169 Diana and I sitting on the overlook wall at Kahala Beach on Oahu.
178 Hanauma Bay Beach, maybe the best overall beach photo I’ve ever taken
226 Kane’ohe City and Bay from the Pali Lookout sight of the last battle for Oahu.
241 Nu’uanu Peak. The overlook where we are standing is the site of the end of the last battle where the losing warriors were pushed over the edge.
Sept 29 – Honolulu, Hawaii. We docked at the Aloha Tower again this trip. The tour we have booked is a very retro itinerary but one that I have never done, the Grand Circle Oahu tour. It does a lap around pretty much of the island. I was worried that it might be one of those tours where there are several large busses but my fears were unfounded. There were only 13 of us going and we went in a mini-bus, about 24 person capacity so we had lots of room. We’re going in the counter-clockwise direction from Honolulu across the south shore up the east shore across the north shore and then down half of the west shore before cutting into the interior to go to the Dole Plantation and then back to Honolulu.
I spotted some things in Honolulu that I hadn’t noticed on prior visits. One was the tall building where Steve McGarrett stood on the balcony while being filmed from a helicopter in the original Hawaii-50. Its façade hasn’t been changed, the panels in the balcony railing are still aqua. Serendipitous and pleasant addition to the day, #1.
Leaving Honolulu we drove by Waikiki Beach. It’s Sunday so the beach was packed with both tourists and locals. We headed toward and around Diamond Head, past the Coast Guard Base and the old lighthouse, now automated.
Our first stop was at Kahala. There was an unusual tourist bus in the parking lot at the overlook. It was enclosed at the very front back to the passenger door, behind that it was open with the last two-thirds of the seating three feet higher than the first third. Atop the bus’ roof at the rear was a whale’s tail as you’d see it before a shallow dive. The tail was maroon and the front part of the bus was also maroon and had the whale’s eye painted on the side just in front of the passenger door. Swooping up the side of the bus along the bottom of the whale’s body were rainbow stripes that covered the roof under the raised whale’s tail. Under and in back of the rainbow the sides are brightly colored and decorated with cartoon like characters. The words ‘Oli ‘Oli are painted on the side. Anyone know what that means or who it is? Serendipitous and pleasant addition to the day, #2.
The waves at the beach were not large (5-6 feet) but were breaking nicely, providing a long ride in and coming in well-spaced sets. A large group of surfers were taking advantage of the water. One of the girls from the shops on board, also a Diana, took our picture sitting on the wall of the overlook. After leaving the overlook we drove through a very exclusive neighborhood where the homes are all over 5 million dollars and are mostly in the 15-20 million dollar range. One of the nicest is owned by the lady who founded Panda Express, a travel agency catering mainly to the Chinese market. It wasn’t the largest but it was the most tasteful and pleasing to the eye. It certainly didn’t hurt that there are two Pandas in the crest that’s affixed to the gate on the driveway.
Our next stop was at Hanauma Bay. Often it’s hard to get a decent shot of a beach that shows it to good advantage. Here is was easy. We were on an overlook that had a view looking across the length of the beach to the hills forming the side of the bay. You could see the reef through the multi-hued and very clear water. I’ve taken beach pictures all over and this is very close to the best one I’ve been able to capture. It’s a fairly small crescent shaped beach that tapers off into a rocky ridge that forms the western side of the bay. There are trees at the back of the beach and palm tree on it. The waves were breaking directly down the center of the bay right onto the beach. They’re much smaller here, maybe 2 feet at the largest, mostly populated by body surfers and boogie boarders. The calm water areas were filled with snorkelers.
We drove past the rugged volcanic coastline of Koko Head with its crashing waves and jagged rocks dotted with tiny sand beaches. We stopped on an overlook at one such beach at Halona Blow Hole. The main blow hole was underperforming as the tide and wave action was not ideal but it was hitting about 15 feet. The tiny cove that ended at the beach is narrow waisted. This produces a very swift current as the waves go in and out. One man was using this phenomenon to his advantage. First, as the current went in he rode along with it, as it went out he swam with it. When this moved him too far out he reversed the process swimming in with it and letting it carry him out. He kept switching back and forth every few sets to keep himself at the narrow point where the current was the strongest. I suspect this was a local resident as he was very skilled at working with and against the current. Using his technique he could swim for miles while only covering about 20 yards. Most of the people at this beach appeared to be locals, few cameras, lots of island style tattoos.
Just down the way is Sandy Beach, a fairly long and not nearly so picturesque place. It has no palm trees, no rocky cliffs and is not tree lined at the back but it did appear to be a great place to get into the water. No cliff means easy access from the road that borders the inland side of the beach so not much of a walk either. With no offshore reef to start the rollers breaking it isn’t a great surf spot but then it might be under other tide and wave direction conditions. I don’t know. We drove past the collapsed wall of the Kuliouou Volcano Crater with the more in place wall beyond it.
After rounding the corner and turning onto the Eastern Shore we came to Makapu’u Point. Just off the point is Mahana (Rabbit) Island. They say it’s called that because it looks like a rabbit sitting with its ears back. I think you have to be pretty high on Maui Wowie to see it that way and among the locals I think that’s a distinct possibility. It’s been drizzling off and on and there were some dark clouds behind the island that added interest to the picture. Just past the point we came to the pier that serves as the Coast Guard’s helicopter hanger and aviation center. I recognized it immediately as the home and hangar TC’s Island Hoppers Tours in the TV show Magnum PI. Serendipitous and pleasant addition to the day, #3.
We made a short stop in Waimanalo for some Kona coffee and ‘summer room’ stop. Our guide calls the restrooms ‘summer rooms’ as some r for him and some r for her. I’m just telling you that to give you some idea of his sense of humor. He’s especially adept at creating goofy stories about Hawaiian place names and words. Most of them are actually very funny, even if your first instinct is to groan a bit.
Here comes serendipitous and pleasant addition to the day, #4. In the little strip mall where we stopped they have a sculpture of Akebono, the first non-Japanese Yokozuna (Grand Champion) in the history of sumo.
Author’s Note: I love sumo. During the ‘90s, when Akebono was coming up through the ranks KSCI in SoCal had a program called Sumo Digest. During the months when they hold the six annual sumo tournaments in Japan, all the odd ones, they would recap the day’s matches by showing only the actual combat sections of the day. Sumo has a lot of ritual that uses up a lot of time. It’s fun if you are there in person but it’s pretty boring, match after match for the whole day. All the action for the day can easily be put into a 30-minute TV show. Akebono was the heaviest wrestler of his day and one of the heaviest ever at over 650 pounds. His weakness was that he was very tall and if you could get him leaning forward he could be beaten. Remember in sumo there are no weight classes. The 250 pounder has to face the 650 pounder at least once each tournament. The amazing thing was that the smallest wrestler of the era, Mainoumi, at a little over 250 had a great record against Akebono and was actually his main nemeses. Unfortunately he also ended Mainoumi’s career. During a match, which Mainoumi won, Akebono fell across Mainoumi’s extended leg and blew out his knee. Career over. I’ve been to two sumo demonstration 2-day tournaments, one in LA at Pauley Pavilion and one in Vancouver at the Sports Arena. The sumitori travel internationally once a year to do these demo tournaments. If you’re ever near on you and you have any interest in cultural events you definitely should attend at least one day. The ritual is colorful and beautiful.
We stop for the ‘summer room’ and coffee and there’s Akebono. Today turning out great!! Besides the tourist shop there was a small store run by a Hawaiian lady that sells dried fruit, nuts and other island food supplies. She had fair sized packs of dried mango, pineapple and cherries for $2 a pack. I’ve seen larger packs of these items selling for 3 times that much in SoCal and since I like dried fruit as a snack I bought some of each. Oddly enough, so far this trip, of course there have only been two ports, I’m buying more than Diana, although I believe that her few purchases cost way more than my many. Of course, I’m counting the ukulele as hers because of her instrument collection and I did buy that fan in Hilo. Know what, I’m wrong. I think we’re about tied. That in itself is very unusual.
From Waimanalo we drove up the Pali Highway to the Nu'uanu Pali Lookout. From here we could look out over Kane'ohe City and the bay of the same name. This is a historic area both in the lowlands under the cliffs and the small plateau her atop the mountain. We are standing atop the remaining half of the Ko’olau Volcano, the other half slid into the sea creating the flat land 2,000 feet below us. In the centuries prior to Western contact this valley was home to farmers and fishermen, today it is filled with golf courses and residences and a very nice botanical garden. Kane’ohe is one of the largest suburban cities on the island but up until two centuries ago it was the island’s most productive agricultural area. At first they grew taro, the source of poi, then they moved into rice and after that pineapple and sugar cane. Sugar cane is pretty much gone from the island but some very sweet varieties on pineapple are still grown here although it is not exported except by tourists heading home with one or two. Some small amounts are shipped to the mainland for use in restaurants. If you are lucky enough to happen upon a pineapple with smooth leaves in the crown, that’s one of the type grown in Hawaii. If it has saw edged leaves it’s not from here and not the high quality species. Our guide gave us a tip about eating the pineapple. Place it crown side down for one or two days before slicing it. All the sweetness settles to the bottom after picking. So to restore it to the whole fruit keep it upside down and then slice it. He said it works with both the smooth and saw tooth varieties. I have to admit that in my ignorance I have just sliced the pineapples I’ve purchased and wondered why the bottom was always sweeter than the top. I figured they just grew that way. Oops!!
One major feature of the plane is the He’eia Fishpond. This stacked rock wall at the mouth of the He’eia Stream covers 88 acres of the bay. This fish pond was used to grow and harvest fish that were put in after being caught as small fish in the ocean. It was not a breeding pond but more like a cattle feed lot. Put them in small, take them out big.
There were more fishponds on the Mokapu Peninsula that forms the northern boundary of the bay. It’s home to the Kane'ohe Marine Corps Air Station and they protect the ancient ponds as a wetland habitat for endangered water fowl. Next to the Air Station is the Kapa’a Quarry where stone is still produced for construction needs. In ancient times the Hawaiians use the dense basalt quarried here to make woodworking tools.
The bay itself is actually a lagoon because it is protected by the only true barrier reef in Hawaii. This lagoon is home to almost every kind of shallow-water coral that exists in the entire island chain. There are two islands in the bay, Moku O Lo’e (Coconut Island) and Mokoli’i (called Chinaman’s Hat because of its shape). In the 1800s Moku O Lo’e was a home for Hawaiian royalty and until 1980 it was a private resort. It’s now home to Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology. Mokoli’i is said to be the tail of a lizard-like demi-god slain by the Hawaiian goddess Hi’iaka, the sister of Pele.
The area atop the outlook is very historic. In the late 1700s King I (or Great) from the Big Island started to consolidate all the chain’s islands under one ruler, himself. The battle for O’ahu started when he invaded at Waikiki in 1795. The King of Maui had conquered O’ahu and was ruling here. Both sides fought with Hawaiian spears and Western personal arms but Kamehameha had gotten canons from Vancouver and that swung the battle in his favor. Kalanikupule’s forces had been cornered atop this mountain and were asked to surrender and swear allegiance to or die. The battle on this hill top is called Kaleleka’anae (leaping of the anae fish) to remember the men forced off the cliff to the plane 2,000 feet below. About 400 warriors died during this battle. With O’ahu secured, the King of Kaua’i, Kaumuali’i signed an agreement with Kamehameha making him the first king of the Hawaiian Islands.
Atop the outlook they have an interpretive map of the plane below at the front wall. On the side wall they have a sign telling the history of the Kaleleka’anae battle and displaying a copy of a famous painting of the warriors going over the cliff with the mountain’s peak in the background so it’s easy to place the event.
There was a family group on the outlook that wanted to take a group photo. An obviously Polynesian little girl would not co-operate. She’d go over to the wall but as soon as the person with the camera pointed it at the group she’d take off running with a huge grin on her face.
We departed the overlook and headed up the east shore to the Kualoa Ranch for lunch. On the way there we crossed over the East-West oriented H-3 Interstate complete with the mainland style red, white and blue signs. I’m pretty sure it was built with national tax money. My question is, “Interstate?” Please name the second state to which it connects. As I learned English if an item did not connect or involve others outside the set to which the item belonged it required the “Intra” prefix, “Inter” meaning between. They really should have called it an Intrastate but then no mainland funds would have been available. I think Hawaii is just behind the city of Washington DC in its ability to suck funds from the national treasury and under our current administration that’s probably grown a lot worse.
The Kualoa Ranch would properly be subtitled ‘& Tourist Trap’, but the food was excellent. The BBQ ribs were Kona style and delicious. They served a ‘chili-style’ stew (it wasn’t really chili because it had beans in it, not allowed in chili). Whatever you want to call it, the mixture was excellent. It was not overtly spicy hot but the warmth was cumulative. As you ate it, it became warmer and warmer. We ate outside on the veranda so we could enjoy the light breeze. Without that it would have been very warm and humid.
Our next destination was the Byodo-In Buddhist temple. It’s a copy of the Japanese Byodo-In Temple in Uji, Japan but done mainly in cement rather than wood. They have painted it mostly red and white like the original so you can’t really tell it’s not a wooden structure. The entrance to the temple area is through the Valley of the Temple Memorial Park. This park tries to cater to local needs. Outside the walls of the consecrated grounds it’s a pet cemetery, inside the walls the consecrated ground is used by all types of Christians. Further inside the area and outside the back wall of this area is the Buddhist cemetery. I didn’t see a Jewish area; perhaps they have their own cemetery elsewhere. Theological considerations usually do not permit co-interment between Jews, Christians or Buddhists. This rule is generally ignored in military cemeteries, perhaps there’s an exception that covers this, I really don’t know but probably should.
When you arrive at the temple precincts you have to cross a long curved bridge over the valley to get inside. As usual the structure has a main temple with a covered breezeway extending to each side terminating in two-roof tower that extends forward creating a very broad U shaped structure. The tower to the left looked mainly decorative and for balance. The right tower was a bit taller and open. I’m sure that this one serves as the drum tower for the temple. There’s a reflecting pond in front of the temple but lighting conditions did not provide a reflection at this time of day. Just across the bridge and to the left is the Sacred Bell. This one was cast in Osaka, Japan, is six feet tall, the bottom diameter is almost 60 inches and it weighs about 7 tons. It’s a close copy of the bell in Japan which is over 900 years old and probably cast in India. Visitors are invited to ring the bell as they enter the temple grounds. The vibration and sound is thought to clear the mind of negativity and prepare you for meditation and give you happiness and tranquility. I have to admit, it does have a pleasing tone of very long duration. There’s a meditation pavilion slightly up the hill surrounded by trees and flowering tropical plants.
We entered the temple through the left tower and colonnade and proceeded to the central building, the temple proper or Ho-O-Do (Phoenix Hall). Inside is the seated Amida Buddha (Buddha of the Western Paradise). It weighs a little over 2 tons, is nine feet tall and is carved from Hanoki wood (Japanese cypress). After being carved it was first covered in cloth after which three layers of black lacquer were applied followed by gold leaf. The Amida Buddha is said to represent the infinite life and light surrounding all beings.
They have a large collection of koi in the ponds and streams that run through the temple grounds. Most of them congregate at the small bridge in front of the gift shop off to the right side. That’s because they sell the fish food inside the shop and most people just come out to the bridge to scatter the feed. Today our guide and another lady were the only ones feeding them at the moment. Both had attracted a large group of koi. The lady had also attracted two black Japanese swans. They are about two-thirds the size of a white swan in the USA. Their silver rimmed black feathers and dark orange bill create an attractive image. It was a nice place to visit even though we’ve been to a multitude of Buddhist temples before. With the water features, Zen garden, natural surroundings and simple buildings they are always restful places with a very calm feeling to them.
On the way out we drove by the Buddhist cemetery where the tradition is to have family graves. Each is on a flat surface carved out of the gently sloping hillside with a concrete retaining wall to keep it from caving in. On this flat spot there’s a granite altar-like rectangular table. Atop the table is a long rectangular stone with the family name carved into it and lined with gold leaf. Extending upward from this stone is a headstone shaped stone with the name in vertical Japanese script. The base of the table is almost as large as the top and appears to have a door in it to allow then to put the ashes of the family member inside. I know parts of the movie ‘The Karate Kid’ were filmed on the island and coincidentally one of the graves belongs to the Miyagi family.
As we drove through the Christian section we had to stop in the line of cars waiting to exit the property. In this section the gravestones are flush with the grass. One of the small stones has a child’s toy trucks on it as well as some small plastic cartoon characters that might have come with a McDonald’s Happy Meal. A sad sight for sure.
Our next stop was at the Tropical Farms Macadamia Nut Outlet. We got to sample some macadamias in dark chocolate. Yikes! They were excellent. Outside the shop was a life sized wood carving of a man and woman in native Hawaiian dress. Turns out it’s the farms founders, Harry and Mary Lake. Each of them was part Hawaiian and the carving is from 1959 when they were king and queen of Aloha Week on Maui.
As we reached the northernmost point of the island we passed the hill where the semi-experimental RADAR installation picked up the Japanese aircraft approaching Oahu. How would things have changed if their report of the multiple flights of planes had been acted on and the planes on Wheeler and Hickam been scrambled? We’ll never know because they didn’t.
We drove by Sunset Beach, Ehukai Beach (Banzai Pipeline), Waimea Beach and Chun’s Reef before turning onto Kamehameha Highway. This road goes south through the valley where some of the Japanese planes flew to attack Wheeler Army Air Base and Schofield Barracks before heading further south down the valley to attack Pearl Harbor.
We stopped at the Dole Plantation for some shopping and pineapple. They still grow some pineapple here but not much. They did have an interpretive display about growing pineapple. Apparently it takes 22 months for a new plant to produce one large central pineapple. After that one is harvested in another 6-9 months two smaller but sweeter pineapples are produced, one on each side of the plant. When these are harvested the plant is done and the field must be replanted. The crowns of the harvested fruit are planted to produce the next generation.
The drive back to the ship took us past Wheeler and Schofield, places we visited last fall when we were here. We saw two different rainbows on the way down the valley. In fact there was a beauty this morning during breakfast. It was very wide and you could see every color from violet to red. Stunning.
This evening they're having a Luau by the Lido Pool. A chance to eat outside and listen to some island music. Can’t miss that. There was a short performance by a new Polynesian Dance group. They performed their main show at 9:30 in the Queen’s Lounge. It was the same group they brought aboard last year with a few new dancers. This time they have added a new boy age 6 to dance with the young lad from last year now age 7. It was a nice performance and the crowd really responded.
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