Kauai - The Garden Island

On Saturday, we said farewell to Zak who flew to Victoria and we took an inter-island flight to Kauai. This island is incredibly mountainous and lush with stunning scenery both inland and on the coast. You can easily see why so many movies have been filmed here including Jurassic Park, King Kong and more recently Catching Fire.

We are staying in a villa on stilts above a deep rain forested ravine and overlooking a beautiful golf course. We have views of lush mountains, waterfalls and the crashing surf from our terrace. So far, we have explored the area visiting Hanalei town and a lighthouse on the point. We had brunch at the St. Regis and walked the beach. Today Patti, Mo and Bruce are golfing and I will be the official photographer.

Adventures on Oahu

We have spent the last few days relaxing at our beautiful condo complex at Ko'Olina and doing the usual tourist activities. We visited Pearl Harbor, hiked to see a waterfall in Waimea Valley, and attended a  luau at the Polynesian Cultural Centre. And of course, we have done a little shopping. Good times!

Aloha Patti, Mo and Zak

Patti, Mo and Zak arrived in Waikiki on Friday. We spent one evening exploring the action then headed out to our condo on Saturday morning. We are staying at a lovely new resort on the south west coast of Oahu called Ko'Olina. We have a two bedroom unit overlooking the water. It has amazing doors that open the whole width of the unit and a huge terrace. We feel like we are living outdoors. Beautiful!
On Sunday, we did the circle tour of the island, visiting the amazing beaches and sights on the east and north coasts.

Sunrise on Diamond Head

This morning we got up at 5:00am in order to climb Diamond Head at sunrise. It was worth the strenous hike and the sleep deprivation! The views of Waikiki Beach, Honolulu, mountain ranges and surrounding shoreline were stunning!

Exploring Oahu

We have spent the last four days exploring the beautiful island of Oahu and the vibrant community of Waikiki. On the trolley system, we visited Honolulu's various neighbourhoods and CBD. We saw where Obama was born and the homes of many celebrities.
 On Wednesday, we did a circle tour of the island visiting many famous sights such as the Dole plantation, the north shore surfing breaks, a beautiful Buddhist temple, plus Turtle Bay and other locations from "Forgetting Sarah Marshall". We also visited a nature preserve used in the filming of many other movies,  most recently "Catching Fire".
Today, we went kayaking on a stunning east shore beach. The conditions were rough but it was a lot of fun! We crossed the bay to a small island protected as a bird santuary. Our guide was a lovely young Hawaiin girl named Princess. She educated us on the history, culture and mythology of the Hawaiian people.