Sunset at Waikiki Beach
Emma, on arrival at the Waikiki Hana Hotel
Tired after a long flight, but very happy to be here!
A lovely place, filled with all the touristy junk you could possibly desire!
My lei adorns our lamp.
View from our hotel door - high rise hotels everywhere!
The view from the hotel balcony, complete with sea views.
Lunch at the Bubba Gump Shrimp Factory
Nom nom nom nom nom!
No Jackie! Please, not the culinary fury!!!!
Dippin' Dots - still one of my favourite ice creams EVER. Still hard to get in Australia.
Snacks at our local '50s diner.
The awesome juke box at our table.
Juke box selections.
I asked for cheese on my hot dog, and they squeezed it out of an aerosol can. Horror!
Late-night Ben and Jerry's fix.
View from our hotel room door by day.
Waikiki Beach!
The Duke at Waikiki Beach
The Duke at Waikiki Beach
Dragon dancers taking a break in Chinatown
The ubiquitous game of checkers, Chinatown. It's the same all over the world. Lovely.
Making leis in Chinatown
Parts of Honolulu are actually quite run down... quite the shock after the shiny bits of Waikiki.
These geckos were everywhere, painted in all shades. I think I took pictures of about 20 of them, but I love the hat on this one!
Dinner at Coconut Willy's... yes, we chose it just for the name.
This would definitely entice me into any bar.
Many hours spent pottering around here...
Two sailors at Coconut Willy's. Their napkins tell me their names are Charlie and Kyle; I remember that Charlie had a broad Boston accent, and that they were headed for Afghanistan, and that's about it. I wonder where they are now.
High fashion? Survey says NO.
Tourist tat everywhere at the Aloha Stadium! We had thought it was a flea market, but it was mostly just for tourists.
Sign at the Aloha Stadium DVD stall. 'Mahalo' means thank you.
Sign at the Aloha Stadium DVD stall. 'Mahalo' means thank you.
SNOW CONES!!!!!! GIANT SNOW CONES!!!!!
Dinner at the Cheesecake Factory
Dinner at The Cheesecake Factory. Thanks for taking the picture, Eli!
Spiderman Gecko! One of my favourites.
Make like a Hawaiian. No worries!
Emma with Keith, who apologised for the re-election of Bush and wanted us to know that Hawaii was a blue state.
The '50s diner next to our hotel, complete with life-sized Elvis.
Forget lunch, gimme a sundae.
The Ala Wai Canal, Waikiki
Me at the Ala Wai Canal, Waikiki
These things fascinated me, but I didn't get to try them out until I was in Vegas a year or so later.
Swanky-looking menu, but it was pretty standard food at swanky prices.
The sunset from the revolving restaurant was beautiful, but unfortunately obscured by all the other skyscrapers...!
Night time falls over Waikiki.
Traipsing the malls by night...
The International Marketplace, Waikiki. Tourist trap!
Tiki torches on the beach, as seen from Duke's.
A small gospel choir entrances a crowd on the street.
The Sheraton, Waikiki. We skulked around pretending to be rich guests. I had totally forgotten that I actually stayed here as a kid. I dropped my favourite purple pen 3 storeys from the balcony and the staff helped me find it. And then I jumped on the bed and threw up my lunch. Nice.
Waikiki Beach, outside The Sheraton.
Surfboards at The Sheraton.
The Sheraton, Waikiki. We skulked around pretending to be rich guests.
Statue at Kapuhulu
Afternoon hula lessons at Kapahulu.
Because you couldn't tell that from looking at them. I wonder if their mothers know.
Kickass sunset.
Kickass sunset on the beach.
At this point I was starting to get a bit concerned; they were asking us all to join hands and pray before we ate. Eh?
Was, is and always will be my favourite flower - the frangipani.
Me and Emma at Germaine's Luau.
Family fashion, Hawaiian style. Even the baby gets to join in.
Performers at Germaine's Luau
Fire twirling at Germaine's Luau.
Me and Emma with Reno, our trusty and highly talented bus guide to Germaine's Luau.
Two leis in one night! Bonus!
Our room at the Waikiki Hana Hotel.
Toilet signs of the world. Surprisingly interesting.
A farewell strawberry and banana smoothie at the airport. Aloha, Hawaii!
Born in Hong Kong and raised all over the world, I've been tootling around for 33 years now. A Spanish friend of mine once said that "the smallest pot has the finest marmalade"... I have to agree with her! I'm small but I can still make 6-foot Brazilian bodybuilders cry if the need arises. And I never need to whinge about legroom on a plane!
little tara 
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