Last Few Days in Paradise

DAY FOUR

One of the most fun things we did in Oahu was go to the huge swap meet by the Aloha Stadium. There were SO MANY vendors, selling all sorts of Hawaiian novelties for pennies. My mother-in-law let me in on the secret of this swap meet and informed me not to waste anytime shopping for souvenirs anywhere else. She was right.

We had the largest blueberry and cinnamon rolls I have ever beheld. I found the cutest 6-month- sized Hawaiian dress for just 8 bucks. It would have taken 5 hours to shop the entire strip. We were kaput after just 2 hours.

Here we are resting our tired feet.

Then our day got a little interesting. All we wanted to do after shopping was hit the beach, but wanted to find a different beach. So we boarded a bus and decided to just get off when the prompter announced a beach. Sounds logical right?

Not so much.

After an hour, we ended up dropped off at a Burger King, about a mile or two away from any water. So we start walking. And walking. And walking. Through the town, through housing developments, past barking dogs, into the projects of Oahu. It was an adventure. Finally we spotted some sand, so we just dropped our bags and stayed there, exhausted.

Ewa beach wasn't the most exotic place, but we did see a beautiful rainbow.

And the ocean was refreshing, and the waves we fun, so it turned out to be a success.

Even if we did spend half the day on a bus, semi-lost, wandering the island....

Hahahahaha...

DAY FIVE

Our last day in Hawaii was my FAVORITE. It was perfection.

We started the day hiking Diamond Head. We really went into it blind, but it was early enough that the temperatures weren't too hot. The hike made my heart pump but it didn't kill me. The scenes were gorgeous.

Once we were at the top, we could look into the ocean and see forever. I think I prefer seeing the ocean from above. The blues and greens are outstanding.

The girls looking into the Diamond Head crater.

Here were the final 99, completely vertical steps. Then a dark tiny tunnel. Claustrophobia just about overcame me at that point. Luckily, it didn't last too long.

Then lunch back at Waikiki.

Is it normal to dream about this pepperoni pizza every night? Yeah?

Because I do.

The rest of the day turned out to be hot and glistening. I got my fill of napping, reading, relaxing, and body boarding.

There's really nothing like this.

I'm so glad we did this. A perfect last hurrah with my favorite girls!