Aloha! 28th Oct

Ten days into my Hawaiian leg and I’ve had a heavenly Aloha time in every possible way. My first five days were spent at Waikiki, in a hostel by the beach where my joie de vivre was replenished after its brief encounter with the Dementor’s Kiss of Las Vegas (if you’re not sure what the Dementor’s Kiss is, it’s from Harry Potter, look it up!). During the day I wandered through the countless amazing shops, weaved my way through swarms of Japanese tourists, chatted to other fellow travellers at my hostel, swam in the Pacific and sunbathed on the beach, trying my best not to cover myself and my book in too much sand and suncream as I wallowed about on my beach towel.

A Gay Pride Parade took place in Waikiki whilst I was there. It was a lot of colourful fun, and what an atmosphere! 

My evenings were spent in the convivial company of my fellow hostel residents, drinking beer, chatting about everything and anything and watching the incredible sunsets. I didn’t do as much sightseeing as I should have done whilst on Oahu; the beach and the desire to relax rather got in the way, as did the pull of the good company at my hostel. I did, however, visit Pearl Harbour which was very interesting; seeing first-hand the sheer scale of the destruction caused by the Japanese and hearing about the meticulous military precision and planning involved. Interestingly enough, there were probably more Japanese tourists than American tourists at the memorial. I wonder what the Japanese think when they see it all.

The sun shone throughout my stay in Waikiki, until the day I was due to fly to my next island stop, Maui, whereupon it clouded over and began to rain. Earnestly. The little propeller powered plane that was my carriage took off and climbed steeply into the thick cotton wool clouds whereupon it started to jump and bump and wiggle and jiggle, like a ping-pong ball dancing above a blowing hair dryer. It was the worst flight I have ever experienced and I have never been so glad to be back on the ground, alive and in one piece.

That was not the end of the stormy weather though, oh no! That night there was an almighty lightning storm which resulted in the whole island losing power. This meant the next morning at my hostel there was no coffee, no lights, no air conditioning to temper the heavy humidity and worst of all……no wi-fi!  By the time darkness fell we were still without power and I was thankful for my head torch so I could find my way to the toilet without mishap. The next morning the power was back and everyone exclaimed that they’d really enjoyed getting to know each other properly and they hadn’t minded one bit not having wi-fi; it is true that most of us, myself included, have our noses stuck in our devices three quarters of the time when inside a hostel.

Walking the Line at sunset on The Hana Highway, Maui

 

As my time comes to an end on Maui, or the Valley Isle, I have seen beautiful beaches, tumbling waterfalls (reminiscent of the ‘Timotei’ advert years ago), more awe-inspiring sunsets and three great big turtles resting on the shores down from our hostel. The most they did was blink an eyelid at us as we all gazed at them; they probably get fed up with being spied upon all the time. If I were a turtle I think I would.

Nexgt stop, The Big Island.