Ohana Means Family - Part 6

Lots of stuff happened in Part 5.  Did you read it?


We slept in until 6am (WHAT?) on Thursday morning, and in what quickly became our standard operating procedure, we greeted the day with coffee and chai on our lanai.  The day prior, we'd made reservations for Duke's Hula Grill for breakfast, so we strolled down to Waikiki proper and enjoyed some noms on their patio, overlooking the ocean.  Already in our beach gear and with towels in tow, we wandered back along the sand and found a good place opposite the Hale Koa/Fort De Russy to plop down for a little bit and catch some rays.  After getting a bit too warm for our tastes (we are officially old and cranky), we finished our stroll back and found ourselves once again at the adult pool at the Modern Hotel next door, where we read and lounged for another hour.  After a quick trip to the ABC Store across the street, it was time for more shaved ice downstairs at Dave's, and then it was upstairs to clean up for lunch with Dad and Risa.

On our Uber ride to the Ilikai from the airport a few days prior, we'd spotted a place called the Minori Craft Japanese Tavern; we'd kept it in our thoughts, so when Dad and Risa asked for a nearby lunch spot, we suggested it.  After a short walk over (with all the eating, it's a good thing we were also walking quite a bit - we'd probably logged around 3 miles before lunch!), we enjoyed a lunch where the food was pretty good, and the service was kinda meh.  Dad and Risa grabbed an Uber to head to take care of some errands, and it was back to the condo for afternoon nap time for us!


Another shot of the Aloha mural, above

Once again, we reconvened in the lobby at 5 with the gang, and we headed to the Mount Gay party that night (yup, you read that right - two "official" Mount Gay parties on two different nights at TWO different Yacht Clubs, right across the water from each other.  Weird) at the Waikiki Yacht Club, in Ala Moana Park.  Overall, the food and music were pretty good, but it was a packed, highly sweaty house.  


The skipper signs autographs for
his legions of adoring fans

The WYC party did have a leg up on the HYC party, however, in that it was pirate themed AND they had parrots you could pose with.  Of course, we did that!


The shot above was our best one, but this one cracked me up:


Because if I'm not in a picture cooing at whatever animal
I'm near, is it really me?

Chris and I said our goodbyes pretty soon after the parrot escapades, and we headed across the street into the Ala Moana Mall where we'd eaten lunch a few days prior.  Rumor had it that the mall had another Japanese food court, and once we found it, we quickly located the dessert counter and had some noms before we strolled home and sacked out in bed.


My green tea tiramisu is on the left
(with a moderately stale Hello Kitty Nutella cookie -

it was around 9pm, so I can't blame them),
and Chris' lemon whale cream puff is on the right.
It's shaped like a whale, not made of whale,
in case we need that clarification.

We woke up our final full day in Hawaii early once more, but this time, I had a purpose - since I was in the process of training for the Sandia Crest Half Marathon (this weekend!  Blogs coming!), I had an 8 mile long run to knock out.  It was back around Ala Moana Park once more, and as I finished things up in the marina, I made a friend:


Dock cat!

After heading back to the room and taking a much needed shower (so.much.humidity!), we started packing up just a bit, including having a smorgasbord breakfast of the random and assorted food we'd been gathering over the prior week.  Eventually, we got ourselves gussied up, called an Uber, and took a ride to the Moana Surfrider Hotel, where we'd booked a spot to enjoy their traditional afternoon tea service (we did this during our first visit to Oahu several years ago and really loved the experience).


All of the gorgeous tea options


This one has always has the best scenery behind him


Pinkies out!




The beach outside the Surfrider

Just as we'd remembered, the tea service was amazing, and it was a great last lunch to have in paradise, watching everyone on the beach come and go, and seeing the waves crash on the shore.  We strolled back to the condo, stopping in ABC for some beer (for us) and chocolate (for folks back home), before making it back to our room to chill in the AC, drink some of the aforementioned beer, and watch "Ridiculousness" on the television.  We checked in with Dad and Risa (they stored some things in our space while moving from room to room in the building), and a bit later, we changed and met them in the lobby to head to the awards ceremony at the nearby convention center.


In our new team shirts, ready to go!

The awards ceremony was pretty long, but it was neat to see how each boat did and listen to the stories and history associated with each trophy.  The trophies themselves were also incredible to witness, and we had a chance to see them up close before the ceremony started.


This is the cup for third place in Dad's division -
Onde Amo won it two years ago,
so their name is engraved on it
(where I'm pointing)


The ceremony was interesting,
but three hours is long,
no matter how you cut it.
We were done.

We had an invite to head to a get together in another friend's room, but by this point, we were tired and hungry, so we grabbed dinner at the Grove, the restaurant at the Modern (we figured we stole their pool usage the previous day, so we owed them - we also wanted more of that hummus plate).  It was good, even in the light rain, and we rode the elevator up to bed tuckered out and ready to head home the next day.

On Saturday morning, we woke up at a reasonable hour, had some breakfast, cleaned up, finished packing, and then headed to Dad and Risa's room to say goodbye and bring them all of the food we hadn't eaten yet ("here's four eggs, one cup of yogurt, six beers, and a tub of butter!  Love you guys!").  The Uber ride to the airport was quick and easy, and we got checked in without a problem.  After touring the airport for an hour or two, it was time to board our flight!


Goodbye, warm and wet,
hello, hot and dry!

The flight was nonstop, and we napped, read, and watched tv/movies to kill the time.  We arrived back at home without issue, but since were too late to pick up the kiddo that evening, we postponed our reunion with her until the next day.


Chris let me ride in the back and cuddle with this little monster
all the way home.


She's happy to be home!

Overall, it was a wonderful trip!  Although Dad's race didn't go the way he planned, everyone made it to Honolulu safe and sound, and we were certainly thankful that this was the case.  It was great (as always) to spend time with Dad and Risa and all of their sailing buddies, and it was fun to be involved in all of the TRANSPac madness!  We can't wait to go back again!

Later!

Amy

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