Sometimes

Sometimes ... it's good to be persistent. We failed at our attempt to have breakfast at Eggs 'N Things the first time we were on Oahu. We showed up much earlier this time and still had to wait 15-20 minutes! They were certainly worth the wait and the second attempt at eating there. Eggs 'N Things has been serving breakfast to locals and tourists alike since 1974. Matt had a plate of macadamia nut pancakes while I had eggs and Portuguese sausage that came with a side of regular pancakes. Matt's plate came with five sizeable pancakes while mine came with a stack of three. Ridiculous portions! The majority of the patrons appeared to be Japanese tourists. Many of them were passing their plates amongst themselves so that everyone in their party could try every dish ordered. Quite a few dishes were piled high with whipped cream. After we finished stuffing our faces full of pancakes, we walked along Kalakaua Avenue to the Waikiki Aquarium. 

The aquarium in Waikiki is not a large facility, but they had many unique creatures on display. One if these creatures was the peppermint angelfish. It is orange with white stripes and was acquired during a Smithsonian funded research expedition. It is on permanent loan to the aquarium. We were told that a private collector offered $30,000 for it when it arrived there! Many colourful creatures were on display. Some of the interesting ones included nautilus, jelly fish, various corals, giant clams, and local fish. There was an impressive outdoor coral farm and a giant clam display. 

When we finished up at the aquarium, we walked along Waikiki Beach instead of Kalakaua Avenue. We were pleasantly surprised to find that this section of the beach was quieter and less populated. We watched some people learning to surf and a couple who were learning to paddle board. Further along, we walked out onto a pier for a different view of the beach. We discovered that the beach area immediately surrounding the pier was quite shallow. We were able to see many fish swimming very close to shore, including the colourful state fish, the reef triggerfish. It's Hawaiian name is Humuhumunukunukukuapua'a. Seriously. On the pier itself, small crabs ran back and forth from the top down the sides of the pier. They scattered down the sides as we approached to take a closer look at them. We returned to the hotel and finished packing up our things. We had the hotel store our bags while we continued exploring Waikiki for the final time. 

One of the things we had considered doing as a group after the wedding was having lunch at Morimoto's. Having a meal at a celebrity chef's restaurant is always cause for excitement. Unfortunately, it didn't work out because we simply ran out of time. Sometimes ... it's good to do things on your own. We made a reservation for lunch at Morimoto's the evening we returned to Oahu. As it turns out, lunch at Morimoto's was a quiet affair. We were seated on the patio that overlooked the marina. A nice breeze kept us comfortable despite the afternoon heat. Only two other parties were seated on the patio with us. Matt ordered braised black cod (served with miso soup, mixed green salad, and chef's selection of sushi) while I had chirashi don (assorted sashimi over sushi rice). I was impressed that Matt ate the sushi since he has always had an aversion to eating raw fish. He even ordered scallop sushi! My chirashi don was definitely the fanciest one I've ever had. 

We decided against dessert and opted to return to Kona Mountain Café for a caffeinated beverage. Matt enjoyed his drink while I worked on a few travel posts. When I finally finished working on my posts, we went for another short walk. We stopped at Aloha Harmony Tea House for (no, not tea!) several scoops of gelato. =) Definitely a refreshing stop. We also took a look through the Honolulu Surf Museum located in Jimmy Buffett's at the Beachcomber. It housed an interesting collection of surfboards and ukuleles.

Sometimes ... hotels really do know best. Every time we had taken a taxi to and from the airport, it cost over $40. Ouch. There had to be a better way. Our hotel was partnered with a shuttle service that was far more economical, only $12 per person. We were quite pleased with that. The ride to the airport was fantastic. The driver was on time, efficient, and very pleasant. We were at the airport with lots of time to spare. We had snacked on fresh fruit while we were waiting at the hotel for our shuttle. Now we would have time for a light dinner while we waited for our flight. We shared a sandwich and salad before going to wait at our gate.

Sometimes ... it's good to go shopping. Our flight from Honolulu to Vancouver was freezing. Despite the fact that we had taken the time to change into more appropriate clothing for the flight, it wasn't quite enough. Luckily, we had to pickup our checked luggage and re-check it when we landed in Vancouver before boarding the connecting flight to Toronto. We unpacked a few more layers in preparation for the next flight. Matt had purchased a few items of clothing in Hawaii. The irony was he had purchased a long sleeved casual shirt and a hoodie, decidedly un-Hawaiian clothing. Who knew these would be the perfect items for our flight back! We were definitely more comfortable on the connecting flight.

Sometimes ... it's good to have friends with cars. We landed in Toronto in bright sunshine. Yay! Then we noticed that all the windsocks were completely horizontal, indicating a fairly strong wind. Boo! We had originally planned to get home by public transit. Once we stepped out of the airport, I was relieved that our friend George had offered to pick us up and Matt had accepted his offer. Thanks, George!

That night, the three of us met up with the other four who had also travelled to Hawaii and we all had dinner together. We all raved about what a great time we had in Hawaii and talked about how we all wanted to go back. Sometimes ... life takes us to unexpected places. 

Pat and Kazumi: Congratulations! Best wishes for a long life together filled with love, laughter, and adventure!

Joe and Clare: Thanks for hanging out with us on Oahu and Maui.

George: Thanks for rescuing us from Pearson.

Gaby and Josephine: Thanks for giving us great ideas for things to do and places to see!

Mahalo, Hawaii, we will see you again. Sometimes ... it's good to be home ;)