Month: January 2018

 

Instead of our morning walk around the deck, Craig and I had a very light breakfast then went off the ship to explore the area of Kauai near our ship.  We took a shuttle to the Anchor Shoppimg center nearby, and behind the center we found a bridge which took us to the beautiful Marriott Kauai Hotel.

This site has changed and morphed over the years. Originally the Kauai Surf Hotel, it was purchased by hotelier Chris Hemmeter, who’d built the gorgeous Hyatt Hemmeter Center in Waikiki in the 70s. I remember being stunned by its opulence and beauty on my first trip to Honolulu.  He did the same thing on Kauai in the 80s with the Westin Kauai. The over-the-top “fantasy island” feel delighted some and shocked others: in the eclectic mélange of  architectural styles there were more Greek columns than could hold up the Acropolis,  one wag stated, and the hotel was populated with wild animals wandering around a two acre reflecting pool.  there were also meandering  canals with gondolas, and a fantastic pool with fountains.  Critics said it looked more like Versailles than Hawaii.  He installed a 2.5 million dollar collection of Asian and Pacific Island art to complement the decor.  All these changes did not go unnoticed; many  Hawaiians felt they’d already lived in a fantasy island and didn’t need to recreate one.

The changing economic conditions and the hurricane changed all that; the property was badly damaged and was broken up and purchased by Marriott.

The hotel today is still beautiful but scaled down a bit from the theme park feel of the original. Craig and I arrived in time for the 9:00 feeding time for the koi carp, and I got to visit with a parrot. The huge pond also held a variety of bird life, who swam up to get some food.

We walked over to the spectacular pool area to admire the view.  I remembered being here a few years ago on my Hawaii circle tour, where a friend was busy making phone calls.  It’s a very restful place to sink into a comfortable chair,  to get a coffee or drink from the bar, admire the view – and take pictures, of course.

We looked at the little shopping center for bargains and I found two at the Crazy Shirt store.  We hurried back to the ship, since we had to sail at 1:30.  Sadly, our time on Kauai was finished. It was time to watch the sail away, read a book and relax in the sun!

i ended up on the upper deck, checking out all the passengers, who decided to have a last swim or sun.  There was a barbecue with hot dogs, hamburgers and a band was playing – a very festive atmosphere.

My sister and brother-in-law were invited to a cocktail party for returning guests, but, as it turned out, Ed decided he’d stay in his lounging robe on his own private balcony.  Since we decided that Beatrice could not possibly go unaccompanied, Craig and I took his place.  The champagne flowed -from the bottle into our stomachs!

We had one night and one more specialty restaurant to explore, so we signed up for the East Meets West option, where we watched our cook prepare our dinner on the grill -sort of like Benihana.  After we’d made our reservation, I realized that we would miss the scenic cruising of the Na Pali Coast.  We had nice views of the chef and his creative cuisine, however.  I will include two coastal pictures from an online source, so you won’t feel left out.

After dinner, we went to the evening show –  Beatrice and Ed went twice because they thought it was so good. It was a history and review of Las Vegas shows over the years.   At the end of the show, the entire crew came on stage to say goodbye and thank us for our week on their ship.   It was a very touching end to the journey.  I had to pack because I spent late afternoon napping, but the other three headed to the piano bar, and I was told, closed down the place.  Those Lockwood’s know how to party!

We were up and out the next morning, with the fake missile drill being part of the excitement, which I recounted earlier.  At the airport I had an adult libation before boarding the plane, and it wasn’t a Hawaiian drink. I couldn’t find anything Hawaiian to drink, so I settled on a strawberry margarita.  It was tasty.

I’ve been home for ten days now.  I managed to catch a cold when I was gone -maybe on the flight back -so I’ve been sniffling and sneezing.  It wasn’t a horrible cold but it hung on, and I felt very tired.   Perhaps I didn’t get enough sleep on my trip.  It seemed as if every day in Hawaii was packed with lots to do, so maybe  I had to come home to rest from my vacation!  I’ve tried to get back into my regular schedule, and I took a long walk yesterday with  clear skies in my beautiful neighborhood.  No matter how far I roam, there’s no place like home!

So, where’s the next trip, you may ask.  I’m in research mode, with two trips in mind: the first is an Australian/New Zealand cruise from either Aukland  or Sydney, and I’m checking out cruise lines:   big ship or small ship? The itinerary we’ve chosen would include Hobart, in Tasmania, so that -and our pocketbook-limits options to either Princess or Holland America lines.  I’ve never sailed on Princess. Any ideas?  This trip would probably take place in 2019.

Another trip is a possible short jaunt to see the homes and gardens of Charleston and Savannah.  I once saw Charleston for one day in the rain, in May 2013, but that wasn’t enough.  That should be easier to plan.

A trip that’s been in the back of my head for a while is a cruise to Cuba.  That’s been a possibility for a few years, but with special health issues with  American diplomats, this may be on hold.  A friend wants to go on a photography trip to Iceland.  So many countries so little time..

Please let me know your thoughts about this trip or any others I’m thinking of taking. I’d also love to hear about your travels.   Thank you for writing. It’s so good to hear from you. I learn so much from my friends.

Goodbye Hawaii, hello next adventure!

Stay safe and warm,

Karen

 

 

 

 

 

 

The island of Kauai is known as “the Garden Isle,” because of its extreme  rainfall – the wettest place in the world, some say. It’s also called “the island of discovery.”  It is the northernmost island in the chain, and is draped in emerald valleys, sharp mountain spires, and jagged cliffs aged by time and the elements. Centuries of growth have formed tropical rain forests, forking rivers and cascading waterfalls,  and dramatic canyons like Waimea Canyon, known as the Grand Canyon of the Pacific . It is very rural place – only 3% of the island has been developed – and some parts of the island are only accessible by sea or air. Could I live here?  No.  It’s still a wonderful place to visit, to see nature in all its glory.

Unfortunately, Kauai has been hit by hurricanes which have done much damage to the island, most notably Hurricane Iniki in 1992, with over $2.3 billion in property damage.

My sister and I had an early-morning excursion called “Director’s Cut,” which drove us around parts of the island where movies have been filmed. The small van was outfitted with a large screen, where we could watch scenes from the movie at the place we were visiting.   We began in the town of Nawiliwili, where “Jurassic Park” was filmed. Auntie Alicia, our tour guide and driver,  mentioned that the cast and crew of the film was on the island when the hurricane hit.  They stayed in  the hotel, but Steven Spielberg went out and did some filming!

I’ll mention a few highlights with movies I’ve enjoyed over the years.  If you google “ movies filmed on Kauai, you’ll find a very long list.

We began our tour looking at the original vessel that Hawaiians used to navigate the island, ironically parked next to our admittedly more modern ship. Auntie Alicia told us that this was one of the locations for “Jurassic Park,” and tried scaring us with a not-so-giant dinosaur toy.

“Miss Sadie Thompson,” filmed in 1953, used the old dock at its location, as did “ Pagan Love Song,” in 1950, where “ native girls” Esther Williams and a very young Rita Moreno swam to the ship and urged ship’s passengers  to throw them coins. The dock is in ruins but very photogenic when surrounded by the most well-known wildlife on the island: roosters.  The roosters are vicious and have been known to seriously wound other animals, as you can see if you look at the eye of the ginger cat. So much for peaceful coexistence.  Why roosters?  It’s been said when Hurricane Iniki ripped across the island,  releasing domestic hens as well as roosters bred for cockfighting. They’re also now a tourist attraction , and the tourists feed them.  The tabby cat seems to have the wrath of the roosters unscathed – one tough pussycat! These cats and birds aren’t afraid of tourists and get their food from them, as well as from caring locals.

One of my favorite movies filmed on Kauai was “ South Pacific,” and we watched the scene where the sailors sang “ There is Nothing like a Dame,” then walked out and explored the pier.  The setting is not-to-be-believed gorgeous.

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Click on the link above to watch the surfer.

Of course, who can forget Elvis and 1961’s “Blue Hawaii,” which was filmed at Cocoa Palms resort, which no longer exists, thanks to Iniki.  The state park nearby with ruins of original Hawaiian huts does exist though.

We stopped for the included lunch at the small town of Hanalei, which was one of the locales for “The Descendants,” the George Clooney movie filmed in 2010.

Other lovely scenes and wildlife are included here:

The evening was spent at another of the “ free” specialty restaurants, the Italian restaurant called La Cucina, which was the best meal of the trip! We started off with a drink called a Bellini, proseco with peach juice, then I chose a perfectly cooked, melt-in-your-mouth filet mignon, topped with cheese and a bit of polenta.  Craig had cioppini linguini.  The  wine I decided on was one of the least expensive but delicious, a wonderful Malbec from Argentina, and we finished  off the meal with a fantastic  tiramisu, which, we were told, was made by the chef and could only be found at this particular restaurant. YUM!  Since we didn’t finish the wine, we took it with us, and drank it during the show and piano bar.  Perfect!

We had one more day on Kauai.  Then it’s journey’s end.

We moved from one side of the island to the other in the night.  Now we’re on the Kona Coast, where many fine hotels are found, and the quaint charming town of Kailua-Kona is located.

We boarded the tender and landed close to town, where we walked around and looked in shops. We had lunch at a place that used to belong to Don Drysdale, sports legend.  Craig left us to go to a Starbucks, laptop in his briefcase.  He had some work to do.  We agreed to meet later for an adult beverage before getting back on the tender.

I was delighted to learn that fresh ono was on the menu and I couldn’t resist: however, my eyes were bigger than my stomach and I had a very light dinner that evening.  We learned that the local market was open, so we spent some time -and money -there. It was a gorgeous day.

We spied the Kona Inn on the way to the market, which had been closed but was now open again, possibly under new management, and decided that we should have our adult beverage there.  As we looked at the landscaping, I noticed a shy ginger cat under the fence.  She was not interested in becoming friends but she allowed a few pictures before she ran under the building’s foundations.

After our shopping, we settled in for a delicious tropical libation, as we stared out at the ocean and our ship. Ah..vacation!

As we walked back to the tender, I noticed the changing of the colors of sky and sea..

And we watched the sun set from the balcony as the ship sailed away, gazing at the sky, sea and foam – mesmerizing!

After dinner -soup for me -we enjoyed the show of the evening.  The group was called Four by Four and they did music from the Beatles and the Beach Boys to the Four Seasons -very entertaining.

Tomorrow we’ll have two days on Kauai, the Garden Isle, the last stop on our voyage.  It’s my favorite island, and I hope you’ll see why when you see the photos.

People sometimes get confused  with the island names so I thought I’d explain.  The state is called Hawaii, consisting of several islands. Oahu is the main island, which is where Honolulu is located. Honolulu is the biggest city, which is where my sister, brother-in-law and nephew live, not far from Waikiki Beach and Diamond Head..  The neighbor islands are a plane ride away.  On this trip we are visiting Maui, the Big Island and Kauai.

The Big Island of Hawaii, known as The Big Island,   IS the biggest of the islands and is a fascinating place to visit because of the diversity of its geography. Measuring 93 miles long and 76 miles wide, it is more than twice the size of all the other islands put together.  Hawaii is also the youngest, geologically speaking, and it continues to grow.  Five volcanoes originally created its land mass.  The two largest volcanoes are Mauna Loa, at 13,678 feet and Mauna Kea, at 13,800 feet.  Together these two volcanoes comprise almost 3/4 of the island’s surface.  Mauna Kea, an extinct volcano, is the highest mountain in the Pacific Basin.  Add that to its enormous mass underwater, and it becomes the highest mountain in the world.  Mauna Kea has been inactive for thousands of years but Mauna Loa still erupts from time to time,.  Kilauea, one of Mauna Loa’s neighboring volcanoes, is among the most active in the world, creating “ vog,” or volcanic ash throughout the area.  My sister will say it’s a voggy day when this happens and inhabitants are warned not to venture outdoors   When the volcano is erupting  it is said that Madame Pele, the goddess of fire, creator – and destroyer – of the islands  is angry again!

Other claims to fame on the Big Island: there is skiing on the top of Mauna Kea.   On the Kona side, the Parker ranch is the largest cattle ranch in the United States.

The Big Island has two major cities: Hilo, on the rainy side, and Kona, on the dry side.  We were on the Hilo side today and would be on the Kona side tomorrow.  Kona is where all the big hotels are located.

Craig and I had a tour at noon of Volcanoes National Park so we ventured to his parents’ stateroom after breakfast to see what was happening.  Ed was on duty on the balcony, all excited because a Japanese training vessel was about to leave its dock.

It was fascinating to see the sailors climbing the masts. I’ll try uploading a video but I don’t know if it will work. I flipped it but I wanted you to hear the sounds of the sailors.    Just click on the link.

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Craig and I took the tender – his first experience in tendering – to shore and caught the excursion bus to the park, where we saw craters and walked inside a lava tube.  Imagine lava flowing out from these caverns! I also had the opportunity  to get a steam facial, thanks to the steam coming from the volcano.

Back on the ship, I practiced taking photos of the Photogenic Couple for the yearly Christmas card. We are not together all that often, so it’s a good opportunity to get a shot of the two of them.  You may see one of these photos if you’re on their Christmas card list.

Tonight we sail off again, and tomorrow we go to Kona.

WELCOME TO MAUI!

This wasn’t my first trip to Maui.  I’ve been here three times over the years: a three-day trip from Honolulu with my sister acting as tour guide, a weeklong stay in a beautiful spacious condo with friend Allan, and a stop on a Hawaiian circle cruise  from San Diego a few years ago.  I’d seen most of it so I wasn’t interested in many excursions, and thought I’d just get off and walk around.

First off, though,  after my coffee, Craig and I decided to do a walk around the promenade deck.  The skies were cloudy at first, but then we spied a rainbow, a good omen.

We walked for an hour from 8-9, then went to trivia in the coffee bar in the main atrium from 9-9:30.  Since it is a vacation, I imagine most people were sleeping in, like the other members of our party  – there were only a few other people playing.  Craig and I played as a team, and even though we thought it was very difficult, we won! We only had a score of 14/20 but  other people did much worse  -humbling.  Everyone got a prize “because there are no losers on NCL,” then we  climbed the stairs  up to the Aloha Café for breakfast.  As we were eating, my sister popped in with her bag to take things to Ed, who was still resting.  The café  closes at 10:30 so we had time to eat and decide on our plans for the day.

We decided that the two ladies would go into town and the two gentlemen should explore the ship, so we were off a few hours later.

For some reason, I thought I was in Lahaina, but I wasn’t. I remember taking a tender on the last cruise..hmmm..where WERE we?  According to the daily newsletter we were in Kahului. When we left the ship, I saw the map..we walked to the main road, where we saw a large street and a Whole Foods store!  Looks like we were going to the mall..at least we’d get some local color..we lucked out because there was a local crafts market there, and I scored some nice local hand made products for gifts.

We four had a nice dinner in a New York-themed restaurant with cabaret music and  saw the main show.  We also began our tradition of hanging out at the piano bar on the second floor of the atrium, near the bar.  The piano player was excellent and there were some dancers on the tiny dance floor that were an entertainment as well.  It appeared that about sixteen people from China were all sailing together and they had ALL been to ballroom dancing school!  They were all very practiced and very dramatic – we loved them!

The next day Craig and I continued with our morning routine: a walk around the deck, trivia, which Craig won (he missed one less than I did) , then  breakfast at a different venue, and this time we got off to explore more of the shoreline.

We had dinner at one of the free-to-us suiteholders fancy restaurants that were part of the deal: Jefferson’s Bistro, which had typical French dishes.  The setting was lovely and service was fine.  I had escargots and sole, which was light, and we shared an apple tart for dessert.  We stuck with light sparkling wine for our meal.  Beatrice and Ed had a romantic meal on their own while we made ourselves scarce

We all  saw “Light, Action, Camera,” the main show, which was excellent -music and dance in the movies, appealing to the older demographic on the ship, though Craig enjoyed it as well.  We finished off the evening watching the dancers and listening to the music at the piano bar.

Can you tell we’re settling into a routine?

Tomorrow we spend two days on the Big Island and Craig and I visit Volcanos National Park!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We packed on Saturday and called a taxi for the four of us in the afternoon for our fifteen-minute drive to the Aloha Tower to board Norwegian Cruise Line’s Pride of America, our new home for seven days of cruising.

I’d  actually seen this ship before: a few years ago I sailed from San Diego with Holland America’s Veendam,  on a Hawaii circle cruise, landing in Hawaii, where we docked in Honolulu, Maui, the Big Island and Kauai before heading back to San Diego.  We were parked next to this ship during our journey, and our little 1,200 passenger ship looked like a baby next to this monster,  which  holds 2,600 people  I’d never been on such a big ship and was curious to see the difference. It was thrilling to sail across the Pacific on the Veendam, and I enjoyed the tranquility of the sea days, though I understand some people don’t enjoy them.  We were very busy when we were in port.  This will be a different experience as  this ship only sails at night. We will have no sea days .

We were to spend two days each on Maui, the Big Island of Hawaii and Kauai, and arrive back in Honolulu Saturday morning. My sister and brother-in-law have taken this cruise several times, but for Craig and me, this was a first. It was also Craig’s first time cruising on a big ship.

We got at the port at about 1:30, a little later than the first rush of passengers, so there was no line. My sister and brother-in-law had a cabin with a balcony, and nephew Craig and I had a suite with an obstructed view.  My sister made all the arrangements. When we checked in, we discovered that along with the suite, we also got a butler!  We also got a package of other goodies, which I’ll explain later

The first thing we did when we got on board was check out the views from the balcony in Beatrice and Ed’s room.

Then we went to the suite and met Jeffrey, our butler. He gave us his card and said to call if we needed anything. Our room opened to two doors. We each had our own self- contained quarters.  Craig chose the twin bedded room with two bunks. He had a TV, phone  and bathroom. My room had the big bed, a couch which could be made into a bed for two, a desk area with mirror and hair dryer, TV, bathroom,  lots of closet space and drawers, and an espresso machine!  Such luxury! There was also a bottle of champagne for us. I’ve been booking inside cabins  on my cruises of late, so this was a real treat.  These cabins usually have eight people sleeping in them.

I also had two large windows so there was a lot of  light coming in, in spite of the two lifeboats.

One of the perks of having a suite is free entry into the extra cost dining venues. We had three such entries, so Craig and I wandered around to see what suited us.  I’d already decided on the French bistro and the Italian restaurant and he was intrigued with the Asian offerings, so all we had to do was make reservations during the week.  We four met up in the buffet for our first dinner, then checked out the views from various as we sailed away.

Next stop:  Maui in the morning.

 

My sojourn in the glorious state of Hawaii ended with a bang, not a whimper.

The family and I were docking in Honolulu, getting ready to leave the ship after a wonderful week’s cruise on the Pride of America, with two-day stops on the Big Island, Maui and Kaui, when the ship’s alarm blasted. At the same time, I received a text alert from the Hawaii civil defense system: A MISSILE IS HEADED FOR HAWAII. THIS IS NOT A DRILL.  My nephew simultaneously  got the same message on his iPhone. We looked at each other as our jaws dropped and people around us displayed a myriad of emotions from disbelief to pure panic.  We climbed two flights of stairs to the cabin of my sister and brother-in-law.  Finally the captain made an announcement that he would investigate the alarm.  Many people were frightened, others were skeptical, and as the precious minutes ticked on, I said that if I had to go, I’d had a pretty good life.  We jokingly decided that the shower was the best place to hide but there were three of us in a small room.  My nephew was nervous. I never really believed it would happen.  I guess I’m a born skeptic.

We didn’t learn until 38 minutes after the warning that it was a false alarm.

People continued to disembark and as the time went on, we decided that today was not the day that would begin the nuclear war.  It was scary stuff, though.  We were off the ship by 9:00, back in their condo by 9:30, and watched the local news coverage of the event to see how islanders coped with the near-disaster.  We came to the conclusion that the civil defense system in Hawaii and the people who run it are inept, never a good feeling. Let’s hope up this is a wake up call for civil defense systems in all parts of the country to investigate their systems, so no more foolish mistakes are made.

I cleared my cell phone messages and sent replies to worried friends.  I was scheduled for a 2:00 pm flight so left at about noon for the airport.  The flight was late but uneventful except that it was the pilot’s last flight in his forty-year career.  We applauded his near-perfect landing into SFO.

I got into my place at about midnight, when the second shock of the day reminded me just how vulnerable we all are:

We’d had a 4.5 earthquake on the Hayward fault January 4, and a picture fell off my mantle – shards of glass were everywhere in my small living room.  Even though the earthquake was not a large one, the epicenter was a mere nine miles away.  I heard the news when I was gone but was shocked to see the damage and once again get evidence of our vulnerability. I spent yesterday unpacking, doing laundry and cleaning up the mess.

I decided not to buy the ship’s internet package last week, as I knew it would be a busy cruise and I wouldn’t have time to write..I was able to check email when we were in port but I kept off the grid for the most part.  I will post information on our cruise and send out some  fantastic photos of flora and fauna. Hawaii is a beautiful state.

So this week I will write about the cruise and post pictures.  It’s  now time to get groceries and meet a friend this afternoon for a movie date.

Yes, life goes on..

 

 

Yesterday we decided to take a drive around the island. We took the road to Kaneohe first, to see nephew Craig, who works in the education department at the marine corps base there. Many of the photos were taken out the window of the car.

Craig is between lodging at the moment and was staying on base for a week while I was visiting. He moves to his new condo when escrow closes February 1 but is with the parents until then, in his old bedroom – except that I’m there now! He’s staying at “the lodge,” a combination hotel room  and efficiency apartment, with a microwave and kitchen utensils. Families can choose to stay here in between postings. It was very adequate for his needs, and he can walk to work! I didn’t take any photos of his place because I didn’t want to invade his privacy too much..

We continued on our way in the H3 highway, also known as Kam highway, named for King Kamahameha, the founder and first ruler of the Kingdom of Hawaii, LONG before it became a state.  It’s a beautiful two-lane road with gorgeous views of both the mountains and the sea.  We passed Chinaman’s Hat on the way to Turtle Bay at the top of the island, then to the Polynesian Cultural Center and took a short detour to see the campus at BYU on our way to the quaint community  of Haleiwa.

Our destination was a new restaurant we’d wanted to try.  For years, on trips to the north shore, we’d stop at Jameson’s by the Sea, just on the highway, located directly across the grassy Haleiwa Beach Park and boat harbor. It was torn down and replaced by the beautiful and airy Haleiwa Beach House. We were very pleased with our lunch there.

The building is gorgeous, with lovely art scattered throughout, and a bar space punctuated by a model of a sailing ship.

We three were well fed: Ed loved his chopped salad with sherry vinaigrette, and Beatrice and I split a cheeseburger on a taro bun – yes, a purple bun, which was very tasty – and an appetizer with grilled shrimp and lettuce;   the thing to do is to wrap the lettuce around the shrimp.  I’m including this paragraph for  foodie friends like Vickie and La Verne, especially since this also shows a part of Hawaiian culture.  In fact, the cheesecake that we all split had a graham cracker- macadamia nut crust and was festooned with large drops of lilikoa, a Hawaiian fruit that tastes like passion fruit.

We also enjoyed the view across the street, and the art work in the restaurant.

Today we walk Waikiki.

The highlight of our day yesterday was a visit to heiress Doris Duke’s mansion-turned museum, now called the Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art.

We were up and out at about 11:30 and headed to the Honolulu Museum of Art, where we were to pick up our tour for Shangri La. Of course,  we needed a little sustenance before we began our visit, so we stopped at the museum café.  I had a Niçoise salad topped with blackened ahi tuna and my sister had a tasty ham sandwich with avocado. I had a glass of Sauvignon blanc and she had Big Wave Golden Ale from the Kona brewing company, a new favorite. Sorry! I forgot to take photos this time!

The museum itself is lovely and we had time to stroll the exhibits, and, for one of us, make a phone call.

As we got on the bus to drive to the estate, we were given information about her life with a video, which was supplemented later by more details about the art and architecture from our guide Debbie.

Doris Duke was one of the richest little girls in America at age 13 when her father tobacco and hydroelectric power tycoon James Buchanan Duke died. She had the typical childhood and upbringing of one of her class, with a debutant ball in 1930 at age 18 at Rough Point, the family estate at Newport, RI. She married James Cromwell in 1935 and it was on her around-the-world honeymoon that she saw the Taj Mahal and “fell in love” with Islamic art.  They stopped in Honolulu, planning to stay just for two weeks but ended up being there several months. She bought five acres of oceanside property for $100,000 near the back side of Diamond Head, which is where she built  Shangri La.

She loved Hawaii.  She learned to surf under the tutelage of the Kahanamoku brothers and became a family friend. She was a hands-on homeowner, climbing a ladder to a three-story scaffolding to clean the Iranian commissioned murals in the courtyard below:

We were able to see her bedroom and adjoining bathroom, which was assembled in the Middle East and re-assembled In Shangri La. It was jaw-droppingly gorgeous.

Each room is a jewel into itself with indoor-outdoor views amid priceless art works.  Here is just a sampling of what we saw.  If you’re planning a trip to Honolulu, this is a place you must visit.

For someone who was famous for her wealth and frolicking, this estate offered her the quiet and meditation time she needed with people who let her have her privacy.

We said goodbye to Doris and got back on the bus, heading back to the museum.

Nephew Craig was here when we got back; he had a light day and was able to spend some time with his father.

We had a quiet evening, watching the sun set from the windows.

Today we visit the North Shore.