(We apologize for the lapse in blog postings - but we did not have access to wi-fi the last two evenings!)
Wednesday April 25th & Thursday, April 26th
We departed Honolulu Airport at 11:30 AM and arrived in Portland at 8:05 PM. The flight on Alaska Airlines was probably one of the most disappointing flights we have ever had! The seats were really close together, (no elbow room), and if you wanted something to eat, you had to pay for it!($$$$$) This is after paying for your flight ticket and $20 per bag for luggage (both weighed under 50 lbs.) Our seats were in the very rear of the plane, next to the restrooms, so we had a constant flow of "company" the whole flight Add to that a very turbulent ride, bouncing on the runway when we landed, and you have the makings of a very unpleasant airplane ride! (Pilot in training?)
We had to be at the airport early as Jeremy had to be back at Post for training asap, so he dropped us off at 7:00 AM and we had to wait until 8:30 for processing of our luggage and boarding passes at the Alaskan Airlines counter. So we stood in line and waited. Then we found out we had to run our luggage through the agricultural counter first before we went to process our luggage and boarding passess at the counter! Somehow, I just knew this was an omen of things to come! LOL Soooooo, we get to security and they end up running Jim's wallet and his carry-on bag through security twice - not sure what they were looking for, but they finally cleared the wallet and the carry on bag. Now I was another story! I get to security, run through the full body screening, and something shows up in my back pocket. There is nothing in my back pocket. Nada. They pat me down, check out the pocket and then decide to pull me aside and swab the palms of my hands with two pads and then ask me to step aside and wait for "test" results. What? !? So I waited and finally the stone-faced TSA person comes up to me and says "Your good to go" Okay, thank you very much! I am sure I must match a profile, as this is not the first time I have been stopped at the security counter.......it will be a while before I fly again! I know the TSA personnel have a job to do, and I respect that, however, I am getting paranoid about screenings......just saying.........
Our friends Joy and Joe Ritter picked us up at the airport in Portland, and once we told them we were hungry, we stopped for a late dinner. Thank you Joe and Joy!
We spent the night at Joe and Joy's house and the next morning, after sleeping in, we went to pick up our RV and took it to the Columbia River RV Park (we just love this park!), and set it up. We had to wait until 4:30 for our friend Jim Cheskawich to get home from work so we could pick up the dogs. We went and had our hair cut, picked up groceries, had lunch, and made sure all was in order for the dogs return.
To say the dogs were happy to see us is an understatement! They were besides themselves. They are staying pretty close to us, making sure we don't get too far out of their sight! Both are feeling better and we are thankful for Jim's wonderful attention to their needs while we were in Hawaii!
No pictures for this blog - although we miss Hawaii, we look forward to getting on the road again tomorrow, beginning our travels to the Great Lakes.
More forthcoming........
Saturday, April 28, 2012
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Day 34 - Parting is such sweet sorrow.......
Not much to blog about today folks! It was a day of preparing for our departure from Paradise tomorrow! You know the routine - wash, fold, pack. Clean house and double check to make sure you have all of your belongings! We did go get our last Hawaiian shaved ice this afternoon. We also sent packages home so as not to weigh down our suitcases!
We will be leaving our rental at 6 AM in the morning to meet with Jeremy who will then take us to the airport. He needs to get back to Post as he has training all this week, so we will have some time to wait at the airport before our plane departs at 11:30 AM. We arrive back in Portland at 8:45 PM.
It will be nice to get back to the mainland, but it will be hard to say good-bye. Not sure when we will be able to get back here again..........
We leave with many wonderful memories of a great visit!
We will probably not blog tomorrow as we get into Portland so late.
Look for us on Thursday - we should have lots to write about as we have our reunion with the dogs on that day! I know they will be happy to see us! We have missed them!
One more time.........Aloha!
We will be leaving our rental at 6 AM in the morning to meet with Jeremy who will then take us to the airport. He needs to get back to Post as he has training all this week, so we will have some time to wait at the airport before our plane departs at 11:30 AM. We arrive back in Portland at 8:45 PM.
It will be nice to get back to the mainland, but it will be hard to say good-bye. Not sure when we will be able to get back here again..........
We leave with many wonderful memories of a great visit!
We will probably not blog tomorrow as we get into Portland so late.
Look for us on Thursday - we should have lots to write about as we have our reunion with the dogs on that day! I know they will be happy to see us! We have missed them!
One more time.........Aloha!
Day 33 - Anyone need a yacht?
Today started out rainy, but we decided to go ahead with our plan and venture into Honolulu, and by the time we got to Honolulu, the rain had stopped and the sun was out. We really wanted to have the opportunity to visit the Aloha Tower Markeplace and visit the surrounding area. We braced ourselves for heavy traffic and a parking nightmare as we had experienced last week, but we were pleasantly surprised to find the traffic was moderate and moving. When we got to the parking lot which was full the last time we were downtown, there weren't but maybe a dozen cars! This was way too easy!
We had heard a lot about the Alhoa Towers Marketplace, since it is the primary shopping center close to the cruise ships that dock nearby. I am sad to report that over half of the stores were closed - meaning no longer in business. Those stores that were open were mostly souvenir stores or specialty shops such as chocolates, surfing, and tropical clothing - grossly overpriced at that! However, there were several wonderful balconies which provided great photo opportunities! Below is a picture of a yacht of all yachts - took this picture just for my friends Stan and Susie Marshall! Actually, Jim took the picture - I inadvertantly left my camera card in the computer (fogot to put it back in my camera after I downloaded pictures to yesterday's blog) so I was not able to take any pictures with my camera. I did however take some pictures with my Iphone, and will post them to Facebook later! This particular yacht is used for sunset dinner cruises. Nice!
There was also a cruise ship in port and we watched the crew participate in a lifeboat drill! It is amazing to see how efficient and timely they are able to lower the lifeboats and then safely return them to their appropriate spots on the ship. (It's all done magically with cables!) This was reassuring to us to know that these type of drills actually do take place. We have been on a few cruises , and we had never really seen this drill put into action, although we had been assured that the crew was regularly trained and participated in "mock" drills!
When we finished exploring the Aloha Towers Marketplace, we proceeded down the shore front (bulkhead) to take pictures of the schooners at the Hawiian Maritime Museum. We crossed a bridge and looked down into the clear blue water and there were all kinds of beautiful fish dashing in and out of an artifical reef. Awesome!
After exploring the waterfront area, we decided to go to the Hale Koa Hotel for lunch. The Hale Koa Hotel is a military hotel, and the hotel where we stayed last year when we came to see Jeremy before he left for Iraq. You must be active, disabled or retired military to stay at this hotel. Rates are determined by rank. The military has operated this hotel since 1975. It is a beautiful five-star hotel right on Waikiki Beach. We have many wonderful sunset pictures from the beach located out front of the Hale Koa - just the most "perfect" spot for making memories in the world! The food was first class, and the ambiance was wonderful! The flowers and tropical plants are stunning at the Hale Koa and of course, the hospitality is first class!
After lunch we went shopping to pick up a few "Hawiaiian" sourvenirs, then headed back to our rental house. Tomorrow we will be busy getting ready for our departure on Wednesday. It will be hard to leave paradise, but we are anxious to continue our journey on the mainland - and of course, to reunite with our dogs! We really do miss them!
Aloha!
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We had heard a lot about the Alhoa Towers Marketplace, since it is the primary shopping center close to the cruise ships that dock nearby. I am sad to report that over half of the stores were closed - meaning no longer in business. Those stores that were open were mostly souvenir stores or specialty shops such as chocolates, surfing, and tropical clothing - grossly overpriced at that! However, there were several wonderful balconies which provided great photo opportunities! Below is a picture of a yacht of all yachts - took this picture just for my friends Stan and Susie Marshall! Actually, Jim took the picture - I inadvertantly left my camera card in the computer (fogot to put it back in my camera after I downloaded pictures to yesterday's blog) so I was not able to take any pictures with my camera. I did however take some pictures with my Iphone, and will post them to Facebook later! This particular yacht is used for sunset dinner cruises. Nice!
There was also a cruise ship in port and we watched the crew participate in a lifeboat drill! It is amazing to see how efficient and timely they are able to lower the lifeboats and then safely return them to their appropriate spots on the ship. (It's all done magically with cables!) This was reassuring to us to know that these type of drills actually do take place. We have been on a few cruises , and we had never really seen this drill put into action, although we had been assured that the crew was regularly trained and participated in "mock" drills!
When we finished exploring the Aloha Towers Marketplace, we proceeded down the shore front (bulkhead) to take pictures of the schooners at the Hawiian Maritime Museum. We crossed a bridge and looked down into the clear blue water and there were all kinds of beautiful fish dashing in and out of an artifical reef. Awesome!
After exploring the waterfront area, we decided to go to the Hale Koa Hotel for lunch. The Hale Koa Hotel is a military hotel, and the hotel where we stayed last year when we came to see Jeremy before he left for Iraq. You must be active, disabled or retired military to stay at this hotel. Rates are determined by rank. The military has operated this hotel since 1975. It is a beautiful five-star hotel right on Waikiki Beach. We have many wonderful sunset pictures from the beach located out front of the Hale Koa - just the most "perfect" spot for making memories in the world! The food was first class, and the ambiance was wonderful! The flowers and tropical plants are stunning at the Hale Koa and of course, the hospitality is first class!
After lunch we went shopping to pick up a few "Hawiaiian" sourvenirs, then headed back to our rental house. Tomorrow we will be busy getting ready for our departure on Wednesday. It will be hard to leave paradise, but we are anxious to continue our journey on the mainland - and of course, to reunite with our dogs! We really do miss them!
Aloha!
Aloha Tower
Entrance to Marketplace
Chocolate Store and it's greeters!
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Radiance of the Seas
Lifeboat Drill
Fish on the artifical reef
Schooners at Maritime Museum
Maritime Museum
Coast Guard Cutter at dock
Limo Lot
Flowerbed outside of Museum
Star of Honolulu Yacht - Sunset Dinner Cruises
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