Jennifer's daytime adventures once again followed Manny and Jessica's recommendation and began with a tour of Iolani Palace. This hidden gem of decor and history is in downtown Honolulu and likely overlooked considering all of the more famous spots of natural beauty that Ohau has to offer. Iolani Palace was home to the monarchy established in Hawaii prior to its annexation into the U.S. In an effort to promote Hawaii internationally as a modern nation, the government had many modern conveniences installed in the home, including indoor plumbing and electric lights a mere 7 years after Edison invented the light bulb. Completed in 1882, this incredible residence offers a glimpse into history and Hawaiian luxury. (Side note - free tours for military, even dependents travelling solo!)
 |
| Iolani Palace Exterior |
 |
| Charming balcony and landing above the exterior entrance stairs. |
 |
| Jennifer was very taken by the chairs, especially the stately rows of them! |
 |
| Central stairway landing is just a sampling of the beautiful woodwork throughout the building. |
 |
| One of the private suites. Can you spot the tusks? |
A long bus ride next dropped Jennifer off at the Dole Plantation. It was a quick stop, but it still provided plenty of time to get some delicious pineapple, learn a bit from the historical storyboards and of course see pineapple bushes!
 |
| Overly commercialized..yes. Colorful and cheerful landscaping...yes :-)! |
 |
| Ok, so pineapple do not grow as a root (which is good since if that were true it couldn't be one of Jennifer's favorite fresh fruits). But seriously, don't they look like they should grow like a carrot? |
The second "palace" of the day came as a nice surprise to us. Our main hotel for the trip did not have a military rate available for Thursday night, so we relocated just for that evening. Packing, unpacking and repacking was of course a bit of a hassle, but well worth it in this scenario. We were fortunate to have been moved to the J.W. Marriott that actually shared a private beach with the Aulani Disney resort next door. Complete with a shark pool, a ray pool, a people pool, beautiful décor and a private beach, we were entirely out of our element but enjoyed every minute. We even took a stroll to check out the "neighbors" and loved soaking in the Disney atmosphere that we (well, Jennifer) miss so much from home.
 |
| Our incredible room! |
 |
| John and Jennifer make the most of their new digs by carving out some evening beach time :-). |
 |
| Aulani Disney Resort |
 |
| Our room came with an ocean view and a lovely sunset! |
Although our week in Hawaii was beginning to wind down at this point, the enjoyment and surprise upgrades just kept on coming!
Where is Hawaii post three?
ReplyDeleteSorry for the confusion! I accidently posted and un-posted it while it was in progress and evidently some sort of placeholder was created and I don't know how to have it post in the correct order. It's under Hawaii Part 1 in the blog archive in the right hand column of this blog layout. Also, here is the link...http://thesameumbrella.blogspot.com/2014/08/hawaii-part-3-beaches-and-jungles.html.
Delete