In our last blog I wrote we had plenty of time with five sea days between Hawaii and San Diego to complete the blog. Well, I am writing this on an AA flight between DFW and MCO. The last five days of the cruise were a whirlwind of activity. Plus the Cruise Director asked me to do a presentation. Seems many of our fellow passengers were with us on the world cruise and asked him to find a slot. I presented an overview of the early Soviet manned spaceflight program. It was the first time for that presentation and I had to finish up the scripting and some rehearsal. It was very well received and I had fun doing it. Now back to Hawaii.
Our first stop was Hilo arriving in rain and windy conditions. We went into town where we had a great pizza and I sent the last blog. Me at work.
Noreen wanted a picture with the Lea so I had her stand here. Don’t tell her about the sign.
Then it was on to Honolulu. Our first stop was the Pearl Harbor Historic site, home of the Arizona Memorial and the Battleship Missouri.
It was to windy to take the ferry to the Arizona. The ferries are run by the Navy and stopping them is not unusual. We did get to see it from the landside Memorial site.
And the Missouri.
We then headed to the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific; also known to many as the Punchbowl.
The main monument within the cemetery.
Acres and acres of markers.
We found it very sobering and reflective to visit Pearl Harbor and the cemetery. Especially since we arrived by ship and sailed down the same channel that the battleships, carriers, subs and every other type of vessel had sailed through in WWII.
Day 2 in Honolulu was off to town and Waikiki Beach. Noreen had to have a picture on the famous beach.
We found these fenced off rocks. According to a local “Ask Me” person they are sacred stones and if you leave your Lea there you are joining with the spirits. I don’t know what part the two pigeons play in the whole thing.
This was the best store we saw all day. It had the dumbest statements and saying on t-shirts and anything else that could have print on it. People would stand in front of the window and read the T-shirts for the longest time……just like us.
Our final port in Hawaii was Lahania. We spent a few hours walking around town in the morning. Noreen said she didn’t need any more jewelry. I thought we were done shopping until I realized she had just changed her focus.
In the afternoon we went for a very enjoyable sail on a catamaran. This is the boat as we passed it going in on a tender in the morning.
On boarding we settled in. Noreen picked seats close to the “refreshments.” Actually they were the best seats onboard considering the wind, spray and sun. We had a very leisurely and relaxing 2 hour sail around the area.
This is my favorite picture from our stop. We found ourselves walking behind two of our table mates from the ship. Bill and Connie are 91 and 88 years old respectively. They have been married for 65 years. Here they were walking along, holding hands and being very much in young love. A model for us. They were delightful table mates. They are British, having come to America and now living in Denver. Bill was in the British Army and landed in Normandy on D+3 with an artillery battery and fought across Europe.
That was the end of our Hawaii time and we set sail for the US arriving in san Diego five days later. San Diego is a really nice town with a lot of amenities, excellent weather, and local attractions. it is certainly a navy town.
Upon disembarking we learned that one of our bags had been lost between the ship and the terminal, a distance of 50 feet. Then our flight to DFW was delayed causing us to miss our connection and switch to a later flight (which I am on right now at 2335) and get home sometime Tuesday morning. But, we met an old colleague and friend, Rob and his lovely wife Melinda at the airport. Together we passed the delay at a lovely restaurant in San Diego’s Little Italy. It made all the problems go away.
Thus the end of another voyage. We had a great time and hope you enjoyed joining us. Keep you comments and questions coming, we love to hear from you.
