| Hawaii
2010 Honolulu |
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Honolulu is on Oahu, the most visited island, with more than 50 beaches on 112 miles of coastline. It is situated on Mamala Bay. Diamond Head and the cliffs at the southern end of Waikiki create a natural shelter to the harbor. In fact, hono means "bay" and lulu means "sheltered" in the Hawaiian language. Honolulu is the state's capital and home to 80% of Hawaii's population. Waikiki is the center of the tourist activity with over 60,000 hotel rooms in less than a square mile. |
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Left: The ship docks in the Port of Honolulu by Aloha Tower, which was the tallest tallest structure in Hawaii when it was completed in 1926. It is now the most recognized building in the state and is the second most famous landmark (after Diamond Head).
Below left: The port terminal walls are painted with murals depicting the state's history.
Below: The Bus is a reliable and great system for moving people around Honolulu. In a city of just over 900,000 people and 129 square miles, The Bus has 531 busses on 107 routes, boarding more than 71 million riders a year (tourists account for 30% of the ridership). Unfortunately, it is not efficient for those who have only a few hours in port - with many stops, it takes too much time to get between tourist attractions. We didn't have time to get to Diamond Head. |
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| Before we even booked the cruise, Dale knew he wanted to take a surfing lesson. What better place than Waikiki Beach to learn to surf? He signed up hoping to get a private lesson but 2 more people (of the female variety, who were very friendly to Dale, so he got over it!) showed up. The 3 of them took instruction on land then headed out to the waves (Dale said paddling out was the hardest part). Dale got up on the board 3 times, once for almost half a minute - not bad for an hour's worth of instruction! | ||
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 Click here for more surfing photos. |
After all that hard work, it's time for Hawaiian Shave Ice. Yum! (This treat is like a snow-cone, only the ice is shaved into tiny slivers rather than crushed into little pieces.) |
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