Waikiki – Oahu – Hawaii – 2014 – Day 1 & 2

I travelled to Oahu, Hawaii for 13 days for my friend’s (Melissa & Juan) wedding celebration. I did not plan any second of it and just went with the flow of things.

Our main group for the trip was large (15 people – many more joined afterwards). But we managed to stay in Waikiki for a week and then North on the island in Kaʻaʻawa.

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We flew with United Airlines to Oahu, Hawaii with a detour in Chicago. The plane ride felt like it was never-ending. The first leg to Chicago was decent but then you get corralled into groups to board the next plane. We took a Boeing 77 so it holds more people. What sucks is that even with this large amount of people and the flight alone being 8-9 hours, no food is provided unless purchased. There was also no outlet or television however they had this United wifi setup so you can view the movies and shows on your electronic devices.

We finally arrived in Honolulu and hopped on the Reliable Shuttle to bring us to our hotel for the week – Aqua Bamboo –  It’s a cozy hotel a block away from the beach which lowers costs. After we settled into the rooms, we went straight for the beach and for food. We went to this corner restaurant called Shore Fyre (2446 Koa Ave) and I got a steak and garlic shrimp platter ($14.95USD) which came with salad and brown rice – delicious.

Walked over to the beach and we just took to the water. Palm trees everywhere, bodies everywhere, the salt water was so warm and waves coming in. This is one of the more touristy areas but man this is the life. I could definitely get use to waking up and heading to the beach all golden everyday.

We stayed at the beach on the rocks watching the sun set (which came early and went down quickly) then back to the hotel to rinse off and go for food. There is literally an ABC store on every corner. It has everything you would need but apparently Ala Moana Mall has the items cheaper or head to Walmart (especially if you want the macadamia nuts). We walked to Food Pantry (2370 Kuhio Ave) which is their grocery store but also has a little food court. Right by the main entrance is one steak place called HiSteaks and you can get a steak plate (rice and egg) for $9.99USD. Melissa had noticed they had ice cream mochi but not any ordinary mochi – the have Bubbies (cantaloupe, green tea, pistachio, sakura) which I have been going on and on about. I decided eating only mochi for dinner was a bad choice so I got white truffle oil shoestring fries and 4 ice cream mochi with a small (not small at all) Fanta fruit punch ($9.91USD in total – $1.69/mochi here). Mind you, we ate only an hour or two ago so don’t judge me.

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We hit the beach bright and early and stationed ourselves by the beach bistro and police station. There was a surf competition so the water was filled with surfers. The area we anchored ourselves had water that was a little more choppy then the previous day but nonetheless, after you got in it was delightful. Once it rolled around to noon, the became filled with tourists as it was also a Sunday. For lunch, we went to the Hilton Hotel to Mac 24/7 which by the name is open 24/7. Man vs Wild made it known to the world as the manhole cover sized (14 inch) pancakes (3 stacks). Jaira, Melissa and myself attempted it (Pineapple, macadamia nut and coconut with maple syrup and coconut syrup) for $22USD. It was delicious but even though we divided it into 1/3 each, I was the only one able to finish my piece and that was painful to say the least.

Our friends Ronnel and Eric whose flight never left Toronto finally arrived and quickly threw their stuff into our rooms and we all headed to the beach. Took in the afternoon sun and then walked a distance as a whole group to Rainbow Drive-in (3308 Kanaina Ave) and Leonards (933 Kapahulu Ave). Rainbow Drive-in is a good ol’ local eatery – nothing fancy but they sure make some good local comfort food. I had the mixed platter plate with BBQ, chicken and ahi ahi fish with rice and mac salad ($7.95USD). Great food that tasted amazing and best part is that it is cheap! Leonard’s is a Portuguese bakery that specializes in Malasadas – Portuguese donuts with no holes that are usually filled. Even though the walk to dinner was a long one, we decided to go for a night walk and ended up at the Pier and just hung out in the dark. Its amazing how you can see the commercial part of the beach where the hotels are light up the sky but the other side has no lights so its a beautiful chiaroscuro on the ocean and you look up and the stars are so bright. We called it a somewhat early night after that.