Tuesday in Waikiki

                I am sleeping well here.   It must be my long walks and the nightly beer and wine.    It was nice to have morning coffee on my lanai overlooking the courtyard of the Hale Koa.   I can see the ocean and also the mountains with the clouds drifting in.   I hate to leave this military resort this morning.   Check out is not until noon, but the maid was knocking on my door promptly at 9am.   I checked out at 9:30.   I had coffee service in the room, and then I went directly below to the PX and bought more coffee.   They have a heck of a deal this month with all size coffees only $1.   So, I loaded up, grabbed a pastry, and drove away in my Toyota Corolla while thinking that I need to return here soon to the Hale Koa.

                I didn’t drive far.  I went to my usual parking spot on the east end of Kalakaua Avenue to Kapiolani Park.   I got out of the car and noticed that I lost my phone.   I wasted time digging around the front seat until I found is on the left side of my driver’s door.   It is terrible when dementia sets in you know.   I had my volksmarching guide info that I printed before I left Denver.   It told to go into the nearby New Otani Hotel (where I used to spend the night before I ran my Ironman mini-triathlons back in my youth).   I got the walk box from the congierge guy and got the guide and map for the Historic Waikiki Walk that is 7 miles long.   This walk goes by surfboards that have historic information which is a clever way to explain history of the area.

                I walked the same route along Queen’s Beach (where I read that King Kamemaha sacrificed his enemies – how cool is that?), and then to the Natatorium to Waikiki Beach.   There are a lot of beach bums just hanging out on a Tuesday, and I thought they must love Obama and welfare to live like this.   I walked across the street to the ABC Store in front of St. Augustine’s by the Sea Catholic Church (where I went to Mass on Sunday).    I saw a small sign advertising the Father Damien and Sister Cope Museum, and I walked upstairs above the ABC store that is directly in front of the church that is locked off during the day.   That was very interesting and rather sad.   They have a lot of pictures of the lepers who  were banished to Molokai.   I read that they were separated from their families and sent to the isolated island and that most of them never saw their families again because the families were too poor to travel to that island.   The museum guide lady said that families who could afford to travel to that island had to stand behind a fence to talk with their diseased family member and could not touch them.   There were a lot of pictures of young children with no fingers and scared faces.   Most of the victims were native Hawaiians, but the guide showed me one picture of a white boy of age 8 standing by his bicycle looking perfectly normal and very sad.   He was taken from his family and live his life on that island.   That was heartbreaking to see.    There are several photos of Father Daminen, Sister Cope, and other nuns and even a small group of Sacred Heart brothers who lived on the island to minister to the lepers.   The guide told me that she lives in Lakewood near Denver, CO and spends the winter months  here  and volunteers at this museum that attracts very few visitors so they were thrilled that I stopped by.   She said that I must come back in 3 years when they hope to have a new visitor center with climate control build next door on the church property so they can display Father Damien’s Mass vestments that are currently in storage elsewhere.    I promised that I would come back.

I continued my walk along Kalakaua Avenue.  The guide map had me go into several hotels and look at their historic displays which were interesting.   I never did this during the 3 years I lived here.   I learned a lot about these hotels that were mostly built over the mansion homes of Hawaiian royalty before the evil American government sent its military to take over this island and dethrone the Hawaiian royalty.   There were also a lot of celebrities who stayed in the hotels, and I expect most people now have no idea about these old movie stars.   I didn’t know that cruise ships used to pull up right on Waikiki beaches that had long piers leading to these old hotels.   The guide had me walking the sand behind the Royal Hawaiian, and it was hot out there in the sun.  

                I continued the walk past the Hale Koa and into the Hilton Hawaiian Village.   The guide said to continue walking through the Ala Moana Park toward the mall, but I will save that part of the walk for tomorrow.   I turned around and headed back east through Fort Derussey, along Kalakua, and then took a route off this main drag over to the Hilton Waikiki that I stayed in the first night I got here.  The guide map then had me walk along the Ala Wai Canal, and I remembered the young policeman who was murdered by a drug pusher who killed him with a shotgun and threw the shotgun into this canal.   The bastard only got a 20 year sentence for killing this young undercover cop  because Hawaii has not death penalty.   I remembered when I lived here for 3 years how people were outraged, and to think this scum is probably free now and walking these same streets.  

                I walked by a traffic accident with two cars parked by the side of the road and three cop cars working the accident.  It must be a slow day for Hawaii 5-0!

                I got back to my car and was worn out from that long walk in the sun.   It was only 79 degrees, but I was dehydrated.    I got in my car and headed for the Hilton Hawaiian Village to check in at 3:30pm.

                The lady at the front desk was friendly but hard to understand.   I think they cater to the Japanese here.   I notice there were a lot of brochures in Japanese.   My condo room is very nice.   I have a noisy view of Ala Moana Avenue, and a partial ocean view overlooking the Ala Moana yatch basin.    I will explore that area tomorrow.   The lanai of this condo is next to the Ilikai Hotel where Jack Lord used to stand on the top floor during the opening credit of the old Hawaii 50 TV Show.   I didn’t see Jack Lord standing up there, which is a good thing as he probably doesn’t look very good after all these years of being dead!   The bad part is that there is a lot of road noise on the lanai.    I went out later in the evening and it was quiet and very nice with a cool breeze.   I may have to go out ther for a final nightcap of my Pinot Noir.

                I did take my evening walk around the Hilton Hawaiian Village.   There are congierge desks everywhere with people trying to sell       Hilton Vacation Club Time shares.   I stopped in one display area and talked to the young guy there.   He did say that the new tower being built will have vacation club condos.   He asked if I was an owner here, and I lied and said that I own in this Grand Waikikian Tower, and he asked if I wanted to go on an owner’s tour, but I said I had to run because my wife was waiting for me.   He told me to come back and bring my wife.   Geez, these people are relentless in their selling of time shares.  

                I walked around the Hilton Village and saw two groups of singers at the various bars.   It is a nice cool evening.   I found the small green area near the Rainbow Tower, and I had a flash back of when the parents came on a business trip and had a reception at that spot with a bunch of people.   I remember that I was not allowed in to that private party and how mother was so upset that I could not join them that evening, but I spent the next two days with them traveling around the island.  

                I need to figure out how I am going to spend a week here next year and then perhaps a week on the big island of Hawaii at Waikaloa Village since there is a book in my condo about how wonderful it is to be there to explore the volcanoes and the mountain.    I stopped watching Fox News tonight since it is non-stop Ferguson crap, and now I am watching a channel showing the beauty of Hwaii.   It is motivating.