2004 July Hawaiian Tour

My next big travel adventure with my friend Barbie was ten years after our Kodiak, Alaska trip. Barbie had experienced many personal traumas in 2003. She lost her father to dementia. Her husband had lots of medical issues, and she was experiencing difficulties with her grandson, David, whom she and her husband Tom had raised. Barbie said that was the year she had to go on high-blood pressure medicine. Barbie decided she needed a vacation and wanted to go to Hawaii. She called me and asked if I could go with her since her husband didn’t want to travel. I was teaching at Cuyahoga Falls High School, so said it would have to be in the summer, and I hesitated and said, “Really I didn’t think I could afford a big trip to Hawaii right now.”

“No problem,” Barbie said, “I’ll pay for your tour.” I was overwhelmed, but not surprised at my friend’s generosity. I hated to be a moocher, but hey, when would I ever get the chance to go to Hawaii again? I accepted her offer.

Barbie used AAA Travel Tuscarawas to book our “Splendors of the Hawaiian Islands” tour for July 8 through July 21, 2004, with Cosmos Tours. In anticipation, Barbie made me a Hawaiian fleece, tied quilt all in blues and I started shopping for a suitable bathing suit. To me Hawaii meant too much exposed skin, hot weather, and sandy beaches, not really my cup of tea, but I would sacrifice my insecurities about my body image for a trip to Hawaii with Barbie. July arrived and we flew out of the Columbus Airport.

I don’t remember much about the flights except the ups and downs – Columbus to Denver – Denver to Los Angeles – and finally Los Angeles to Honolulu. I remember feeling tired until I looked out the window on our approach to our first Hawaiian island, Oahu. The water below was so different from our great lakes and Atlantic Ocean water. No shades of grays or greens mixed with blues or browns. No, the Pacific Ocean by Hawaii showed off its purest hues of blues. The ocean was not one solid color, it was a rainbow of blues. There would never be enough names for these blues in a box of Crayola crayons. The water was crystal clear, showing no signs of pollution. I was now excited - truly we were landing in a paradise.

Barbie and I got off the plane and walked into the airport feeling anxious and lost. Where do we go next? Where is our luggage? A tall girl, possibly a native Hawaiian, approached us and introduced herself as Dana. She was wearing a long blue dress decorated with large fern leaves, and her dark hair was pulled back, held in place with white flowers. Dana stood a head taller than Barbie and me as she placed two fragrant flower leis around our necks. We started peppering Dana with questions about what and where to go to find our luggage and hotel. Dana laughed and said, “Relax, you are in Hawaii now. Hang Loose!” She made a sign with her hand – thumb up, other fingers tucked in and the pinkie in the air. She moved her wrist back and forth. We tried to imitate this sign and ended up laughing hysterically. We quickly learned that the hang-loose feeling in Hawaii was an island attitude. No hurry, no worry. The laughter brought relief and knew this trip was going to turn out to be fine, just what Barbie needed. I didn’t realize at first just how true this would be.

With Dana’s guidance, Barbie and I settled into our room in the Ohana East Hotel right in downtown Honolulu and within walking distance to Waikiki Beach. The next morning was an informational breakfast where we met our tour director and the other people on the tour. I was surprised to learn that there were fifty people from all over the world in this group. There was a couple from England, a lady from Puerto Rico, a group from Australia and of course others like us from the states. Everyone was happy and chatty as we ate breakfast and went over our itinerary. We had a busy two weeks ahead of us. We liked the fact that there was plenty of free time on the tour or you could pick optional activities, which cost extra money. We didn’t pick too many of these extra tours except for a helicopter ride over the rain forest and snorkeling at Turtle Bay.  

Later that day Barbie and left the hotel to explore Waikiki Beach and do some shopping in the International Market place. On one side of the street, tall white buildings were outlined against the blue sky, on the other side, the white sandy beach held colorful surf boards standing in a row waiting for the waves. It wasn’t too hot, like I thought it might be. We found out that the temperatures on the islands were moderate 70’s and 80’s and there was always a nice breeze. Walking along I spotted an outdoor beverage booth and started the day with a tall fruity drink which was delicious but turned out to be a bad idea. Not too long after that, I had to quickly find a bathroom in a fancy beach hotel, while Barbie had to run back to our room for some fresh clothes for me. I was embarrassed, but Barbie didn’t make a big deal of it and said, “It’s fine, you just over-fruited,” and she was right. I took my trusty Imodium and survived the rest of the trip with no more problems.

The next morning Barbie and I were on our own again. We thought it would be fun to do some shopping, we did a lot of that on the trip. At an outdoor market, we bought ourselves matching Hawaiian muumuus, except Barbie’s was red and mine was blue.  We returned with our purchases to our hotel room and then decided to walk along the beach. We didn’t come across any “private beaches” signs, so just kept walking along the beaches of the Pacific Ocean. What we didn’t know at the time was that Hawaii has no “private” beaches. They belong to everyone to enjoy. I wish the United States would do that. The best coastal beaches in the U.S. are blocked off for the wealthy. As we walked along, Barbie spotted a sign that said, “Outrigger Catamaran tours.” She liked the idea of going out on a boat, but I was skeptical. “Oh, come on,” she said, “it will be fun.” I conceded and we bought tickets for the next tour leaving within an hour.

A catamaran is a sailing vessel which has two front hulls to make it more stable in the water. I felt safe when I saw this. We boarded our sturdy sailing vessel and settled into some bench-like seats. Our shirtless young captain greeted us. He wore a white bandana on his head and blue and white knee length pants which created a sharp contrast to his dark tan chest. He looked like he belonged to the sky and water. The view was great and so was the view of the blue ocean and blue sky with wispy, white clouds.

 We were ready to sail. It was warm, so Barbie and I shed our bathing suit coverups and just enjoyed the taste of sun on our pale northern skin. The wind whipped through my hair, but somehow, despite the wind, my hair looked perfect in the pictures. Amazing! I was happy with my “Hawaiian perm;” my hair never looked better. We sipped on a couple of Mai Tais as we sailed out around Diamond Head. It was like a scene cut out of Hawaii Five-O. The combination of Hawaiian sun, wind, and fantastic views were something I had never experienced in Ohio. Usually I was worried about safety, but I never gave a second thought about not wearing a life jacket, even when we leaned against the ropes on the side of catamaran, our only barrier between us and the ocean, and sipped alcohol. We were having the time of our lives.

The catamaran adventure ended as all good things must end. But we knew that this was just the beginning of our Hawaiian tour. We had a lot more to experience before this trip was over - Three more islands to fly to and miles of roads to cover. We were off to a good start.