North Shore

We decided to explore the North Shore of Oahu by car as a day trip with Joe and Clare. We had a quick breakfast, picked up some snacks for the road, and then set out to see the sights. We had already seen a small portion of the North Shore since the wedding ceremony location was a beach in that area. The roads along the coast were rather twisty; we noted that it would have been an amazing ride on motorcycles. Perhaps we can return one day and do that. =)

We drove along Kamehameha Highway and stopped a few times along the way at some scenic points to stretch our legs and take some photos. One of the interesting laws in Hawaii is the public is allowed access to all beaches. Technically, there are no private beaches, even if you own beach front property. So as we drove along the North Shore, there were pubic access walkways at regular intervals between the private properties. 

We stopped for lunch at Fumi's. Fumi's is one of the famous shrimp trucks found on Kamehameha Highway. We actually ate at a brick and mortar location that was a short distance from the original truck. Matt and I shared an order of spicy garlic shrimp and lemon pepper shrimp. Joe and Clare shared orders of spicy garlic shrimp and garlic and butter shrimp. I think we can all agree that every dish we tried was fantastic. After lunch, we enjoyed a giant shaved ice with local flavours (Blue Hawaiian, mango, and coconut).

We stopped briefly at Waimea Valley Visitor Center and looked around a small section of the botanical gardens that surrounded the Visitor Center. In addition to the plants, we saw some local wildlife causing some mild havoc amongst pedestrians and vehicular traffic. Some wild birds (peacocks, chickens, roosters, and various ducks) were strolling around without a care in the world. It caused some amusement as they would amble along in the parking lots in front of cars, effectively holding up traffic. 

We continued along and then drove past fields of pineapples. At first we thought we were driving past fields of aloe plants since the crowns of pineapples and the leaves of aloe plants have very similar shapes at a quick glance. But then we spotted signs for the Dole Plantation and it dawned on us what those plants really were. We couldn't pass up an opportunity to visit the Dole Plantation. We had a stroll through their garden, their gift shop, and had a quick look at their world famous Pineapple Garden Maze. A large board listed frequently asked questions about pineapples. Did you know that it takes 20 months to grow a pineapple?? We were all amazed by the information on that board. We sampled some Dole soft serve pineapple ice cream and browsed through their gift shop before continuing on our way.

We finished our exploratory drive and returned to Honolulu. We completed our day by having dinner at a restaurant called House Without a Key. This was our final night on the island of Oahu. Next up: Maui!