We had another early start today. The alarm was set for 5:40 am as we had tickets to climb Diamond Head at 7 am. Yes I chose the time slot that early! (to beat the heat!). The earliest one can eat breakfast on the ship is 6 am. Muffins and danishes are all that is offered in the Lido Buffet at that time, but you can order room service for delivery as early as 6 am too. So we ordered bacon and eggs, fruit, granola and yogurt to start the day off right! Our plan was to leave the ship at 6:30 am - but a last minute scurry to find our tickets delayed us till 6:45 am.
We caught a taxi to Diamond Head and arrived at 7:15. Big sigh of relief when they scanned the picture of our tickets as the QR code let us through the gate! (I wasn’t so sure that was going to work!) Reservations are now required to climb Diamond Head State Monument. Tickets cost $5 apiece, but it is the fact that tickets are generally sold out that makes them sold valuable. The hike is only about 1.3 km with an elevation gain of 171 metres - so the hike is short and steep. The temperature and shade offered by the Crater wall made it comfortable to climb early in the day. We were both dripping sweat as we neared the summit!
We climbed up in under 30 minutes, enjoyed 20 minutes or so at the summit, then climbed down.
With its panoramic view from Koko Head to Wai’anae, the summit of Diamond Head was a ideal site for the coastal defense of Oahu. Today Le’ahi (Daimond Head)is the most recongized landmark in Hawaii. It was designated a National Natural Landmark in 1968 as an excellent example of a tuff cone.
We then decided to walk down to Waikiki beach, take a few pictures, then catch public bus 42 back to the ship. We showered, had lunch and J decided to stay on the ship and I knew I wanted to return to Waikiki beach to go for a swim and do a bit of shopping! So that is what we each did! Waikiki beach and playing in the waves was a perfect way to enjoy an hour in Honolulu!
I got very familiar with bus route 42, but bus 20 would have worked too! And each time I travelled it was $3 - a good deal!
I returned to the ship in time for supper and then we watched the remake of the movie South Pacific on the MainStage! Once I finish tonight’s blog - it will be lights out for me! My 23,000 steps have tuckered me out! The ship has an all aboard time of 11 pm tonight - so guests have had 2 full days to enjoy Honolulu. Tomorrow we visit the island of Kauai!
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