*Blogger’s note: In Hawaii, I’m making a practice of sitting down each evening to jot down my thoughts from the day. So you may find these posts a bit choppier and more of a stream-of-consciousness. Enjoy, lol.
We have the most delicious hazelnut coffee beans at our apartment, so every morning starts with a big mug of Earl Grey and then onto a hazelnut coffee with chocolate protein milk which tastes like a delicious mocha and sets me right for the day. It was well-needed today as the kids had online meetings with their school to assess their progress (or lack thereof, ahem) for re-entry into classrooms come January. I couldn’t listen; I was so nervous. The homeschooling has probably been the most difficult / stressful part of this whole year, followed closely by the sheer amount of time we are all together. To remedy the latter, I found a sitter on a local Facebook mom’s group here and today she came by for the first time. The kids were not at all sure of the set-up but as soon as we met her, we were all smitten. Sean and I used the free hours to head up Koko Head Tramway which is a very steep set of old railway ties that leads directly up to the top of Koko Crater. Man, oh man… so hard. And scary! One part was a bridge of sorts where there was just empty air below the ties, and in some parts one tie was gone resulting in an extra-steep, extra-wide step. There were two local guys in front of us who were playing music from a portable speaker and thank goodness, as those beats helped me keep putting one foot in front (above?) another at times. I thanked them at the top and we got to chatting; they are local hiking buffs, so we swapped some stories and got some recommendations. The wind at the top was unreal – I got some footage on my phone of the wind absolutely whipping my shirt and hair around. The views were unreal as well – over 180 degrees of mountain, coast, crashing surf, and azure infinity. It hit me that we sailed out over this exact part of the Pacific, heading home at the end of our offshore adventure with SALTS, many years ago.
We returned home with not one minute to spare and opened the gate to hear Kieran ask us, before he even said hello, how we could convince Stephanie (babysitter) to come back again. They all had a blast! We also scored a place here in Kailua for the holiday break weeks (our current rental is only available until December 20) so we’re thrilled to stay in this community and lean on the connections we’re making. Because we hadn’t had enough muscle exhaustion for one day (ha), Sean took the kids to the climbing gym and I did an arm session at UFC Gym. We met at a local greasy spoon where kids eat free on Thursday evenings – Sean’s loco moco was unbelievably massive but so, so good. I think we have found a new Thursday routine.
Can’t believe it’s Friday; I very often lose track of the date these days. It’s been raining a lot here (usually in very short bursts, so it doesn’t really affect our plans too much) so we checked the conditions on Manoa Falls before heading in that direction. Someone’s advice was to not do the trail in flip flops… #wisdom. We drove over the Pali Highway which was stunning with its views of craggy mountains and lush rainforests and steep valleys. The hike itself was a bit crowded, but not slippery, and rimmed with beautiful green lianas, monsteras, ferns, acacias, and bamboo. It was short and sweet but we were sweaty by the end – it was a muggy day! Workouts and tutoring rounded off the afternoon post-lunch at home (Foodland ahi poke for the win) before we dropped the kids off at an art night and had a date dinner in town. Alas, I was feeling too tired to be of much social value. But the moon was full and the breeze was fresh and it was lovely to just be.
Daily update: enjoyed the most delicious and healthy smoothie bowl after Lagree – a morning sent from heaven, as far as I’m concerned! Needed a break from the kids today, so I escaped to the gym while the kids went climbing with Sean. Saturday evening was spent in an otherworldly state listening to crystal singing bowls in a dim room swirling with galaxies projected onto the walls and ceiling. To be clear, I’m not really a sound bath kind of lady, but the experience was pretty amazing. Those sound bowls can really get going! Very resonant. Would do again.
We set alarms for 6 AM (!!) to hike the Ka’iwa Ridge (Lanikai Pillbox) Trail with the Oahu Hike Club. It was a perfect morning: a little breezy, not too hot. We walked to the trailhead and met some fellow hikers before starting up the windy little trail. It was steep! Met some nice people from Chicago, Cali and NY – lots of people we talk to seem to be living here but from somewhere else. We had been at the top pillbox (an old observation bunker from WWII) for maybe two minutes before a total downpour started. Everyone huddled on the leeward side of the pillbox and like usual on this island, the rain stopped within a few minutes. It left behind the most distinct rainbow Sean and I have ever seen – we could see its full arc and it looked near enough to touch, so magical. I was worried about the path down being slippery (I dislike descents more than ascents at the best of times) but it was fine. Breakfast and coffee back at home was all the more delicious thanks to our morning efforts!
Sunday, we hit up the Lohaki Kailua Market, where we enjoyed: real fruit-swirled soft serve ice cream from The Sweet Retreat, preserving fall leaves with Da Dream Lab, perusing beautiful block-print and letterpress cards, sampling coconut malabe with rose water and crushed pistachios, scarfing Hungry Monkey chocolate banana bread, and admiring resin-encased Hawaiian flowers made by Lexee. We promised the kids we will head back next Sunday so they have time to think about the one souvenir they would like.
A day at Lanikai Beach: we loaded up the beach wagon and headed down to the beautiful stretch of powdery soft sand that is Lanikai. We delighted in spotting turtles paddling just beyond where the kids were playing. A woman selling Filippino chicken and rice came by, so that was lunch. Sean ‘caught’ a crab nip when he dug down a bit too far building castles with the kids, and the crabs’ eerie translucent white legs skittered across the sand and into the water. We ended the day with a visit to Rubbahneck Ranch to meet their miniature horses, goats and pigs. We also – bonus – got to pick hibiscus from their glorious flowering bush (far taller than I!) and feed the giant tortoise. We loved learning about Oreo, Almond, Nelly and Lily the mini horses – they were adorable and the kids got to brush them, walk them around, feed them treats, and ‘dress them up’ with mane and tail adornments. Very cute. Our hosts Emily and Blake were wonderful; the ranch has been in Blake’s family for four generations. It was a beautiful evening, and spending time with the animals at the ranch was a really nice way to spend it.
Such a busy, exhausting day! Started with an excellent ‘ropes’ gym class at UFC with the most wonderful trainer, Caroline, who is inspiring and helpful and great at cuing and who cares first and foremost for safety and form. That was followed by a quick smoothie (kids) and protein balls (adults) in the car while driving to the Hanauma Bay ridge hiking trail. We parked at Koko Head and walked across the highway, as per the instructions in AllTrails. The hike started out tame on a paved service road, steep but consistent. We didn’t realize our good timing until we were up a ways, but the bay is closed to visitors on Tuesdays so the view down onto the beach was pristine with nobody there. Near the uppermost point the paving ended and we ventured over some packed earth before tracking down onto another rocky outcropping; it looked like the surface of the moon and we had to watch our step lest we slip on the small gravel and sand that accumulated in the crevices. The kids liked seeing bits of lava rock poking out from the ground. The view from the furthest point out was wild – we could see all the way back into the bay and to the beach, as well as to the crashing waves along the coast and out to sea. I kept remarking on the gorgeous hues of blue in the bay and realized that although we have seen a lot of beautiful oceans this year, I never, ever get tired of those colours, from sapphire to azure to aquamarine to cerulean. The ascent back out was a bit more than we bargained for in terms of gradient – the kids were awesome but man, even I thought I wasn’t going to be able to take another step once or twice! The rock was also radiating the sun’s strong heat back onto us and I was very glad we had hats, lots of water, and sunscreen. Lunch was a very rushed affair in the car as I had signed up for an afternoon yoga class; the less said about that, the better. It was a hot yoga ‘sculpt’ class and I felt like I had entered the seventh circle of hell as soon as the instructor started yelling. Sooo hot, sooo aerobics-y, no yoga. Ugh.
Today we booked to head down into Hanauma Bay with snorkel gear on loan from our wonderful rental manager here, Susan. The past two days have felt hotter, so of course I was worried about sunstroke. I liberally slathered the kids in reef-safe SPF 50, sun shirts on shoulders, hats on heads and water bottles in hand. This former sun-worshipper can no longer take the heat either… I spent the time under a little beach umbrella we’d brought with us. The kids and Sean snorkelled amongst the coral and saw lots of fish; Grace said she saw one as big as Kieran! The bay is stunning, truly, but I must admit, I’m becoming more and more introverted, and it was busy. I preferred hiking above the beautiful scene (bonus that there were no crowds on the day we hiked) than being in amongst everyone. I arrived home hot, hungry, and super-overstimulated. A long cool shower did the trick to calm me down. Sean and Grace headed to the Thursday night market for dinner, but Kieran and I hung back; no energy left.
What.a.day. Started things off right, as per usual, with a gym class at UFC and then Stephanie our wonderful babysitter arrived around 11 AM. Sean and I used the kid-free time to hike the first peak of Olomanu (3 Peaks). It started off in the forest, a bit muddy, and quickly headed upward through pine forests and then carpets of beautiful big ferns. Up, up, up we went and I was regretting the heavier barbell load on my squats earlier at the gym! After about an hour, we got to more and more sections of rock where ropes had been set up to help hikers up and down. And then, we were up on the very top of the ridge, carefully treading the foot-wide path with fairly sheer drops down each side.
The view was the most stunning thing – I actually lost my breath for a second when we came up onto the top of the ridge. Near the summit there were a handful of sections of rock climbing; not technical at all but scary nonetheless due to the drop. We had been contemplating heading up to peak two, but once at the top, one was enough!
The stunning scenery of the hike was followed by a pick-up by Stephanie with happy kids in the back seat (there is no parking at or near the trail head). Tutoring was followed by yummy poke bowls and sushi from Tokyo Central while admiring the blazing pink sky at sunset.
Saturday: Sean and I took part in a great HIIT workout followed by an hour of guided stretching; blissful. Midday was chill and then we were off to Honolulu where there was meant to be an event in Chinatown but alas, when we got there it was not popping off. We grabbed a yummy late lunch / early dinner (linner) at Olay’s Thai-Lao Cuisine; we enjoyed in their lovely back patio complete with palms and a turtle- and koi-filled lava rock pond. Headed back to Kailua town to check out a few stores and refill the pantry with grocery basics… a quiet Saturday evening.
I have not written for a number of days, having been food poisoned, yuck. However, some highlights from the days A.SaaD. (ante-sick-as-a-dog) were as follows:
- Not one, not two, but THREE cute little Sunday markets within a block of one another, one of which was a kids’ business market where we met many very creative and entrepreneurial young souls
- A lovely Thanksgiving Day hike up the Pu’u Ma’eli’eli Trail (the view from the top bunker features perfectly circular blue lagoons amongst the lighter blue ocean thanks to some sand bar action out in the bay)
- A wild trek up the Wiliwilinui Ridge Trail – a rambling trail that led up and up until it was a tiny goat track meandering around crags and studded with stairs hammered into the clay. Luckily we chose a dry day to go up – the clay ‘slide’ near the beginning would have been much more treacherous if slippery! We got to the top just as thick white clouds rolled in and literally surrounded us; we could not even see four feet down the back side of the peak. Such an astonishingly breathtaking hike.
- Poke from The Hibachi, a small deli that serves the most delicious marinated raw fish; we picked it up for three days straight after hikes.
- Not a highlight, per se, but notable… a Thai deep tissue massage that left me black and blue with bruises and gasping for reprieve. To say it was painful is a broad understatement. Does my neck feel great now? Yes. Would I do it again? Absolutely not.
- And, just as I was recovering from my food poisoning, we had a pre-booked day pass to the massive Hilton Waikiki Village. We could not change or cancel the day, but luckily the pass came with a small guest room, so I rested in the cool dark while the kids frolicked in the many pools.
We drove to the Ho’omaluhia Botanical Gardens one day, which are huge. Perhaps we did not do them justice by only wandering down one short section, but we were underwhelmed. It is fall and decidedly NOT high bloom season, so I’m sure they are stunning at other times of the year. Much more pleasing was the Foster Botanical Garden and its exceptional trees. Literally – it features a whole bunch of trees which have been granted ‘exceptional’ status by a Hawaii state ordinance. We saw a Bo Tree that was grown from a cutting of the one under which Buddha apparently achieved enlightenment, a huge tropical almond, a bulbous baobab, massive kapok trees with buttressed roots that look like an elephant’s legs, chicle trees which provided the original gum, a gingerbread palm, a rare double coconut palm (featuring the largest seed in the world!), an incredible cannonball tree whose cartoon-like flowers grow on vines twining out from the trunk, and a glen full of prehistoric cycads. A definite recommendation if you are in Honolulu and want a quiet break from all the bustle.
One Saturday brought us to a horseback ride at Gunstock Ranch up in Laie. The drive there and back was spectacular; one on side of the coastal road, a thin strip of perfect white sand and on the other, the craggiest mountains I’ve ever seen (I could not stop remarking on their magnificence). It was a super warm day for a ride, but it felt so good to be back on a horse again! I was at the front of the line with our wrangler Cat, from Colorado, so we now have a whole new list of hikes on our wish list in that state. Grace and I also went to see Wicked the movie. We got popcorn and gummies and chocolates and pop. We reclined in our seats and giggled at the previews. It was so much fun; I don’t go to movies enough, and certainly not enough with Grace!
Finally, we had a day that started off right at Moke’s Bread and Breakfast and ended with a lovely cocktail hour visit from our neighbours here. Moke’s had been recommended and it lived up to the hype. Grace got two pancakes, each bigger than her head, smothered in lilikoi (passion fruit) cream cheese goodness, and Sean got the loco moke, a loco moco but with a ribeye instead of a burger patty (!!!). Kieran’s mickey mouse pancake and my delicious veggie omelette seemed boring in comparison, but all were excellent. That fueled us up for grocery shopping, house cleaning and appie-prepping for our little evening cocktail soiree. The neighbours next door to us are Canadians who have been living in the States for the past number of years. We revelled in their great stories over gin and tonics and snacks. They really are the loveliest people.
It’s been a busy few weeks, as you’ve surely read! We’re also gearing up for a visit from a friend back home soon, so there will be many more tales to come shortly.