Yesterday's breakfast as leftovers today (smoothie and pancakes) tasted just as good this morning. @Mac made his second attempt at the coffee shop downstairs, it was open but he was 19th in the queue and opted for cold drinks from the grocery instead.
Feel like we are settling in - boiled the jug, rearranged the furniture (twice), repacked our cubes and got Alexa to play some tunes. Great start to the day.
We were heading in the same direction as the #Squad today but we were going "old school - dinosaur method" - they went door to door with Uber - we loaded the HOLO card with a day pass and found bus 60 for a 1 hour 17 min and 64 stop ride. Gotta love public transport. Funnily enough we do!!
Matchy matchy - pick the dinosaur
Had one little detour too many and stood on the side of the road and waved to the driver of our "intended" bus (he must have thought we were nutters.) We were about 80 metres short and I'm sure @Mac could have easily sprinted for it ... me, not so much.
In all seriousness, the real hold up is the traffic. Every corner is controlled by traffic lights and the wait time for light changes does seem interminable- if we hadn't had the crazy wait times at each of our three crossings, would have nailed the timing for the bus. And also noting NOBODY jaywalks - don't see any mad dashes across the roads and we haven't seen any police, traffic controllers or security. It just seems the "done thing" that everyone is compliant. We are still in the "never know which way to look" phase and definitely stick to the crossings.
Minor adjustment to the sundial cause we missed the bus
Enjoyed our ride on TheBus as it took us across to the windward side of the island. Was a journey in three parts - lots of stops at the beginning and at the end of the journey route, accompanied by long expanses of highway driving without any stops. Went over the mountains, in the valleys, trailed along the shores and were fascinated by the steep corrugated ridge that ran parallel to the coast that was constantly shrouded in cloud cover.
TheBus adventure
TheBus delivered us right on the dot of schedule at 12.30 - the exact time that @Mindy and @Ian left for their 2 hour ebike adventure from Kualoa Ranch.
What an interesting place. Really it is a junction or jumping off point for lots of adventures - biking, horse riding, movie set tours, jungle adventures, beach water sports or ocean rides. We hadn't quite made up our minds what we wanted to do ... that was an advantage really because all but TWO of the tours for the day ... and some for many days ahead ... were completely booked out! It's Monday, I say, why aren't all these people at their day jobs?
TheBus right to the front gate
With a choice of a visit to the unused farms or a ride on a catamaran, we opted for the latter, the Ocean Adventure. Had 40 minutes to kill and settled in for some greasy fish and chips (they were good) just to line the stomach for the impending rock of the catamaran.
Fish 'n chips to settle the tummy
Ticked all the boxes - was informative, relaxing and fun AND although some passengers on the lower deck got drenched, we were perched up high on the top deck right next to the skipper and it was smooth sailing for us. Tour was a combo: a 5 minute bus ride, then smaller "canoe" across the lagoon, a stroll through the forest and then onto the catamaran for an hour in the water hunting for turtles. We saw heaps (all signifying longevity and luck) and had magnificent views back to the island.
Crossed the lagoon and walked to the secret beach
It was all about The Chinaman's Hat
Was smooth cruisin' all the way
Not that we are into TV series or movie buffs, but along with the history of the area there were a lot of references to movie locations that were set on the ranch.
Each group on tour was invited to share "where are you from" - we were the only Australians and @Mac laughed along with the kangaroo hat and BBQ jokes. Was lots of ribbing by crew member @Anthony and it did keep everyone laughing and entertained.
Reflecting on Kualoa Ranch - think it too is in a bit of a reawakening stage. Must have been devoid of tourists for 2 years and now it is packed. Staff everywhere and helpful but you get the feeling facilities are a little "tired." Our latest tourist attraction back home was Australia Zoo and it was "pristine" - almost as shiny as a pin. Kualoa was rattle trap buses and porta-loos - definitely nothing to complain about in our interactions or in our Ocean Adventure.
Trip back to Waikiki was in the glorious air-conditioning of TheBus and we are feeling pretty proud of ourselves - even had to do a quick bus change to complete the route. #Naturals.
Stopped off at Ala Moana Shopping Mall and stocked up on some fresh fruit for tomorrow and then hit the food court for a quick dinner - we wanted to get back to Ilikai for our first balcony sunset.
Dinner choices were quick and we were on track for perfect timing.
HOWEVER, in the clear Hawaiin sky, yep, you guessed it, there was one lone black cloud.
I admit it- I drank the wine anyway under false pretences. Here's to tomorrow - a very early start!
PS #Squad adventure was also a Koaloa Ranch but they were on an intermediate eBike tour. They followed up with a quick round trip and then hiked Diamond Head! Talk about stamina. Having a little chuckle cause @Mindy has booked a snorkelling tour for us later in the week with the #Squad but has sent a "reassuring" pic of the "trolley" service to get you up amd down the hill! I ❤ @MindyMoofromCountryTwo
Step count: 9728 (bus and boat did the heavy lifting today)
Weather: 30-25
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