island. People recommended Koko head and said it was a butt blaster..they were not kidding our asses still hurt. It was well worth the trip straight up.
Just when we thought we couldn't get higher we headed to Olomana ridge. Here we got to climb rocks and cliffs with ropes until we reached the top for a 360 degree view of nothing but paradise. As soon as we made it all the way to the top we found ourselves trapped in a HUGE rain cloud..pretty awesome when it passed over us a minute later..a nice cool down after a long hike!
