… to Honolulu!

After a speedy nighttime voyage, we woke up in Honolulu harbor, across from the Aloha Tower. We were in for a whale-watching experience of a different type: in a large commercial boat, serving a buffet lunch while we looked for spouts. The crew located a few spouts, and we were able to take a few shots of flukes disappearing under the surface. There was no comparison to our adventure on the Zodiac in Puerto Vallarta, where we could actually hear the whales spout! Pretty ironic – we were in  port for the first time in six days – and elected to take a boat ride!

Back on dry land, we hoped to find the International Market we visited the last time we were in Honolulu. It has disappeared, a victim of development, replaced by a brand-new megamall. Too bad. We took a cab to Ala Moana Mall, large and upscale, not at all what we were after. After a bit of exploring, we packed it in for the day and went back to the ship to relax.

Today, we took the Hop On - Hop Off trolley, following the convoluted instructions to board, which included a trip to the ship’s theatre for a sticker, which was exchanged in the port terminal for a wrist band, good for a lengthy ride on a trolley to a shopping center, a walk through the still-closed shops to the basement, a wait on a bench for our trolley to arrive, and finally, boarding the vehicle and taking the tour. Whew! We took the green line past Waikiki Beach to Diamond Head, through some residential areas, eventually returning to the underground terminal to switch to the red line.

 

Surfboards are everywhere at Waikiki Beach. The Waikiki lighthouse stands guard where the pounding surf draws aficionados from around the world. Duke Kamehameha set a record here by riding a wave for more than a mile!

 

 

If you look very closely at the photo below, you can see the many heads in the water out beyond the surf line. Duke Kamehameha’s surfing prowess is commemorated by a statue, which holds fresh leis every day.

 

The red line took us through the center of Honolulu. We hopped off in Chinatown to walk around, do a bit of shopping, have McDonald’s for lunch --- hey, it was that or Spam! --- and walk back to the ship.