Hawaii: September Trip

[Evil Penevil 7,628]

 

 

 

Waikiki is probably the best-known beach in Hawaii because of its location in downtown Honolulu. The first set of photos was taken on Waikiki Beach or nearby streets.

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is the open-air mini-mall close to Waikiki that opened in the 1950s and set much of the tone for mass tourism to Hawaii. It's become more than a little dated and worn with time, but is still popular with budget-conscious tourists. It sells the customary souvenir junk but also houses a food court and several over-the-top tiki-style bars.

 

 

 

 

 

A stall that sells license plates to collectors:

 

 

And one that sells Oriental fans:

 

 

And my personal favorites, signs and war clubs (!) for bars.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I rented a one-bedroom condo on Nahua St between Kuhio Ave and Ala Wai Blvd. That's right in the heart of Waikiki, but a couple of blocks inland from the beach. It cost U.S. $100 a night, great value for money on Waikiki, especially since it included parking. I also like having a full kitchen, as I can fix my own breakfast just the way I like it.

 

The view from my balcony:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Evil Penevil 7,628]

 

"Pali" means cliff in the Hawaiian language and the Nu'uanu Pali Lookout is perched above a pass through the mountain range that separates the northeast (windward) part of Oahu from the southwest (leeward) section.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wind and soil erosion cause trees to takeon some weird forms.

 

 

The orginal Pali Road was built in 1897-98 and was replaced with a modern highway in the 1950s. During the construction of the first road, over 800 human skulls were discovered, believed to have been the remains of warriors killed in a battle 100 years earlier.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I felt a lot safer knowing horseshoe playing was forbidden.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This struck me as an interesting idea: a tent for a tent, presumably to keep the sun off the smaller tent.

 

 

The roadside restaurants and food trucks on the northern coast of Oahu are famous for good food. They aren't cheap, though.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited November 17, 2012 by Evil Penevil

[Dungheap 243]

Nice one Evil.

 

Brings back some memories. Rented a condo near where you stayed about 10 years ago. Another time we had a house at Kailua which was awesome.

 

The Shorebird at the Outrigger was my favorite bar -- picture-perfect sunset views, handy happy hour, soothing local tunes and a great BBQ restaurant.

 

http://shorebirdwaikiki.com/

 

Waikiki itself is rather scruffy and dated, IMHO, with all those old high rises but the place still has a lot of hidden charm and those brilliant beaches .

 

Edited November 16, 2012 by Dungheap

[ZARIS 20]

thanks for the report.I'm go there next year.Cheers!

[losgrad 264]

Great pictures.

 

I was there a few months ago and have visited regularly for years as I have family there. I usually rent a motorcycle to cruise around the island (I'll probably ship one next year from my CA inventory). As a pedestrian, you really have to carefully obey traffic laws as police on those Segway machines will track you down and ticket you.

 

The weather is almost comparable except they have more regular breezes and light winds than we do in Pattaya.. Everything is also expensive since it's an island where most things must be shipped. With all the ships coming from China full of cheap goods, one would think those items would be cheaper than CA, but apparently most of these ships are required to go to the mainland first.

 

Anyway, a nice place to visit, some great hiking trails, a big diversity of Asian non-p4p women and fun in the sun.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[RhinoTusk 4,901]

Wouldn't it be great if Pattaya beach was kept as clean as the beach at Waikiki?

[Evil Penevil 7,628]

Wouldn't it be great if Pattaya beach was kept as clean as the beach at Waikiki?

 

That's one of the more impressive things about Oahu. Although the beaches are very busy - crowded at times - they are clean compared with a lot of beaches I've seen.

 

Evil

[RhinoTusk 4,901]

One place on Oahu I really enjoyed was Kailua, off the usual tourist path. There's a beautiful beach there, particularly good for wind surfing, that's nearly deserted on weekdays. For lunch, Cisco's Cantina, home of the Megarita, served delicious crab enchiladas. After one of their Megaritas (a 40 Oz Margarita), I was in no shape to drive back to Waikiki and would spend the rest of the afternoon at the beach drying out.

[worldxcess78 44]

Seeing those pics reminded me of my 4 lovely years having the luxury and luck of being stationed there in the military. I came back a few years ago and was surprised at a lot of changes in the marketplace. My usual bar was gone now a fruit juice bar and it's now more family friendly. Still though, fond memories...

[teelack 9,646]

Thanks for taking the time. Never been there and probably never will but enjoyed the Evil trip.

[bigdelta 46]

Great pics and thanks for sharing.

If I may offer some advice for 1st time visitors.I have made 29 trips there since the late 70s (including 2 honeymoons) and can say w/o question,Oahu is the worst island to visit as a tourist. If you only have a few days fine but any other island has so much to offer w/o all the clutter & big city life that Honolulu does.In all those trips,I think I have spent at the most 3 nites total.I grew up in Miami and to me,Honolulu is like the Hawaiian version of Miami Beach. But for the 1st time visitor,go for it.Next in line as least favorite would be Maui for same reasons.But if you go to Molokai,Kauai-my favorite by far,or the Big Island or if you want a really slow pace,go to Lanai (with Molokai a close 2nd).

I never tire of Hawaii pics.

Edited March 21, 2013 by bigdelta