Kailua beach Christmas day! : )

The view and the crystal blue waters are always so unreal to see. No wonder every time I go to the beach in Chiba I always think the water looks dirty and the beach is trashed! Ha ha ha! This is where we wanted to spend our Christmas morning and day!

They built sand castles!









Playing around and you can tell by the smiles how much fun they had! What an awesome Christmas!
We saw this restaurant on our way to grab some KFC for our lunch break from swimming! Noboru and I were cracking up and I said..."hey there's your restaurant" Ha ha ha! : )
Look at that killer lush green view!
Cheap lunch everything was just $10.99. We got stuffed waited around and built some more sand castles and then we headed back to swim again. We ate at the beach, this is the picnic bench in the park part of the beach. A very lazy and relaxing Christmas! We drove back to the hotel around 4:00 pm and showered and then we all changed and strolled and then we headed the 2 minute walk on the main street of Waikiki to the Cheesecake factory for supper.
Were they starving or what? Ha ha ha swimming does make people super hungry that's for sure! Our dinner was gorgeous and we had cheesecake for dessert! And then about 2 hours later I sent Noboru for a shake run while we all laid in bed channel surfing. Look at Noah, after he ate lunch, he quickly fell asleep and took an hour nap before going back to the ocean to splash about again!

Our Hotel the Ohana Waikiki Beachcomber hotel (this is where Don Ho plays, lol! : )

Here's part of our bathroom. The area was very large and we didn't feel cramped when everyone was brushing their teeth every morning or at night! And there was a small fridge under the counter. And if you look closely you can see the reflection of the toilet and in that room was a very nice bath and shower area as well.


The bed was enormous and the area felt large and we got a ton of sunshine in our room and the view was pretty good off the lanai/balcony. : )


Super clean hotel, impeccable actually and the security of this place was awesome! For starters no one without the security card could use the elevators to where the rooms were. And security guards patrolled the parking garage like storm troopers, it was weird. They also had a secret mirror, near the elevators where security watched to see if you belonged in the hotel. And everyone's name had to be listed at the front desk to who ever stayed in the room, even the boys names had to be listed!


Our lanai and inside that stand was our TV that we would watch and lay in bed late at night after a long day of fun!



Our hotel was located exactly on the hotel row, so it was expensive to stay here, I admit! The view of all the bustling people was cool! This was the view from our lanai! We had the best location!


Actually right below our lanai is the actual famous "International Marketplace!" Now that's cool! However we purposely were way up high on a high floor for safety but it was awesome to be in the thick of it all. We really were where the action was! Underneath these trees were the selling carts and stands.


After the secure elevator and the other security area, we could actually just hop on an escalator and in mere seconds be on the main street of Waikiki! Totally convenient, we had the best time staying here!!! Here we were after freshening up at the hotel and going back out for a stroll like all the rest of the people in Waikiki! Swim by day and stroll by night! Ha ha ha! : )


Yup this place is the center of it all, this is where everyone in Waikiki gravitates to. And we stayed right above this place!!!

Man the prices were definitely not cheap at the hotel, but we enjoyed it a lot! And besides it was good to use a pinch of Noboru's winter bonus for this! But I will tell you, we got a discount online and we paid I think $150.00 a night and it came to $175.00 US after taxes each night, so still high, but we did get a good online discount though. Plus we booked early way back at the beginning of November. But by the time December rolled around all of Waikiki was booked and no hotel rooms were available anywhere, so we were happy where we stayed a lot : )

This shrimp was so good and so freaking spicy, we had this 2 different times!

On the north shore they are famous for their shrimp trucks. Again I blogged about this last April. However this December we were happy to see a few shrimp trucks setting up shop in Waikiki. We tried one and oh man this place was so delicious! $10.00US for an enormous portion of spicy as hell garlic shrimp, with rice and garlic bread and corn. So good we came back and ate here another night! Seriously! : )


After a day at the beach swimming. We picked up Branden and Noah some KFC and Mc Donald's or whatever his little heat desired (hey this is vacation you know, lol) and meanwhile we came here and picked up some spicy garlic shrimp! Here's Branden sitting and waiting for our order to be ready!


Here's Noah waiting for our spicy shrimp to be ready as well! : )



Waikiki was lit up so cool for the Christmas holidays! Strolling and picking up food was fun! : ) And btw do you see all the people walking? Waikiki was packed for the holidays!


Best food on earth! No wonder, I loved living here when we did! Dunking my garlic bread in the spicy garlic shrimp sauce, oh man it was so delicious! And we also rolled our corns into the spicy sauce as well. Whole meal was finger lickin' good! Ha ha ha! And we do both have good appetites and it stuffed me, I couldn't even eat my last shrimp, Noboru had to! Very filling and very worth the 10 bucks!


A close-up of the food, I wish I could eat right now! It was amazing, Noboru and I have been a chatter about this shrimp ever since! Seriously! So good!

Branden wanted the KFC chicken strips, so Noah got them as well) we got them a 6 piece and they shared and they are huge btw) And we picked them up some Mc Donald's fries because their fries are best. The boys and their dinner stuff and us and our spicy shrimp all went back to our hotel and we relaxed and ate and watched TV! Then we all headed outside and strolled the main street of Waikiki! We did this most nights. Eating many things, one night it was take-out Chinese. Another night it was a large pan pizza from Pizza Hut. And most other night's we ate at restraurants. We hit the Red Lobster for lunch one afternoon around 4:00 pm after a day of swimming. We had the Cheesecake factory for our Christmas dinner! We ate anything and everything our hearts wanted! Vacations should be fun and you should be able to eat whatever you want! It was nice! The boys also had Subway for lunch one day and another night we had Quizno's for dinner. We enjoyed the food in Honolulu that is for sure! : )

Miscellaneous...out and about!

On one of our nightly stroll's throughout Waikiki! We brought our cheap crappy stroller versus our normal one to Honolulu, so it would be a space saver and we needed the extra space and it helped! Yay for umbrella strollers for travel! : )


A nice leisurely walk on main street! After a full day of swimming and a good soapy shower and a short walk to a restaurant and a stroll back to the hotel!





You can tell the sun is about to set as well. Again after a full day of swimming we then did a bit of site seeing! And cruising about town! : )





















One reason why walking the main street at night is so cool! The people watching is flipping amazing! Also there's street performer's all over doing some mighty weird stuff to catch your attention and make a few bucks! Originally there was an African American guy who painted himself with silver colored paint every night for the tourists, he was a genius to think of it and he wore costume as well, jeans and everything were painted silver. He was the one and only original one. Next 2 white American guys copied the one and original tin man! So then there were 3 tin men! The locals know who the original was and since we used to live there, we remember and know as well! And then this guy popped up, copper guy! There's so many street performers and I am sorry to say there was a man sorta like Archie Bunker who actually stood there hurling insults at people, he was arguing with an onlooker. So truly the crowds are full all sorts, the people are mostly normal and families but some are strange and some even a bit bizarre. The hookers are out as well. Same as in Guam. It's a crazy vibe but there are also mostly families andJapanese tourists as well as a few American tourists as well. I'd never let my child walk alone without me, let's put it that way! But as a family it's okay! Definitely an entertaining walk! There's also a bunch of homeless scattered here and there again, same as Guam. But then there's good and bad parts of town wherever you go. Same as there is crappy parts of California, Colorado and NY, you know what I mean it's not just an island thing! But as always be a smart and careful tourist and we were.

And I can tell you how Noboru and I and the boys saw an old drunk Japanese man on our 3rd night here, walking back to his hotel with a white hooker that looked like a supermodel but I'll spare you the entire story. She must have been 6 feet tall and 100 pounds and had platinum blond hair and actually wore barbie high heels, she was about 19 years old and he was about 60 years old, blech! But we weren't surprised and yes they are out there! Right in front of your face on the main road actually! Noboru really dislikes girls like that and thinks girls like that all have diseases, so he is all grossed out (granted a bit unfair the way he thinks perhaps, but I'm being honest he really doesn't like seeing that) and me, I was just quiet but I did watch them walk and hugging each other down the street to whatever hotel he was staying at. I thought about his wife probably back in Japan and felt sad for her!


We visited this church and we also attended midnight mass at another church, the Catholic church in Waikiki it was a couple minute walk and Noah was crashed asleep the entire time.


Noah did get a few toys as well as a wonderful stocking, this is what he unwrapped from Santa. And you already know Branden got games and a stocking as well!











The day we left. Noah was getting a diaper change, so Branden sat down while we waited at Honolulu airport! : )

For lunch after swimming we went and had some take-out Mexican food at the beach/park!

We went to one of our favorite Mexican food restaurants there. Branden asked for Taco Bell. We asked him if he wanted *real* Mexican food? He said no, he wanted Taco Bell. It was fine considering Taco Bell for the kids was like a billion times cheaper and it was 1 minute from the Mexican restaurant. So we got our food and headed to the park and we all had a little picnic of sorts! It was good and a beautiful day for it!

This was a tostada and rice and beans.


Enchiladas and beans and rice. It was a good filling lunch!


Noah had 1 Taco Bell taco and some nacho chips and some cinnamon crisps! Here he is running around happily after lunch!


Branden had 2 Taco Bell tacos and some nacho's and cinamon crisps and rice and beans and 2 bites of enchilada! He was stuffed! : )







After a day of swimming and a late lunch of Mexican food at the park. And then we strolled around Waikiki. And showered and then we went and had a nice sit down dinner at a restaurant. On our way from dinner, we strolled into the Jack in the Box and got 3 shakes, chocolate for me, strawberry for Noboru and vanilla for Branden. Noah shared with us all. With whipped cream and a cherry on top even! Truth be known we had these for dessert every single night...no matter what or where we ate. Because it was a close 2 minute walk from our hotel and they are so cheap, so getting one was awesome! They also sold egg nog ones and also pumpkin ones. I had the pumpkin one and all I can say is yummm! So good!

Costco and the swap meet in Honolulu!

Our ultimate favorite place. Bob's. This is a hole in the wall little Korean BBQ plate lunch type place. You get rice and potato salad and they also sell kimchee. The chicken flavor is delicious and it's grilled to perfection! And the meal is like $5.00 to $6.00 US. However the place is always packed. They've got customers all day and all night!This is what we had for lunch the first day we arrived. And the portions are sumo sized!


We hit the swap meet on Saturday and bought the Aloha hats for Branden and my aloha carry-on luggage and a few other things as well.




Geeze Branden is growing up so much isn't he? A run to Costco actually in the US was obvious, so many things I needed to buy that Costco Japan just doesn't sell. Like a Costco amount of some Huggies green tea and cucumber scented baby wipes, man these smell fantastic! : )

Waikele Outlets!

Thank goodness we got a rental car! Therefore we weren't limited to just eating or being in Waikiki, if we didn't want to be. And since we used to live there we know where we are going. And it really does help. So, if any of you ever head to Honolulu, ask me, I know so much, I'll love to help! Same for Guam, I know a bunch and can help!

So anyway, we headed to the outlet's. Hoping it wouldn't be crowded but it was! The day after Christmas we woke up so early. Left the hotel by 7:20 am. Hit Denny's for breakfast. And hit the Ala Moana shopping mall. Plan was hit the Disney store and leave. We did just that! Then we went to Waikele. We got there around 10:00 am. Can you believe the parking lot was completely full? Crowds of people. Stuff flying off the shelves! So packed Noboru dropped me off and he and the kids went and parked the car across the street where the Old Navy is and Home Depot is, while I shopped. We did this because we had so many other stops to make and we really didn't want to delay anything, so while he parked I finished shopping in one store (Carter's) by that time.


See the sign? Waikele! Pronounced...why, kay lei. So we hit Waikele (hmmm, I really did live there for a few years I gather, lol)
















So many tourists do not know about Waikele. There is a few trolley's that go to Waikele but I really don't recommend taking one. I saw a total full blown fight/argument between a man and his wife, both white American couple. They had bought so much stuff and had no way to get back to Waikiki. So much I doubt they could carry that by hand. Now, I caught the tail end of the fight, but he said, *you* bought too much stuff! She snapped at him and said, I told you we should have gotten a rental car!!!! Then she said let's take a taxi! Then he said, no way it was $40 bucks to Waikiki from the airport, no telling how much it would cost us from here!!!! So as they argued, I tried to act like I wasn't a nosy ass eaves dropper! Ha ha ha, sigh but I was! Noboru rubbing salt in the wound said to me when we were out of ears reach of course, he said....yeah they should have just rented a car woulda been cheaper! Anyway, the deals are good....definitely bring a car with you!

Here's Noah sleeping in the car on the way home from shopping at Waikele.

Japanese women everywhere. They shopped til they dropped. Sotra makes my little groceries and toiletries sound like tiddly winks compared to their enormous bags of stuff!!! Ha! : )