Today we are flying to Hawaii. Anne and I reserved two weeks in the islands. We flew to Oahu for the first week.
In Honolulu we met up with Roger and Cherri Lange, close friends for years from Adelaide, AU.
The week's stay was at a resort hotel in Waikiki. The Resort Quest used to be called The Waikiki Beach Hotel. You can see what we had to put up with from the photo taken off our balcony.
We had just one week on Oahu and we wanted to fill it with sites to remember. The resort had an Expedia Tour desk. This was a name we knew. In just a couple of hours we were booked and paid for hosted tours of: the North Island; the Big Island; Pearl Harbor; and a submarine excursion. There, that was done. Who said we weren't organized.
The first residents of Hawaii reached the islands approximately 2,000 years ago. They may have come from the Marquesas Islands, which are north of Tahiti. Many more Tahitian immigrants arrived in Hawaii in the 14th and 15th centuries. The first known European to visit Hawaii was a Spanish navigator named Gaetano, who charted the islands in 1555.
Hawaii was forgotten by Europeans, and then rediscovered in 1778 by British explorer James Cook. Captain Cook named Hawaii "the Sandwich Islands" after his sponsor, John Montagu, the fourth Earl of Sandwich, the inventor of the sandwich.
Honolulu, and Waikiki Beach, is on the leeward side of the island of Oahu. This means the weather tends to be dryer. The windward side, North Island, however, is where all of the historic boarding action is found.
The North Island day trip started with a bus loading at 0600hrs. We were ready for it. A pattern quickly set in as to how time was to be passed.
When the Islands were first occupied by westerners the world was seeking sources of sugar. The south Pacific was a perfect place to grow sugar cane. Today, however, Oahu has been taken over by pineapples. Our first stop on the windward tour was at the Dole plantation.
As one would expect, Dole presented an exquisitely kept gardened image to the public. Our stop did not permit time to see any harvesting or processing operations; it was refreshing none the less.
The tour director, aka, bus driver, kept a running dialog on north shore history, famous movie events, and passing sights. The north shore is, for the most part, a very rugged bit of land. The shoreline is mostly volcanic stone interspersed with small stretches of zig zag beaches. Many of the beaches are very dangerous for surfers because of shore's edge stone and jagged volcanic shrapnel lurking just below the surface of the water.
This side of the island is sparsely populated. We would occasionally see a slightly built home near the highway's edge. The driver would point out that So-n-So had a home off there to the left. I looked into the jungle foliage to my left. The only evidence of life I ever saw was a driveway entrance.
One of our stops was to see where the world surfing competitions were held. Today had fairly gentle surf. The fêtes were held during the season when Big Sur was famous for its curls.
The inland side of the highway was densely grown to the road's shoulder. At the breaks in the plant's height you could glimpse the shadowed sides of the nearby peaks of the mountain range.
We had come to the north shore by traveling West around the end of the mountains. To return, we were circling backside to the East. The Honolulu/Waikiki side of the range presented a long gentle rise to the tops of the peaks. The North side, however, presented an abrupt jagged steepness to each rise. The tops were enshrouded in a light cloud mist which seemed to keep all of the sheer surfaces moist and dark.
King Kamehameha was first the chief of the northern half of the island of Hawaii. Eventually he brought the entire island under his reign. The other Hawaiian islands were controlled by other kings, but Kamehameha conquered and united them, becoming ruler of all the islands by 1810.
Oahu was the last island of the chain to be conquered by the early king. Resisting warriors sought protection and defense in the mountain range. A few thousand were pushed to their deaths over the vertical edges on the North side.
Cashew nut is a large crop on the north side of Oahu. For a break we stopped at a nut plantation for some sampling and shopping. No one pointed out what a cashew nut tree looked like, so I just took some pictures. I think I captured at least one photo of a cashew nut.
Lunch was the last stop before we bussed to the eastern peak which would take us back to the southern side of the island. Somehow architects and engineers located enough open ground and squirreled enough soil to construct an elegant, and exclusive, golf course. This was where we had our meal.
The view from the top was breathtaking. The temperature dropped several degrees and the winds were fierce. From Pali Lookout a panoramic took in a good view of the northeastern coastline. To the left in the photo is where the early islanders met their fate. Below is the city of Kaneoha.
_______________________________________________________________________
"Dive, Dive!"
"The way they must do it is have the thing connected to a chain mechanism which keeps it on track so we will see all of the good sights." Roger and I created several images of how the submarine excursion was really going to be pulled off. Each of our designs displayed a bit of insight into the mechanics of Disneyland. However, none of our ideas worked out.
The bus picked us up early afternoon. The ride to the west end of Waikiki was short. We off-loaded near the entrance to the Hilton and were told to walk down to the beach. At the end of the sandy alley we met a submariner who ushered us to a check-in waiting area on the local pier.
In a few minutes a boat inched its way to the pier and tied down. This was the return shuttle from our submarine. The trip to the boarding point took about 20 minutes. From the stern of the craft we were able to view Waikiki with a new perspective.
The large hotel on the left is the Hilton. Diamond Head is on the right. "And what to my wondering eyes did appear?" A submarine was coming near.
The sub is real! Everyone has a seat which is at a window. The dive is mapped out so that it goes past a lot of reefs, virtually all were composed of some form of man-made rubbish. We saw a wire-mesh reef which was designed to protect smaller species; a sunken ship; and, a WWII airplane.
Everyone was given a card which had pictures of sea life and a tick box. The ladies identified most of the species on one reef or another. We were submerged for about 40 minutes and dove to a depth of 115ft.
There is a very interesting color change as you go deeper. The sea filters our color by length of frequency. The first to go is red. The last to go is violet. We were wearing colorful shirts; at least we thought we were.
Using the camera's strobe through the window wasn't possible. My camera metered, barely, and even at 100ft I was able to get some decent shots. The photos of the cabin were with, and without, the strobe to show the hue difference with depth.
The dive exceeded our expectations for quality, duration, and professionalism. The sub used electric motors so it was really quiet down there. What fun.
___________________________________________________________________
"Let's Hula"
The Hawaiian Islands are part of Polynesia. Our next day trip was to the Polynesian Culture Center. The center was established by The Church of the Latter Day Saints as an extension of Brigham Young University.
Many performers at the center are students attending BYU-Hawaii on scholarship from their native lands, working up to 20 hours per week during school terms and full time during breaks in order to graduate debt-free. The money which visitors pay for admission, as well as profits from food and gift sales supports the scholarship programs which have educated thousands of students over the years.
In recent years, the center has become Hawaii's number one paid attraction. Visitors are able to observe cultural activities by the peoples who inhabit the islands of the Central and South Pacific ocean. Each of the major Polynesian countries has its own area of the park centered on a re-created traditional village. Each of the following has its own village: Hawaii, Samoa, Aotearoa (present-day New Zealand), Fiji, Tahiti, Tonga, and Marquesas.
We had a guide for the tour. Her task was to get us to specific villages on a schedule to catch the country's show. There was a lot of chanting and dancing, and of course, brilliant colors. There was a lunch break, included, and then back for more.
To cap the day the Polynesian center hosted a show in the outdoor auditorium. Each country put on a traditional dance, or skit, which embodied their cultural spirit. I'm sorry, but after a couple of countries, I lost track of who was who. None of them, however, was to be outdone for color or majesty.
_____________________________________________________________________
"Clear!"
We flew from Honolulu to Hilo, on the Big Island of Hawaii. The tour for today was a helicopter flight over the active volcano Kilauea. Kilauea is one of five shield volcanoes that together form the Island of Hawai'i. In Hawaiian, the word kīlauea means "spewing" or "much spreading", in reference to the mountain's frequent outpouring of lava. It is presently the world's most active volcano.
The current eruption has been going on since 1983. Lava pouring into the ocean has created over 100acres of new land. If lava isn't spewed from the crater itself, it is coming out of lava tubes at the ocean's edge.
The weather was low, broken overcast. We missed out on being able to fly over some of the island's other special features, waterfalls, etc. However, the four of us in the helicopter together is a flight to remember.
Here is a view of Halemaumau Crater as we approached it; we circled directly over the crater; red glow and steam as lava dumps into the Pacific; and, this home was uniquely spared.
The flight took us over large expanses of lava fields.
The pre-flight weight and balance figures somehow put me in the co-pilot's seat. I feel real bad that I caught the first, and often best, view of things. I was also probably the only one who didn't want the flight to be over. Some of us were just real happy to be back on the ground.
______________________________________________________________________
"Anchors Away"
The USS Arizona Memorial marks the resting place of 1,102 of the 1,177 sailors killed on the ship during the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. The Japanese had unleashed the American War Machine.
The Japanese military, deeply engaged in the seemingly endless war it had started against China in mid-1937, badly needed oil and other raw materials. Commercial access to these was gradually curtailed as the conquests continued. In July 1941 the Western powers effectively halted trade with Japan. From then on, as the desperate Japanese schemed to seize the oil and mineral-rich East Indies and Southeast Asia, a Pacific war was virtually inevitable.
U.S. officials fully expected a Japanese attack into the Indies, Malaya, and probably the Philippines. Completely unanticipated was the prospect that Japan would attack east, as well. Although alarms were sounded, no one listened.
A boat took us to the memorial site located on top of the Arizona's sunken and rusting remains. Oil still leaks from the ship. It is said that when the last assigned to the Arizona dies, so will the oil stop flowing.
It is ironic that the USS Arizona had so many deaths. On December 6th, Arizona's sailors had placed very high in a Navy Band contest. This would be an important victory for the crew of the Arizona. The bunks were nearly full that night, with sailors dreaming of being named #1.
The following photos show: The Memorial & Turret #2; Memorial Wall & Dedication; Reflection at the Wall & Main Hall; Band Trophy & Continuous oil slick; Anchor blown several hundred yards from Arizona & even Pearl needs tidy clothes.
From the memorial we boarded the USS Missouri. The Missouri was commissioned June 11, 1944. Missouri is the final battleship to be built by the United States, and was the site of the Japanese surrender at the end of World War II.
"Permission to board." was needed to gain entrance to Big Mo. The 16" gun turrets help bring things to scale; The big gun is good for a 13-mile range & Helm security is very beafy; A plaque marks the surrender signing spot & a view from the Helm.
The Missouri saw action during WWII, then again during the Korean War. She was updated and outfitted with missile technology and re-commissioned for the Gulf War of 1991. Retirement finally came and the ship was de-commissioned in 1992 and found her final home at Pearl Harbor in 1998.
The attack on Pearl Harbor brought an end to the supremacy of ship-against-ship battles at sea. The era of the aircraft carrier had been born. The Battleship USS Missouri had been approved for construction just half a year before the carrier based attack on Pearl Harbor happened.
No comments:
Post a Comment