#this refund is going to look delicious in my bank account lol | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

chucksandjeans · 7 years

Text

Hawaeeeee

October 16

We started the trip and early on the Monday and Ubered to the airport. Our Uber guy, Jermaine, was super nice and chatty which started our trip off right. It was pretty early at the airport but for some reason the border control line was super long and I had to line up by myself for 45 minutes or so. I think something must have happened because everyone was on high alert. It was a safe flight so that is all that matters. We had a short layover in Chicago where we stuffed ourselves with food and stole some cup noodles for the next 9 hour flight to Honolulu. This was a smart move because United did not give us food as it was considered a domestic flight (we’re going to try avoiding United from now on…). We watched Pacific Rim which ended up being amazing!

We finally landed in Oahu at around 2 in the afternoon and waited in line for our rental car. They didn’t have our compact car so gave us a Hyundai Santa Fe SUV and it was huge! But overall a fun ride. We quickly found the R&B / hip hop station, found some party jams (Bank Account – 21 Savage; Rake It Up – 21 Yo Gotti; Bodak Yellow – Cardi B; Young Dumb & Broke – Khalid) that stayed on repeat the entire trip. The freeway to our first resort, Aulani Disney, was on the west side of the island. We arrived around 4, got lei’d up properly, and found ourselves in a beautiful room overlooking the pool. Changing quickly into our swim gear, we walked around the beach / infinity pool / lazy river, ate some food, and made a reservation to eat at the restaurant downstairs. At 6 or so, we took a nap and set an alarm for 1 hour, just, as a power nap before dinner. However, the alarm didn’t ring and we woke up at 11 and missed dinner entirely. LOL! We kept sleeping.

October 17

The morning started off nice and early with some good, ol’ Mickey D’s (thanks jet lag). They served spam with the classic Big Breakfast and the most unexpected taro pie (they didn’t have the haupia pie). It was flaky, crispy and gooey inside – yum. We stopped by Pearl Harbour “just because” but it was a bit underwhelming despite its historic influence. The morning was still young so we quickly hopped on the highway and drove to the north shore. The Dole Plantation was our next stop and we got there just as it was opening. No lineups! We took a train ride around the plantation and ate some Dole Whip – it was delicious! So sweet that the pineapple stick on the side seemed sour in comparison, but perfectly cold for the hot day. The crowds and tour buses poured in after so we quickly drove to our next stop, the famous Giovanni’s Shrimp Truck. Celine had the original flavour (a garlic version) but I decided to try the spicy, which came with a warning that you couldn’t get any refunds for it. Big mistake because it was so HOT, I drank the entire bottle of Powerade. We then visited some nearby shops and continued driving along the north shore until we reached the Banzai Pipeline. This is where people surf Hawaii’s biggest waves! It was intense. In our sweaty clothes, we walked around the outlet shops and at night, drove back into Honolulu to eat at this amazing Japanese restaurant called Sushi Murayama. The 10-course omakase dinner was $75 per person and it was amazing and totally worth it! We left full and happy. There was plenty of food, super fresh ingredients, and an entertaining sushi chef. Vince can’t stop thinking about the king clam sushi we had. It was probably one of my best experiences eating. See our food video for highlights. Oh yea the car was parked in one of those automated stacked parking lots which was very cool! Very SF.

October 18

The agenda for this day was optimistic and we accomplished it all! Kick-starting it all was a drive through the rain across the island, through Honolulu and to the east end of the island to hike up the Koko Crater Railway Tracks. We thought starting early would allow us to finish before the sun hit its peak but unfortunately for us the sun started beating down on us as the thousands of steps slowed our pace. The tracks quickly turned from a comfortable walk to almost climbing vertically and at some points, it was dangerous to cross between rails. It was so hot, Celine felt a little lightheaded – definitely different from hiking in Scandinavia! Regardless, we made it to the top and the view was breathtaking from all sides. We saw the entire coastline and enjoyed the fresh air and celebrated our triumphant ascent to the top. Going down was another struggle LOL. By the time we got down it was lunchtime so we ate at a local sushi restaurant.

The next stop was Hanauma Bay to snorkel but the parking lot was full. We ended up driving the cost to the Lanai Lookout and made it all the way to Alan Davis Beach / Pele’s Chair. This tiny beach was certainly off the beaten path and was known for mini cliff diving. It was essentially an edge where you could jump into the ocean, and the rocks off the shore were big enough to block all oncoming waves. It was super fun and we got some great Go Pro shots! Afterwards, we chilled out at Sandy Beach, apparently the beach with the most number of injuries per year due to its dangerous waves. We sat on the beach and watched surfers get battered. Before dinner, we stopped across the resort to buy some magnets and then ate at the Makahiki Buffet inside Aulani. All-you-can-eat oysters! Poke! What a great spread. We tucked in for our last night in Oahu.

October 19

Our flight to Maui was in the early afternoon so we had some time to grab a bite in Honolulu after grabbing breakfast to go from the Ulu Café. We ate at Marukame Udon, one of Celine’s favourites, before taking a short flight to the next island. Our rental car here was a sedan so driving was easier. We got some shave ice, which had peach, strawberry and other citrus flavours, from Ululani's, dropped our stuff off at our hotel – the Maui Beach Hotel (ghetto AF) – and drove up Haleakala National Park to see the sunset. The rode up was very windy and took over an hour. By the time we got to the top, we had to fully gear up and wear every piece of clothing available. The parking was horrendous and most people just parked randomly in the lot or on the winding mountain road. The sunset was beautiful and I would have enjoyed it way more if I was freezing, literally. Vince even put up his hood. I was exhausted on the drive down the mountain and since we arrived at Mama’s Fish House (widely known as the best restaurant on the entire island) an hour before our booking, we took a nap. It was glorious. Much needed before our meal! The cocktail and plates were exceptional, and service was entertaining. I would definitely go back.

October 20

We found this amazing bakery / diner called Stillwell’s in Kahului and had breakfast there. We ordered spam and stuff and a baked good to celebrate Celine’s 28th birthday! Yay! Then we drove around aimlessly to look for the Lahaina Pali Trail but did not find it so ended up getting to Wailea Beach Resort earlier. We dropped down our stuff and went to the beach beside Turtle Town and relaxed a bit. The water was so nice but unfortunately we saw no turtles. Then we went back to the resort and got our room. It was so nice! Architecture and design was minimalist and contemporary and we loved it. We spent the next little while on the private Wailea Beach (which interestingly enough had no little rocks anywhere and had the most perfect sand bottom so you could wade out) and then changed to film our Save the Date video. The sound was prerecorded so we just had to do the video portion – a trade secret. It was a race against time because the sun was setting and every second counted! We finally found a great spot down near the water where the waves were crashing gently against the rocks. It turned out amazing, as predicted. Next we made our way to dinner at the Morimoto at the Andaz Hotel to celebrate Celine’s birthday! We had a fabulous meal of tuna, foie gras and duck, and it was great, but not as surprising and delightful as Murayama.

October 21

Breakfast was memorable this morning. We ate at Nalu’s South Shore Grill where I had an acai berry coconut flake granola bowl. SO AMAZING! Celine chickened out and got an ahi tuna benedict. Then we made our way up the north-west shore of Maui and passed by some really neat little towns. We stopped by the Lahaina Front Street and did some outlet / street shopping. Then we grabbed some poke from a highly-rated alcohol store on Yelp (Tamura’s Fine Wine), dropped off our stuff off at the Aston Maui Kaanapli Villas, and went to our pre-booked Old Lahaina Luau. The weather was perfect and we walked in as VIPs to the luau. It was a premium buffet that featured a roasted pig with a long show showcasing traditional dancing and chanting. It was really beautiful, watching the sun set in the background and having unlimited drinks…except for the men thrusting their junk everywhere during their solo dance and us sometimes getting cramps in our legs because we were sitting in the traditional style on the floor instead of at the tables and chairs. We drove quickly back to Kaanapali and settled in for the night.

October 22

We woke up a bit early to hit the beach first thing before the crowds. The water was a bit chilly but still fantastic. Packing up quickly, we grabbed food at Mickey D’s again before visiting the Dragon’s Teeth attraction beside the fancy, Ritz-Carlton Resort in north Maui. The rocks were jagged and impressive but the most impressive were the waves that devoured the rocks below. I did not want to fall in. Next, we drove up to see the Nakalele Blowhole and heart rock. The sun was brutal but we made it. Sweaty and stuff, we ate back at Lahaina at Longhi’s, and then found a public beach shower to clean ourselves before the flight home with the toiletries from the resort. We found a nice shower that was away from the crowds but still on the edge of the highway. The water was cold but all in all it felt great. Worth it! First time showering in public! Before the flight, we had to eat but Kahului was literally foodless. There was a highly rated sushi restaurant in a nearby town but we drove by and it looked sketchy AF. We ended up eating at Whole Foods: ramen, mochi and a delicious smoothie. Then we flew home.

Hawaii is awesome. We think it was our best trip to date, and thank goodness we both got a tan!

0 notes