Blogs from Oahu, Hawaii, United States, North America - page 6

Today we’re going to Hanauma Bay – basically a drowned crater full of coral reef and exotic fish. It’s not easy (or cheap – at $25 a head) to obtain tickets; there’s a strict quota with tickets going on sale at 7 am each morning and selling out in minutes. We have managed to score some tickets for this morning. To reduce pollution, they have withdrawn the bus route which used to service the reserve, so the only access is by private vehicle. Only in America would the banning of public transport be considered a pollution preventing measure. So, after breakfast (there’s some leftover bagel which I tear up and leave on the balcony for the birds) we book an Uber and ride the 12 miles up the coast to Hanauma. We spend the morning swimming ... read more

Before an afternoon of beach and cocktails, we are going to fit in some culture with a visit to Pearl Harbor. First, breakfast at a nearby bakery where I buy the cheesiest cheese stuffed cheese topped cheese croissant. Then we catch the bus to Pearl Harbor. We take a wander round the harbour and museum, which tells the story of the attack, which took place 5 days short of 80 years ago. The Americans had moved dozens of ships and hundreds of aircraft from the mainland to Hawaii (so basically half way to Japan) yet were totally unprepared when the Japanese turned up and attacked. In just 2 hours, most of the boats were sunk and most of the aircraft destroyed with the loss of 2400 lives. 900 men died on board the USS Arizona, which ... read more

Did you see this? Airports with the Highest Likelihood of Delays The percentage shown indicates the percentage of arriving late or canceled flights between July 2019 and July 2021. Newark Liberty International (EWR), New Jersey: 24.29% (I never fly out of here) LaGuardia Aiport (LGA), New York: 22.52% Dallas/Fort Worth Internati... read more

This morning we’ve booked a tour to Pearl Harbour. Issy’s still feeling a bit jetlagged, so Scott and I set off and leave her to rest up. The Pearl Harbour Visitors’ Centre includes a museum which gives extensive background to the events of 7 December 1941, a date which is clearly firmly imprinted in the American psyche. It seems scarcely credible in these days of satellites that a fleet of six massive Japanese aircraft carriers was able to make its way thousands of kilometres across the Pacific without anyone noticing. We’re told that around 40 percent of Hawaiian residents at the time were of Japanese ancestry, and the military was far more worried about sabotage than an air attack. In order to reduce the potential damage from sabotage, the US fighter planes were kept in rows ... read more

We’re definitely still in Canada. It’s twenty one degrees outside and the hotel receptionist and a Canadian guest are complaining about the “boiling” heat. We head out for a farewell breakfast with Emma and Michael. We’ve noticed that they seem to go for large food servings here in Canada. I’m not that hungry so I try to order the smallest item on the menu, which I hope is a fried egg on a small piece of toast. It comes out as two fried eggs surrounded by a mountain of fried potatoes, a bunch of grapes, half a pineapple, and a piece of rockmelon. There’s no room on the enormous plate for the two large pieces of toast drowned in butter, so that lot comes out separately. At least some of it’s healthy, and if it has ... read more