An Old Fashioned Girl
We woke up early for our flight, first heading to Los Angeles and then to Honolulu for our romantic honeymoon, where we stayed at an oceanfront hotel on Waikiki Beach. Although Oahu isn't my favorite island, once Rosie mentioned that her grandfather's brother had died on the USS Arizona, I knew we would spend several days there.
The Arizona Memorial is very popular, so we left the hotel at 7:30 a.m. to head to the naval base at Pearl Harbor. The ticket line was short, but we still had to wait two hours before boarding the tender to the Memorial. We spent much of this time in the small museum and the rest outside, enjoying the views and the pleasant weather. Finally, our turn came, and we took the five-minute ride. I noticed that many, like us, wore the flower leis we had received at the airport or hotel. The atmosphere was appropriately solemn as we walked directly to the list of those who had made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom, where she found her relative's name. Holding hands, we said a silent prayer and placed our leis into the water. Seeing the outline of the ship, which still holds the remains of over 1,100 brave sailors, was as moving as it was eerie. Twenty minutes later, we were back on land.
We spent most of our time at the beach where Rosie teased me about my pale skin. Any tan I may have picked up over the summer was long gone by January. Rosie’s Mediterranean skin handled the sun relatively easily, but my ultra-fair Irish skin was prone to burning severely and even blistering. Rosie made sure I had plenty of SPF 50 sunscreen on every exposed part of my body. Of course, I was more than happy to reciprocate on her even though she jokingly called me a lecherous pervert every time.
We stayed on Oahu for three days and nights before catching an inter-island flight to Kauai. Kauai is the oldest of the Hawaiian chain and, in many regards, it’s the most beautiful. But, if you want to swim in the ocean there’s only one place to go—the south shore near Poipu. The eastern and northern shores are loaded with sharp and dangerous coral. We stayed at the Sheraton in Poipu Beach.
Our second day there I drove Rosie up to Hanalei Bay where the story “South Pacific” had been filmed decades ago. We boarded a small boat for a tour of the Na Pali Coast where deep green fluted mountains appear to rise straight out of the dark blue sea. Rosie was clearly impressed with the sheer beauty of the area. After lunch we drove to Princeville where we sat along the shore path to watch the big wave surfers.
The trade winds continuously blow from Alaska to the Hawaiian Islands. On Kauai, there's an offshore reef about half a mile out that catches the waves, causing them to compress and rise, reaching heights of sixty or seventy feet. Surfers are towed to the reef by jet-skis, though I personally thought they were all out of their minds. On our drive back to the hotel, Rosie made me promise never to consider doing anything so risky.
The following day, I drove us back to the airport for a helicopter tour of the island. It was amazing to see the Na Pali Coast from a different angle. Among the islands, Kauai, the oldest, and Hawaii, the youngest, are the best places to explore by helicopter. After spending four days on Kauai, Hawaii was our next stop.
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Rosie’s face told me she was having a blast on our honeymoon. We were making love two to three times every day and were still finding time for sightseeing, swimming, and everything that vacationers can do in our fiftieth state. “I suggest you keep a sharp eye out the window when we land. Kauai is the oldest island, but Hawaii is the youngest and it shows. You’ll see exactly what I mean.”
Rosie leaned across the seat to kiss me quickly then returned her gaze to the small window. A few minutes later she looked back in shock. “What is that, Steven? It looks like some barren desert, only black.”
