February 17, 2007 Waikiki

We were up early to get breakfast before our 9 a.m. departure on a bus tour of Oahu Island. Our first stop was a historic site near Honolulu. In the process of uniting the islands under one rule, one chief’s forces drove his rival’s forces up a narrow valley. They were cornered with their backs to a 1,000 foot high cliff and forced to surrender or jump. Many chose the latter. It was extremely windy there as the prevailing wind funnels through this pass.

From there we made our way to the Dole Plantation. Silly us! We actually thought there would be a pineapple plantation there. However, Dole no longer grows any pineapple there, although there were some other pineapple fields in the area that grow for local consumption. What we did find was a very large souvenir store!

From the Dole Plantation we drove to the north coast where the best surfing beaches are. We only stopped at one because parking is difficult, especially for two large tour buses. Here is a picture of Celeste and me at Sunset Beach.

From the north shore, we drove down the east coast, observing the rain forest on the northeast side of the mountain range and arriving back at the hotel at 4 p.m. We rested for about an hour, and then went walking, returning to the hotel to change for a group supper at 7 p.m. We returned to the hotel at 8:30 and were in bed by 9.