'N Family' Hawaii'94

Date：94/Jul/13-23 (11days)

Accommodation：Hawaiian Regent Hotel (Oahu)

                Sheraton Maui Hotel (Maui)

Traffic： Northwest Airlines　Aloha Airlines

Oahu

We could enjoy the family travel to Guam in March without any troubles, and Shiori glew to be one year and six months old, so we tried the first night flight. We had the ready-made 7 days tour by Hankyu Travel Agency extended 11 days. Arranging the child meal and bulkseat for Shiori before getting on the plane, we had no troubles at the night flight.

When we arrived at Honolulu airport in the next morning, a lot of tourists (almost of them were Japanese) stood in a line for the immigration. But we were led to another booth for the citizens of United States of America because Shiori was too small. We could went out soon.

Our hotel was Hawaiian Regent Hotel and our room was located at the 4th floor. We could overlooked the pool and didn't feel pressed by other buildings. Some small birds flying to the terrace pleased Shiori very much.

We tried to crimb Diamond Head. Through the long and steep steps and the spiral steps in the dark, we arrived at the top after 40 minutes. It was very hard for me to crimb with Shiori on my back. The view from the top was beyond description. We enjoyed the paramount view of Waikiki for a while.

We drived to the north shore by a rent-a-car and visited Dole Pineapple Pavillion at first. It was the first sightseeing point when we went to the north shore from the west. We could try the free pineapple juice and see the endless pineapple plantation. But if you want your children to see various exhibits about pineapples, you had better visit Dole Cannerey Square at the downtown which is better equipped and more amusing.
We lunched at Turtle Bay Hilton Hotel. This hotel was located at the north of Oahu, and produced a different atmosphere from the hotels of Waikiki. Many American families seemed to stay here for a long time.
At last, we visited Polynesian Cultural Center, and enjoyed IMAX and canoeing through some Polynesian countries' area. The show "Horizons" after dinner was most spectacular. Each traditional dance of Hawaii, Fiji, Samoa, Tonga, Tahichi and Maori (Newzealand) was very wonderful and exciting. Especially, the fast-moving dance with fire was very attractive against the dark sky.

At the last night, we went to Tantalus, which was very famous for the night view point, by an optional tour for $10 per person. The night view from the foot of Diamond Head to Ala Moana looked as if a lot of twinkling jewels had been scattered.

June 16th is the birthday of Mari. We had dinner at Oceanarium in Pacific Beach Hotel. The whole wall was a large tank, so we could have dinner, watching many fishes swimming in shoals and feeling as if we had stayed at the bottom of the deep sea. When the foods were given to fishes, the diver set a message bord "Happy Birthday, Mari" beyond the glass in the front of our table. Moreover, he set the foods behind the board, so many fishes gathered around it and we were very pleased with his kindness. We were pleased with this restaurant because the stuffs dealed with children leniently, but the taste of foods was.....

Others

Activity)1)Few people know Pacific Aerospace Museum. It is the new museum about aerospace in Honolulu airport. If you have enough time before boarding, it may be good idea to visit there. Entrance fee is $3 per person. 2)You had better go to Honolulu Zoo with lunch boxes and spend enough time. I was interested in African Savanna.
Dinning)The tea time at Banyan Veranda in Sheraton Moana Surfrider Hotel will make you happy.
Transportation)We got on a stretched limousine. The fee was a little expensive but it was very comfortable of course. We recommend one of the limousine companies whose president is a Japanese woman and Japanese is OK in the car. : Hana Limousine (927-6172)

Maui

As soon as we arrived at the airport, we picked up a rent-a-car and crimbed Haleakala. I had been afraid of driving the slope, but the slope was not so steeper than Usui Pass, Irohazaka and Rokko slope in Japan. The top of Haleakala, where we arrived at after one and half an hour's driving, was covered with the dark blue sky. 10,023 feets (3,055 meters). The crater, in which the location scenes of "2001:A Space Odyssey" had been shot, was very spectacular. We could not find Silverswords after all.

We got on Sugar Cane Train at Kaanapali station and arrived at Lahaina after 35 minutes. Lahaina town looked like a miniature town as Takayama in Hida, Japan. There were various kinds of shops for tourists at the both sides of the narrow street.

We had dinner at Discovery Room on the cape in the area of Sheraton Maui Hotel. As the rocal law regulated that the higher hotel than Sheraton should not be built, the wide view from the room was very wonderful and we could look over the beach and hotels of Kaanapali. At 19 o'clock, the torch ceremony which was the most famous attraction of this hotel began. A naked man fired the torches at the pool side one by one, stood at the edge of the cape praying for the sunset and dived into the sea.

Others

Activity)1)Iao Valley looked like some "...kyo" in Japan. 2)The large pools of The Westin Maui were very elaborate and attractive. You can enjoy them all the day without tired.