Landing in stunning Honolulu … amazing view of the Wainaie side of the island, including where we will be staying at ko olina resort with its distinctive carved out lagoons on the seashore. Beautiful!


Places to Stay in Oahu
There are many hotels in Oahu, here are a couple on the Wainaie side north west of Honolulu, including where we will be staying:
Marriott Ko-Olina
This resort shares 4 lagoons with Disney Aulani and The Four Seasons Hotel. It provides good walking/jogging trails and complimentary outdoor classes such as yoga, Pilates, Hawaiian dance, fitness classes etc. in the morning. The gym is open 24/7. There are 3 pools and many outdoor jacuzzis at the resort. There are also a few good BBQ spots for family cooking and gathering.
Within the hotel, there are 2 restaurants, such as Longhi for more upscale dining and Longboard for more casual dining serving hamburgers and casual type food. Also the Fia Fia Polynesian dinner show which is pretty good – led by a Samoan guy who attended BYU Hawaii the same time kevan and I were there and used to work at the PCC in the Samoan village (believe it or not he uses some of the same jokes!). There are also restaurants at Disney Aulani and The Four Seasons where residents can enjoy different types of food such as Japanese and Italian. There’s also Roy’s outside the resort but within walking distance for us to enjoy.
Right across the street from Disney Aulani, there is a strip mall including shops such as Tommy Bahamas, ABC Store, and Black Sheep ice cream shop which is quite popular in Hawaii, restaurants such as Monkey Pod and more.

Koolina Wedding Chapel – for those who may have wedding planning on their minds!

Double rainbow after the rain …

Sunset at the resort is spectacular!

At the end of the trail at the resort by The Four Seasons, there are usually Hawaiian monk seals and sea turtles on/by the beach! We saw a big monk seal lying there resting as if he did not have a care in the world. Clearly, not a lot of monk seal predators in the area!

Turtle Bay Hilton
Enjoying sunset at Turtle Bay Hilton Resort

Circle Island in Northshore
Storm clouds rolling in over Chinaman’s Hat and the Windward side of Oahu island … at Chinaman’s Hat – Scenic Viewpoint.

The local name for Chinaman’s hat island in Hawaiian is called little lizard (mokoli’i), the legend is that the Hawaiian goddess of fertility sent her daughter (the goddess of hula) to Kauai to retrieve Pele’s lover, she got to Oahu and it was blocked by a lizard so she had to fight the lizard, the fight went on for three days, then the lizard knew he was going to lose so he turned to run away and she grabbed his tail. The tail broke off and she threw it in the water, and that formed the island, mokoli’i.
Places to Visit
Waimea Valley and Falls
We had a fun day visiting Waimea Falls in the evening with our niece who was doing an internship at the park. To top it off, farmers market was open during our visit. We had the privilege of getting a private tour from our niece in a golf cart, cruising around with her amazing driving skills zooming in between tourists😲, wishing everyone “aloha” who was coming our way! She introduced us to all the tropical fruits including, star fruits, langsat, mangosteen (they were still very green on the trees…), Laichee etc, we went the back route and I was amazed at how beautiful the foliage was. We came across the incredible banyan tree and many other unique plants that I couldn’t remember the names. And of course we ended up at Waimea Falls and had to document that!

House of Lono, a Hawaiian god of agriculture, peace, music, fertility, was a sacred worship site served as house of healing, a place for blood sacrifice etc…


Laie Point
Enjoying sunrise …

Shark’s Cove, North Shore, Oahu
Sharks cove in north shore of Oahu, beautiful spot to spend the afternoon!

Capturing the moment … North Shore, Oahu, Hawaii

Haleiwa Beach Park
Enjoying quality time with Tina…


Northshore Beach
At sunset … 夕陽無限好。。。❤️

Waimea Beach

BYU Hawaii
A beautiful campus surrounded by mountains in the backdrop.

These birds, I believe are called cattle egrets, follow behind the lawnmower to feast as the lawnmower exposes the worms. I was amazed that the birds queued up in a straight line across the field enjoying their breakfast with no fear of getting run over…beautiful sight!

Hawaii Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
Back to where it all began, Kevan and I were married here many years ago!❤️

Polynesian Cultural Center

This is a must-visit place if you are in Hawaii. We enjoyed the boat rides, learning the cultures of the Polynesians with hands on activities, the famous coconut tree climbing performance, and best of all, the night show❣️

Punchbowl Cemetery
Punchbowl Cemetery, or more formally known as the The National Cemetery of the Pacific, is located on the punchbowl crater, to honor those who sacrificed to protect the country. It is one of the popular tourist attractions in Honolulu.

A view taken from the entrance to Punchbowl Cemetery!

Pearl Harbor National Memorial
The Pearl Harbor national Memorial is one of the most visited tourist sites in Hawaii, commemorating one of the most critical moments in US history, when Pearl Harbor was attacked by Japan, resulting in the US entry into World War II.
You can get into the Pearl Harbor visitor center without a ticket or fee and the USS Arizona Memorial can also be accessed by reservation or through the standby line. Recommendation is to make advance reservations online at www.recreation.gov as standby seats are not always available.
The various monuments and movies and memorials provide the history of December 7, 1941, when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, resulting in the deaths of over 2400 Americans, and the sinking of a dozen naval vessels. This is definitely a must see attraction to understand this piece of history, as well as the large US military presence across Oahu.

Boydo-In Temple
Boyd’s-In Temple in Oahu is a replica of a temple in Uji in Japan, to commemorate the first 100 Japanese immigrants in Hawaii. This temple is built free of nails. Before entering the temple, it is customary to ring the bell to symbolize happiness and longevity. There are koi fish in the pond to symbolize love and peace.


Nuuanu Pali LookoutThe Pali lookout is a wonderful spot to stop for a great scenic view of the Oahu Windward coast Northeast of Honolulu. It is a lookout on the pali highway, which connects Honolulu to that other side of the island. Pali means cliff in Hawaiian and the Pali Lookout is where the battle of Nuanu took place in 1795, where King Kamehameha won the battle that finally brought Oahu under his rule. That fierce battle resulted in the death of hundreds of soldiers, many of whom were forced off of the steep cliffs right at that location a wonderful place to stop and take the beauty of Oahu.

View from Nuuanu Pali lookout over windward Oahu

Kualuo Ranch

We visited Kualuo Ranch for a half-day tour. There are many options, you can go horseback, E-bike, tour bus, or backcountry ATV riding, which is what we chose. We went first thing to avoid the heat of the day, which was a good choice, we got out of there mid morning before it got too hot.
Kualoa Ranch is a 4000- acre private ranch where many Hollywood films were made, including Jumanji, Journey to the Center of the Earth, Kong:Skull Island etc, and of course the Jurassic Park series.
Apparently, only 2% of the original Jurassic movie was filmed there (where the Gallimimus roamed for about 30s) but they liked the area so much for these shoots that 80% of the subsequent Jurassic movies took place at the Ka’a’awa Valley.
The 3 mountains in the valley in the picture below are Kualoa, O’hulehule, and Manamana from left to right.

The dinosaur cages and the paddocks were actually made from wood but painted to make them look like steel and cement.


It was a fun and knowledge filled day with Kevan and Travis. The movie making piece of it was fun, but a lot of the real interesting stories were about Hawaiian culture, genealogy, and folklore, including stories about the Hawaiian gods and names of islands and mountains, and other geographic items.
Places to Eat
Banzai
Back to our favorite restaurant in Hawaii. Tina said,”I’ve been waiting to come back here for 8 months”🤔
Tuna karaage ~ Tina said,”this is the best karaage ever”!!!

Ake Aburi ~ My favs!!!

Philadelphia roll sushi

Red Dragon ~ Tina said,” too spicy, now I have one more sushi roll I know not to order again”!!!

Haleiwa Roll ~ Tina said,”this is still the best …”!!!

Crunchy Roll ~ it was so good it got destroyed before I had a chance to take a photo!!!

Finally, Tina chomped down the best Salmon nigiri ever, per Tina!!! @ Haleiwa, Hawaii

Volcano

My favorite California Rolls😋 – made with real crab meat

And the seaweed salad

Kahuku Mill
Funnel cake at a Kahuku Mill food truck!



Roy’s Beach House at Turtle Bay Hilton
Feasting on the beach at Turtle Bay 😋






Yummy Desserts



Living the aloha life❤️
Leonard’s Bakery in Honolulu
Leonard’s malasadas are the best😋. Long queue but definitely worth the wait…



Matsumoto Shave Ice in Haleiwa
We started out with shave ice at the famous Matsumoto, and then to Three Tables Beach, Banzai Pipeline, and Sunset Beach then onto BYU. We finished the day at the Polynesian Cultural Center. The night show was spectacular, great seats, great experience. A very fun-filled day!

Shrimp Truck
I prefer Romy’s shrimp truck over the ones at Kahuku Mill but over the years, the quality of the food has deteriorated unfortunately …

Noi
This is one of my favorite Thai restaurants in Oahu and it’s located at the Royal Hawaiian Center in Waikiki. Very authentic, owned by ties, Thai chefs, Thai, service staff, really good food!

Shrimp Phad Thai

Tod Mun Kung (Shrimp Cake)

Chicken Phad Siew

Glass Noodles with Crab Meat

Within the Royal Hawaiian Center, there are many other restaurants including Tim Ho Wan, a Hong Kong based dim sum restaurant. Although the food quality at this restaurant is not the same as when it was first opened and the prices have doubled in recent years, it’s still a very good dim sum option in Honolulu. I would recommend dining in rather than takeout, dim sum is always better fresh and I have had experiences with them screwing up my takeout orders! Wolfgang Steakhouse is also located in this plaza for beef lovers.


Don Quijote
This is a Japanese grocery chain in Honolulu where you can get fresh produce, Asian snacks, bento, and Daifuku (my favorite is the peanut butter kind). And it’s not just an Asian grocery store, it’s a good all-around grocery store with lots of different options and decent pricing, so check it out!

Yi Xin Cafe

Singaporean Chili Crab

Kangkung Belacan

Singaporean Fried Noodles

Shrimp Crackers

Thai Lao
The Pearlridge location is much better than the Kapolei one.
Papaya Salad (Som Tum)

Cashew Nut Chicken

Shrimp Phad Thai ( it’s just average, sorry)
