Hawaii

Day 4

Today started out wonderfully. I had a left-over Spam Musubi in the fridge (they are surprisingly filling) so I scarfed that down in the car as we headed off to Pearl Harbor. Wait, let me rewind a little. Ben and I got back from the movie last night and realized just how badly burned we both were. We bought some waterproof/sweatproof spray SPF 50 sunblock for the trip. When we got to the beach, we sprayed each other head to toe and laid out in the sun. It turns out that even with the spray, you still need to rub it in so that you get an even coating. It was a rookie mistake.

Yes, that is my leg. Yes, it hurts. Anyway, we decided that lying on the beach isn't a great idea for today. We went to Pearl Harbor early to beat the crowds. The museum, movie, and memorial were all very interesting and moving. We left feeling grateful for the people who serve our country and keep us safe. Now, off to the swap meet to spend our money!

The swap meet -- for those of you who have never been -- is a bunch of little stalls set up around the outside of the Aloha Stadium. If you want Hawaiian souvenirs for very little $$ this is the place to go. We got a bunch of little things for the kiddos stuck at home and a BBQ chicken sandwich with "ice cold lemonade" to wash it down. It was hot and "ice cold lemonade" sounded divine. Turns out they just fill the cup with ice all the way to the top then fill in the cracks with some Countrytime lemonade. Oh well.

After getting stuff for the kids, we thought we would drive out to the middle of nowhere and get some Matsumoto's shave ice. This is the greatest shave ice on the island (which is really saying something). We got coconut, strawberry, and watermelon. Now, this isn't normal shave ice. First, they put a scoop of ice cream on the bottom. Then the ice with the delicious flavored syrup. Then, to top it off, they squirt on some sweetened condensed milk. So good! We ate outside and I saw a tree that looked like it needed someone to climb it. Since Ben was holding our snack, the responsibility fell to me. Too bad I was wearing a dress and sandals. That made it a little more difficult. Did I let that stop me? No way.

I seriously HATE this picture, but I think it's funny so I put it on here. Just before taking the picture, Ben said "knockers up!" and I did this as a joke. Then he took the picture. Dang.
Anyway, I climbed back down, brushed all the ants off of me (so many!) and we were on our way. We thought we would go to the North Shore and watch the waves and the surfers. This is what Ben looked like for a lot of our trip:

 Ben's GPS told us to go one way, but it was actually the opposite way we were supposed to go. We were looking for a place to turn around and found the Dole Pineapple Plantation. Should we go in? Sure! Why not? We did the World's Largest Maze and then went into the cafe to get some Pineapple Dole-Whip. People, I would go back to Hawaii just for this ice cream. It was so good! If you get the chance to eat some, DO IT!
Next we went to the Laie Temple and spent a few minutes walking the grounds. The bench that I sat on for this picture was like sitting on a frying pan!

We had plans to go to a Luau at the Polynesian Cultural Center tonight but we were pretty early. We went anyway and walked around to see the different exhibits there. I was tired. We had spent a lot of time walking around and I wasn't wearing great shoes (they are the shoes I wore when I got married!) so I just wanted to sit on a bench and enjoy the surroundings. Instead, we ended up sitting on a bench playing "words with friends".

By the time the luau started, we were both starving. Ben was so hungry, he was about to eat his lei.

We have both been to the luau here before and I think that either they were having an off night or that we just remembered the food being better. Either way, we were a little disappointed with the food. We sat next to a couple who was on their honeymoon and they were from Australia. I think I enjoyed the conversation more than the food.

 (Ben is having a very intense game with my dad. He REALLY wants to beat him.)
After dinner we saw the show. Ha - The Breath of Life. The dancing was amazing, but the actual program itself was surprisingly cheesy. At the end of the night, we were both tired and ready to crash. I was glad Ben was the one driving home, I just wanted to close my eyes and pretend I was asleep in my own bed with a cool breeze.