07-13-2005, 01:54 AM
I love Hawai`i, but I´ve never been there. So tell me all about it! 
Off to Hawaii on Saturday...ideas please?
07-17-2005, 01:40 PM
OK People. I got back from Hawaii yesterday afternoon and it was totally outstanding!! I don't even know where to start.
Day 1: July 3 (Hilo, The Big Island)
We took a 1 hour plane ride over the volcanoes and the coast line. This was a very truly spectacular view of part of the island. Nearly 50,000 acres of lava covered land. The island is growing each day with more lava expanding the island. I got a little sick on the plane because it was very shaky but none the less, very awesome scenery.
Day 2: July 4 (Kahalui, Maui)
My girlfriend Jen got very sick through the night which kinda blew because we were golfing this day. She ended up resting on the ship and I rented a car and drove to the golf course. I golfed at the The Dunes of Maui Lanai and let me tell you about the scenery here. So very hilly and tons of sand traps on the course because it's built on Sand Dunes. Unfortunately the course forgot the renew their liquor license so I couldn't buy a beer. Lucky for me though, I met two other guys golfing alone so I paired up with them and they brought beer and offered me a couple brews. I got a hole in one on the par 3, 198 yard hole 17. I ended the day with a score of 96. Not band for a very tough championship course.
After golf, I drove back to the pier to check on Jen and she was feeling much better. We have 6 hours before the card had to be back so we took the road to Hana. It was 52 miles away and it took us a little over 2 hours to get there. Very scenic and awesome. We never saw the Seven Sacred Pools in Haleakala Nat'l Park though. We had just enough time to drive into Hana Bay and then turn around to come back. It was even scarier at night because it's not lit and the high beams in the car didn't work either. None the less, we made it back safely with plenty of time before the ship left for the other side of Maui.
Day 3: July 5 (Lahaina, Maui)
We cruised around to the other side of the island where we had some time to shop at some local markets. We then had an under water boat tour of the coral reef. There were two divers who would bring up some marine life so people could take pictures.
After the boat tour, we had surf lessons booked. We had a very intense instructor but he was very good at teaching us. I got up on the board the first two times I tried but after that, not more luck. I wish we had more time to practice but it was only an instructional lesson but I'm very happy we did it.
Day 4: July 6 (Nawilwili, Kauai)
This was the best day of the trip in my opinion. We had a snorkeling excurion booked and we weren't too sure how it was going to be. It was completely spectacular. We saw so much underwater life, schools of fish, eels and most excitingly, sea turtles that weighed close to 400 pounds. We took two cameras full of under water pictures that I can't wait to develop. After 2 hours of snorkleing, we had snacks on the beach. The tour bus brought us back to the ship and we then took another shuttle bus to Coconut Marketplace and did some shopping. We drove by Blue Hawaii Beach where Elvis filmed the movie Blue Hawaii back in the 60's.
Day 5 and 6: July 7,8 (At Sea)
We spent two days at Sea traveling down to Fanning Island which is part of the Republic of Kiribati. There were many activities on the ship including Bingo. Hawaii is one of two states that doesn't allow gaming so since were in International Water, the ship took advantage of 5 days of Bingo play.
Day 7: July 9 (Fanning Island, Republic of Kirabit)
Fanning Island is a very poor island about 1500 miles south of Hawaii and only 6 degrees north of the equator. It gets very hot here and the island relies on Norwegian Cruise Lines to deliver supplies to the island twice a year. The church choir greeted everyone as we got off the tender boats that brought us into the island. They had a little market open with hand made crafts for purchase; beach volley ball set us, buffet lunch and bikes for rent. We all rented bicycles and took a tour of the only real road on the island. The way of life on the Island is truely unique. They have no electricity at all and rely pretty much on hunting and fishing for food. Thanks for the hip Oilfan about the secluded beach. We did indeed find it and there was only about a hand full of people there.
Day 8 and 9: July 10, 11 (At Sea)
These were two days of relaxation on the ship drinkings lot of beer and eating a lot of food.
Day 10: July 12 (Kona, The Big Island)
On this day, my girlfriend Jen's parents were getting their vows renewed at a church close to the pier. It was their 25th anniversary on this day, hence the reason for the trip. The ceremony took about 15 minutes and then her parents had a car rented and went off on their own for the day. Jen and I shopped around for some friends and were back on the boat for lunch time and then just releaxed.
Day 11: July 13 (Honolulu, Oahu)
We dis-embarked the boat at 8am and then were picked up and taken to the Waikiki resort hotel only block from Waikiki beach. We had a van rented and drove to Diamond Head crater. We made the huge climb to the top which was 0.7 of a mile high and overlooks all of Honolulu and Waikiki Beach. Very amazing view!!! After that we drove to Pearl Harbor and visited the museum there and explored a submarine used in world war 2. We made our way back to the hotel to get ready for the Luau we were attending that night. A bus picked us up at 4:15pm and we drove for about an hour and a half to the Luau. It was like a huge picnic on the water. Their were tons of ancient Hawaiian games followed by Hawaiian music and dancing.
Day 12: July 14 (Honolulu, Oahu) Departure Day
We got up at 6:30am and drove to Hanauma Bay Beach and rented some Snorkeling Gear and sun tanned on the beach until around 10am. We got all packed and went for one last meal at the Cheesecake Factory. Jen and I did some last minute shopping and our shuttle to the airport picked us up at 2:45pm. Flight was at 6:15pm to Dallas. We had a 5 hour lay over in Dallas, left Dallas at 11:30am and were home in Toronto at 3pm.
That's all for the trip. We took close to 500 pictures!!!
Sorry Andre, I wasn't able to get a picture of your hotel or the rock you wanted. I never saw them. Thanks for the tip on the Road to Hana, it was truly one of the most spectacular drives I've ever taken.
Day 1: July 3 (Hilo, The Big Island)
We took a 1 hour plane ride over the volcanoes and the coast line. This was a very truly spectacular view of part of the island. Nearly 50,000 acres of lava covered land. The island is growing each day with more lava expanding the island. I got a little sick on the plane because it was very shaky but none the less, very awesome scenery.
Day 2: July 4 (Kahalui, Maui)
My girlfriend Jen got very sick through the night which kinda blew because we were golfing this day. She ended up resting on the ship and I rented a car and drove to the golf course. I golfed at the The Dunes of Maui Lanai and let me tell you about the scenery here. So very hilly and tons of sand traps on the course because it's built on Sand Dunes. Unfortunately the course forgot the renew their liquor license so I couldn't buy a beer. Lucky for me though, I met two other guys golfing alone so I paired up with them and they brought beer and offered me a couple brews. I got a hole in one on the par 3, 198 yard hole 17. I ended the day with a score of 96. Not band for a very tough championship course.
After golf, I drove back to the pier to check on Jen and she was feeling much better. We have 6 hours before the card had to be back so we took the road to Hana. It was 52 miles away and it took us a little over 2 hours to get there. Very scenic and awesome. We never saw the Seven Sacred Pools in Haleakala Nat'l Park though. We had just enough time to drive into Hana Bay and then turn around to come back. It was even scarier at night because it's not lit and the high beams in the car didn't work either. None the less, we made it back safely with plenty of time before the ship left for the other side of Maui.
Day 3: July 5 (Lahaina, Maui)
We cruised around to the other side of the island where we had some time to shop at some local markets. We then had an under water boat tour of the coral reef. There were two divers who would bring up some marine life so people could take pictures.
After the boat tour, we had surf lessons booked. We had a very intense instructor but he was very good at teaching us. I got up on the board the first two times I tried but after that, not more luck. I wish we had more time to practice but it was only an instructional lesson but I'm very happy we did it.
Day 4: July 6 (Nawilwili, Kauai)
This was the best day of the trip in my opinion. We had a snorkeling excurion booked and we weren't too sure how it was going to be. It was completely spectacular. We saw so much underwater life, schools of fish, eels and most excitingly, sea turtles that weighed close to 400 pounds. We took two cameras full of under water pictures that I can't wait to develop. After 2 hours of snorkleing, we had snacks on the beach. The tour bus brought us back to the ship and we then took another shuttle bus to Coconut Marketplace and did some shopping. We drove by Blue Hawaii Beach where Elvis filmed the movie Blue Hawaii back in the 60's.
Day 5 and 6: July 7,8 (At Sea)
We spent two days at Sea traveling down to Fanning Island which is part of the Republic of Kiribati. There were many activities on the ship including Bingo. Hawaii is one of two states that doesn't allow gaming so since were in International Water, the ship took advantage of 5 days of Bingo play.
Day 7: July 9 (Fanning Island, Republic of Kirabit)
Fanning Island is a very poor island about 1500 miles south of Hawaii and only 6 degrees north of the equator. It gets very hot here and the island relies on Norwegian Cruise Lines to deliver supplies to the island twice a year. The church choir greeted everyone as we got off the tender boats that brought us into the island. They had a little market open with hand made crafts for purchase; beach volley ball set us, buffet lunch and bikes for rent. We all rented bicycles and took a tour of the only real road on the island. The way of life on the Island is truely unique. They have no electricity at all and rely pretty much on hunting and fishing for food. Thanks for the hip Oilfan about the secluded beach. We did indeed find it and there was only about a hand full of people there.
Day 8 and 9: July 10, 11 (At Sea)
These were two days of relaxation on the ship drinkings lot of beer and eating a lot of food.
Day 10: July 12 (Kona, The Big Island)
On this day, my girlfriend Jen's parents were getting their vows renewed at a church close to the pier. It was their 25th anniversary on this day, hence the reason for the trip. The ceremony took about 15 minutes and then her parents had a car rented and went off on their own for the day. Jen and I shopped around for some friends and were back on the boat for lunch time and then just releaxed.
Day 11: July 13 (Honolulu, Oahu)
We dis-embarked the boat at 8am and then were picked up and taken to the Waikiki resort hotel only block from Waikiki beach. We had a van rented and drove to Diamond Head crater. We made the huge climb to the top which was 0.7 of a mile high and overlooks all of Honolulu and Waikiki Beach. Very amazing view!!! After that we drove to Pearl Harbor and visited the museum there and explored a submarine used in world war 2. We made our way back to the hotel to get ready for the Luau we were attending that night. A bus picked us up at 4:15pm and we drove for about an hour and a half to the Luau. It was like a huge picnic on the water. Their were tons of ancient Hawaiian games followed by Hawaiian music and dancing.
Day 12: July 14 (Honolulu, Oahu) Departure Day
We got up at 6:30am and drove to Hanauma Bay Beach and rented some Snorkeling Gear and sun tanned on the beach until around 10am. We got all packed and went for one last meal at the Cheesecake Factory. Jen and I did some last minute shopping and our shuttle to the airport picked us up at 2:45pm. Flight was at 6:15pm to Dallas. We had a 5 hour lay over in Dallas, left Dallas at 11:30am and were home in Toronto at 3pm.
That's all for the trip. We took close to 500 pictures!!!
Sorry Andre, I wasn't able to get a picture of your hotel or the rock you wanted. I never saw them. Thanks for the tip on the Road to Hana, it was truly one of the most spectacular drives I've ever taken.
07-17-2005, 05:54 PM
Questions, questions, questions. Where do I begin? Actually, just send me any pictures you can of Maui. No rush. I have 17 days left until I leave(13 until the wedding).
Was it your first cruise? I bet you gained some weight. Cruising are definetely the way to go.
Oh, and as for Hana, was the drive scary at all? I get scared easily...not much for heights. Also, the flight...did that seem really, really long? Did they show you a couple of movies or something? Was it in the middle of the night? I can't sleep well on a plane, so I'll be hope. I hope they're serving drinks.
Was it your first cruise? I bet you gained some weight. Cruising are definetely the way to go.
Oh, and as for Hana, was the drive scary at all? I get scared easily...not much for heights. Also, the flight...did that seem really, really long? Did they show you a couple of movies or something? Was it in the middle of the night? I can't sleep well on a plane, so I'll be hope. I hope they're serving drinks.
07-17-2005, 07:50 PM
I will send you some pictures once I scan a few. I'll try and do that tomorrow night after I'm off work.
It was my first cruise and I actually didn't gain any weight. It was all you could eat all the time for free but for some reason I still didn't gain weight.
Hana wasn't that scary but there were a lot of one lane bridges, very narrow roads and a lot of turning. It takes about 2 hours to get there with no traffic from the Kahalui pier that is. It was 50 miles and it's hard to drive any faster than 25 to 30 miles an hour because the road is so windey. It's quite high up too but well worth the view and the drive.
The flight was 3 hours to Dallas and then 8 hours to Honolulu. We saw one movie on the shorter flight and two on the second. The 8 hours seemed very long towards the end. Just think about where you're going and it'll all be good. Our flight there was during the day.
Drinks are $5 on the plane. Anything else, let me know.
It was my first cruise and I actually didn't gain any weight. It was all you could eat all the time for free but for some reason I still didn't gain weight.
Hana wasn't that scary but there were a lot of one lane bridges, very narrow roads and a lot of turning. It takes about 2 hours to get there with no traffic from the Kahalui pier that is. It was 50 miles and it's hard to drive any faster than 25 to 30 miles an hour because the road is so windey. It's quite high up too but well worth the view and the drive.
The flight was 3 hours to Dallas and then 8 hours to Honolulu. We saw one movie on the shorter flight and two on the second. The 8 hours seemed very long towards the end. Just think about where you're going and it'll all be good. Our flight there was during the day.
Drinks are $5 on the plane. Anything else, let me know.
07-19-2005, 11:39 AM
Jamie, have you been to the Hoover Dam? You know the twisty-ness of it. Driving around bends, and looking down and seeing cars that weren't as lucky as yourself? No railings, narrow road? Is Hana anything like that?
07-19-2005, 01:00 PM
I was at the Hoover Dam two weeks before I was in Hawaii. The Road to Hana is nothing like the roads near Hoover Dam. The Road to Hana is much more windy with a lot of sudden sharp bends coupled with wild scenery of the ocean and waterfalls and cliffs and tons of trees. You will also see a lot of abadonned cards on the road as well.
07-22-2005, 08:42 PM
I must re-phrase...will I shat my pants? I don't like heights too much. I don't like being on the edge of doom. Are they similar in that way?
Also, where are my pics? Don't mean to be pushy, but where are my pics? Eh? Where are my pics?
Also, where are my pics? Don't mean to be pushy, but where are my pics? Eh? Where are my pics?
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