Hawaii 2024, August 27

I turned off the air-conditioning unit early in the evening since it was so loud I couldn't even watch TV, but didn't expect it would quite get some warm overnight. Like usual there was also a loud fridge that kicked off every half hour.

The breakfast hours started at 6:30am so I went down at 6:40am but it was already nearly packed full with people. They were serving similar stuff to usual at these breakfast buffets, and the area was well organised to deal with the crowds - the hotel has 44 levels.

After breakfast I went for a slightly longer run around Ala Wai canal again for 10 kilometres, the longer bike path on the other side of the water was better but it started to drag on by the end. Back at the hotel I finished up some basic plans for the first day and left around 9:00am.

The bus near the hotel turned up right away but was quite slow heading through the business area of town - west of the Waikiki beach and hotel area. I got out near Foster botanical gardens but first dropped in at the local supermarket. I thought the prices would be a bit better at a large supermarket but was still around $3 USD for drinks, on the way to the botanical garden I got through a whole 800ml Gatorade. The gardens were quite small, just one city block, but only had a small entrance fee and was a relaxing start to the day.

A bit of luck with the next bus also turning up right away to go back into the business area. Getting out near the old state capitol building and Iolani Palace grounds for a walk around, I hadn't planned to go inside but decided to get a ticket at the last minute. The palace was a self-guided audio tour around two levels of the palace. It was not a particularly large building and the audio was a bit long, but overall not bad.

Now it was time for lunch so I got another quick bus across to the Ala Moana shopping centre, which had a large food court with many of the USA chains. I decided to get the vegetable curry from Curry House Coco Ichibanya which I could remember having somewhere else before, plus a large Jamba Juice that was actually good value for the size. On the way out I tried to find an Asian bakery somewhere else in the large mall, but was walking too far and wasn't finding it.

After finishing lunch I left the shopping centre to nearby Ala Moana regional park and Magic Island, but not sure why it's magic. There was some good spots for swimming with lifeguards, in particular a great lagoon section. The location was a little strange though, being a bit far away from Waikiki. From the end of the park there was also got a good view of Diamond Head.

My toes in particular weren't adapting too well to the increase in walking, and I didn't want to get blisters already so started heading back towards the hotel. I stopped in at a Foodland Farms supermarket but didn't find much.

After a good run with buses all day I had to wait forever for the last bus back to the hotel in the late afternoon. Getting off just before the hotel to stop in at the closest 7-Eleven for a few snacks and drinks, since I didn't want to do more walking for dinner. The hotel location was not bad, but most fast food restaurants were about a kilometre or more away, which isn't too bad unless you're tired.

After making some quick plans for Wednesday and a small dinner I settled for some shows off my USB drive. Again it found it hard to find something to watch on TV without an accurate cable TV guide and so many commercials when I cycled through.

Steps = unknown since I didn't wear a watch with 10km running