20240411 Sapphire Princess South Pacific Cruise Day 8 - Honolulu, O'ahu, Hawai'i - let's tour!

Sapphire Princess South Pacific Cruise Day 8 - Honolulu, on the Island of O'ahu, Hawai'i

We awoke and were already docked in Honolulu. Our plan today was to meet up with two other couples, Maureen & Pat from Massachusetts, and Steve and Darlene from Florida. Maureen had booked a small group private tour through Kiko's Tours, Oahu. We planned to make 13 stops all around the island.

After grabbing breakfast, we met up with everyone outside the pier and waited for Kiko to arrive. She was right on time at 8:30. We loaded up and headed off for our day.

Our first stop was at Waikiki Beach. 

This is probably the most famous beach in Hawai'i.

A huge banyan tree

Arlona, of course, was drawn to the water for a feel

We left the beach, catching views of Diamond Head behind the insanely expensive homes.

Hawaiians have a term called "Priced out of Paradise". Homes here, even small ones, are priced at $1M or more, making it nearly impossible for the locals to afford to buy a home.

Diamond Head was a strategic defense station and still had multiple bunker installations on it

We caught sight of several surfers trying to catch that perfect wave.

I honestly can't remember what this next stop was. I guess I need to start photographing flashcards on trips like this so I know what the photos are.

To get there, we had to pass through a one-way tunnel through the mountain into the Diamond Head crater

These cool crested cardinals were all over.

After touring for a bit, Kiko decided it was time for a snack. We stopped at Leonard's food truck for fresh, hot malasada.

Kiko, delivering the fried, hot, sugary goodness

They basically melted in our mouths and were delicious

There were some beautiful flowers here along with this beautiful lady

Fed and ready, we headed to our next stop, a view of Koko Head - another volcanic mountain and crater.

There is a crazy-steep set of stairs that you can take to the top - no, we didn't

The viewing platform at the top

Our next stop was Eternity Beach and the Halona Blowhole.

The blowhole shoots mist and water into the air when waves crash just right

More blowhole action

Eternity Beach where From Here to Eternity was filmed

We continued on to an overlook at Makapu'u Beach.

The Lighthouse

Rabbit Island (left) and Shark Fin Island (right)

The sea life park used in the filming of 50 First Dates

At the request of two of the guests, we made an unscheduled stop at The Byodo-In Temple. The Byodo-In Temple is a non-practicing Buddhist temple that welcomes people of all faiths to worship, meditate, or simply appreciate its beauty.

The temple sits within a huge, picturesque, and expensive cemetery.

Ahh, that view...

Kōlea or Pacific Golden Plover

It was designed very much like the multiple Buddhist temples we saw in Asia a couple months back

Lots of koi

The black swan

We headed to our next snack break to sample local fare at Tropical Farms Macadamia Nuts.

We were able to sample several flavored nuts, and of course, have the opportunity to purchase any we liked. (We did - cinnamon-dusted and caramel-dusted)

Us with our shopping score and awesome guide, Kiko

We stopped for a close-up view of a rock known as Chinaman's Hat for its resemblance to a traditional Chinese hat.

Chickens roam free everywhere

Chinaman's Hat

Moana's Hook

About to film a crash

We continued to make short stops and take in scenic views.

Very Jurassic Park-looking

We stopped at Aloha Shrimp - another food truck, for lunch. Garlic shrimp for Arlona and coconut shrimp for me, and we were off for the next stop - Turtle Bay Resort, just for a bathroom break.

We passed by a huge sea turtle on the beach - I was able to get a slightly blurry shot of it as we cruised by.

That round blob on the right is the turtle - it was huge

Rainbow Bridge

Next up was a true Hawaiin classic in Haleiwa.

Shave ice (don't call it "shaved") is a Hawaiian treat made by mechanically shaving ice into a powder. It is then slightly compacted by hand and covered with a variety of flavored syrups. The consistency is almost creamy and nothing like a snowcone.

We had strawberry and pineapple

This sign was posted outside

And here's why

A myna was sitting up high, supervising the operation

From here, we headed inland passing the Polynesian Cultural Center and the large Mormon temple on the island. Since Hawaiians had no native religion, Catholics and Mormon missionaries came to the island to convert the population. While Hawaiians worshiped gods, it was more to worship the keepers of the land than a divine entity. The missionaries were successful in converting a large part of the native population.

Our final stop was at the Dole Plantation. Dole grows pineapples here, mostly for local consumption. They have a huge store for all things pineapple. We tried our first Dole Whip.

Gorgeous painted eucalyptus trees

A future crop

This summarized our day's travel.

It was a fun day with lots to see (and eat)

On the way back, we took the Interstate highway back to port.

Does anyone else find it ironic that there are interstate highways on an otherwise disconnected island?

After getting back to the ship, neither of us wanted a big sit-down dinner. We opted for the buffet and a little lighter meal. After dinner, we took a walk around the upper deck area for views of the city.

Aloha Tower

Honolulu by night

Arlona attended a cultural performance by local dancers while I worked on this entry. Right about 10:30, the engines started firing up in preparation for our planned 11:00 departure for Maui. We don’t have definite plans tomorrow, so we’ll play it by ear tomorrow based on how we feel.

A big thank you to Maureen for setting up today, and to Kiko’s Tours Oahu for giving us an excellent tour today. If you want a great small group tour on O'ahu, I highly recommend Kiko.