Onboard the Noordam and 3 days in Hawaii!

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This will be my last Travelpost for this trip. It covers life on board our Holland American Cruise Ship, the Noordam, and our 3 stops in Hawaii.





When we crossed the equator, the Noordam had a crazy ritual for those crew members who had never crossed the equator before. They caged them all in a large net and then presented them to Neptune and his Queen (2 of the musicians from the house band) as well as the Captain and all his officers. They were sentenced, the officers voted with thumbs down then they were put on tables and covered with colored foam. They all ended in the pool amidst a lot of enthusiastic onlookers!



Darold and I being the sun worshippers that we are, spent most of our time at the back deck and pool area. With the drink package the chardonnay flowed! We met many new friends and reconnected with 2 lovely couples from Kamloops that we had sailed through Panama with in 2018! Cruising is such a great way to meet new people!



Our first stop in Hawaii was Hilo on the Big Island of Hawaii. We did an excursion to Akaka Falls followed by the Rainbow falls. There presumably are rainbows at these falls if the sun ever came out. Hilo is one of the wettest and greyest areas of Hawaii next to Kauai. It was a lovely loop walk with glimpses of the falls, bamboo thickets amidst the tropical forests – very lush and green! There was a banyan tree by Rainbow falls larger than any other that I have seen. Note the height of the people at the base to get an idea of its gargantuan size.



We stopped for lunch at the Saturday Market. I loved the old signs and architecture in the downtown. This was followed by a trip to a chocolate factory and a stop at the Moana Loa Macadamia Nut farm (see photo of the macadamia nut trees). This is not a native plant to Hawaii (it was imported from Australia) but it was the Hawaiian islands that made this fabulous nut famous. Good prices at the factory – better than the ABC stores throughout Hawaii!



Next 2 days and one overnight in Honolulu at the dock by the Aloha Tower which looked incredible when it was lit up at night! We spent our first day at Waikiki and enjoyed a very expensive drink on the 18^th floor of a hotel right across from the Royal Hawaiian Hotel (the classic pink hotel). I had to take a photo of an artist’s caricature of Trump kissing Kim Jong Un, the Supreme Leader of North Korea that we discovered along the Waikiki strip.



Back on board we had a local Hawaiian performing group (one large extended family) who gave us a tour of the Polynesian island through song and dance. It was Noordam’s version of a Lua. I’ve attached a photo of the female dancers doing a Tahitian dance and one of the males doing a Māori dance from New Zealand – real scary with their tongues sticking out and ugly make up!



On our second day on Oahu, we took a city bus (so easy to get around and cheap - only $1.25 for us old seniors!) to the East side of the island and spent the afternoon at Kailua Beach. Not as nice a beach but the water was sandy with no rocks and it was a pretty park area. Most people come here to Kayak and paddle board as there is very little waves due to the islands protecting the beach. It was a lovely day and we enjoyed the scenery crossing the island.



Last stop in Hawaii was at Nawiliwili on Kauai. Great beach just a 10 minute walk from where the ship was in the harbor. Lunch at Duke’s (related to the famous Duke’s restaurant at the Outrigger in Waikiki). On the walk back to the ship, we discovered these cool colored chairs and several roosters, hens and chicks! Don’t park there rooster - unless you have your handicap sticker!!!



The last 6 days crossing the pacific were restful and sunny f(or the first 2 days) then it turned cold, windy and wild! Huge swells rocked the ship. The crew had never seen anything like this before. Carts fell over, the glass barriers at the buffet counters crashed to the floor and there was a regular sound of something falling over and crashing for over 24 hours ! It finally settled down the last 2 days as we approached Canada, Vancouver and home!

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Comments

[Susan]

Welcome Home!
You've had a wonderful adventure - can't wait to catch up with you in person. Love and hugs.