Tropical tale pt1

10 hours to LA followed by 5 hours in a dull airport and another 6 to the island of Oahu should have been a nightmare day, but surprisingly it went by OK, with books finished and unusually edible plane food eaten. Admittedly we were a bit zombie like getting the number 19 bus from the airport to the hotel ("travellers" don't take taxis....), but the aloha spirit really does seem to work here, with helpful bus drivers telling us where we were, and a local bringing up maps on his smart phone and practically insisting on walking us to the front door - my doubts over his motives were completely unfounded.

Waikiki where we stayed is very much the tourist capital of Hawaii, with chain hotels of 40+ floors everywhere. Possibly not the Hawaii that springs to mind, but everything is so easy here, from Buffet food everywhere (when in Rome), to beach activities and shops for almost anything. The beaches, although crowded, are great and there are surfers everywhere, with 3-4 foot high, clean waves almost all the way along the sea front while we around.

Following a post travelling day relaxing , we took the bus the next morning to the other "windward" side of the island. The town of Wailea is far more relaxed and less touristy than Waikiki, and has a beach straight out of a brochure photo, with impossibly blue water and white sand.

Wailea Beach

The mountains in the middle of the island are all jagged and volcanic looking. They have very lush forests, the islands having a much higher rainful than I expected, especially in the mountain area.