Feeling The Aloha Again

4/26/2025

Books by Patti Liszkay available on Amazon:
"Equal And Opposite Reactions"   http://amzn.to/2xvcgRa
   "Hail Mary"    https://www.amzn.com/1684334888
"Tropical Depression"       https://www.amzn.com/B0BTPN7NYY

Feeling The Aloha Again

This year once again the sun, moon, stars, finances, and all the other key elements fell into an auspicious alignment, and on Tuesday, April 8, my mate Tom and I were once again on our way to Honolulu, where a few days later we would meet up with some members of our Ohana - Hawaiian for family.
Our flight left Columbus at 6:30 am and two hours later we landed in Minneapolis where we had a two-hour layover, which gave us plenty of time to catch breakfast. Luckily for us Minneapolis, rated the best airport in the whole U.S.A., apparently ranks at the top among airport food options, as well.
We found a cute Tex-Mex place called Zona Cocina,

...that served up a yummy breakfast with the fluffiest, buttery-est eggs.

(Note to self: on the future trips, remember the food and try for layovers in Minneapolis).
At 10:09 am we boarded our next flight and nine hours later we arrived, most gratefully, in Honolulu, with its open-air airport, balmy breezes,

...palm tree views,

...and welcoming message of Aloha, the Hawaiian greeting of peace, love, and friendship.

As soon as we retrieved our luggage we headed over to the car rental area. We'd made a reservation with Enterprise, where the line was considerable.

However, I noted that next door at the National desk there was no line at all. (Note to self: Next time rent with National).

Heading out from the airport it's always a little thrill for me, though I can't explain why, to see the sign, set against the velvety mountains and palm trees,

...with names of places once so far away and exotic, places that once existed for me only in my imagination, but that are now real places to me, places I've been before and where I'll soon be again.

But the best feeling is arriving at the Hale Koa,

...the hotel for active duty and retired military set on Fort DeRussy in Waikiki,

...A U.S. Army post which was once a defense artillery site.

...but is now home to the Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies,

...a beautiful beach front park that's open to the public,

...and the Hale Koa.

The best feeling of all is stepping into the Hale Koa lobby, a breezy open-air lanai,

...that looks down over a courtyard,

...where there's a massive and well-loved Indian Banyan tree named Gus;

...and hearing the lovely streaming Hawaiian music,

...and feeling the aloha.

Our 5th floor room,

The view from our room

(And the view at night):

After we settled into our room we followed the conventional wisdom of jumping right into one's time zone. And so, though we'd been up since 3:30 am Columbus time, and it was now 11 pm Columbus time, we nonetheless jumped into Honolulu time, which was 5 pm.
We walked down to the courtyard,

...then strolled the botanical garden on the vast hotel grounds.

The botanical garden opens into another courtyard, where can be found
Happy's Fast & Fresh,

...the Hale Koa short-order eatery where the food is, as promised, fast and fresh,

...and always quite tasty, as well, and where we generally had at least one meal a day out on the pleasant patio.

On this night I had the Tuesday night special, which was delicious pork in mushroom sauce,

...while Tom had an equally good seafood salad.

After dinner we walked along the path to where the Hale Koa grounds led to Waikiki Beach,

...which is open to the public here and all along the shoreline.
In Hawaii there are no private beaches, even beaches that touch hotel properties. All beaches are open to the public, and hotels must allow beachgoers access through their lobbies to the beaches that they open up to.
On this night Waikiki was crowded with folks watching the sunset,

...and the boats,

...and the volleyball players, Tuesday night apparently being a big night for beach volleyball, as I learned from a couple of the players with whom who I chatted.

We walked along the beach,

...towards diamond Head.

Then we cut over and headed towards downtown Waikiki,

...which was busy and lively as ever on this Spring Break evening.

We walked to Kalakaua Street, the main thoroughfare through Waikiki,

...to the food court at the Royal Hawaiian Center,

...where we had our first double cream puffs of the trip from our favorite bakery, the Kulu Kulu Honolulu,

...where the pastries are exquisite.

...and the cream puffs the best.

After our cream puffs we walked a little way up Kalakahua Avenue,

...then crossed the street and came to Duke's Alley, a narrow passageway that we stumbled upon during a visit a few years ago that opens up into a hidden gem of an open air market where one can purchase souvenirs and island-made crafts at discount prices.