Hawaii, day one

I'm back from Hawaii and settled in at home.  Next week will actually be a full week of work at work (well, maybe Friday will be remote).  Bizarre!  There is plenty to catch up on, and I thought I would take Hawaii day by day since there are many photos, and a decent amount of narrative.  Ready?  Let's go!

Hawaii, day one, is really the tale of getting there.  And the tale is not an arduous one, I promise.  Heck, I didn't even have to get up early for my flight!  I got the airport late morning and parked in the lounge to do a little bit of work there. 

The flight was scheduled for about 1:00 in the afternoon, and I was in business class on the way there

(cute little amenities kit!). 

I got on the plane, had lunch in the air,

dozed a bunch, watched some things on my iPad (The Gentlemen on Netflix, a few episodes, funny stuff), and read a little as well (Underland by Robert McFarlane).  The flight took us over the Channel Islands on the continent side of things,

and then after a long while, the Big Island came into view. 

I was happy to have the window seat!  We flew past Honolulu and approached the airport from the west, coming in over the suburban communities there.

The trip was scheduled for a work matter that I'll get to in a later post.  I took advantage of that to enjoy a few days in Honolulu and invite Marie to join me.  She wouldn't arrive until much later that evening, though, so I had a handful of hours to myself.  I booked us a suite at the same hotel where I was told to stay for the work, and the suite proved to be a nice one.  It was roomy - I gave Marie the bedroom

and took the pull-out sofa for myself

- and the view of Manoa and the convention center and the canal and even a glimpse of the water was welcome. 

Yes, you did have to crane your neck a little for that water view,

but not badly so, especially out on the balcony.

I got myself unpacked, and then it was to the mall.  Oh yes.  We were staying at the Ala Moana Hotel, and that meant we were right at the one end of the Ala Moana Shopping Center.  Now, I'm NOT a mall person, generally speaking, but Ala Moana is really something else.  Super high-end designer stores, inexpensive souvenir shops.  Multiple department stores.  Groceries.  It's a big complex, and just going end to end helps the step count.  Marie and I would visit it several times, but on that first day last Wednesday, I had one thing in mind:  musubi.

I think it's funny that so many people disparage Spam.  Yes, it's processed, full of fat, sodium, and sugar.  But it also uses up animal parts, and I appreciate that.  Besides, since when do we not like fat, sodium, or sugar?  The people who make a fuss to me when I post about Spam are the true food snobs, a label that has been leveled at me many more times than I find amusing.  But no, there I am, eating as much Spam as possible on the trip, starting with that delicious treat.  I picked it up at Foodland along with some snacks, water, and wine for the room, and I didn't really eat much more than that for my dinner that night.

Sunset,

and then, as it does in Honolulu, the sky grew dark quickly. 

I hung out, waiting for Marie.  Not long after she arrived, it was time to crash - at this time of year, Honolulu is 3 hours behind us in SoCal, so it was past 1AM for me in reality.  Marie and I had a few days together to enjoy, and we wouldn't miss out by getting a night of sleep.

no, that's not me!

I'm rather paler than that.  But I can see how there would be confusion!

I kid.  A monk seal took up beach space yesterday, and we had to navigate around it at a defined distance to get to the water.  Another one was on the next section of beach.  Regulars, according to the beach attendant.  Cool to see it!

by the numbers

I can't remember when it was in the past 24 hours, but I had the realization that not only did I not have to blog about the past week of vacation for several more entries, it would be better not to. So many times in the past I've taken on such a task, it really becomes a chore. Three weeks later, I'm digging back into the holiday that was, and if it's that awful for me, how must it be for the three people who read this. Mercy. I'm all about mercy. Well, tonight I am.

So let's move on with a wrap up entry on the Hawai'i vacation. Conrad and I have had a relaxing (if breezy) dinner of ribs out on the balcony, and we're each feeling our way through a certain melancholia. Ah well. We - like you - can always go visit the vacation photo sets (yay!) as often as we like.

So let me do a quick by the numbers entry, and barring any unusual reminiscing, move on with this blog, keeping it closer to the day that was.

0. Number of photos taken on the last two days of vacation.
1. Number of times I've been to Hawai'i this year, contrary to popular belief.
2. Islands visited: Lana'i and O'ahu.
3. New Aloha shirt acquisitions.
4. Nights on each island.
5. Books read while on vacation: Under the Ivy; Eat, Memory; Still Life; Hardcourt Confidential; A Fatal Grace. I made it a good 125 or so pages into The Disappearing Spoon as well. Thanks, TK, for the recommendations!

Other random or repeating numbers pop up in my mind (7 trips to Hawai'i now, by my count; 2 mai tai a day limit (violated once, I think); 2 dips in the ocean and 1 in a hotel pool; 9 hours in the air from Chicago to Honolulu).

In the end, it was great. I saw sights new to me (anything on Lana'i, the 'Iolani Palace in Honolulu) and familiar things (Book Ends in Kailua, Side Street Inn for dinner in Honolulu). And I wish I were there now, still vacationing, lost in a book with a glass of lightly chilled red by me and Conrad, reading, nearby.

[insert sigh]

One day.... One day....

mai tais: ratings

I have learned from Conrad (or, to borrow from Whitney, I learned from the best). I think I have. I have come to know what a good mai tai is.

United Airlines, this was fine for in flight. Faint praise, damnation, all I can muster.

Four Seasons at Manele Bay poolside bar, this was bland and sweet and, well, just not good. We'd try a different drink next time.

Halekulani Hotel in Honolulu, bless you. This is my gold standard, and I was content to worship at your temple these past few days.

I think my liver would now appreciate a few days of water only...

adding to the collection

Another short blog post from Honolulu. We intend to spend much of today on the beach with books and postcards and bathing suits, and it's only the graciousness of Conrad that let's me take a little time to blog first. So, a quick entry wherein I poke gentle fun of my vanity.

Aloha shirts. I love them. Colourful. Fun. How many do I have now? I've lost count. And now I have a few more. As if I could come to Hawai'i and not buy at least one. At least.

So then, a few shots of the new shirts. Ah yes, oooo and aaaaah over them and wish you had your own.





The beach beckons; further blogging can await airport time tomorrow and down time on Labour Day. Have a great long weekend everyone!

quick aloha

Away from online most of the day (hallelujah, you all say). A quick check in to say I'm still alive. Fret not - as if you were!

And I'm still in Honolulu. My burden to bear....

leaving Lana'i

Dear Lana'i (and Lodge at Koele),

We will be back. Though we head to Honolulu today (and we will have a very good time there), we will be back. Back to enjoy the tranquility of your little village,

the cool climes of the uplands, the comforts of this gorgeous lodge, the relaxation.


2012, perhaps? Look for us one day down the road.

Take care, never change (well, maybe a little but only a little),
Peter (and Conrad)

sunglasses, please

It's the beach portion of the vacation, I'm shirtless, it happens.



Just please, don't say I didn't warn you to put on sunglasses. The glare can be fierce, I know.

chestnuts needed, marshmallows in a pinch

Almost 2 AM in Chicago as I write this but not quite 9:00 here on Lana'i. I'm tired. I'll post this sometime in the AM (Hawai'i time) and get my well-fed self to bed. A good evening of sitting on the lanai with three types of poke from the local poke place plus a delicious bottle of Heron's Flight 2005 Sangiovese. Well worth carting from the mainland over!

Conrad and I just took a short stroll on the grounds and in the main lodge, and two very un-Hawaiian (well, stereotype Hawaiian things struck us):

1. it's cool out. As in temperature. I have on jeans and a long-sleeve t-shirt over another t-shirt, and I wouldn't mind a sweater or my favourite Gap hoodie.
2. the fireplaces in the main lodge are oh-so-inviting.





We sat by one of the large fireplaces (there are two) and luxuriated in the warmth. I suppose it's not very green of me to admit that I really like the wood smoke smell we can catch sometimes outside. Ah well. At this elevation, high above the coast (1700 feet up), we're relishing the cooler temperatures, and if that means the incongruous (for Hawai'i, we think) notion of a big fireplace, so be it. This is still the most gorgeous hotel we've ever stayed in and a superb idea for a getaway.

where in the world are Peter and Conrad?

I can't even apologize for sporadic blogging anymore since that's become the norm rather than the exception. As TK has written to me about unrelated things: deal with it.

In any case, we have a great excuse right now: vacation. Yes, friends (all three of you reading this), we are out of town and enjoying another locale. Hawai'i, the 50th state. Only in this case, we're in a curiously very Hawaiian and yet un-Hawaiian destination.

Lana'i.



Small island, not many people. Two big resorts (Four Seasons - wow) dominate the island. There is beach. The place used to be rampant with pineapple.

And yet our upcountry lodge makes us feel as though we're vacationing in Colorado or somewhere vaguely Rockies-ish. Not much to do here, and we love it. Oh yes, we're already thinking of how/when we can return.

More detail in days ahead, assuredly. I'm trying hard NOT to spend my entire vacation online. But still, I can't resist chiming in once in a while. And when I'm silent this week, well, just be assured that all is very very well indeed!

beaches

Many people often joke about my deathly pallor. Heck, I often joke about how ghostly white I am:

• Casper the Friendly Ghost white
• Lightbulb white
• Fishbelly white (my favourite)
• Insert your own description here

And it's all true. I'm pale as can be. Moreover, it really does take some effort to stay that white. Vacations to the wet, cloudy cool climes of BC, or to Sweden or other places where sunshine is a suggestion rather than a frequent reality.

It may then come as a shock to you three or four out there that read this to learn that I rather like going to the beach. I love the views, I love walking in the water, I love swimming given warm enough temperatures. I don't love the potential for Portuguese man-of-war, I admit, however.

Our first full day on Oahu we were keen to get in a drive, stop at our favourite bookstore in Kailua, make it to the shrimp trucks for lunch, and otherwise see what we would see. So it was that we stopped at a small beach on the windward side of the island and headed to the water to feel it on our toes. And ankles. And calves. And soaking the bottoms of our shorts. A cloudy day at that point, but the water was comfortable, and we were glad to splash that little bit.









Come the Monday, our plan for the morning was real beach time. Back to Kailua, this time to Kailua Beach Park. We'd once had lunch there and always wanted to come back and relax on the beach. Slathered in sunscreen, we lay on our mats and towels for a couple of hours, defying the jellyfish warnings and dashing into the sea for some bobbing around. The sun was bright that day, good and warm, and just to make everything perfect, a couple of green sea turtles kept showing up just offshore from us.