Day 1: We landed at the Honolulu airport after a grueling 9 hours on an United flight that didn't serve free food. Being vegetarians we couldn't even buy food on the flight. As we landed I expected to be immediately surrounded by grass skirted women with lei's in their hand. Guess I should stop believing everything I see in movies. It was 3:20 Hawaiian time and our trip did begin well as we got upgraded to a Mustang convertible at Enterprise. A crowded 30 minute drive later we were in Sheraton Waikiki, a hotel bang on the beach at Waikiki. It must have been our day as we got upgraded to the Diamond Head Suite. What a view! We rested for 1o minutes and headed down to see what Waikiki had in store for us. The sun was beginning to go down, and we lay on the beach watching the cliff divers from Black Rock, and the evening sunset ceremony at the hotel. The sky turned red and for a brief moment as the sun vanished behind Lanai I considered retiring in Hawaii, maybe opening my own Jamerdian restaurant. We spent the night walking all the beach and then back through Kalakaua Ave, the 5th Ave, Magnificent Mile of Waikiki. There was even a Ferrari showroom. If you want to buy Aloha shirts, and sarongs, there are plenty of ABC stores and these are the best. This strip of Waikiki has 65000 visitors per day, more than 400 restaurants, and 30000 hotel rooms. Dinner was easy to find at Doraku sushi. We returned to our suite to sleep watching the lights and moon glittering over the Pacific waters.

Day 2: With 65000 visitors a day and almost all heading to Pearl Harbor, we had to wake up early and rush. We got there by 8:15am but were too late to catch the first boat out to the memorial. We had an hour to kill so we cruised the museum and spoke to the survivors from Pearl Harbor who were volunteering at the memorial. The attack on Pearl Harbor might have occurred well before our time but as we spoke to the survivors and watched the film we understood how it was the one event that shaped 20th century history more than any other. As Harvard educated, Yamamoto said, it was tactical battle victory for Japan but a terrible loss in the war. As we went to the memorial and saw the sunken ship with warring bodies forever entombed in them we couldn't help but maintain a solemn silence. War is never the answer to a problem.

We proceeded on to the Dole plantation on the Kamehameha Hwy. The pineapple industry along with the sugar industry was instrumental in shaping Hawaii's history and the trade with the US helped in it being finally annexed. The plantation also holds the record for having the world's largest maze. Further down the highway, lies North Shore. Sunset beach, Turtle bay, Waimea and Hale'iwa, the surfing capital of the world all lie on North Shore. It is one of the best spots to see surfers. There is a Foodland grocery store in Pupukea and the Pupukea beach is a great place to rest and eat. We continued on to the Polynesian Cultural Center.

The center is a non-profit organization managed by the Mormon church so the first thing we heard was no alcohol. The center is spread over 42 acres and has themed villages from Samoa, New Zealand, Fiji, Tahiti, Tonga, Marquesas and Hawaii. You can participate in activities, watch performances, see model huts and learn about all Polynesian culture. Make sure you stay for the evening show, a 90 minute extravaganza put on by the students of the center and if you are a pig eater then this is the best place for a buffet luau. For the drive back to Waikiki in the darkness just follow all the cars and buses back.

Day 3 began early again, and we drove to the Diamond Head park. In the wee hours of the morning it's difficult to find the trail entrance, but keep driving on Monserrat avenue, away from the coast and you'll see the entrance. The trail to the top of Diamond Head is not long but steep. As it winds around the volcano and through it, there are a few lookout points that you stop to see the sunrise if you get delayed. Once up you can view stunning Waikiki and downtown Honolulu basking in the glory of the warm morning sun. The climb down was way easier and we then headed back on H3 to the Nuuanu Pali lookout.

This is a must see. From a height of 1200 feet you can get a broad view of the windward coast of Oahu all the way to Mokolii Island. In 1795, Kamehameha 1 routed Oahu's warriors up the Nuuanu Trail during his invasion of the island. We then drove back to Waikiki choosing the eastern Kalaniana 'Ole highway past Waimanalo and Makapu point. The views on this side of Oahu are some of the most unobstructed and the beaches tempt you to jump from the sand to the blue waters. We passed Hanauma Bay, the most visited beach in Hawaii and then returned to Waikiki to pack and catch the Island air flight to Maui.

We returned to Honolulu on our way back a few days later and spent the evening walking along the beach and shopping for souvenirs on Kalakaua Ave. Oahu might be the most crowded island and the mos touristy, but its mixture of nature, history, and culture make it a great place to relax and learn at the same time. We loved it.