Weekend Coffee Share.....Come Sit with Me

It's another week of Weekend Coffee Share. I always love everyone's posts. Are you like me and try to visit everyone? It doesn't always happen but I try. I have loved getting to know different bloggers and I figure if they take the time to write a post, I'll find the time to visit, even if it's a week later. I truly enjoy what you all share and I often learn so much. 

Check out all the other posts on Weekend Coffee Share, hosted by Natalie the Explorer. I'm off to go visit some now. #weekendcoffeeshare.

If we were having coffee we might talk about:

Beach near the house

I'm back from Hawaii. What a great trip. I missed posting to the various link parties, (or whatever they're called), but it was nice to not worry about it, and I took the time to finish up my posts from our New England Trip that we took in 2022.  I know...that's a long time. I've saved them on my "trips" page at the top of the blog. 

I'll use this weeks coffee time to share about my trip since I got back last Thursday (15th). I was going to share last week but just couldn't get it done in time. I didn't want to rush. 

My youngest daughter and her friend (who has family on Oahu), have been there a few times in the last few years, last year, for a month. So when the opportunity came to go back because tickets were so cheap, they jumped on them and invited me and another one of their friends to go along. 

We flew out on the 8th on United. We had one stop in San Francisco and then about a 5 hour flight to Honolulu. We purchased basic economy tickets, which were great for the price, but we also didn't realize that with those tickets there are certain restrictions. The biggest was that you aren't allowed to have a carry on, which meant we had to pay to check our bags. I haven't flown United in FOREVER, so had no clue! Thankfully that was really the only issue we had. Since I now had to pay for a bag, I decided to take a bigger bag. 

After grabbing coffee in Portland, we waited to board. I don't usually eat much when I'm traveling. We had one stop in San Francisco. Just before arriving in Hawaii, we had to fill out declaration forms. I wonder if they actually look at all those forms before you get off the plane. We arrived a little after 5:00. Now, bear with me as I tell a story. I'll try to keep it short. Last year when they went for a month, they found a great deal with a gal who rented out rooms. She said we could stay, however, it was possible that only one room would be available which meant someone would be on the couch (me, because I didn't want to share a bed with two other girls...lol). I was gearing myself up for this, planning to just go to bed late and get up early before everyone else. However, right before we went, she got called out of town for work, and the people who were possibly going to be in the second room, weren't going to be there. Which meant yay, I'd get my own room, and the three girls would get their own room. 

This tree was on the ponds/lagoon, whatever it was, that was near the house. 

After arriving to the house, we unloaded our stuff, got situated and then headed out to find some food. We first stopped at Safeway to get some groceries. The girls wanted to take us to Zippys, which is an iconic location in Hawaii..on their website it shows they are on Oahu, Maui, Hawaii Island and opening a location in Las Vegas. I'm not sure what to really compare it to here. It began in 1966. I enjoyed the meal I had. I tried the chicken trio plate so I could try the Chicken Katsu, the Korean fried chicken and fried chicken. The first two were my fave. In reading more about them, I love that they work to source so much of their products through local companies. That's a win in my book. We got our orders to go and ate them at the house. I saved my leftovers and munched on them over the next few days. The rest of the evening we just hung out at the house. 

Ponds by the house

Hawaii is 2 hours behind us in Washington so I ended up waking up each morning between 5 and 5:15. It was nice because I had a few hours to myself before everyone else woke up. I usually had some coffee, did some things on my computer, then once it was light, I'd go out and walk for about 30 minutes. The home is in a gated community and there were two ponds with walking path around them. If you walked a few more blocks, you'd hit a beach area. 

View from the beach near the house.

I was going to do a day by day recap but I don't think I have enough time so I think I'll just hit the highlights. Even that has ended up taking a lot of time. Ha! I need to find a way to streamline my posting. I feel like it takes me way too long.

Food and Drink: We didn't eat out a lot as far as lunches/dinners. We bought food and made it at home. Most of our visits were for smoothies, bowls, coffee. Sure they have Starbucks, but I'm all about visiting local shops! 

 Island Vintage Coffeeshop was probably my favorite overall. They have quite a few locations. My go to drink at all the coffee shops was lavender honey lattes or white mochas. Well, bummer, I thought I had a photo from here, but I guess not. 

 Haleiwa Bowls  was my favorite for bowls. I got their Paniolo Bowl. A base of banana, peanut butter and dates, topped with granola, bananas, strawberries, raw cacao nibs and raw honey. 

Island Brew Coffee is another great place, though a bit more expensive than Island Vintage. They also have a few locations. It started in 2012.

This is one of their Honolulu locations.

This one was near the Koko Crater hike we did. Love how each location has it's own vibe. This one was on the water. 

Kaka`ako Farmers Market: What a blast it was browsing this market and seeing what Hawaiian markets have to offer. I tried a Jian Dui which is a doughy ball that is crunchy on the outside and filled with a sweet red bean paste. I thought it was really good. 

Lanikai Juice: We stopped here after doing one of our hikes. We had smoothies which were really good. I had the Monstah Mash which had apple, dates, banana, PB, spirulina, protein, almond milk and honey. 

The Sunrise Shack: We visited their Kailua location, again, for smoothies! This shop was started by 3 brothers and a friend of theirs. Pretty neat story if you want to check out their website. 

Hawaiian Aroma Coffee: This place was rated one of the 10 best independent coffee shops by USA today, so I had to try it. It was very good. We visited their Waikiki location. It had a fun vibe. 

Liliha Bakery: Located in the International Marketplace in Waikiki (other locations also)...this bakery had so many delicious looking options. I got a Poi Mochi Donut, a French Chocolate Glazed Donut and a Sweet Potato Crescent. All were good. They also have a full menu for meals as well.

I know....this one looks gross...but it was good. This is the sweet potato crescent

This is the Poi Mochi Donut.

Leonards Bakery: In business since 1952, they specialize in their Malasadas (a portuguese fried pastry but all over in Hawaii. Forgot to take photos of the shop or the donuts. Many people said we should've gotten them from little places on the side of the road, but we just never took the time to stop. Maybe another time. 

Hi Pie Bakery and Cafe: We met the local photographer that my daughter has been in a mentorship with who is an amazing lady. She does a lot of photography work for humanitarian programs. Emily Turner. I had my typical Lavender Honey latte, and a piece of quiche that was so good. I also purchased some locally made lavender syrup and a locally made mug for my oldest daughter. 

Matsumotos Shave Ice: I'm not a shave ice fan, but figured I'd try it. We got three flavors, blue raspberry, lemonade and liliko'i (passion fruit). Topped with seetened condensed milk of course. It was good, but I was done after a few bites. 

North Shore Tacos: A food truck across from Sharks Cove on the North Shore. I had two fish tacos that were really good. 

Teddy's Big Burgers: We visited their Honolulu location and I had the Kaneohe Burger. It was really good. 

We also stopped in the Honolulu China Town area but their markets were already closing since they had been celebrating the Chinese New Year and had just had a large event in the area. We did find some fruits to bring home. Lingon, Papaya, Pineapple and Rambutan. I liked the Rambutan and pineapple (which seemed much better than when getting it here at home). The Papaya was pretty good. The Lingon was interesting and I'm not entirely sure if I cared for that. 

We picked up some Lau Lau to try as well. We cooked this at home. Another interesting dish and definitely not aesthetically pleasing. It is made from pork and butterfish wrapped in lu'au leaves and ti leaves. We steamed it, removed the outer leaves and ate the inside (think tamale). The inner leaves reminded me of cooked spinach in looks, texture and flavor. It was different but I liked it. Not sure it would be a staple for me if I lived there. We didn't get any Spam Musubi because we have bought it here from a Hawaiian restaurant.  

Towns we visited:

 Haleiwa is a north shore community. It has a laid back vibe. Shops line both sides of the road and vary from boutiques, surf shops, galleries, food trucks, and more. We were full from the bowls so we didn't try the food trucks though I'm sure they were amazing. After walking around and doing some light shopping the girls were ready to surf. They're beginners, so they had been checking to make sure waves were fine for them. No matter the result, they had a blast. The weather was drizzly but warm. I spent the time looking for neat things in the sand, and taking pictures and videos of them. I did find a fun shop that is all about sustainability, upcycling, reusing, etc. It was a mix of thrifted products, upcycled things and some new, but sustainably made and sourced. LOVED it. We actually went here twice because it is where we met the photographer.

Ewa Beach: This is where we stayed. It is located next to Kapolei. It used to be a plantation town but is turning into one of the most populated areas. I did learn that when a "w" is in the middle of the word, it is pronounced like a "V".

Honolulu: Oahu's Capital, there is much to see and do. And like any city, there are beautiful spots and there are ugly, dirty, unkempt areas. It's kind of funny how you can be in this huge city and nestled on the outer edge is stunning Ocean beaches. 

Waikiki: Located on the south shore of Honolulu it is well known for it's beaches, shipping, and I'm going to say probably night life. It was very busy when we went. There was a street market on the evening we were there and I'm guessing it's not there all the time. 

We also drove around several others but didn't really stop. They had one other friend that was with us and I think if it had been just me, we would have been more apt to do the "oh hey, let's stop here". A part of me wishes I would have stayed a bit longer. 

Things we did: 

Koko Crater Railway Trail: This hike was tough, but I highly recommend it. Only about 1.5 miles, it requires you to climb 1,048 steps. They start out fairly easy, but then it gets steeper. There are a few spots where there is a "bridge" of sorts, really, just an opening in the tracks (the rest of the trail is covered in with dirt). You could cross this, or take a bypass, which I did. I'm a klutz and I don't like heights or open things like that and I didn't know how far down it was. It took me about 45 minutes to reach the top. Going down was a bit hard on the knees because it is so steep. The views along the way and from the top are amazing. Locals will do this as a workout...I'm not sure I'd do this every day or even a few times a week. Though, it would be good exercise.

Makapuu lighthouse trail: This is a 2.5 mile out and back trail near Waimanalo, Oahu. I don't know how long it took us. It was paved and fairly wide, but that didn't make it easy. It was hot and there's very little shade. Reaching the top made it worth it. It was beautiful. 

Views on the way up.

View from the top.

Koko head botanical garden: I did this on my own while the girls snorkeled. I was excited but then had that "aha" moment of thinking "wait, it's winter, hardly anything will be in bloom". BUT I went anyways because now I needed to kill time and it was good to walk off the hike. I think this would be beautiful in full bloom, but it was still neat with so many unique plants from all over the world. Plus it's in a crater. 

Surfed...I don't remember the name of the park the girls surfed at. I watched and took photos and videos. 

Snorkeled at Hanauma Bay The girls snorkeled. I'm not a strong swimmer so I opted to go to the botanical gardens.

Halona Blowhole Lookout: On the way back from the gardens I stopped at a couple lookouts on my way to pick up the girls. 

Alo Moana Regional Park: This park, kind of in the heart of the city was very pretty. I'm obsessed with the Banyan Trees. Oh my! This park had several. There was a nice beachy area and then quite a large grassy area for picnicking etc. with a paved path all the way around. I sat out for awhile and then decided to go walk around the path. It was beautiful. 

Alo Moana Outdoor Mall: This mall is the worlds largest open air shopping center with over 2 million square feet and over 350 shops, restaurants, boutiques, etc. It was pretty cool. 

National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific: This was a quick stop on my last day just to see. It's located at punchbowl crater in Honolulu. It is a pretty powerful site. 

Nu'uanu Pali State Wayside: Another beautiful viewpoint. I loved how lush the landscape is in Hawaii. 

There were some other spots we stopped at but I don't know that they had names. Sometimes we just drove and enjoyed the scenery. 

I did stop at a macadamia nut farm and picked up some to bring home. I wanted something other than the Mauna Loa that you can get anywhere. We were going to stop at a coffee farm, but missed it because we went another way. 

The bottom right, I got from the Macadamia farm, the others I got elsewhere.

All in all a great trip. I didn't get to see any sea turtles on the beach, but in the lagoon area near the house there were a few that would pop their heads up a few times. 

Some random other photos I took. If you're still reading or scrolling you can find my IG page (kirsteemarie) Kirstin Troyer and check my highlights for photos and videos, because I have so many!!

You know I had to find murals. I was a little disappointed because in the area of Kaka'ako, there were supposed to be quite a few murals, but there was a lot of construction going on and they weren't as easily accessible as I thought. This one above and the one below were at the Alo Moana mall.

If Banyan trees could survive cold climates I'd have one....I'm obsessed with how cool they are an how each one is so different. I know I have a few more pics but this post is already getting pretty long. 

What do you think? Band cover photo?

This chapel was at the 4 Seasons hotel and was so pretty. We joked that we'd come here for my hubby and I's vow renewals, but holy cow....the cost to stay at the hotel is outrageous. Also, you can only fit 49 people in the chapel. Not 50, but 49...we laughed..just seemed like a weird number. 

I would absolutely go back. 

With Joy Unquenchable,

Kirstin