Oahu, Part 3

Saturday was our last full day together in Hawaii.  We left early-ish to try to get a parking spot at a popular beach park, Waimea, which is a beautiful beach with cliff jumping.  Unfortunately, that was also the day of an open water swimming race, so there was no parking to be found within half a mile of the park.  Andy and Ben dropped us off and paid to park in a different lot while Amy and I got settled with the kids.  It was fun to watch the race, but the beautiful water and surrounding area were awesome.  The kids played in the sand and water for a while before doing some cliff jumping from the 10-30 foot rock (depending on which part you jump from and what the tide is doing) at the edge of the bay.  My older three did several jumps, but Jack surprised me by being the most enthusiastic jumper.  Sawyer really wanted to jump but got nervous when he was faced with the reality of the height.  I can relate.  After multiple attempts and lots of patient talking, Andy finally convinced Sawyer to jump, on his own, to Cat waiting below.

A seal was hanging out in the bay for a while.

Jumping Jack!

 

*The Cliff Jumpers*

We changed clothes at the hotel then drove to Laie to go to the PCC.  After another yummy food truck lunch we did a little souvenir shopping, then toured some of the islands.  We learned about drumming in Tonga; dancing, weddings, and local handicrafts in Tahiti; the history of hula in Hawaii; and all about the coconuts in Samoa.  We also went on a canoe ride and enjoyed a yummy luau.  Then we saw the amazing "Ha! Breath of Life" production, which all the kids, even Sydney, enjoyed!  It was a great way to wrap up our stay on the North Shore.

Tonga

Tahiti

Manmade Waterfall

Luke-propelled canoe

I'm so glad I can get my coconuts from the grocery store!

(Replicas of Easter Island statues in the background)

Andy and his family flew out on Sunday morning but we were taking a redeye that night so we had one more day in Hawaii.  We started out watching Music and the Spoken Word while we enjoyed a buffet breakfast of all of the food still in our rooms.  Breakfast included pies and malasadas from Ted's bakery, Funyuns, chips and queso, and fresh fruit.  It was both gross and awesome.

After breakfast we used bikes from the resort and rode on a trail to a pillbox and a huge Banyan tree that was featured in a Pirates of the Caribbean movie and Lost.  Then we showered, finished packing, received some more goodies from the concierge when we said goodbye, and enjoyed our last golf cart ride.

After one last lunch at Kahuku Sugar Mill we headed to Honolulu and had a little bit of time to peruse the Pearl Harbor museums before they closed.  We were bummed that we didn't book the Arizona tour in time to take the kids out to see the ship and memorial but the museums are really informative, and it was a great experience just to be there together.

Since we were on the redeye home and nervous about how the kids would do flying overnight, we sprung for the lay-flat seats.  Four of us took advantage of the space and comfort and got at least some sleep on the plane.  I'll let you guess which two stayed up all night, taking advantage of the space and comfort to watch movies.  I think we'll get them regular seats next time.

(at baggage claim, 6:59 am Utah time)

(on the shuttle back to the van in long term parking, 7:18 am)

The boys slept on the drive to the house, went right to bed when we got home, and Jack woke up in the early afternoon and wanted to eat lunch then go back to sleep.  I made him stay awake, and I woke up Luke too.  Cat and Ben were rockstars - Cat went straight to soccer tryouts as soon as we got home that morning, and Ben started working right away.  Eliza rested a bit before going to tennis camp, and I was happy just to be home after being gone for so long that I mostly scurried around putting things away and doing laundry.  Thankfully, all of us went to bed at a normal time that night and adjusted back to Utah time pretty easily.

It was all worth it - we loved our trip!  Ben's ready to move to Hawaii and BYU-H is now on Cat's (not super short) list of colleges to consider.  So, maybe we'll go back some time?  If nothing else, we need to do that cage dive... :-)