My Hawaii Vacation Pictures

**gdwriter** · 01-03-10 04:15 PM

I was fortunate enough to spend Christmas week in Hawaii. This was my first trip to the islands, and it was amazing. So much to see, and I will have to make another trip — actually several trips.

I probably took 1,000 pictures, and while they're nowhere near the quality of what Gary88 produces, I actually got some pretty good ones with my little Canon PowerShot A1100IS, which I had bought two days before the trip.

I have the full albums on Facebook if anybody's interested and they're linked below, but here are some of the highlights:

Sunday/Monday: Trip, general photos, snorkling

From my flight from Honolulu to Kona on the Big Island, Waikiki Beach and Diamond Head:

Cool palm tree at our resort, Wyndham Kona Hawaiian:

Along the Kona coast to where we went snorkling on Kealakekua Bay:

Captain Cook Monument in Kealakekua Bay. This is where the first Westerner landed in Hawaii.

**gdwriter** · 01-03-10 04:35 PM

Tuesday: O'ahu, Pearl Harbor, Iolani Palace and Diamond Head

Since this was my first time to Hawaii, I wanted to see Honolulu, so I made a day trip.

My first stop was Pearl Harbor, since I had been told tickets to the Arizona Memorial can run out early. I arrived at 8:45, and the first available ticket was for 11:45. So I visited the Pacific Aviation Museum, which has a nice collection of WWII airplanes and exhibits on the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

This mural shows what Pear Harbor looked like, with all the battleships parked on Battleship Row, at the moment right before the attack:

A Japanese Zero:

This actual airplane was on a pleasure flight the morning of Dec. 7. The Zeros raced past it, and the Honolulu attorney and his son at the controls were actually shot at by U.S. forces (not knowing who they were) as they landed at the Honolulu airport:

A Curtiss P-40 used in the U.S. counter attack:

B-25 Mitchell bomber similar to the one flown in Jimmy Dollittle's famous raid on Tokyo:

The Arizona Memorial itself is sad, moving and beautiful all at the same time. I think any American who visits Hawaii should make a trip to the Arizona in recognition and gratitude to all who have given their lives for our country — and as a reminder of the brutality of war and why it should be a last resort.

The museum has a mural and models of the Arizona prior to Pearl Harbor:

There's also a model of the memorial over the Arizona's remains:

Before taking the boat out to the memorial, you're shown a film about Pearl Harbor. I did not realize someone caught on film the moment the Arizona's powder magazine exploded. So, even though I knew what happened to the ship, it was still shocking to see it happen.

**gdwriter** · 01-03-10 04:51 PM

The memorial itself is a lovely piece of architecture. It's explained that the arc of the roof symbolizes the low point of the attack itself and the ultimate Allied victory in WW II.

I got some nice shots through the ceiling of the American flag flying in a brisk wind:

Flags of the states representing the names of the battleships attacked at Pearl Harbor — Pennsylvania, Maryland, Tennessee, California, West Virginia, Nevada, Utah, Oklahoma, Arizona:

Part of the remains of the Arizona visible from the memorial:

**gdwriter** · 01-03-10 05:05 PM

After Pearl Harbor, I went to downtown Honolulu. The Aloha Tower at the port used to be the tallest building in the city:

Unfortunately, the observation deck was closed, so I had to settle for just exterior photos:

I love flags, and Hawaii has a cool one. This is on one of the historical buildings surrounded by high-rises downtown:

The Iolani Palace is the only royal palace on U.S. soil. It was also the fictional headquarters of Hawaii Five-0 and was used as a state office building until the 1969 capitol building was completed. It has since been restored to what it looked like in the late 1800s. Photography is not allowed inside, but it is gorgeous, particularly the woodwork:

Statue of King Kamehameha I, who united the Hawaiian islands and formed the Kingdom of Hawaii in 1810:

The statue is in front of the Hawaii Supreme Court building across the street from the Iolani Palace:

Because of the time spent at Pearl Harbor and the Iolani Palace, I didn't have much time to explore Diamond Head before I needed to return to the airport for my flight back to Kona. But I did drive around it and got a few pictures:

Waikiki from Diamond Head:

Honolulu at night from my flight back to Kona:

**orconn** · 01-03-10 05:19 PM

Thanks for sharing your pictures of Hawii ... one of my favorite places in the world! I lived in Hnolulu while in school at the the East-West Center at the University of Hawaii-Manoa and grew to love the Islands and the people of Hawaii. Our family has vacationed their many times and we are all ready to go back any time! When I was in school their I lived at the Waikiki Aquarium which is located in Kapiolani Park (the green place between Waikiki and Diamond Head). For a young 22 year old male the time I spent their was about as good as it gets!

**gdwriter** · 01-03-10 05:21 PM

Thursday: Big Island air tour

The air tour of the Big Island was amazing. The landscapes of the Big Island are so diverse, from barren lava fields to rain forest to ranch land to vast mountains and valleys. And there are still active volcanoes on the island.

Lava flow from a 1983 eruption:

Steam from one of the active volcanoes:

Lava flow ending at the coastline:

Active lava flow at the ocean:

Observatory at the top of Mauna Kea:

The north side of the island have deep canyons and sheer cliffs at the coast:

On our way back to Kona, we flew over the Waikoloa Beach Golf Course, which I had played the day before:

Only one hole is actually on the beach, but it is spectacular:

**thebigjimsho** · 01-03-10 05:34 PM

I still haven't seen 767 interior pics...

**gdwriter** · 01-03-10 05:36 PM

Thursday: Sunset at the beach

We went to the beach at sunset on Christmas Eve:

Most of the beaches on the west side of the Big Island are rocky:

The surf was fairly high:

Got a couple shots standing at the edge of the surf:

Went down the coast to another beach as the sun was going down:

The sun went down really fast; you could actually watch its progress:

What looked like a native Hawaiian blew into a conch shell as the sun set:

**gdwriter** · 01-03-10 05:44 PM

Friday: Christmas on the beach

We drove around the southern tip of the Big Island on Christmas Day to Punalu'u Black Sand Beach.

I'm not a fan of black sand, which is really crushed lava. Hot and very coarse. Between the black sand and trying to get my balance on the rocks around the tidal pools, my feet were really hurting afterward. But the setting itself was beautiful:

Saw some sea turtles sunning themselves on the beach. Didn't see them at first since they blend in with the black sand:

**gdwriter** · 01-03-10 06:00 PM

Originally Posted by thebigjimsho

I still haven't seen 767 interior pics...

Here you go, Jim. My Canon was put away, so I just got these quickies with my iPhone during boarding:

I was in 12A, just two rows back from first class, so I got off pretty quickly and didn't want to wait until everybody behind me cleared out to get a clean shot of the interior. But here are a couple of a Hawaiian 767 from Airliners.net:

I like the 2-3-2 set up in the 767. I had plenty of room and the seat was reasonably comfortable. My only complaint was there was very little padding on the armrest, but the pillow from Hawaiian took care of that. Very nice airplane, ride was very smooth; too bad it's hard to find a widebody on a domestic flight anymore.

**thebigjimsho** · 01-03-10 06:49 PM

Very nize.

**LS1Mike** · 01-03-10 07:18 PM

Great Pictures man! I have been about 10 times, infact before the air museum and the bridge you traveled on, We used to moor the Tridents right behind what was left of the USS Utah. Ford Island used to be a neat little place lost in time.