Travel Tuesday ~ Oahu Hawaii ~ The Gathering Place

This is me on Waikiki in 2001. Can you see Diamond Head in the background?
This is a photo of my sweetie at the Hilton Hawaiian Village Hotel. That place was amazing, it was made up of a series of buildings and lush tropical gardens, lava rock pools and exotic wildlife. If you look real close in the photo you can see the exotic birds in the photo (and no my sweetie is not one of the exotic birds LOL).
I just thought these little Hawaiian children were so cute. They performed for us and they did such a great job.
This was the view from the J.W. Mariott Ihlani Hotel at dusk. We went there for a luau and it was so beautiful. My sweetie and I went to Hawaii in the spring of 2001 for a travel agent conference and the company holding the conference treated us all like kings and queens. My only regret was we didn't get to see the "big island" of Hawaii and Kauai. Oh well, I guess that's an excuse to go back someday.

I couldn't do Oahu and not include Pearl Harbor. I took this photo off the internet because my camera died when we got to the monument. Yea, I was bummed but this is a must do when you go to Oahu. Most people are very quiet and respectful when they see this monument and to know that this is the final resting place for these men who gave their lives is very moving. DO NOT miss this if you ever go to Oahu.

How much fun is it to come back from the holidays and go on a trip to Hawaii? Okay so maybe we aren't really going to Hawaii today but we can dream. I loved Hawaii, just loved it. How many times have you heard me say this? LOL But honestly I have never seen anything like I have seen there, the mountains, the rainforests, the beaches. The scenery was beyond beautiful. So we are going to start this year off with Oahu which is Hawaii's chief island and is also the most populated island. "Oahu" means "the gathering place". Oahu has expanded it's beaches and they once again have sunset torch-lighting ceremonies and free hula performances at the ocean's edge. Here are a few favorite things to do in Oahu. Take a hike to Diamond Head and take in the panoramic views of Waikiki. Waikiki makes Oahu the most visited island. Oahu has more restaurants, shops and nightlife than all the other Hawaiian Islands combined, plus about 75% of Hawaii residents live here. Here are some of the best things to do on Oahu, go get a sunset cocktail at Duke's Canoe Club and then sit on the beach at the Outrigger Waikiki hotel and watch the view. Go visit Iolani Palace, which King David Kalakaua completed in 1882. Actually Hawaii has some very interesting history. Also DO NOT MISS the USS Arizona Memorial, which commemorates the men and women who died on the attack of Pearl Harbor. Don't forget about the Polynesian Cultural Center, which is on the North Shore. I never made it there but have heard it is wonderful. The Polynesian Cultural Center is a 42 acre lagoon park that is all about Polynesian culture. Also in the winter on the North shore, surfers ride the legendary blue crush (did anyone see that movie?) at Sunset Beach and the Banzi Pipeline. Once again there is not enough room in Travel Tuesday to give to this island but I hope this gives you some idea of what Oahu is all about. I really liked Oahu and Waikiki, I've heard some people compare it to Miami but I truly enjoyed my time there. Oh yea, almost forgot----for the Lost fan(who can that be?) you can go and see where they film on the island. That's worth the long plane ride there. On that note about the long plane ride, I just have to share this, being in the travel business, you get an idea that alot of people have no idea about geography and I admit sometimes I'm not up on mine either but I once had a lady who called and wanted to know about driving to Hawaii and when I told her it was a series of islands she wanted to know if they had a ferry so she could take her car--no lie, that's a true story and one I'll probably never forget. Next week we go to Maui, I loved loved it there.........LOL