Beautiful Hanauma Bay Park

   So today my plan was to go with Ewen to Hanauma Bay, which is a conservation park on the east side of Oahu. I got up around 8:10AM this morning, and I had slept quite well last night despite still recovering from my sore sunburns from the day before. I went into Ewen's room to see if he was awake, and he was!!! He said he only went to sleep at 03:30AM so he was not quite feeling it!!! We went into the kitchen as they were already serving breakfast, so I had some toast and weetbix as usual.

Me overlooking Hanauma Bay Park

   We left the hostel around 09:20AM and made our way to the main street so we could catch bus 22 to Hanauma Bay at 09:30AM. Each time you buy a ticket on TheBus, you get a transfer ticket which gives you a free connection. You are supposed to use this 3-4 hours after you buy the ticket, so that gave us till around 1PM to get this transfer. The bus cost us $2.50 (£1.54), and it took us around 45 minutes to get to the beach from Wakiki.

Hanauma Bay

   It is pretty impressive bay, which was formed after the last volcanic eruptions several thousand years ago and as the result of rising sea levels. The coral reef that is here is protected by state law, and you have to pay $7.50 (£4.12) to enter the park. You also have to watch a ten minute film about the formation of the park, the different fauna and flora that lives there, the coral reef and safety information.



   After that had finished, we walked down the steep decline that goes to the beach. You can also use a shuttle bus that costs less than a buck to get down, and a buck to come back up. We chose our spots to put our towels down, and then donned our snorkeling gear. The snorkeling gear we were using was borrowed from the hostel, so it was not the best in the world. When we tried it out, both were leaking through the mask, so we decided not to use them. In fact, the water was not that clear for some reason, so we rested on our beach towels. It was pretty cloudy and not the sunniest weather, but that was good because I had been sun-burnt the day before, and the sea water cooled my skin down too. We actually both slept for the majority of the time there, and I slept for around 3 hours. Once waking up around 2PM, we decided to catch the bus to go to Kailua Beach Park.

Scenic route on bus 22

    So we grabbed bus 22, which goes towards the Sea Park a bit further down the road. We had to get a transfer in order to reach Kailua Beach Park. We were on the bus by 02:45PM and we had reached Kailua by 04:00PM. We went to the big supermarket there, Safeway, but there were no sandwiches or anything, so I only bought a banana. Therefore I decided to go subway to get a meatball foot-long sandwich for $6 (£3.68), which was quite tasty. I went to McDonald's to buy a chocolate milkshake with the rest of the change I had (excluding my return ticket), and ate with Ewen.

Me on bus 22 

    We walked the rest of the way to Kailua Beach Park, which took us 20 minutes or so. It was a bit cold and very windy, so we decided not to enter the water and just relax on the beach. We went to a different part of the beach, a hundred or so metres down from where I was with the gang a few days ago. After 50 minutes of chilling out, we decided to leave around 05:50 as it was getting quite cold.



     So at 05:50PM we walked a bit, then grabbed bus 70 to Kailua town centre. After that we waited 15 minutes or so for bus 57 that would take us to the outskirts of Wakiki, Ala Moana. It took 40 or so minutes to get us there. From there, we walked 15 minutes or so to get back to the hostel, and arrived around 07:45PM.

Me and the burger meal 

   We were due to have the barbecue at 07:30PM, but the burgers were not quite done. The price was originally changed from $5 to $4 but was put back when I got there. I did not have the right change so Masahiro kindly lent me some, which I paid back a bit later. We were also given crisps and some coleslaw. I did not particularly like either of them, but I did enjoy the burger!!!

Me and Elinor, overlooking Honolulu

   Masahiro offered me and Elinor a trip up to a mountain which offers great views of Honolulu from above. So around 9PM we got in his hired vehicle and went up to the top of the hill, which took 10-15 minutes from the hostel. It was pretty impressive to see the city all lit up at night-time!! It was a bit cold, but Masahiro kindly lent me his top to keep me warm!!! I also spoke to some Japanese people there, who seem to be loving Hawaii as much as me!!! We took several photos, before heading back down to the hostel.

   

Ouch!! Sunburn!!

     So today I had no plan as I was suffering from my sunburn I had acquired from several hours sunbathing on the northern shores of Oahu. I should have covered my legs, but I believed they would not have been really affected. Well I learnt a massive lesson!!! Cover everywhere!! If in doubt, cover it again!!! I also got sun burnt on the side of my midriff, so that was a bit painful. As I am writing this, it is still a bright red colour as it was this morning!!!

My sunburn!!

     Because of the sunburn, I work up a bit later at 11:30AM, to allow my body to repair itself. So I had some weetabix, and chilled out for a bit. I did not have a shower because of the sunburn, but I did put some aloe vera on it to cool it down. It was sore at first, but it instantly cooled it down when I applied it. I really did not do much for the next 5 hours or so, except to talk to my lovely Pao. Hi angel!!! She is a really amazing girl: she is kind, caring, intelligent, tri-lingual, empathetic, sweet, and cute!!! Love you, pommie pie!! Only 5 weeks to go to till we meet; I'm excited but I am also enjoying every moment of this once-in-a-lifetime trip.

SPAM mascot!!

    Around 4PM I decided to cook myself some dinner, so I got out the pasta, peppers, mushroom sauce and mince. I grabbed saucepan, put some hot water in it, turned on the gas and let it boil. After letting it boil for ten minutes or so, I added the pasta to it. When I had done that, I put some oil and mince into the frying pan. I chopped the mince up with my spatula and added some peppers to it to give it some taste. After 10 minutes or so when the mince had turned that nice brown colour to signify that its cooked inside and out, I added the mushroom sauce. I used the colander to drain the pasta, put it onto my plate, and then added the sauce and mince. It tasted fairly nice, but it took ten minutes or so to clean up!!!

Okonmiyaki stall! Yummy asian girls!!

        Masahiro, my Japanese room-mate, came into the lobby and chilled out for a while. We chatted and as he was going to go to the annual Spam Jam festival a few blocks away around 7PM, I decided to join him. I went back to the room to get ready, added some more aloe vera to my sun burnt body and sorted out my locker. We left not long after.

Me at the SPAM Jam Festival

      The Spam Jam festival is the annual festival that celebrates spam. This year is actually the tenth year of it, and I thought it was going to be something spectacular. When we got to the street. we saw some Hawaiian dancing which was pretty cool. There were many stalls set up including ones selling t-shirts, but mainly ones selling spam in some way, including okonomiayaki!!! I did not get anything as I was still full up, but Masahiro did buy a $8 okonomiyaki from the stall with the cute Japanese girls. After eating that, and hearing the crap rock band play, we went back to the hostel, arriving back around 8PM.



    After that I went onto my PC, sorting out what I might be doing in North America. I have decided that after Toronto, I will go to Montreal, Boston, New York and Washington D.C. I hear that these are some of the best cities in the states, so only in time will I find out!! One of the guys here, Leo, said there are lots of college students out around this time, so it should be fun going out!!! I might be meeting up with Ewen in Boston, so that should be pretty cool. Tomorrow we are planning to go to Hanauma Bay, but you have to pay $7.50 but its well preserved so it should be awesome.
   

The World Famous North Shore!!!!

    So after getting back a bit late yesterday, I did not get up till 09:30AM. The plan was to go with Nick, Rene and Ewen to the northern coast of Oahu, the island that we are on. There are supposedly great beaches there, and in the end they did not disappoint!!! Rene had hired a car for the few days that he was staying there, so we shared that for roughly $20 each. He was going quite early, so after eating some strawberry toast and weetabix, we had left the hostel by 09:45AM.

The gang (Me, Ewen and Rene)

    For the journey I had taken my towel, camera (although I forgot my SD card!!!), borrowed goggles, sunglasses and beach shorts. Oahu is not a big island so it does not take long to reach the north shore from Wakiki, although we took the road along the coast, thus it took a few hours to get to the north shore. However, we made a few stops along the way, stopping at some nice beaches.

Near Kawea Bay

    The first beach we went to was the Kailua Beach Park, which is a 30 minute or so drive from Wakiki. It is a really beautiful beach and the waves are gentle so are great for swimming in for this time of year. The sea there is a beautiful blue colour and the sand is a great golden hue. I sometimes have to pinch myself that I actually here in Hawaii!! I put on the goggles as I did not want to sting my eyes because I wear contact lenses. They can get a but foggy but I rather have a foggy view than red and sore eyes!!! We chilled out there for two hours till 12:30PM; Nick decided to stay there as he has already been to North Shore, whilst us three continued our venture northwards.

Near Kawea Bay

    We stopped at several other locations, however we did not find anything decent for a while. Before continuing to North Shore, we went to a supermarket to grab something to eat. I bought a chicken wrap with salad, a banana, and a chocolate milkshake from McDonald's. It cost around $9 (£5.53) so it was not too bad, but I have to be careful as I am on a tight budget (roughly £40 per day including accommodation). After an hour or so later we had left.

Near Kawea Bay

    The next place we went to I cannot remember the name of the place, but it had a lovely beach. We chilled out there for a few hours, before continuing on. I fell asleep on the beach for an hour I think, and I did not realise that my legs had become burnt!! Damn it!! Thankfully I had put enough of the P20 sunscreen on the most important parts of my body: face and neck. Anywhere else and the sunscreen burn is not too bad. Me and Ewen also went to take some pictures; I had forgot my SD card, so he took all of them on his iphone.  So by 4PM we had left that beach and continued towards North Shore.

Me enjoying Waimea Bay

    Not long after 4PM we had came upon sunset beach, so we knew we were in the north shore area. This part of Oahu is famous for its big winter waves, so many surfers from all around the world come here to practice their skills and compete in international competitions. However, I hate surfing and I prefer to go for a swim and relax on the beach!!! In summer, though, the waves are very gentle and nowhere near as high as 20-30 feet, so that is good for those who cannot surf or swim!!!

Waimea Bay

     However, we wanted to check out the famous beach where the great surfers go to, Waimea Bay Beach Park. The current was really strong but the waves were very tiny, so it was not to bad to go to. We sat down and then went into the water. It was quite funny as the strength of the backwash pulls you into the sea, so it can be quite dangerous if you are not expecting it! I was certainly not expecting it!!! I had put my t-shirt on as I did not want to burn anymore. We relaxed there till around 6PM when the sun was beginning to set.



    So ten minutes later, we had arrived at sunset beach. We got a spot just on the beach, put our towels on the the sand, and sat down to relax. We took some pictures, and chilled out. I went into the sea, although the others did not. It was starting to get a bit cooler, and the sun was getting close to setting. By the time it was 06:40PM, the sun had gone behind some clouds so it had effectively set. It was a bit of a disappointment, but we took lots of pictures!! Me and Ewen decided to go to the a petrol station to get a snack; I bought a sports drink for my sunburn and some skittles!!! It cost me just under $3, so that was not too bad.

Sunset beach!!!!!!

   We left after 7PM and headed back to Honolulu. I passed out in the car around 07:30PM for an hour, and I woke when we had arrived at Honolulu International Airport. Rene had to drop off the car, so we went to the car rental place, handed over the car, and then got on the shuttle bus that goes to the airport. It was bloody cold on it because of the air conditioning!!!

Near Kawela Bay

    We caught the 09:30PM bus from the airport to Wakiki. The cost for the bus is $2.50, however I only had one dollar notes, but the driver allowed me to get on with just $2!!! I had met some Japanese people and so I spoke to them for a while. I only conversed a little bit in Japanese, so I must study harder!! They actually came from San Francisco, and are here on vacation. The kind lady gave me some free cookies, which reminded of the kindness of the Japanese people! In any case, this bus seemed even colder than the shuttle bus, so I was shivering quite a lot!!!

Me and Ewen!

    About 50 minutes later, we had arrived back at Wakiki. I was quite relieved as I would be able to become warm again!!! We went straight back to the hostel. Ewen was 50/50 on whether to go out or night, but I had already decided I was going to chill out as the sunburn had tired me out and it costs a lot to go out and party. I spent the next few hours on the internet writing my blog before going to bed around 12AM.

Beach Day!!

    Today I woke up incredibly early again, around 8AM!! I don't know I am doing it, but I am! So today I did not really have a plan. Yesterday we had spent a whole day at Pearl Harbour, so having more of a chill day sounded like a cool idea. I went on the PC, had a few slices of strawberry toast and weetabix for breakfast, and then went out with Jared to do some looking around at 09:30AM.

Hawaii!!

    Jared needed a hat and a shirt, so we went searching for one, or rather he did!!! It was nice to get out early and have a look around. The first shop we went to there were some nice local girls, who were working there, so I got chatting to one of them. She said she was going to 'The Shack' tonight, so we may well go there later. During this Jared chose this red Hawaiian top and then off we went. We then checked out a few places, before Jared went to a hat place to buy a hat!! I went back to the hostel as I was freaking out that I had lost my wallet!!!

Bus tram

   In any case, I went back to my room, checked out the locker and found it straight away!! Thank god for that!! I then had a nice shower before going on my PC to speak to my lovely Pao. Not long after, I was getting hungry so I ate a big sandwich with ham, cheese and some lettuce. It was the same as yesterday, but it was still nice. I also went to get some food from the Food Pantry; I bought some mince, sauce and pasta. It only cost me $15 or so (approx £9.20). By this time, it was around 2PM.

Me outside with the guys

  A bit later, me, Jared and Kevin decided to go to the beach for the few hours. I got some goggles from the reception as I was wearing contact lenses so I knew it would sting if I went into the salty water. I also changed into my funky yellow swimming shorts It was really good fun. The water was a bit cold at first but you soon feel  your body warming up. So we chilled out there for a few hours, before going back to the hostel. I also spoke Japanese to this guy, which was cool. I found out the world for sea is うみ (umi). It would have been clearer but there is construction work going on, so the water would have been cleaner.

Me playing pool!!

   The rest of the time I spent speaking to my lovely angel, Pao. She is a lovely girl, and I care for a her a lot. Hey angel!!! Everyone else was socialising, but I was speaking with my angel. After 8PM I decided to join the others talk to them. I chilled out for a while before we headed out. We went to the Shack but it was $10 entry, and it was not busy, so we did not bother. We then found this other pub where we played pool for a few hours. We spoke to the waitresses there, and Ewen actually got the Facebook address of one of them, so he might get lucky there!!! I decided to head back around 12AM as I was getting pretty tired.

Pearl Harbour!!!!

    Today me and Jared were due to leave our hostel to be picked up by Reliable Shuttle at 07:20AM. Hehe. It was really funny, as Jared did not want to wake up!!! He got back around 1AM last night and stumbled side-to-side and up the ladder to his bed!! He had to wake up 5 hour later, whilst I already had a long nap. He was like a zombie when he got up which was pretty hilarious!! I quickly had a shower and then had some weetabix for breakfast. Wow, I missed good old cooked weetabix with sugar on top!!! I have not had that for such a long time!

Japanese torpedo

    We left shortly after 07:20AM, and the whole journey to Pearl Harbour took around 30 minutes or so. It is pretty cool as the museum is free to enter and so is the Arizona Memorial. We got our tickets around 08:10AM after I had to hand in my backpack over as we were not allowed to take in baggage. It cost me $3 (£1.85), but at least it was not more!!! We were due to get on the boat that would take us to the memorial around 9AM after we had watched the clip about the attack on Pearl Harbour. Before that, we checked out the 'little museums' that focused on Japan and America before 7th Dec and the actual attack itself.

Our 'free' pass to the USS Arizona Memorial

    So we watched the video, which spoke about the attack, why it happened and the aftermath. It was quite informative, and I was even moved by it, considering what the Hawaiian people must have gone through that day.

    The attack happened in the early hours of December 7th 1941. Several months before, the Americans had put on an embargo on Japan in regards to natural resources, such as oil. The Japanese needed these types of resources, especially as they wanted an empire of their own; their country could only provide a limited amount. The Japanese knew if they knocked at the US Navy at Hawaii, they would be left pretty much undeterred in the South-East Asia, and would be able to conquer the lands north of Australia, which was full of natural resources.

Me at the USS Arizona Memorial

    The Japanese Navy left Japan on the 26th November, and sat sail towards Hawaii. They used the lesser-known shipping lanes in order to cover their tracks, and of course sailed in radio silence. The Americans did not believe an attack from above would occur, so they were far less prepared. They were more concerned that their planes and ships would be sabotaged, so they had their planes lined up side to side with no ammunition in them. However, this proved disastrous when the Japanese attacked.

Hi Jared!! How are you feeling?!

   Yamamoto, the commander-in-chief of the Japanese Navy, believed the best way to attack the Americans with surprise was to use their aircraft carriers. War was changing; now longer were battleships king at sea, but air superiority. The Japanese attacked in two waves; the first starting at 7AM, and the next an hour or so later. They focused on attacking the airfields and the navy base, especially where the big battleships were stationed, such as the USS Arizona. The Japanese had developed torpedoes designed specifically to damage the American ships in shallow water. The planes needed to swoop down to around 30 feet above water to drop their bombs into it, which would sink around to 30 feet below sea level before coming back up to level out around 10 feet. The Japanese sunk many ships with great accuracy using this technique.

Torpedo

    The Americans had no idea they were coming; they even believed that when their radar picked up some planes, it was actually their own and not the Japanese. Even more so, a few hours before the Japanese had attacked American 'defensive waters' using their two man submarines, and the Americans still believed an assault would occur. Only when it was too late had the Americans realised the scale of it all.

USS Arizona Memorial

     By 10AM, the second wave had finished and the attack was over. The Americans had only been able to scramble a few of their fighters in time, and they did manage to shoot a few of the Japanese planes down, but the Japanese had accomplished a massive victory. A huge percentage of the American navy had been put out of action, and they lost several of their best ships, including the Arizona and the Oklahoma. Whilst in comparison, the Japanese had lost 30 or so planes out of the 300 or so they had launched. It was a defeat that actually awoken the fighting spirit of the Americans, in contrast to what the Japanese had believed would happen, a surrender. This spirit helped the Americans to eventually turn the tide at the Battle of Midway half a year or so later.



    In any case, we got on the ferry after the video and ten minutes after that, we had arrived at the USS Arizona Memorial. It is built on top of the water, and is not connected to the battleship in any way whatsoever. It is quite moving to know around 1200 soldiers are entombed in there, and they could do nothing about the pre-emptive strike upon their vessel. The ship is rusting away, but you actually still see oil coming from it. It is estimated that there is still around 500000 gallons were of oil held inside the ship!! I wonder if it could salvaged in any way.

USS Arizona

    I also spoke to a man there who was at the attack nearly 71 years ago. He was only a little boy, aged 11. He had seen the Japanese attack on that morning, and he even said he ran up to the caves as he was not sure if they were going to invade or not. It was frightening experience he said, and afterwards everything changed as a result of martial law being enforced. I wish I was able to spend more time talking to him, as I had lots of questions to ask. However, we had to get back on the ferry. By 10AM, we were back at the Visitor Center.

The rustic remains of the USS Arizona

     When we got off, I wanted to go and check out the USS Missouri, but Jared was still feeling the effects of the binge he went on last night!!! So I decided to go by myself. It cost $22 (£13.60) for the admission to the Missouri; the round-trip shuttle bus that goes there and the free guided tour. I was quite impressed by the size of it, and to know that the 16 inch turrets fired projectiles over 500mph into the sky to an altitude of 30 thousand feet before coming back down to hit the enemy with radar-like precision. The guided tour was very informative and lasted around 35 minutes or so. I learnt that the Missouri had gained the highest honour any ship could obtain. It was only decommissioned after the Persian War in the 90s after serving its country for 50 years. And of course, it serves as a reminder of when the Japanese surrendered in September 1945. This is the main reason the Missouri is stationed at Pearl Harbour, as the harbour signifies the start at the war, and the Missouri the end of it.

Anti-aircraft guns

     I went downside into the lower decks of this massive warship. It was quite impressive to be inside a ship where thousands of men had spent their lives protecting their nation at sea. It was interesting to note that President Truman, whose daughter Christianised the ship in the 40s, used to eat food with the common soldiers on some occasions. I also saw the bunks were the soldiers slept, the canteen, a post office where post was organsied, the kitchen, the US Marines' offices, and some other cool stuff. I spent 20 minutes or so wandering the ship, before going up to the upper deck to check out the tomahawk missiles.

16 inch cannons!!!

   I got the shuttle back as I needed to catch the 12:45PM bus to the hostel. I looked everywhere for Jared, but I guessed he must have gotten an earlier bus as he looked pretty out of it. I got chatting to an author of the Pearl Harbour book, and we exchanged some interesting stories. He is a very avid reader in history, and I even told him about Colchester being the oldest Roman town, which he had no idea about!!! I had also bought some souvenirs including myself with USS Missouri which set me back $35 (£21.65), but it is definitely worth it!!!

US Marines' Office

     So I left on the shuttle at 12:45PM and it took an hour or so to get back to my hostel, as we picked up quite a few people. When I got back, I went straight back to the room and saw Jared trying to sleep, so I was relieved as I thought he got left behind!!! He was still trying to recover from his morning hangover. I grabbed my PC to upload photos and to start on my blog. I also made a sandwich: ham, sandwich, lettuce, but I did not have any sauces to add to it.

Me and the guys (Left to right: Jared, Me, John, Inowan)

I chilled out for a while, speaking to Pao and sorting out my blog. Hi angel!!! It was not until 7PM that I went out with the lads. I met this other guy from Australia, Inowan, and this dude from USA, John. Inowan is much more chilled out that John, who is a bit more full on and seems to have quite an imposing personality.

Me at Hard Rock.

    We went to this local restaurant, Hard Rock, which is located a few blocks away. The bottom part of is where the shop is, and on the top floor, there is the main restaurant and the bar to the side. We went straight to eat; I ordered the BBQ sandwich and chips. It was definitely tastier and healthier than the other burger I had eaten. John had some left over dessert so I had some of that too!!! The total cost with tips and taxes came to $20 (£12.35), so it was a bit expensive. Afterwards, I went to an ABC to buy a lei, toothbrush, mouthwash and some toothpaste. I was back at the hostel by 09:15PM.

Hiking around Diamond Head

   Today my plan was to get up and go to check out Diamond Head, which is not far from Wakiki Beach. I woke up to an alarm sounding, and I wondered what the hell the time was; I thought it could have been 10AM, but it was actually 8:45AM!!! So early for me!!! Jared had came in late last night; I am not sure what time it was, but I think it was quite late!!!! I wondered into the lobby area and sat down to power up my PC. Breakfast is between 08:30 and 10:30AM, so there were a few people there. The hostel offers free slices of bread, so that is pretty cool.

Jared making awesome sandwiches!!

   I was there for quite a while, speaking to Pao and finishing off my blog. I had 2 slices of bread with nutella for breakfast. I was still feeling quite bloated from the American meals I had the other day, so I was determined not to eat crap again, if ever!!! I spoke to a French guy and he recommended me a few places in Canada to go such as Toronto Island in Toronto. I will be there for a few days after the 4th of May, so I have a lot of planning to do!!!

Delicious sandwich!!

   Jared stumbled in around 11AM, and was obviously feeling hungry as he wanted to go to a supermarket to get something to eat. So not long after that, we went to the local supermarket, known as Food Pantry. I had no idea of what to buy; I originally was going to go for a sandwich, but there are so expensive, around $4-5 (£2.48-£3.10), therefore I was like 'no way!'. Jared then got some other food together, like bread, weetabix, so I decided I would go half with me and share the food. We ended up getting: bread, weetabix, bananas, cheese, ham, lettuce, milk, tomatoes.

Wakiki Beach

   When we got back, Jared started preparing the food straight away. He is a really good sandwich maker, so I was a bit shocked!!! But I guess most Aussies will be like that with the barbecues that they have! He made two sandwiches, consisting of bread, ham, cheese, lettuce and tomato. I ate the first sandwich, but the tomato was making me feel a bit sick, so I ate the second one without that. I also ate a barbecue chicken and rice sushi role I had bought from the supermarket for $2 (£1.24). It was okay, but not as tasty as the sushi from Japan!! We then prepared to leave the hostel around 2PM after I had put some money onto my travellers' card.
   

It's Hawaii Baby!!

   We headed out around 2:30PM, and walked to Wakiki beach, as it leads up to Diamond Head. Before going there, I went into 'Ross' and bought two pairs of shorts for $20 (£12.40), which was great value I thought!!! Jared also booked us a bus for Pearl Harbour tomorrow morning, which is awesome. Once, we had reached Wakiki beach, it is pretty impressive I thought; the sand is fine and the sea is light blue. There is construction going on there, which deters the image a bit, but it was nice to be on a proper beach at last!!!

Diamond Head in the distance!

   The time was around 03:15PM, so we continued walking towards the mountain that sticks out in the distance, Diamond Head. I later discovered that it is called this because British sailors, probably after the time Captain Cook discovered these islands, thought there were real diamonds inside this mound, but it turns out they are just clear crystals!! I never knew the British had an influence here, but they did especially at the height of the British Empire. It can be seen from the Hawaiian flag that there is a Union Jack printed on it. If only it had become a British Colony!

The windy shores!

    We walked and walked and walked for ages!!! We came upon the lighthouse that has existed for a hundred years or so, and it is still fully functional, and can be seen from up to 18 miles out at sea!! We saw some pretty awesome waves as we continued walking, and there was a stretch of it where there were many surfers braving some big waves!! I am not a fan of surfing but it looked pretty awesome! It was quite windy, and my hair was all over the place!! We passed some very nice houses as well, which must have been worth a lot!!!



    An hour or later and we had gone around Diamond Head, and came upon some shops. We chilled out here for a bit; I bought a slush puppy and some sushi for $6 (£4.03), which I thought was quite reasonable. The sushi was not as good as that in Japan, but the salmon and the beef ones that I had, were good enough. One hour or so later around 06:30M, we had made it back to our hostel!! We could rest at last!!

Sushi and slush puppy!

   We chilled out for a bit; I went on to my PC to speak to my angel, whilst Jared went to have a shower. Jared was pretty eager to go out, and was ready not long after. I still needed to chill after I had walked a long distance, and the sun had tired me out a bit more too. I then went back to my room to rest for a bit, but ended falling a sleep for 5 hours or so!!! Lazy me :D

First day in Paradise!!

       So following on from my last post, I arrived in Hawaii around 10:00AM; the same day I had left Japan, and 12 hours earlier too! It was really cool to be finally in the United States of America. It did not take me long before I got my luggage, and I was on my way through the exit. There was even a cute dog sniffing around, trying to find if there was anything that should not be in the country. Once I went through the departure lounge, I saw a Hawaiian guy in a yellow jacket, who represents Roberts Shuttle Bus. I thought I could give the guy some dollars and be on my way, but I had to phone up and book my place. I booked a return, and not long after I was heading out. Also, it is really irritating as it seems every ATM you have to pay between $2-3 (£1.24-£1.86).

At last, I am here!!

     I noticed that the Hawaiian guys I met have a really good vibe, even though I know they are working, it is a lot different to the Japanese style of introductions. It is much more relaxed, and it seems they are like your best friend already!! I am sure there are exceptions to this, as always. Anyways, It took me 20-30 minutes or so to get to Wakiki. The area is full of tourists, many tourists. In fact, there are a lot of Japanese couples here. I am sure they want to escape the stressing life of Japan and come to chilled-out Hawaii!!

Honolulu Airport

    So the hostel I am staying at is called Hawaiian Seaside Hostel which is on Seaside Avenue, and so not far from the beach!! It is only about £20 a night so it is relatively cheap. I met Mark, one of the guy who works there, and he helped me to settle in, which was cool. He gave me my sheets, and showed me to my room, which is quite spacious. I decided to buy a new lock as my old one is already malfunctioning.

Paradise!

    There is also a guy from Australia, Jared, who checked in at the same time from me. He is staying for about a week so that is pretty cool as I am too. After settling in, we went out to check out the local area. We went to the beach, and it was so beautiful to see blue clear waters and gold sands. Finally I had arrived in paradise!!! We then went to get something to eat at this burger bar; I ate a BBQ chicken burger, whilst Jarad had the cheese one. It is so different to the Asian food that I had eaten; it is does not taste as fresh as the Asian food like rice, okonomiyaki and the noodles. I can see how Americans get so fat so quickly!!! The food gave me wind for the rest of the day.

Me with Jared

    We then headed to the shop as I needed some flip-flops and some sunglasses. We went to this shop known as 'Ross', which is a bit like Matalans in the UK. Everything was quite cheap so I went up to the Men's floor, and got my sunglasses and flip-flops for about $18 (£11.50). We then headed back to the hostel to chill out. The time was around 4PM.

Me and Jared at Yardhouse!

      Jared woke up from his nap around 6PM so we decided to head out to one of the local bars not long after. It was pretty cool place, but it was completely dead when we got there. The drinks were about $3 (£1.85) so it was not too bad. We chatted for a while and Jarad told me a lot about himself - he even said he has been working since he was 11!!! Wow, it makes me look incredibly lazy!



      In any case, after a few hours we headed to another place, called Yard House. It was pretty much full, so we decided to head in. It was pretty cool; it had two sections, the bar and restaurant part. We sat down at table to order some drinks, then moved to the bar when it became free. It seems at every bar you need to show a form of identification, which gets a bit irritating, but I guess a lot of kids try and be 21!!! I got a lemonade for $3.75 (£2.32), but they kept refilling it when it got low, so that was pretty awesome!! We ate some nachos for $11 (£6.81); I did not need to eat a big meal as the BBQ burger filled me up!!! I headed back to the hostel when I started feeling really tired around 10PM, whilst Jared continuing talking to a local guy.

Jared loving his 'yard glass'

     I bought a McDonald's chocolate milkshake for $4 (£2.48) but they actually have the 'big' size so that was pretty cool!! I enjoyed out whilst walking back to the hostel. I then chilled out for an hour or so on my PC, before going to my room as I could feel myself falling asleep!