This post is late due to large amounts of fun! Sorry for the inconvenience!
It is crazy how one side of the island can be rainy and we go through the tunnel and the other side is sunny. Or the sun is shining where we are but big raindrops are falling. Crazy weather. We've been very fortunate. One trip we came on several years ago, it rained the WHOLE time! It has only rained off and on and the storm usually passes quickly.
So I'm told it's all my fault! I wanted to hike to the top of Diamondhead National Monument. I knew it would be hard...my health hasn't been that great. I've wanted to hike it every time we've visited Oahu and I haven't had the chance. Today, we did it! The view from the top was amazing!
The hike is .7 of a mile from the bottom of the crater. That doesn't seem like very far...unless you see the switchbacks and stairs! Here is a link for more information about the crater and some interesting stories.
http://m.gohawaii.com/oahu/regions-neighborhoods/honolulu/leahi-diamond-head/
The parking lot was completely full when we got there. So we parked across the street from the crater and started the long walk up the outside of the crater. When we got to the intersection, there were several police officers directing traffic. One cop started yelling at a couple of tourists to get back on the sidewalk. And I mean yelling! We couldn't figure out why he was so mad until he said there was a VIP traveling down. He told us it was Vice President Joe Biden. So the parking lot wasn't full...just closed. Then we saw him and his cavalcade.
Having never been so close to someone so important? I felt like we should applaud...or salute...or something...so we just waved. It was pretty exciting for this small town girl!
We started back up the trail and Rob went to get the car now that there was parking. He took the littles...and me...up to the start of the trail that goes up the side of the crater. So let's just be honest here for a minute. It wasn't as easy and fun as some make it out to be. There were more than a few times I had to stop and catch my breath because I thought I was dying. Or going to throw up. Or both. I am so out of shape even though I've been training for this hike by setting the climb feature on my treadmill. Ha! Not even close to the same. There were switchbacks, a long lit claustrophobic tunnel. Ninety nine stairs one way and fifty the other, a bunker, and the most amazing view I've ever seen. My legs were shaking and threatened to give out on me more than once. No matter how long it took...I planned to finish. And Rob said he would do whatever it took to make it happen. I had a crew of 15 cheerleaders helping me do this and I really appreciated it. At one point Ashton yelled out, "Come on Emily! Don't give up on your dream!" That earned several chuckles from those climbing in our general area. They all beat me to the top...and they all beat me to the bottom but that was ok. I made it! When I got to the end of the trail they applauded me. It made me so happy and proud. Even though I tried to be funny and started looking around and applauding with them like I didn't know who the applause was for. 😂 It was SO worth it! Even though my leg muscles are still on fire!
After the hike, we headed to the Ala Moana Shopping Center. For those of you who know the Stam family pretty well, you know we are obsessed with Legos. ALL of us! The parents are just as bad as the children and we knew there was a Lego store there.
But lunch first! We ate at Bubba Gump Shrimp Factory. It you've been following our adventures, you know I don't like sea food. Fortunately they had other food. The kids had mini corn dogs and chicken tenders. I had a burger and fries (but my stomach was still not settled after the hike so I couldn't eat) and Rob ordered shrimp scampi. He has been raving about shrimp scampi for years as one of only a few seafood dishes he likes. I ate a bite. It was hard for me to eat it. Harder than I thought. I didn't like it. AT ALL! I don't know if it is a taste thing, or a texture thing. But the memories I have from earlier in my life that involve this aversion to sea food...still stand true today! But I gave it a shot!
The decor was awesome! I loved the rustic touches to make it feel old and sea-worn. I loved the pictures and memorabilia from the movie Forrest Gump. And a cool thing out waitress did was ask is Forrest Gump trivia questions while we waited for our food. I was surprised at how many questions we were able to answer!
We shopped for a bit then headed back to our side of the island.
So I've been wanting a Coca-cola Slurpee from 7-11 since we got here. One of my favorite things from 7-11. I finally got it!
When we got back to the house, Soph wanted to surprise Granny for her birthday so we hid and when she came upstairs we jumped out and yelled "surprise"! It was really cute! AND it was Soph's favorite part of the day!
After a little rest time, we headed back to Hukilau Beach. The water felt so good after sweating all day. T was happy because there were waves. J was happy because the sticks he hid there in the bushes yesterday were still there. And D was with his best friend/cousin. It was a fun time. Even when Eric thought he was getting stung by a jellyfish. Turns out it was only a little crab. It pinched onto Eric's swimsuit and when he panicked, Andy saved the day by karate chopping it off of Eric's swim suit leg. That little crab guy thought he was going home with us! T and J both love Hukilau Beach the best. It really is beautiful!
We decided to head down to what we call Turtle Beach because the sea turtles swim around there and often come up on the beach. We weren't dissappointed! There were 3. The coolest thing happened right at sunset one of the turtles turned around as the waves hit him and he just took off swimming. It was so slow and beautiful! As we walked back to the car, T said, "I came. I saw. I tried a lot of things I've never done." Wise boy!!!
We once again went around to ask what everyone's favorite part of the day was. Everyone had good answers. Rob, Eric, and Granny said their favorite part was seeing me make it up Diamondhead. That was pretty awesome!!
Daegon had an interesting day. Many Japanese people kept filming and taking pictures of him. His pale skin, blue eyes, and bright red hair make him very unusual to the Japanese people. He said this evening, "Apparently I'm a supermodel in Japan". We had a good laugh about that!! It was a long, tiring, amazing day!
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