There were some nice eruptions while we were watching.
Next stop was Sea Life Park.
We enjoyed seeing the animals and the kids fed the tortoise.
And we saw a dolphin show.
My winkies in the cut out.
That evening, in leiu of a Luau, we went to Ono Hawaiian Food. It serves traditional Hawaiian food you might find at a luau without the hefty price. 
We tried poi, chicken and salmon. I thought it was good but the kids were less than impressed.
Oh well, at least they tried.
It actually wasn't a bad hike with a lot of switchbacks and relatively mellow inclines, until you got to the end. See those yellow things in the background? They are stairs that lead into....
this tunnel that lead to....
this set of stairs that led to a smaller spiral set.
However, it was definitely worth it! The view was spectacular!
A cool down reward, shaved ice.
Next stop, the blow hole & sea life park.
We picked Sonia up at the airport and headed to Chinatown. Up until last Monday, Sonia and I had never met in person. We have been part of a cooking group online for 5 years. Once we met, it was like we had been friends forever!
and flowers.....
and beautiful lei's.
Sonia & the kids checking out produce.
There were also butcher shops that sold roasted ducks and squid. The thing to the right that is kind of orange is a roasted squid.
We had lunch at an amazing Dim Sum place. It is nothing to look at but the place was standing room only.
You just picked what you wanted and they marked your card....
A basket of goodies.
If you are ever in Honolulu, eat here. Cheap ($21 for the 4 of us and the kids had an $8 fried rice) and really tasty!
We had to go to the beach.
And then had drinks afterward...can you find Simon in the lobby foliage??
HUGE Shirley Temple's.
Sonia & I!
The hotel also had activities that included making your own lei.
A great day and I thank Sonia for showing us the sites of Chinatown and making the trek to Honolulu especially to meet us!
Hannah was obsessed with limos so I had to take a photo of one for her.
We got lei's after we arrived. Simon has the "boy" lei and Hannah & I got the ones made of orchids.
Sunset on Sunday.
On Sunday morning, since we were up at the crack of dawn (4:30 am Honolulu time), we headed over to the Pearl Harbor Memorial.
While waiting for the "movie", the kids were enthralled with the whirlpool in the fountain.
Here we are on the memorial.
It is truly a moving experience. I saw so many names of the men that died that day and think of all the crosses on the beach in Normandy and the Vietnam Memorial with all the names of its dead soldiers and I am thankful every day for the freedom they have given their lives to protect.
Maybe I have more worries as a mother whose son has to register for the draft when he turns 18.
A beautiful flag in the blue sky on the Pearl Harbor Memorial.
We leave on Saturday. Hmm...maybe I can post from the hotel computer. We'll see!
No worries that there will be photos when we get back! ;)
