My blogging hiatus is over! I've been blogging in my mind, but that's pretty hard for you to read. I've got several recipes to share and ideas galore, but I'd like to start off with Hawaii. When Hawaii is mentioned, the response is an across the board wistful sigh. Other places I've been elicited mixed reviews, but Hawaii is beloved by everyone who's been there and dreamed about by those who haven't. We visited Oahu and stayed at the Hilton Hawaiian Village for 3 nights and a condo in Waianae for 5 nights. Here's a taste of the Oahu I experienced:
PRACTICALLY PERFECT FOOD:
- Dinner at Banzai Sushi in Hale'iewa. The wasabi tobiko and the shoyu chicken are now on my "Foods I Dream About" list. The tobiko was an unforgettable punch in the nose and an explosion of flavor. The chicken was the most tender and tastiest I have ever eaten. And I've eaten a lot of chicken.
- Lunch at Kona Brewing Company. Great view, great beer, great fish sandwich and awesome papaya slaw. It hit the spot after a morning of snorkeling at Hanauma Bay.
- Ice cream at Dave's Hawaiian Ice Cream. Find this nondescript spot in a strip mall and get the haupia (young coconut) ice cream. The thought of it will always make your mouth water. It was dense, creamy, and so flavorful. I'm a little picky about ice cream and this stuff hits the bulls-eye.
-Lunch at Opal Thai. Opal Thai is a food truck in a food court of trucks in Hale'iwa. It's an interesting set-up and the food is outstanding. There are so many choices and you really can't go wrong. If you're not sure what to order, tell them what you like and they'll steer you to the right dish. Oh what I would give for another spoonful of the Tom Kha soup.
- Little pickled things. The Japanese way of pickling everything is brilliant. I ate pickled fruit and vegetables all over the island and couldn't get enough. I didn't care that half the time I had no idea what I was eating.
- Spam Musubi. Yes I said Spam. Musubi is a street food I fell in love with. It's a block of rice with some stir fried spam on top that is wrapped in seaweed. You unwrap it and eat it like a burrito. It's a salty, savory, toothsome treat.
- Fruit. It's so obvious, but I had to say it. The fresh tropical fruit is fabulous. If you're not going to eat fresh fruit and fish don't bother coming to Hawaii.
- Lilikoi (Passion Fruit) Chiffon Cake. We had lunch at the Waioli Tea Room and the staff was inattentive, the fresh catch salad was good, but the cake was outstanding. I'd go back for a slice in a heartbeat. It was fragrant, fruity, and heady without being cloying- a fine line to walk.
THINGS I DIDN'T EXPECT:
- Tent City. Honolulu is the same as any other city. There is poverty and homelessness. What I didn't know about was the tent city on the leeward coast of Oahu. People construct intricate "tents" out of poles and tarps. Sometimes a vehicle is used as a base. There are sculptures made out of discarded items in the yards. The working poor live on the beach like this because of the high cost of living in Hawaii. I couldn't stop thinking about these people. To learn more or to help visit this site.
- Chickens. Sure I thought they'd be on the menu, but on the beach? When we got to the beach at Hanauma Bay there was a rooster and a couple of hens. We thought this was an isolated incident and giggled whenever we heard the rooster crow. Turns out, they are all over the island! Hiking in the rainforest, wandering around town, sitting on the beach, waking up in the morning, on a lookout on top of a mountain, there were chickens.
- Bad weather. Sure it rains a lot in the rainforest, but isn't it always sunny with just a few perfect cotton puff clouds on the beach? I gave not a single moment's thought to planning for rain. I didn't bring an umbrella or come up with rainy day plans. Our first night and day in Honolulu it POURED. We went to the Waikiki Aquarium, which was nice, but we had planned to be beach bums that day and try to get a surfing lesson from one of the cabana boys.
MOST MEMORABLE MOMENTS:
- Snorkeling. Snorkeling in Hawaii is magical. It's like being inside the best aquarium. Hanauma Bay is the perfect place to learn snorkeling. We also snorkeled at the Ko Olina Lagoons. Both locations are sheltered reefs and are easy and safe even for my 8-year-old. John and I took turns taking her out and watching Natalie on the beach.
- Surfing. I am speaking for John here, because he was the one who took a surfing lesson. He enjoyed it thoroughly, but said it was a tough workout too. John's instructor, Edison, owns the Surf Hawaii 4 U Surf School in Haleiwa. He was a great and patient teacher that enabled John to ride several waves.
- Sea Turtles. I couldn't wait to see sea turtles in Hawaii. I chose the condo we rented because it was on Turtle Cove. I did get to see a turtle in the surf there and John actually got to snorkel with one. She followed him as he swam around. The North Shore provided all of us with an even closer look. We parked our car and got out to watch some people surfing. We saw a group of people clustered at one end of the beach. We assumed they were watching the surfing or maybe even a casual competition, because we noticed there were signs and ropes. We ambled over, but tried not to interfere. With my eyes trained on the waves, someone tapped me on the shoulder and said, "Do you realize there are sea turtles right there?" I turned my head and saw 2 sea turtles basking right there on the sand. I was overwhelmed and had to catch my breath. They were so beautiful. The ropes and signs were set up to protect the turtles so no one would get too close. I went back to the same beach the next day too and there were 3 turtles that time. The volunteers from Malama na honu that watch over the turtles were very friendly and answered lots of our questions.
-Pearl Harbor. Visiting the Arizona was emotional and educational. John and Julia also toured the Missouri and the Bowfin and enjoyed both. I would have loved to tour them too, but it was too much to ask of Natalie.
-The Bishop Museum. We went to the Bishop Museum on our last day before we went to the airport and it was a wonderful way to wrap up our trip. There are several museums on the island, but we didn't want to spend much time inside, so we skipped most of them. This museum, however, was well worth the time. We enjoyed the information and artifacts from all of Polynesia and the volcano building. There is something for all age groups here and a lot to see. We left wanting to visit all the islands in Polynesia.
-The little things. Flowers. The color of the ocean. Critters in tidal pools. The sound of the surf. Shopping at Tamura (a grocery store on the leeward coast that's chock full of Polynesian and Japanese food). The dolphins. The trees. The lay of the land. Feeling the pulse of another way of life. A local thinking I was a local too. Eating new things. Spending time with my family. The girls' faces as they watched Polynesian dancers.
MY TIPS:
- Go to Vacation Rental By Owner to find a place to stay. The prices are good and you can find a nice place to stay that is away from the touristy hubbub.
- Get an Entertainment Book. This is a coupon book and you can check it out online to make sure there are things in it you are interested in. It can pay for itself many times over.
- Read some guide books before you go so you can prioritize what you most want to see and do. My favorites were Top 10 Honolulu and Oahu (a great overview, easy to carry with you, nice pictures), Lonely Planet Hawaii (pretty thorough, most information on hiking), Fodor's Hawaii (great basic guide, good restaurant listings). I checked out all the guide books on Hawaii that my library had and I found these to be the most helpful.
- If you have kids, plan ahead for the flights. Bring empty water bottles that you can fill after you go through security. My carry-on was full of new little toys, books, and candy to keep the munchkins happy. The Dover Little Activity Books are a good choice. They are small, inexpensive, and come in a wide variety of topics. The Play-Doh party pack tube was also a hit with both girls. It's a tube of several small containers of Play-Doh that are just the right size for playing with on a plane. The dollar section of Target also provided some fun and cheap books and toys.
- If you want souvenirs, shop at the Aloha Stadium Swap Meet (every Wed, Sat, and Sun from 6AM- 3PM). You can find most of the things you will see in fancy stores all over the island for a fraction of the cost. There are lots of repetitive booths, but there's some cool stuff too. It's really close to Pearl Harbor, so plan to do it the day you go there.
- Ask locals about their favorite restaurants. I researched thoroughly before we went, but the tip to go to Banzai Sushi (arguably the best meal we had) came from one of the guides on the whale watching cruise we took (We didn't get to see whales, but it was still fun. We saw 2 species of dolphins.)
