Hawaii, day seven

You will be not be surprised, I am sure, to find that day seven of the Hawaii trip started in much the same fashion as day six.  That is to say, a walk.  And a longer one than the day before - we weren't due to meet in the lobby until a half hour later than the previous day.  The morning walk included part of the park but part of Waikiki first. 

And yes, a few photos from the stroll. 

A good start to the morning!

Oh, and I wore a new shirt with a cool manta ray pattern on it.  Love it! 

The work at the college went easily that day.  The morning was busy, but by shortly after lunch, we had finished what we needed to do and were waiting for the mid-afternoon report-out.  That event happened quickly, and before too long, we had made our return to Honolulu.

I've done five of these teams now, and this one was the one that went the smoothest and easiest and quickest.  But that also made it the one where the team members bonded the least.  We had dinner together the night before, and we had two breakfasts and two lunches at the college, but as soon as we got back to the hotel on that last day in Hawaii, the team chair was out the door of the van, thanking us each sincerely, and then heading off to his room, not to be seen again.  The assistant chair (or whatever the title may have been) beat a similar path but lingering several minutes longer.  That left the four of us to head to Pint and Jigger for drinks.

I like that bar.  I don't like the sports bar aspect to it, but I like the bar.  Good drinks!  I asked for one called Mr. Fancy Pants,

and the server was very careful to make sure that I might like it.  Like, super cautious.  And I get it.  Cynar is weird, not everyone likes mezcal.  But it was, in essence, a mezcal negroni, and I do like those, and so I liked my cocktail. 

As we went for round two, one of my colleagues decided she liked it as well.  I'm sure the bar was a little gratified that we all did!

Drinks done, we went our separate ways.  I could have invited one of them to dinner with me, but no, I decided to have a last evening to myself.  I hemmed and hawed (I get weirdly anti-social in situations like this and sometimes would prefer to have delivery food or something and just watch television I've seen before) and eventually got myself over to the Halekulani for a light bite at House Without a Key.  And it was nice.  It rained lightly on us.  My cocktail - a mai tai

- was good but not as good as what I'd had three nights earlier at Orchids.  The food was fine - some loaded fries and a mildly bland tuna tataki.  I enjoyed the singing and hula - the current Miss Hawaii was the dancer (but she sang a bit as well). 

It was all very pleasant.  But I felt guilty that I was there without Conrad and Van.  Oh, we would have loved being there together.  Sigh.

I spent the rest of my evening packing.  I was at the airport

early the next day, which meant time in the United Club there,

one of the nicer ones in my experience.  And, lo!  The one seat available for upgrade on my flight was assigned to me.  1A for the ride home to California. 

Good work done, good time spent, good food and wine enjoyed - I'd call the trip a success.

I can't wait to go back to Hawaii....

Hawaii, day six

Day six was where work got done.

Yes, despite all of my postings about fun and relaxation and good dining and hanging out with my sister, the trip to Honolulu came about because of a work trip.  You may recall (or not) posts from 2023 wherein I visited the College of Micronesia. An excellent trip, that one.  Well, this trip was for a similar purpose:  participating in a peer review team at Windward Community College.

I started the day off by myself, though.  The team was due to meet in the lobby at 7:15 before the drive over to the college (and if you've never been to Honolulu, let me tell you that there is some awful traffic there).  That meant a nice but not too-long walk,

once again over in the nearby Ala Moana Park, once again capturing a few photos of the brightening morning

before returning to the hotel

to get ready.

Six of us crammed into a small van and headed over the pass to the wetter side of the island, arriving at the college well in time.  It's a handsome campus, the old site of the state mental hospital, if I remember correctly.  That means that most of the buildings have heritage designation as do the grounds, which is great for preserving the look and feel of the place but not easy for the facilities maintenance.  Still, it was a fine setting at the foot of a mountain, lush a green all around.

We waited in the parking lot a short while until the staff liaison to the team let us know that all was ready. Every Monday, members of the college community gather in "the quad" to come together, sing, and start the week.  The song they shared was in honour of the mountain, and it served as a welcome to us.  There were introductions all around, and we were presented with leis that they had made themselves. 

That was an especial delight.  I love the tradition of leis, and I wore mine all day while there. 

The scent from them hit me every now and then, a sweet fragrance that was so very welcome.  A tiny distraction from the work, but not a bad one by any means.

The college housed our team in the library, a new building rather than a re-purposed old one.  I was a little envious to see its pristine, modern interior,

and its one wall of windows gave onto a great view of campus and on down to the ocean. 

The college has integrated a Hawaiian perspective into so much of its work, and this was reflected in many places, such as in the naming of buildings. 

That was also evident in the artwork on display in places. 

All in all, it was an honour to be there and to do the work with the team.

As the afternoon drew closer to an end, we collected and headed to the van. 

Once back at the hotel, we had time enough to refresh ourselves.  Night fell over the city,

and we headed to the restaurant at the top of the hotel to have dinner together, bond a little further, and end the day successfully.

Hawaii, day five

Day five of the Hawaii trip was the transition day.  Vacation came to an end for Marie and was practically at an end for me.  But we had the better part of a day together, and we made of it what we could, even if that meant going back into the mall yet again for some last souvenirs.  And, to be totally upfront, I went back to the mall at least one more time (I think maybe twice) after Marie left.  The power of shopping!

Anyway, the day started out with Marie insisting to herself that she join me for a morning walk on her last morning, and so we did.  Awake with the sunrise

and shortly after out the door.  Into the nearby park where we mostly walked and talked, few photos, but I couldn't resist getting a couple of this opportunistic bird,

hanging out near a man fishing.  I hope he got something out of it!

After a light Starbucks breakfast and some hanging out, it was time for us to make.  Oh yes, for while Marie was leaving, I was checking out of our spacious suite and heading to a more modest room in the hotel, to be charged to the work that I was doing in Hawaii.  16 floors down, the other tower, a more modest view,

not a suite.  It was fine for the next three nights, and - happily - the hotel was able to move me right away, which meant that Marie and I didn't need to park our luggage elsewhere for a period of time.

The afternoon brought the shopping, but before we shopped, we lunched.  After a handful of days enjoying the various culinary influences on Hawaiian cuisine, we opted for the familiar:  California Pizza Kitchen.  And yes, we did it:  we ordered a Hawaiian pizza. 

The food of our people, for it was invented in Canada.  A cosmo for me

to fortify me for shopping, and then we were off.

It's all food all the time here, so no, no afternoon photos, just on to our early dinner.  Marie wanted to eat at 5:00 so as to allow enough time for her to make it to the airport.  For her flight.  Which was at 10:45.  Ah, Marie.  I'm not sure why she was so concerned.  No matter.  We ended up at Pint and Jigger, in a corner of the hotel.  Can I be honest?  It's a sports bar.  We thought our server was a delight, but the place had multiple screens showing games of various sorts, and the vibe was entirely sports bar.  No matter.  They have a remarkable bar,

and they mix a great cocktail.  A Last Word for me

- something was off by my palate, but kudos to them on having the green chartreuse - and another drink, called the Iris,

that I very much liked.  The food wasn't gourmet, but a fried chicken sandwich and some fries hot out of the fryer and properly salted were a treat. 

Oh, and Marie

caught for you a glimpse of how the magic happens. 

Make of that shot what you will.

I got Marie off to the airport in very good time, then settled in the room for a sip of wine, a glance at documents, and an evening with Buffy.  Two days of work lay ahead, and I was grateful that we two siblings could have some time before all of that. 

Hawaii, day four

Another day in Honolulu, and - oh so sadly (insert eyeroll here) - another glorious morning to go for a walk.  So, let's start this out with a lovely little photodump from the morning stroll before I move on to telling you about how the rest of the day went.  Friends, I present to you scenes from Ala Moana Park and Kewalo Basin Park, rainbows and more!

Marie did not join me for the walk that morning, opting to walk later on instead.  And she had a proper walk planned:  from our hotel to the Outrigger Canoe Club.  It's over three miles,

I warned her, and it wouldn't be in the somewhat cooler early morning.  Nope, that was what she wanted.  Sunscreen on, a cap on my head, we set out on an expedition, my second of the day.  My step count was awesome, I tell you.

Anyway, we set out late in the morning, heading over into Waikiki, detouring a slight bit - through the Pink Palace, the Royal Hawaiian, for example. 

Down along Waikiki, though, pausing for a couple of photos

and glancing in a store or two, making it to the club with Marie a little worn down and perhaps a tad cranky.  She soldiered through it all, though.  She was also very glad for us to grab seats on the patio just out of reach of the surf washing over, order drinks

and lunch,

enjoy a second drink, then instead of going in the water (which was a little more turbulent than the day before), hopping in an Uber back to the hotel where we enjoyed the easier access to the hotel pool and patio.  After so much walking, it was a gentle, relaxing afternoon for us.

Dinner time took us back into Waikiki, to go to Orchids at The Halekulani.  It's a restaurant that Conrad and I have loved so much, we named a table at our wedding reception for it (we named all the tables for restaurants rather than numbering them).  I wanted Marie to try what I think are the best mai tais in Hawaii. 

She wasn't disappointed, I can tell you that.  We had lovely seats by the lawn, and we sipped in no great haste. 

Dinner was also good:  a kampachi sashimi for me,

the beef cheeks,

then we shared a white chocolate mousse with pineapple cake. 

The cheeks were especially good, so tender, and they went well with a bottle of a nice California Pinot noir that we splurged on.  Dinner ended with a couple of little treats,

and we caught an Uber back to the hotel.  A fine day with a lot of steps and some very good food and drink in our bellies.  I was sorry it would come to an end the next day, and that by the end of that Sunday, I would have to send Marie on her way home.