Oahu with family v. 72

The family trip had a rocky start...  Bob flew first to Las Vegas, stayed overnight (hoping to pay for the trip), and got on an Allegiant flight from there.  They took off on time.... Just as they were approaching the Pacific Ocean, an indicator gauge stopped working- it must have been important, since THEY TURNED THE PLANE AROUND and returned to Vegas!  After delays on the plane, 6 hours off the plane, and reboarding, they finally took off again and MADE IT!  Bobby, Maria and Ben, and Danny and Lindsey got their tickets together through Hotwire.  They were flying both United and American.  United somehow forgot to inform both Hotwire and their passengers that the first leg of the kids' flight was delayed 5 hours, so they were going to miss their connections.  Now, they had Maria to deal with- there is nobody better.  It took a long time to straighten out- United said she had to work through her "travel agent".  Maria reported that Hotwire was great, but it took 2 hours on the phone to fix things, and it was United's fault.  24 hours late, they arrived exhausted, "hangry" (hungry and angry/irritable), but in time for our Luau at Paradise Cove.          
                                                   

We were planning to attend a Luau at the Polynesian Cultural Center when the kids arrived.  Walt and Georgia, our wise and wonderful friends in Ewa Beach, educated us a bit.  While the Polynesian Cultural Center is a very interesting place to learn about the cultures of different groups who populated the islands, the place is run by the Mormon Church, so the Luau is alcohol free (no, not free alcohol...). This was not going to work for my hangry progeny. I was able to cancel because of the flight debacle, and book the much closer Paradise Cove.  We all had so much fun!  

There was lei and headband making,

 

Hawaiian bowling and spear chucking, Outrigger canoe riding,

And dancing with girls in coconut bras...

I kind of over planned, but I really don't know what I would have dropped.  

The kids took surfing lessons on Waikiki Beach, which included a whole family outrigger canoe ride.  Maria found a groupon for Big Wave Dave's- I called since the groupon had expired, and Dave honored the groupon price for us!  The canoe ride was a blast- there is a video on our Facebook page. 

 All the kids got up on their surf boards this first lesson!  The instructors were great, especially when Lindsey got hit in the hip and the head by other surfers, and she opted to keep surfing.  They watched her pretty closely after that.  She was a real trooper!

Wednesday we went to the Pearl Harbor Memorial, now named the Valor in the Pacific Memorial.  It has changed a lot since Bob and I went in 1980.  The film is a must see, and the battleship Missouri and the submarine Bowfin are on display in the same area.   The displays are very well done- they transport you to the events leading up to the attacks, and the aftermath. The Junior Ranger Program was just right- hitting on facts and concepts that help kids understand, but mindful that we probably would not be spending a full day there.  We actually had some fun buying pearls and pearl jewelry there too.

           

There are many beautiful golf courses in Hawaii- we've been on a few.  We wanted to show the kids our favorite - hole 13 and 14 on Kaneohe Bay Marine Base.  We held a "best ball" mini tournament.  I'm pretty sure the guys cart won...  

 

A little aside...  Getting through the gate at the Marine Base took longer than we anticipated.  We got to the golf course with little time to spare.  I had assured them when we made the tee times and when I confirmed that since we were doing this as a family and had a wide range of skill levels, we would make it a best ball affair to respect the expected pace of play.  The man in the pink polo behind us in line was not happy to be behind us.  We waited for the group in front of us to move ahead, and teed off.  On the third hole the ranger drives up to us, smiles, and says we need to be sure to keep the group in front of us, our guys who are waiting for the group in front of them to tee off, in sight.  Man in the pink polo didn't want us to slow him down.  Soon after, we make a turn and guess what?  Man in the pink polo has 5 people in his foursome.  Sheesh....

Friday brought us to Kualoa Ranch.  ATV's for the big kids, and horses for Becca, Bob, and I.  

 

This ranch has hosted TV shows (Lost) and movies (Jurassic Park) that we could actually visualize the scenes as we rode through.  It was taken over by the military during World War II and returned afterwards. The bunkers are still there.  It is a working ranch, restaurant, gift shop, and all around fun place.  It is also on the way to Giovanni's Shrimp Truck and surrounding tourist trappy set up.  The shrimp really was tasty!  We traveled on to Turtle Bay Resort, where Bob and I had a much better/warmer/more colorful snorkeling experience a few years ago.  This time it was colder/choppier/more windy.  OK, but not great. 

We had an excellent dinner at the restaurant there.  They were very accommodating of our culinary idiosyncracies…

Last full day- Saturday.  The kids gave Bob and me a little time to us as they went to swim with the dolphins at Sea Life Park.  We celebrated Bobby's birthday in Hawaii, and gave him this experience as a birthday gift.  

Saturday evening we celebrated St. Patrick's Day with Walt and Georgia.  The Best Corned Beef I have ever had (I'm not exaggerating!).  Bob ate it, had seconds, thirds- he had been planning to take just a little to be polite.  Thanks again Walt and Georgia!

The family portion of the trip wound down with a little more time on the beach at Bellows, and packing up all the gear that we borrowed from our friends.

All in all, a fun filled week with the people we love best!