25 September - Saturday

25 September - Saturday
Today was GAME DAY and James and I dressed accordingly. My cousin, Larry, who lives in Fort Worth and is an avid BAMA fan, was going to call us and keep us up to speed on the game. We went to a parade starting at 9 a.m. that is the Festival of Flowers. It is an annual parade and went down the main boulevard of Waikiki. Very unusual parade. They had lots of bands (mainly high school) and marching units from the Naval Station and the Marine Station. There were also traditional units such as the Royal Hawaiian Band. Most of the “dance teams” were in hula skirts and were very energetic. The floats were unusual and some of the “color guard” were in traditional Hawaii dress. The main tradition for the parade is the recognition of a princess and her court from each island. Each princess is dressed in beautiful attire and rides on a horse. Her court is dressed in corresponding colors. Something very unusual is the fact that each “court” is followed by “pooper-scoopers” with very elaborate “pooper-holders.” You had to be there! Yes Stacey, there was one group of young majorettes and their very skillful leader. Each vehicle (and there were lots) had a beautiful floral arrangement on the hood. Miss Hawaii was in one of the vehicles and Miss Teen America was in one also.
Larry didn’t call a lot and when I called him I found out why – BAMA was behind at the half by 10 points. As soon as the parade was over we headed back to the room where the four of us watched the last half. It got so loud in our room that I thought the security guard might come up – but all that excitement helped BAMA come from behind and win by 4 – GREAT against a top 10 team. As we left the hotel and headed to the car, James made another friend. I knew he liked chicken but this is WEIRD!
We decided to go downtown and tour the capitol and the palace. The capitol is very unusual and extremely modern; however, since Hawaii was the last state to be added to the Union it is fitting that the capitol would reflect a more modern era. It was not open for tours but we were impressed with the “openness” of the building. On the grounds of the capitol is a very unusual sculpture depicting Father Damien. He was the priest who volunteered to go to the leper colony on Molokai, the Hawaiian island where victims of leprosy were exiled, and minister to the victims of the disease. After years of living and ministering to the ill, he contacted leprosy and died. The sculpture recognizes the sacrifice of this priest as well as the inhumanity of forcing exile on people who were ill. From there we got a bite to eat and then headed to the Royal Palace. This is the only royal palace within the United States. Hawaii was a sovereign nation ruled by a democratic parliament and a royal monarch until the U.S. financial involvement resulted in the United States forcing the over-throw of their government. On the grounds of the palace is the “Coronation Pavilion” which was built by King Kalakaua. Once inside we toured the grand hall with an elegant staircase, hand-carved from native Hawaiian woods. On the first floor are an elaborate dining room and the Throne room. The stair case leads to the second floor with the bed rooms and the bed room where Queen Liliuokalani was imprisoned to allow the over throw of the government. The palace's original cost was a whopping $360,000. King Kalakaua was a man of vision, not only having electricity installed four years before the American White House had it, but he also had indoor flushes, and telephones. In the basement we were able to see the crown jewels. This was a wonderful tour. On the grounds of the Royal palace are a huge Banyan tree and the statue of the last Queen of Hawaii, Queen Liliuokalani. As we were leaving the area we saw a memorial dedicated to the men and women of Hawaii who have served in the military. It has an eternal flame and is very impressive. We also rode by the new Governor’s Mansion and learned that the old mansion is now the Bishop Museum.
As we got back to the hotel we decided to take a trolley to the “strip” on Waikiki and we walked through the International Market Place (lots of junk) and window shopped at the expensive stores. They had lots of street entertainment (music, magic, etc.) but we were so tired we decided to head back to the hotel and get a bite to eat. Before we left, James just had to get his picture made with Elmo – I think that is for Ally’s entertainment.
This was a FULL day and I didn’t get to add the post until now. Looking forward to tomorrow!!

24 Sep 2010

Friday 24 Sept
Good day but long so I didn’t get to post last night. Just a short summary. We ate at the Army hotel’s breakfast bar (recommended by the locals and it was a good choice.) Then we got tickets for the Submarine and the Dinner cruise – NOTE – we saved lots by going direct to the Atlantis station on the beach rather than using the hotel service. We also checked on the “island hop” and either it has become unrealistically expensive or the hotel is “making a killing.” I’m going to try booking direct on line. We took the submarine tour (2 hours total). We didn’t see as many “schools of fish” as before but Tom and Carolyn enjoyed it. We did see several unusual large fish and a couple of huge sea turtles. The colors of the fish are just beautiful. After the sub we drove through the “strip”, ate lunch, and drove to the nature preserve, Hauanama Bay. The view is awesome. We got some good pictures including an unusual view of the lighthouse through the gnarled branches of some trees. From there we went to the “Blow hole” scenic point. The blow hole wasn’t working well and one of the guides told us that the waves were coming from the wrong direction. Carolyn got to see it “blow” a couple of times and we will try to stop back by on our way to the North Shore. The beach in this area is volcanic rock, extremely rugged but beautiful. I have heard that this is the area where “From Here to Eternity” was filmed. We had to return to the hotel because we had tickets for the Friday night show at the Hilton. The show is at the “Super pool” was really good with great fireworks afterward. We met a nice couple from London and found out there is a lot of world that we haven’t seen yet. We had a late night dinner (breakfast items) at Denny’s across the street from the hotel and then to bed. We had to be up early this morning for the Floral Festival parade that starts at 9 a.m. not far from our hotel. This is a really short note but it is 5:30 a.m. and I have a lot to do.

23 Sep 2010 - HAWAII

Sept 23 – Thursday – in Honolulu
We started our day at 8:30 with a quick breakfast and headed to Pearl Harbor. HINT FOR ANYONE GOING THERE – NO bags are allowed – that includes purses, camera bags etc. They do have “bag storage” available but we “stored” in the trunk of the car. Our ticket for the USS Arizona was for the 11:20 boat so we had time to view the new monuments they have installed, look at the anchor from the USS Arizona and see the 30 minute film about what happened at Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. When we got the area where we were to gather for the trip out to the Arizona Memorial we had a talk from the Park Ranger about some of the details of memorial.




We then boarded a Navy boat that took our group to the memorial. It is just breathtaking – not just in beauty but in solemn awe it inspires. You can see the ship from the memorial and you know that approximately 1200 men died on that ship in the attack. There is a huge wall in the memorial that has the names of all of the causalities of that morning. The memorial also has an area with the flags of the Services and the ships that sank. Tom was in the Air Force and we got his picture with the Air Force flag.






We left the USS Arizona, got a quick lunch, and got tickets to the USS Missouri. Carolyn and I decided that there were too many stairs on that ship for us so we just took the bus over with the guys and waited in the shade while they took the tour. The USS Missouri is awesome! It is the battleship where the Japanese signed the surrender to the U.S. That spot is marked with a huge star. The guys decided not to take a “guided tour” and went on a self-guided tour. They made pictures “on the phone” – I wonder who they were talking to! They were on the ship over an hour and both said that Carolyn and I made the right choice.






When we left Pearl Harbor we headed toward “Punchbowl” National Cemetery. To get there we had to go on Highway 1. It was 5 p.m. and the literature had said to avoid that highway during rush hour. Now we know why – traffic CRAWLED! But we finally got there. This is a National Memorial to military that were MIA and declared dead (i.e., their bodies were not returned.) The memorials are separated by “war”, i.e., Korean, WWII, etc., and then by Service (Army, Navy, etc.). My first cousin, Billy Morgan Phillips, was MIA in Korean War and his body was never found. We found his name on one of the monuments. There is a chapel on the grounds and an impressive sculpture. The view from there is fantastic – you can see most of Honolulu and Diamond Head. The flowers and trees are just so pretty that they take your breath. Several of the trees are trimmed to resemble wreaths.








It was a long day and we ate dinner at “Bubba Gumps” in the Ala Mona Shopping Center. Afterwards we got our exercise (as if we hadn’t walked enough.) Tom wanted to go to See’s Candy and get some special candy for his daughter (an apricot candy that she really loves.) We found out just how large that shopping center was when we tried to find the candy store. FINALLY we located it, bought candy (I had to have some chocolate since I had not had a STARBUCKS today) and headed back to the hotel. Great day and looking forward to tomorrow.

Sep 22 Hawaii trip

22 Sep - We are on the way! James and I got up at 3:30 a.m. – we are slow. We got to the Huntsville Airport in plenty of time BUT as we were going through security, Tom realized he had checked the “carry-on” bag and had with him the bag he intended to check. The security guard escorted him back to the check in counter and, luckily, the bag had not left and he was able to swap. Not a bad outcome – hope that is the worst thing that happens on this trip. The trip to Atlanta was quick – and crowded. The plane was full and had very little leg room. No trouble finding our connecting gate and STARBUCKS! It is going to be a good day. We made pictures in the Atlanta airport and on the plane.




It was a LONG flight. We left Atlanta airport at 9:50 Athens time and got to Honolulu at 7:20 Athens time but it was 2:30 in the afternoon in Honolulu! Good flight – no problem except my feet swelled a lot. Once we got to the hotel (Hawaiian Hilton Village), James took Tom and Carolyn for a tour and made some pictures in the resort while I rested a while. James started making new friends early on this trip. They saw Diamond Head from the beach and the penguins that are here at the Hilton. As you can tell the flowers are beautiful. I think Carolyn is HAPPY to be here. We decided to eat at the Old Spaghetti Factory and then turned in early (9pm Hawaii time but 2 am Athens time.) We have a lot planned for tomorrow.