Hawaii - Bringing in the New Year

It was awesome to celebrate New Years in Hawaii with all our family. The night began in the room with a celebration with the kids. We played some games

 

and celebrated by making noise and sharing some sparkling cider. We celebrated well before midnight, though, so that the parents could celebrate the real thing

down on the beach! We got treated to a beachside fireworks show.

What a way to end 2017 and welcome in 2018!

Hawaii Hiking

After church, we headed out for a little hike to Manoa Falls. It was a popular destination, and it was a really beautiful hike.

There were huge bamboo groves that we hiked through and swung on.

We ate lunch at the waterfall. The waterfall was beautiful and well worth the hike. 

 

Pearl Harbor

Our next stop after church and a hike was to visit Pearl Harbor. Jared has been looking forward to visiting Pearl Harbor for years, so when Torin felt unwell Sunday morning, Dani volunteered to stay back at the resort with him.

First, the location of Pearl Harbor is spectacular. Across the harbor is the USS Missouri, where Japan's surrender, and the end of World War 2, was made official.

We got to take a tour into the USS Bowfin, a World War 2 submarine. Everyone had a headset to listen to narration of what life aboard a sub was like. It was interesting to walk through the sub and imagine what it was like full of crewmen. 

The most poignant part of the visit to Pearl Harbor was going out to the USS Arizona memorial. After a movie about the attack on Pearl Harbor, we took a short boat ride out to the memorial, we got to spend time at the memorial. It was very well done - a reminder of the sacrifice made by the naval servicemen and servicewomen.

The clear water over the sunken Arizona gave a clear glimpse of the hull of the ship.

Spending time at the Arizona and subsequently reading about the various ships around the Pearl Harbor memorial helped us appreciate even more the country we live in.

Church in the Hawaii tabernacle

We went to church in Honolulu at the tabernacle in Honolulu. The chapel was gorgeous and large, and the mosaic of Jesus Christ outside and the refleting pool were awesome. What a great place to go to church!

 

Hanging at Aulani

The Aulani resort is SPECTACULAR! The rooms are beautiful and the grounds are beautiful.

From Aulani, there were walking trails along the ocean down to a Ko Olina Park. It made for a great running trail many days and a walking trail on the Sunday that Torin wasn't feeling well.

We ate most nights together. One night, Matt and Camie served pulled pork, Dani and Jared got takeout Chinese, including steamed and fried manapuas (filled buns), Amber and Taylor did Costco mac and cheese, and Nana and Papa did a large Asian salad. We ate breakfasts together, ate lunches sometimes in rooms but often on the beach. Of course, we sprinkled in dole whips on the beach as well!

We had one night that we got pizza for the kids and the parents went out for a nice dinner. On the way to the adult dinner at Ama Ama, on the Aulani resort, we discovered that 3 of the boys decided to match!

Sunsets, of course, were spectacular!

There were pretty much daily sand castles, many quite large and elaborate!

 

Another common site was Amber taking pictures in all sorts of positions! Anything to get just the perfect shot!

Hawaii Day 3 - The Polynesian Cultural Center

The drive to the Polynesian Cultural Center was a lovely cross-island drive, passing the Dole plantation, up to the north shore past the Banzai Pipeline and miles of beaches where there were lots of surfers out.

One of the highlights was the traditional tattoos that were available at one station.

At one exhibit, both the girls and the boys learned a few steps of a traditional dance.

We got to watch a Hawaiin show as well,

and then got to meet (and get picked up by!) some of the members of the cast.

There was a "parade" of islands, with each island represented in traditional dance costume and flowers, traditional music and dance. The islands represented were Tonga, Tahiti, Samoa, Aotearoa (New Zealand), Fiji, and Hawaii. 

We fortunately had some panchos because it rained a bit, but that didn't dampen the spirit of anyone!

We played a stick drop game with a big group, and Jared was very happy to finish holding the stick!

We finished the night with a feast and a luau. There was lots of good good and dancing. It was a fitting way to finish out trip to the Polynesian Cultureal Center. 

It was a memorable day!