Hawaii by Land & Sea – POA Cruise 5-14-2011

[Waihekean]

Thanks for your review and pictures. I am coming along. Great that you could do the sight seeing so close after your operation.:cool:

[lv2bgoofy]

Wonderful wonderful wonderful review.....and some good information concerning mobility issues....I will be traveling with someone with mobility issues so I'm glad that you are addressing those. Sounds like you had a wonderful day at Pearl Harbor.....loving your photos as well....

 

Don't know what I will do until Monday at this point but I guess I will just have to wait...have a great weekend.:)

[Sunny AZ Girl]

"Next installment on Monday. Have a great weekend!"

 

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO......you have us in the palm of your hands with your great review and now we have to wait for MONDAY!

 

sigh...this is gonna be a long weekend

Sorry. I have to work all weekend. 12 hour days an be a killer, so I know I will just come home both days and crash!

 

Thanks for your review and pictures. I am coming along. Great that you could do the sight seeing so close after your operation.:cool:

Thank you. I am glad you are enjoying it so far.:)

 

Wonderful wonderful wonderful review.....and some good information concerning mobility issues....I will be traveling with someone with mobility issues so I'm glad that you are addressing those. Sounds like you had a wonderful day at Pearl Harbor.....loving your photos as well....

 

Don't know what I will do until Monday at this point but I guess I will just have to wait...have a great weekend.:)

I know that mobility has not been addressed too often. I am usually not this handicapped. Like I said, I do work 12 hours a day on my feet in a hospital. Perhaps I was allowed to go through the unexpected surgery so I could see things from a different perspective on this trip?

[Bucky3]

Mahalo for your wonderful review of our very favorite place. We appreciated the detail of your visit to Pearl Harbor. I'm sure many who read this will be truly helped by your comments for those who are mobility impaired. Looking forward to more!! Aloha!

[Irishnana]

AWESOME review and stunningly beautiful photographs Ms Ginny :)

 

Anxiously awaiting Monday's installment...echo it's going to be a l-o-n-g weekend, yet know our wait will be worth it.

 

Hawaii is on my list of places to see, someday hopefully. Glad your home and thank YOU for this fantastic review ;)

[Arizona Cruz Chic]

Awesome review and pictures Ginny!

Can't wait for the rest of your review, don't know how you found the time to do this much!!!

 

***

[smrtypnts]

Loving your review!! I love when people can tell a story as opposed to simply relaying details and speaking at someone, which is (I'm sure) how my review will be when my turn arrives. Keep it coming (when you have time).

[kapoho2]

You had me with the chihuahua picture Ginny! We have a four-pounder that looks just like the one on the left. Too cute and looking so Hawaiian!

 

Loving your review and I think your limited mobility perspective is so welcome and needed on these boards. Glad the unexpected surgery did not keep you away from the islands!

[ohsoblessed]

Ginny,

 

Thanks so much for adding information about mobility issues. I have been looking and trying to find information on this for months. You are a huge help to us.

 

Mom will be celebrating her 81st birthday on our cruise. She has had both knees replaced and had a pace maker put in this year. I am following in her steps with bad knees and will have to have them replaced as well. So as you can see, I value any information you give that might cause us problems getting around those beautiful islands.

 

Thanks,

 

Sheila

[Zimomiller]

With the link in her last post we can at least preview the pics in the webshots albums on line.

 

http://community.webshots.com/user/sunnyazgirl

[Quilting Queen]

Ginny excellent review. Can hardly wait for the next episode. I need you to write my reviews as you can really write well and convey the feeling of actually being there.

 

Norine

[Sunny AZ Girl]

Thank you all for your kind words. I worked all weekend and am pooped. I will be back at it in the morning!

[PelicanPoint]

Great review, Ginny. Looking forward to the rest of it. I'm reliving this wonderful cruise we were on. It was great meeting you.

 

Sharon

[bigtoeswim'n]

Sunny AZ Girl: Great review. We plan to be in HI in Dec 2011, so your review is helping a lot, especially the Roberts Stars and Stripes Tour info.

 

The rest of my pictures from our Pearl harbor Day are available here. The best way to view them is via the slideshow option. Simply select "slideshow" from the box on the top right. I noticed Webshots royally mixed up my pictures in this album. I will try to organize them later. In the meantime, I hope you are enjoying the review and pictures.

 

I clicked on the link but could not see a "slide show" button at top right. Does one have to sign in in order to have that option?

 

Hope your knees get better real soon.

[brunolvr]

Sunny AZ Girl: Great review. We plan to be in HI in Dec 2011' date=' so your review is helping a lot, especially the Roberts Stars and Stripes Tour info.

 

The rest of my pictures from our Pearl harbor Day are available here. The best way to view them is via the slideshow option. Simply select "slideshow" from the box on the top right. I noticed Webshots royally mixed up my pictures in this album. I will try to organize them later. In the meantime, I hope you are enjoying the review and pictures.

 

I clicked on the link but could not see a "slide show" button at top right. Does one have to sign in in order to have that option?

 

Hope your knees get better real soon.

 

Look under the blue banner that says "join premium now" and you'll see the slideshow option. I wasn't signed in and was able to view it.

[AZ Karaoke Girl]

I was signed in but I don't pay for the premium so that isn't necessary. If a picture pulls up, there is an icon below it that will say slideshow when you scroll over it. But you for sure do NOT need to have a premium account. I just use their free service.

[vbmom87]

Ginny,

 

So glad to hear all went well and you were able to make your trip. I am loving your review. It is very well done, both the writing and the photos. BTW, what kind of camers did you use? The photos are fantastic!!

 

Looking foward to the rest of your reviews.

[Sunny AZ Girl]

A Morning at Leisure

 

This would sadly be our last full day at Turtle Bay and we wanted to be able to enjoy it and the rest of the north shore. Even before I got sick I had arranged our itinerary so that we would have several days that were a bit more laid back, with at least the mornings with no definite schedule and this was going to be one of them. We are not morning people. If there is any time of the day we like to take it slow it is early, relaxing over a good cup of coffee and enjoying easy conversation. Bob & Cindy were going to drive up and meet us later on and we were going to explore the areas near the resort with them.

 

I still woke earlier than usual on vacation and was dressed before Steve was out of bed. While he got up I went down to the hotel grounds and took some pictures before there were too many people up and around.

 

 

 

 

I went back to the room and Steve had made some coffee with the packets of Kona coffee in our room and we enjoyed our cups on the lanai. Soon loud engine sounds were apparent directly over head and we were treated to watching military parachute drops just outside our window.

 

Bob & Cindy called about this time and announced that they had gotten up early, had breakfast and were on their way to see us. They were going to go across the island on the H3 and stop at Byodo-In Temple on the way so I figured we had a couple of hours before they arrived. We decide to head to the Palm Terrace Restaurant downstairs for breakfast. Breakfast here is good but a bit on the pricey side, but the convenience was worth it for our relaxing morning. The Grand Breakfast Buffet is $24.95 and here you can get enough food to last you all day, if our stomachs only worked that way! Instead, Steve chose the Continental buffet for $15.50, which had a large assortment of breakfast breads, fruits and cereals along with juices, milk and coffee. I wanted eggs, so opted for the Turtle Bay Specialty Omelet which consisted of brie, crabmeat, spinach hash browns and toast for $14.50. So very good! The view from our window side table was perfect.

 

Afterwards we went back to our room to read the paper on the lanai while we waited for Bob & Cindy. I also wanted to work on my pictures a bit. I will add here that throughout this trip I uploaded my pictures at the end of each day onto my computer. Not only did that save me a lot of time after our vacation but it allowed me to keep the pictures from each day separate. I took advantage of times like this to work on our pictures, fine tuning them on Picasa and eliminating duplicates and poor pictures. We were using two cameras. I have a Sony Cybershot DSC-H5 & Steve uses a Canon D10, which takes wonderful pictures, both above and below water for its size. Most all of the underwater shots you will see are from his camera.

[Sunny AZ Girl]

Turtle Bay Continued

 

 

Bob and Cindy arrived around 11:00. They were pleased to report that their room at the Aqua Palms and Spa was very nice and were happy with their choice for two nights pre-cruise. They liked the location and had found a great breakfast place almost next door. They were amazed by the Turtle Bay Resort though, and immediately we all started thinking of when we could come back as a family and spend more time here.

 

We decided to walk around the grounds for awhile before heading out for the rest of the day. The grounds are amazing. Beautiful landscaping, flowers and artwork are what impressed us first.

 

 

 

There are so many activities available here. There are miles of trails to walk, horseback riding, golf, tennis, segway tours & helicopter rides right on the grounds, and of course the beautiful beach. Here the water is mostly calm year around due to a barrier reef. It is highly recommended for snorkeling, but caution should be taken if you venture outside of the reef as the current can be strong. All beaches in Hawaii are open to the public, so anyone can spend time here. If you self park at the hotel there are signs to beach access to the right of the hotel as you face the water. Parking is $5 unless you are a guest (then self parking is free) or you can have your parking ticket validated if you choose to eat at any of the hotel restaurants. Bring your own shade, or umbrellas and loungers are available for resort guests.

 

We loved the beautiful Wedding Chapel overlooking the ocean. It almost made me want to get married all over again!

 

The Ocean Front Massage hut was very inviting.

 

I was surprised that after our big breakfast I was getting hungry again and Bob & Cindy were still adjusting to the time change, so they had a very early breakfast. We had big plans for lunch so it was time to head out and explore the North Shore.

[Sunny AZ Girl]

The North Shore

 

The North Shore of Oahu is a different world from the hustle and bustle of Waikiki. Most famous for the Polynesian Cultural Center and the huge waves that dominate areas like the Bonsai Pipeline, attracting expert surfers all winter long it is transformed into a sleepy stretch of paradise once the giant waves give way to a calmer surf in the late spring and summer months. At this time families play along the quiet beaches and novice surfers practice their skills with the friendlier waves that often come up in the afternoon.

 

We had decided, due to time constraints and not wanting to wear ourselves out on this trip, to forego the Polynesian Cultural Center. Our plans for the day were to have lunch at one of the famous shrimp trucks that dotted the North Shore and then head west along the 83, stopping at various beaches, visiting the Waimea Valley Botanical Center and ending the day in Haleiwa for dinner. One thing I had learned from previous travels was to build flexibility into our schedule. Time & desires would not always allow us to do everything as planned. If you want to make sure you can do it all, then schedule an organized tour. The tour guide will keep you on track and make sure you hit all the highlights. That is not always a bad thing to do and we do schedule organized tours at times. This was not one of those days, though. We wanted to take our time and just do what we felt at the moment.

 

We left Turtle Bay Resort and turned left, toward the town of Kahuku, which is home to a large aquaculture area where the shrimp are farmed in retention ponds visible from the highway. Here the majority of the North Shore Shrimp Trucks are found, although there are several others located along the 83, mostly near Haleiwa. We chose to go to Giovanni’s, one of the better known and original shrimp trucks. This truck is covered with scribbles from the thousands of visitors that eaten there. Other vendors in the parking lot included local artists and a trailer selling large chunks of fresh pineapple.

 

After enjoying a very messy, but heavenly lunch of garlic shrimp (covered in olive oil and lots of garlic), rice and fresh pineapple we headed back past Turtle Bay to the North Shore Beaches.

 

Our first stop was Sunset Beach. What a beautiful beach this is! It is a long stretch of pure white sand with calm waves (at this time of year) inviting families with young children to play along the edge, young beautiful bodies sunning on the sand and older people just enjoying the inviting atmosphere. Despite the diversity of the beachgoers it was not at all crowded and extremely clean. We lingered a while and tried to get the perfect beach picture for those Christmas Postcards.

 

 

 

The sand here is deep and there is a bit of a sandy incline to reach the water. However, it was not a difficult descent to the water’s edge, even for me. This is a beach where you need to bring your own shade, unless you really like to bake since there are no trees near the water. There were no vendors renting chairs and umbrellas. We started to get too warm and we didn’t want to take the time to actually get wet so we headed up the slope. Here I ran into some difficulty. It was a real workout to climb up the hill in the sand. Cindy & Steve both gave me a hand and with a few rest stops I made it. My cane would have been useless in the sand and even a beach wheelchair would have difficulty here. I noticed there were a few elderly people sitting in chairs under the trees near the top of the hill, enjoying the view. Perhaps they were waiting in the shade for family members who were playing in the surf? It would not be an unpleasant way to spend a few hours.

 

From Sunset Beach we headed down the road to Shark’s Cove. At this time of year Shark’s Cove is a rocky area filled with tide pools, but in the winter months this part of the shore is completely covered by water and pounded by the huge waves that make the North Shore a surfer’s paradise. This is not a sandy beach, but an area covered by jagged lava rocks and a summer snorkeler’s haven. I could tell Bob was a bit envious of the scuba divers preparing to enter the water here. Many people were snorkeling in the larger tide pools and the divers were heading to the outside of the reef area. There was a grocery store across the street from Shark’s Cove and so Bob & Steve went for a water & snack run while Cindy & I enjoyed the view under the trees. When Bob and Steve returned the three of them went down into the rocky cove area to explore further. After they disappeared from sight I sat under the trees and relaxed. I was afraid of falling onto the rocks with the uneven footing and injuring my incision area since it was still partially open. As it was Steve did fall and had a nice abrasion as an extra souvenir. But he still claimed it was worth the scrape for the beauty of the tide pool area.

 

 

Our mission was to continue on. We all wanted to visit Waimea Valley and swim under the waterfall!

[Sunny AZ Girl]

Waimea Valley & Our Relaxing Evening

 

Waimea Valley was next on our list. This Botanical Garden consists of 150 acres of tropical and subtropical plants. This is a sacred area to the native Hawaiian people and the name means “Valley of the Priests”. A paved path leads through the gardens to a natural waterfall where you can swim under the watchful eyes of a lifeguard. Life preservers and floatation noodles are provided for those who need them, and a changing room is available.

 

Upon arriving we paid the admission ($13 for adults, $6 for children and seniors over 60). We wanted to go to the waterfall, but the ¾ of a mile walk from the entrance to the falls was a bit daunting for me. I knew I would not be able to do that walk even with a cane. I believe the path is wheelchair accessible. We learned there was a shuttle to the falls available for $7, so we hopped on that. The shuttle was a golf cart and did not stop for photo taking. That was a bit disappointing as the natural fauna was beautiful. Once we were at the falls I was able to get some nice pictures, but would have loved to be able to snap my camera along that path!

 

Once at the falls Steve, Bob and Cindy decide to go for the swim under the falls. I stayed behind and was the “official photographer”. The area was lovely. Steve discovered that the current was less to the right of the falls and was able to get up to them that way. Bob & Cindy made it to both sides.

 

 

Steve and I took the shuttle back to the Visitor Center while Bob & Cindy walked to be able to take advantage of some of the previously missed photo opportunities. A peacock was waiting for us and we spent some time trying to coax him into showing his full regalia to no avail.

 

Our visit to Waimea Valley took us longer than anticipated and it was close to 5 PM by the time we left. Our next plan was to visit the town of Haleiwa and have dinner at one of the less expensive casual restaurants there. However, we decide to abandon that idea and return to Turtle Bay. Our morning tour of the facilities had revealed a pool and beachside grill which would feature evening entertainment until after sundown, so we changed plans and headed back to Turtle Bay.

 

After a quick stop in our room we headed down to the pool area where we were able to get a table in view of the shore. We were hoping tonight would be our perfect sunset picture. Up until today it had been overcast in the evening, but tonight held promise of being spectacular. Dinner service was on the slow side, but we were not in a hurry and the entertainers were enjoyable. They were also anticipating a perfect sunset and kept giving us a “sunset countdown”, reminding us to watch for the “green flash” that is sometimes seen over the ocean as the sun finally dips below the horizon. Dinner consisted of grilled chicken sandwiches or hamburgers with chips or fries. I had my first Lava Flow of the week. As sunset approached we were able to get some nice pictures, but just before the sun reached the point we were all anticipating the clouds, which had been slowing moving in, spoiled our chance for a perfect sunset. We would have to try again another day.

 

Despite the missed sunset we felt as if this day had risen to our expectations for a relaxed end to the first part of our vacation. Tomorrow we will be leaving Turtle Bay as we head back to Honolulu and board the Pride of America.

[Sunny AZ Girl]

The rest of our pictures from Day 3 - The North Shore can be found here. To view the slideshow click on the link to the right of the album in the grey box or click on the first picture in the album and the grey box will be to the right of that.

 

Embarkment Day - Pride of America will be on Wednesday. Have a great Memorial Day!

[AZ Karaoke Girl]

Amazing pictures Ginny. I would not have been disappointed with that last shot of the sunset. Stunning is all that comes to mind. You could very easily sell that photo.

[sue402001]

Great review Ginny! I'm reliving my trip through yours.

I love your pictures and your way with words. I can't

wait to read more.

 

Mahalo!

[lv2bgoofy]

What a fabulous day....and I loved the sunset photos....you gave me a few more things to put on my "do to list" ...thanks for the great review....