Aloha Vacation!
My trip to Hawaii was full of activities and rejuvenating beach time. I love staying busy and getting the most out of my trip and that’s just what we did. (I count laying out on the beach for a few hours a form of staying busy.) 😉
Lee and I made sure to plan activities (you know, like mad libs, music time, eating time) for every hour of the plane ride. Nine hours seems scary but with our chocolates and treats, it went by pretty fast!
When we arrived, my cousin Joey and his fiance Alexis greeted us at the Honolulu airport with fresh lays.
We wasted no time getting into the Hawaiian spirit.
We stopped by their lovely apartment to drop off our things and get comfortable with our home for the week before heading to Mai Tai Bar for drinks and appetizers. We ordered shrimp, edamame, and a large salad for the table.
Afterwards, we headed back to the apartment to chill out in the hot tub and enjoy the night before heading out to explore the bars at Lewers Street. (Jet lag who?)
Getting to Lewers Street where the night life is was about a mile walk. Since we burned so many calories, we had to reward ourselves with a few drinks 😉
The next morning, we awoke at 7 AM Hawaii time and were surpsingly ready to rock and roll. Lee and I went for an hour walk to get some light cardio in since he’s not supposed to run after his ACL surgery just yet. Then, we went to Walmart to load up on snacks and drinks. (Waikiki is a pricey place- thank goodness for Wally World.)
We lived off these delicious snacks along with chex mix and cereal. Super healthy, huh?
When we got back to the apartment, we enjoyed the porch views and then got ready to head to the beach with Joey.
That evening we went to a sushi go-round for dinner and followed it up with crepes for dessert.
Monday morning, we woke up at 7 AM again ready to start our day. We went for a 2 hour walk around the city and came back to do a little porch hanging and pool relaxing.
Then it was off to snorkel but not before making a slight detour.
Yep, we drove by Dog’s house. Success. Joey also gave us a tour of the south eastern tip of Oahu.
Then it was time for lunch. We needed to fuel up before snorkeling of course.
We went to Hanauma Bay to snorkel. No sea turtle sightings but we saw some cool fish.
We got back to the apartment and brought in Joey and Alexis’ favorite nearby sushi restaurant for dinner.
Then the four of us we went out to party rock at LuLu’s.
On Tuesday morning, we had a relaxing start at the pool and hot tub and then headed over to Duke’s for a breakfast buffet.
Then it was beach time. That night, we got to attend a luau.
After the luau, we walked down the beach to conclude our evening. The next morning, we were ready to get a real workout at the gym. We did the elliptical and some free weight workouts and finished up with a little yoga outside. Next it was on to the popular local market to look for some souvenirs for our friends and family.
That evening, we went on a sunset cruise.
On Thursday, we went for an early morning walk on the beach and then hiked Diamond Head.
Afterwards, Lee and I headed to the beach but first stopped to get some Teriyaki chicken and a salad to split.
We hung out on the beach for the majority of the day and even found Santa!
That night, we grilled out at the apartment with friends.
We went out that evening to a little bar with live music and walkd to some other cool bars as well.
Friday was our last day and we were determined to pack more fun activities in for the day. Lee and I went for a shorter walk that morning and then went to breakfast with Joey before going to the beach for the remainder of the day.
I even got to paddle surf at the beach. It was really enjoyable. We came back to the apartment later in the afternoon to pack up and clean up before heading out to our last dinner. And boy, was it quite the lavish meal!
The Taiwan shave ice was so tasty and very light too. (The English major in me would like to point out that the Hawaiians use the verb ‘shave’ as an adjective but whatevs it’s island life!)
One of my favorite parts about this trip was how active Lee and I were the entire time. Waikiki is a walkable city so we literally walked just about everywhere we could. If you get the chance, definitely visit this fun city!
Mahola Hana Hou Hawaii, Joey and Alexis! (Thanks again Hawaii, Joey and Alexis!) 😀
