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First of all, one look at Waikiki and you start to think that the Japanese won. There are
three Prada shops (you know, outfits that cost more than the GNP for many small countries) within four blocks. And all of them cater exclusively to Japanese tourists.
 The Outrigger Waikiki sold off all its curbside space to the
high end boutiques so check-in was disgusting. Our cab driver double-parked a block away. We had to schlep our bags ourselves. And schlepping three months worth of bags isn't fun.
We're talking six bags here. Two of which weigh a TON. See the small archway towards the left? That leads to the alley that leads to the hotel.
We found a bellman at a desk at the end of the alleyway that substituted for a lobby. Larry
tried to use a luggage cart to bring our bags. No dice. He wouldn't let us. He then pointed us to an escalator to go up to the main lobby.  I did mention we had SIX BAGS? Threats of bodily harm worked to a point - he managed to get himself
upright behind the desk and pointed to the elevator. But we still couldn't use a luggage cart. Ahhh... service. Thankfully, our view was good and the room was quite nice.
 The beach wasn't as crowded as I imagined. But that's probably because it rained the whole time we were there.
 We got a little nervous though when it looked like he was about to be sacrificed to the surfing gods in the hope of one big wave and a little sun.
Driving around the island to the Pali lookout sounded
like a good idea. But the monsoon kept us in the car.
 We did find a beach on the other side of Diamond Head that had a break in the weather. Also a blowhole that was very cool.
 In the heart of the Diamond Head crater, we were surprised to find a military base. We actually expected
it, but it's still a surprising sight. We also snapped a shot of the now infamous (in our minds) international burglary sign. We thought of it as a "how-to" sign. If you look
closely, you'll see a picture of a car windshield and a hand holding a tire-iron. It took the edge of the driving tour - we were afraid to leave the car!
The Arizona Memorial was closed when we got there - sort of. The tours were done for the
day but the site was open for a press conference. Disney began filming while we were there on a new movie - "Pearl Harbor". The director, stars, and technical advisor all went out on a
boat to the Arizona and came back for the press conference. Three nice old men were there as special guests - they survived the Pearl Harbor attack in 1941 and one was a survivor of
the Arizona. Unfortunately, these photos aren't digital so you'll have to wait until we're home and can scan them!
We didn't expect Hawaii would be the high point of the trip. Good thing!
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