A Brief Excursion into Honolulu (2016)

There will be another, much longer one, incl. other islands, but probably early 2017

Something else that I love about Hawaii, and Asia in general, these fruits. Utterly delicious.

From the Navy side I took a bus to the Ala Moana Shopping Center. I remembered it from the 80s. Some fancy new construction near there. Do carry correct change for the bus.

From the Ala Moana I took a bus to Waikiki. It was not exactly the way I remembered it, until I got here, to the old Beach Park by the Army Museum. Military families seem to hang out there.

Now you know this one has been here since the 80s, The sunny side is amazingly pale, which invited a B&W shot - sorry :-), just playing a little.

Looking in both directions from here, it almost is as if time had stood still. Near here is where the Kodak Hawaiian-Tahitian show used to be staged by the Hilton. And one evening, around sunset, my ex and I heard drums and following them to this place where Hawaiian natives were drumming to the setting of the Sun. Sweet memories.

It's the toys that were really different. Up the beach is a military hotel. Outside of that my ex and I boarded a wooden outrigger with a Hawaiian oarsman. We rowed out hard and fast and then surfed back in. Surfers all around us riding the waves with us. All you see now is plastic gear everywhere you look. Some of the authenticity has been lost

Fun, no doubt, but not a Hawaiian outrigger. Still, they're making their memories. Note the width of these boards.

These very wide boards will be easier to ride in the ocean and absorb wave action much better.

Green rules the beach. Somehow, everything here, even the volleyball court lines in the sand, is green.

In front of the Army Museum, a medium tank, not WW2, I think

And a Japanese WW2 light tank. Note the pre-fab pill box in the background

I waited at the bus stop in front of the Waikiki Beach Park, with some Japanese women, waiting for the bus that never came. Since I did not have one of these (the chopper), I decided to walk back to the Ala Moana Center and return to base (there's even an acronym for that RTB). I suddenly had lost the desire to hang out here by myself, surrounded by either young singles or happy couples.

On closer inspection I notice that these two weren't exactly 'spring chickens'. More power to them. I love to see this. They seem content.

The new and strange Honolulu/Waikiki, sans the coziness of how it used to be back in the days.

The once quaint Hilton Hawaiian Village, now a huge affair This really reminds me more of Vegas, after all the new construction was done.

It was Sunday, and Greenbay was playing and some half-time escapies out for a quick smoke and some deep play analysis

At the corner of the Ala Moana Center, the Olioli 'whale' bus. Japanese tourists seemed to be the main customers. Open sides to accommodate photography

Something I found and will remember. This little Hokkaido bakery, Brug, located on the side of the Ala Moana Center for the buses back to Pearl (40, 63).

Delicous stuff here, and in Japanese tradition, the items that were sweet, were barely so. Japanese don't use a lot of sugar.

This is what I had, one each of these. The bottom one, very slightly sweet and quite tasty, made for the season.

The Japanese bakers must have felt a little playful when designing this pastry. I did not buy one of them. I would have felt silly eating the little smiling turtle bread.