Hawaii Archives - Round America

Aloha – Day 147

Aloha

Day 147 – August 25, 2003 – Monday

Today was my last day in Hawaii. I wish it had been overcast. Instead, I opened the window this morning to see the prettiest day yet!

I met Al and his wife in the elevator. Wendy, Steve, and Nadine checked me out. I met Helen at the valet parking stand. I was almost out of beads. Aloha.

Last night, 11-year-old Haley told me about a place her Mom loves — Leonard’s Bakery. They serve a Malsadas — a Portuguese Donut. I tracked Leonard’s down, got directions, and went there for breakfast. There were cars coming and going and a lot of folks waiting in line. I met Star, Cindy, and Joyce as they were waiting for their Malsadas. Star was from Honolulu, and she enjoys Malsadas often. Cindy and Joyce were tourists, and they heard about Leonard’s from a tour guide.

The donuts are yeast-raised donuts (as are almost all “glazed donuts” that most of us know so well). But, the Malsadas are made from a Portuguese recipe and mix, and they don’t have a hole. They’re fatter than the normal donut. The most popular are either covered with a sugar or a cinnamon sugar. They serve them hot right out of the fryer. They were absolutely fabulous! Very soft, great flavor, hot, and they melt in your mouth. They remind me more of a beignet than a donut because of the shape. Since I started a donut franchise two years ago, I know donuts. These are without any question the best donuts that we’ve had on the trip, so I named them Best Donuts in America. Thanks, Haley, and thank your Mom for me, too!

We ended the trip with 181 pies! Three Hawaiian pies made the Top Pies List, and we are naming the Malsadas the Best Donuts in America! Aloha.

From Leonard’s, I went to Pearl Harbor. It was a moving experience. I looked all through the Visitor Center and Museum, saw the movie, took the boat ride out to the USS Arizona Memorial, saw the USS Bowfin submarine, and saw the Battleship Missouri. I met Edie and Jason from Houston at Peal Harbor; I then saw them again tonight at the airport as we were on the same flight to Houston. I also met Liz, Doug, Amelia, and Maddy at Pearl Harbor. Doug breeds dogs and shows them at the Westminster Dog Show. I forgot to ask him what he thought of the movie, “Best in Show.” We did both comment that Pearl Harbor and Ground Zero were quite similar. Very sad places to visit. And in both cases, the US was caught with its pants down.

After Pearl Harbor, I drove all along the southern coast of Oahu out to the westernmost point — Kaena Point. The southwestern part of Oahu is the least pretty, but it is still beautiful. As I drove back toward Honolulu, I went to Ko Olina and saw Paradise Cove — a beautiful resort in what I suspect was once a less-than-beautiful part of Oahu.

I ended my sightseeing in downtown Honolulu at the Aloha Tower Marketplace. I saw the Hawaii Maritime Center and the beautiful Aloha Tower. I had a Mango Hawaiian Shave Ice at “Bite My Dogs,” but it was nothing like the fabulous Mango Snow Cone I had at Freddy’s Fast Lube & Snow Cone Stand in Escobares, Texas.

The sunset came and went too fast. I was still driving in Honolulu without a good view. I visited the State Capitol, but the sun had set, and there was no light, so my photo shows little more than the red light on the street corner.

At the Honolulu International Airport, I met three really nice ladies with Continental Arlines. As I’ve written before, I have found Continental folks to be unfriendly and downright rude in my many years of flying 50,000 to 100,000 miles a year. But Mary Helen, Galynn, and Nalani were delightful. Nalani asked about the beads, and the rest was a long story.

The last meal for the Round America tour was served a little after midnight on Continental Airlines en route to Houston. The flight left at 11:30 pm Hawaii time, and it’s a 7-hour flight — due to land in Houston about noon on the 26th.

Aloha.

The Daily Journal of Round America:

Each day, we collect our thoughts on a web page just like this. We drop in some of the photos from the day. Our goal with the Daily Journal is to write about the towns we visit, the sights we see, the people we meet, and the pie we eat. We write about where we are, where we’ve been, and where we are going, but we also make observations about what we’ve seen and done as well as about life in general.

You can follow our travels from the Daily Journal section of this website. Other pages of interest include the running report of “vital statistics” on the Trip Scorecard, our nominations for the Best & Worst of the trip, as well as a rating of the pie we eat. If you’d like to see information for a specific state or town, click here, and then click on the state of interest, and the full itinerary is shown.

More Information on the Sights Visited Today:Honolulu Hawaii — Leonard’s Bakery — Pearl Harbor — Kaena Point — Aloha Tower Marketplace

Betty Shimabukuro is Hawaiis Pie Expert – Day 145

Betty Shimabukuro is Hawaii’s Pie Expert

Day 145 – August 23 – Saturday

Betty Shimabukuro is the Food Editor for the Honolulu Star-Bulletin newspaper. We became acquainted when I emailed the Star-Bulletin asking for recommendations on the best pie in Hawaii. Betty suggested Ted’s Bakery in Sunset Beach (where I had a wonderful time yesterday), and she invited me to join her for pie this morning at Yum Yum Tree Restaurant in Honolulu. (Here is a link to Betty’s story about Ted’s Bakery — http://starbulletin.com/1999/04/07/features/story1.html.)

Betty and I had a good chat. She had the Yum Yum Tree’s Apple Pie, and I had the Macadamia Nut Pie made by Ted’s Bakery. The Macadamia Nut Pie was excellent.

During our breakfast pie meeting, Betty mentioned a local restaurateur who used to make a pie that she felt was really special. Then she picked up her cell phone and called Kelvin Ro. Kelvin has a new restaurant called the Diamond Head Market & Grill. He isn’t making the Banana Pie anymore, but Betty asked if he would make one just for me. I didn’t want Kelvin to feel obligated to make a special pie, so I spoke with him and told him I would come by and sample what he regularly carries.

I drove to the Diamond Head Market & Grill. It was reasonably close to my hotel. Unusual place — best described as a gourmet drive-in restaurant. I asked for Kelvin, and there he was with a bowl of bananas — making his special Banana Pie just for me. But he wasn’t expecting me until dinner time, and I was there at lunch. I told him I’d be back at 6, and I ordered a Portobello Burger, crispy fries, Plantation Iced Tea, and Diamondhead Torte for dessert. Everything was outstanding. The Portobello Burger was a huge mushroom, a big thick hamburger, and sauteed onions. The Plantation Iced Tea was homemade tea sweetened with pineapple juice. The Diamondhead Torte had a chocolate cookie crust, a layer of peanut butter, a layer of chocolate, a layer of bananas, another layer of chocolate, topped with whipped cream. An outstanding dessert — a great lunch.

I decided today needed to be a day of rest for my injured feet, so I bought a book at Border’s and spent the day on the balcony of the hotel room reading and napping. There are sights still to be seen, so I hope there’s enough time on Sunday and Monday.

Five lovely ladies in town for the American Society of Association Executives were in the elevator as I was heading out for my dinner pie. Harriet, Paulette, Cynthia, Pam, and Barbara. Paulette asked about the beads, so I told a 30-foot version of the story, and they went to their banquet wearing shiny new Round America beads. I met a number of nice people today — Lance at the hotel, Betty, Kelvin and Jan at Diamond Head Market & Grill, Taxi Driver Kevin (who says he gives great Oahu tours — 808-223-2000), and Tracy at Andy’s Arco Service Station.

I headed back to Kelvin’s place about 6:30, and he gave me a slice of the Banana Pie. A traditional pie crust on the bottom and sides, topped with fresh bananas cooked in a secret sauce, and topped with an oatmeal crunch topping. I’ve eaten Banana Cream Pies on many occasions, but never a Banana Pie. It was heavenly. I wish I had asked Kelvin if I could buy the whole pie. When you come to Honolulu, be sure to plan lunch or dinner at Diamond Head Market & Grill, and make dessert part of the experience!

As I walked along Waikiki Beach, there was a spectacular sunset. I was able to get some great photos. I planned to grab dinner somewhere, but the pie was so good that I just didn’t want to eat anything else.

A man on a street corner with a sign that said Waikiki is a “Violent Crime Area” caught my eye, so I went over to ask about it. I met John Cook. John was violently attacked in Waikiki eight years ago, and the person who kicked him into a coma (and was never punished for it) recently did the same thing to someone else. John goes out with a sign and stands on the corner to warn others. I walked back to the hotel a little faster than I would have before meeting John. I wish him the best of luck with his crusade. Before the trip, I would have seen John Cook and thought he was a nut. The lesson from this encounter is to try to avoid prejudging people.

The Daily Journal of Round America:

More Information on the Sights Visited Today:Honolulu Hawaii — Diamond Head Market & Grill — Waikiki

Hawaiian Pie – Day 144

Hawaiian Pie

Day 144 – August 22, 2003 – Friday

The weatherman must have read yesterday’s Round America report as the sun was out in full force today. I drove almost all the way around Oahu today. Delightful day filled with beautiful views…and the opportunity to see small towns and the not-always-as-beautiful interior areas of the island. Coming to Oahu and seeing nothing but Waikiki and Honolulu is like going to England and seeing nothing but London. Fabulous cities to see, but you don’t get to see the country. I saw the country today, and it was an especially enjoyable day.

I had pie for breakfast, lunch, and dinner — all in one stop. Ted’s Bakery in Sunset Beach on the North Shore of Oahu. Ted’s Bakery was the ONLY “best pie” place in Hawaii that showed up on the Internet research that we did. And Ted’s Bakery was recommended by EVERY person on Oahu who I asked about good pie. I was driving along the Kamehameha Highway and I slammed on the breaks when I caught a glimpse of Ted’s Bakery out of the corner of my eye. Many little communities are not marked, and there was nothing to indicate I had reached Sunset Beach, and I didn’t even have an address for Ted’s. All I remembered was “North Shore.” I met Arsenith just inside the door. Sweet young lady who told me about the best pies. She was kind enough to ask Ted to speak with me. He came in from out back, took me on a complete tour of the bakery, introduced me to his brother Glenn, and they were kind enough to tell me all about the business. It’s one of those great success stories. Ted’s Bakery has become a phenomenon. They produced over 2,000 pies today. Half of their sales are the Chocolate Haupia Pie.

Takemitsu and Eva Nakaumra, parents of Ted and Glenn, opened the Sunset Beach Store in 1956. They sold bread, soda, and candy to Sunset Beach residents, surfers, and people driving around the island. In 1965, they leased the store to another family, who expanded to include a restaurant operation that over time became a pizza parlor. Ted and Glenn Nakamura went to Leeward Community College, where Ted enrolled in the culinary program. His first job as a baker was with the Kahala Hilton. Glenn went on to the University of Hawaii and became a school teacher.

In 1985, the 20-year-lease on the store was up and Glenn wanted to quit teaching and reunite the family in running the store. Glenn took over the store in 1986. Ted left the Hilton and joined the family the following year and added his doughnuts, breads and cakes. Each of the 20 pies he made for the store sold out every day. Ted’s pies soon started popping up around Oahu, and their popularity spread.

In 1998, the Nakamuras began promoting their pies. By Thanksgiving 1998, Ted’s Bakery went from producing 20 pies per day to an average of 4,000 per week, and the all-time high was recently 14,500 pies per week. Ted’s Bakery has become known as the baker of THE BEST pies in Hawaii. Ted’s Bakery is a great success story.

After speaking with Ted and Glenn, I bought a slice of Chocolate Haupia Pie, Peach Bavarian Cream Pie, and Carrot Cake. I sat in the car in the parking lot and devoured the Chocolate Haupia Pie. I don’t like chocolate pies, but this one is different. The chocolate was more like a candy bar than it was like a chocolate pudding (as found in most chocolate pies). The chocolate was delicious, but the combination with the Haupia (coconut) was just incredible. Bozzie Jane, who loves chocolate and coconut cream, would have been in Pie Heaven. This pie definitely ranked among the top of the now over 170 pies that we had eaten on the trip.

The Carrot Cake was delicious — extremely smooth with a great cream cheese icing. The Peach Bavarian Cream was also quite good — definitely different.

Hawaii is known for huge waves and the best surfing in the world. I had heard about Waimea Bay and the Banzai Pipeline since I was a high schooler. It was a treat to see them today, but the waves are as small and docile as can be this time of year. The big stuff comes from October to April.

Most of the day was spent driving at 25 miles and hour all along the coast. I stopped to get out and enjoy the view and take photos when parking space was available.

I drove all the way to the northwestern tip of Oahu — Kaena Point. I met a wonderful family there — Todd, Yaroslavna, and their son, Quincy. Yaroslavna is from Russia, and she is due to have their second child — a daughter — on or about Thanksgiving. They were thinking about naming her Miraslavna, which I believe translates to Peace Lover.

I drove back to Waikiki through the middle of the island. Not much to see there. It didn’t take long. I was shocked when after just a few minutes, I realized I was at Pearl Harbor.

Other sights that I saw today included the Polynesian Cultural Center, Hanauma Bay, Kahuku Sugar Mill, Sea Life Park, Banzai Pipeline, Waimea Bay, and Tropical Farms.

I limped to the room after seeking medical attention for the blisters on my feet — a drug store with Band-Aids and Neosporin. It would be even better if I had been able to walk, but it was a delightful day seeing Oahu, Hawaii.

The Daily Journal of Round America:

More Information on the Sights Visited Today:Polynesian Cultural Center — Hanauma Bay — Kahuku Sugar Mill — Sea Life Park — Ted’s Bakery — Oahu’s North Shore — Banzai Pipeline — Waimea Bay — Tropical Farms — Honolulu Hawaii

Hula Hula – Day 143

Hula Hula

Day 143 – August 21, 2003 – Thursday

It was a nice day in Waikiki. Not the most beautiful Hawaiian weather I’ve seen, but it is beautiful here at all times. The sun was out off and on, but there were quite a few clouds, and big clouds along the horizon stole the sunset. I was out walking from 8 am to 8 pm, and my face picked up little or no red.

I planned to walk around Waikiki a bit and then hop in the glow-in-the-dark-yellow Mustang Convertible for a drive to some other spots, but I just kept walking and walking and walking. I met some nice folks, and I stopped a few places and just sat and watched the world go by.

Waikiki is prettier than I remembered from previous trips. From some reading I had done, I get the impression that the area may have gotten a bit run-down, so the area has been greatly improved in recent years. The landscaping was beautiful, and I saw crews hard at work making it even more beautiful. There were a number of sculptures that weren’t here when we last visited, including surfboard-shaped sculptures that are signboards for the Waikiki Historical Walk.

We had stayed at the Hyatt Regency Waikiki on previous trips here, so I stopped in. It’s a beautiful hotel built over and around lovely shops. I met Carolyn at the American Express Travel Service there. She fixed me up with tickets to see Don Ho. I figure one must see Don Ho when seeing the biggest sights in Hawaii. Don Ho was Mr. Hawaiian Entertainment for about 50 years. I bought a ticket for Sunday night.

We had our first smoothie in Hawaii 20 years ago. We flipped over them. I decided to have a Mango Smoothie for breakfast just to see how it compared with the Mango Snowcone at Freddy’s Fast Lube & Snow Cone Stand in Escobares, Texas (Day 16). Sorry, Hawaii — no comparison. Freddy’s was infinitely superior.

Hula Pie was a must-have while in Waikiki. I found myself at the Outrigger Waikiki Hotel in front of Duke’s Canoe Club at 11 am, so I had an early lunch of Fish Tacos followed by a gigantic slice of Hula Pie. I’ve never had Fish Tacos before, and they were excellent. The Kimo’s Original Hula Pie was also a first, and it was really good. It was developed at Kimo’s Restaurant on Maui, one of several restaurants owned by the folks who own Duke’s. The pie has a chocolate cookie crust topped with vanilla macadamia nut ice cream, chocolate fudge, whipped cream, and roasted macadamia nuts. Pools of hot fudge are poured on the side (so they don’t melt the ice cream prematurely). It was soooo good. I was amazed with how the ice cream remained frozen — served to me outside on the patio where the temperature was in the 80’s. The serving was huge — easily enough for several to enjoy. Sheila was my server, and she was delightful. The manager, Yvonne, brought the pie and sat down to tell me about the pie and about Duke’s. It was a most enjoyable pie-time and lunch-time all around. See www.hulapie.com.

I mainly saw colors, flowers, beach, swimmers, surfers, sunbathers, outrigger canoes, sailboats, catamarans, hula dancers, hotels, shops, water, historical markers, and lots and lots of people. Colors are so vibrant here.

The waves aren’t big. I understand they are big in the “winter.”

I saw quite a few flags here — far more than in Alaska. The military presence and history undoubtedly have a big influence on the patriotism here.

At 5 pm, Diamondhead appeared to be just a short walk down the beach. Wrong. It was 7 pm before I reached the Diamondhead Park and another hour or so before I got back to the Marriott Waikiki Beach. After wearing white socks and my dirt-colored Rockport Walkers for the last four months, I decided “Topsiders” and no socks was more appropriate for Hawaii. The look was better, but I was about halfway into the Diamondhead Marathon when I realized I was getting blisters on the bottoms of both feet. Half dollar sized. Back to the dirt-colored Rockport Walkers.

Hawaii became a state in 1959. Oahu is the third largest of the six main islands. About 850,000 folks live here. There are 112 miles of coastline. Oahu is 60 miles long and 30 miles wide at the widest point.

The Daily Journal of Round America:

You can follow our travels from the Daily Journal section of this web site. Other pages of interest include the running report of “vital statistics” on the Trip Scorecard, our nominations for the Best & Worst of the trip, as well as a rating of the pie we eat. If you’d like to see information for a specific state or town, click here, and then click on the state of interest and the full itinerary is shown.

More Information on the Sights Visited Today:Honolulu Hawaii — Waikiki — Duke’s Canoe Club — Diamondhead

Wedding Proposal at 30000 Feet – Day 142

Wedding Proposal at 30000 Feet

Day 142 – August 20, 2003 – Wednesday

The final segment of the trip began today. The flight to Hawaii left Atlanta at 12:30 pm EDT, and I arrived in Honolulu at 5:30 Hawaiian Daylight Time (6-hour time change from Atlanta). I’ll leave Hawaii on August 25, and get back to Atlanta on the 26th.

11 hours from Atlanta to Honolulu via Houston. Bozzie Jane took me to the airport. I used a bunch of points to fly First Class for free on Continental. I met several nice people at the airport. Vernon and Charles helped me with my luggage. Efrem and Pat were kind enough to scan me after my Rockport Walkers set off the metal detector (seems Rockports have steel in the soles). And I met Bart, Milan, and Shital. Bart and Milan own the Milan Grand Plaza Restaurant in Buckhead in Atlanta, and I told them Boz and I will come eat dinner with them when I return from Hawaii.

I sat next to a nice pharmacist from San Antonio on my first flight — Joe. The flights were uneventful until a couple of hours out of Honolulu when the flight attendant on the PA system asked a lady to ring her flight attendant call button. The lady across the aisle to my right rang her call button. Then three flight attendants came over and brought a small wrapped gift box to her. As the man next to her dropped to one knee, I realized I was sitting right next to a very romantic wedding proposal. After the squealing and hugging and kissing, I passed them some beads, my card, and my best wishes. Cathy and Steve. Delightful couple! Cathy’s originally from California and Steve from Chicago. They met ONLINE! They emailed extensively before they ever talked, and then they had long phone conversations before they ever met. Their first face-to-face meeting was at a Starbucks, and the rest is history. Cathy has a beautiful ring on her finger, a sparkle in her eyes, and they are very excited. It was fun to see!

The meals on the flight were quite good. The flight attendants were very efficient, but zero personality. In my opinion, American Airlines has by far the best flight attendants. Alaska Airlines and Southwest Airlines also have personable people who make it more enjoyable to fly.

I drove around Honolulu in a glow-in-the-dark-yellow Mustang Convertible. Figured I might as well end the trip in style and with the best tan available. The Marriott Waikiki Beach Resort is on the far end of town from the airport, so I got a nice look at Honolulu as I drove to the hotel.

I received over 200 Sobig-F virus emails. It took hours for them to download, and I was deleting them as fast as they come in. How sad it is that there are warped people in the world who have nothing better to do than to cost the rest of us money and waste our time with garbage like this.

Leilani and Sharleen at the Marriott Waikiki were so nice when I checked in. They’ve given me several leads on pie, and Leilani was kind enough to upgrade me to a much nicer room. Beads.

The Marriott Waikiki Beach is a big hotel — third largest in Hawaii. It had a $60 million renovation last year, so it is extremely nice. Waikiki Beach is just across the street. It’s warm here — 90-degrees today and 79-degrees tonight. I always forget that there is no air-conditioning in the lobbies here.

I ordered Puaa’ Pie from Room Service. It’s an ice cream pie — a combination of brownie topped with Macadamia Nut Ice Cream with whipped cream on top. Very good. I received a phone call and an email from the Food Editor with the Honolulu Star Bulletin, so it looks like I will be meeting her to eat some pie and give an interview.

Hawaii is very close to both the International Dateline and the Equator. There are six main islands. California is 2,500 miles away. Beach, rainforests, volcanoes, and thousands of different species. Nowhere in the world is there as much diversity in so small a space.

There was a big smile on my face as we landed in Honolulu. I feel quite a sense of accomplishment to have visited all 50 states in this trip that started 142 days ago.

The Daily Journal of Round America:

More Information on the Sights Visited Today:Honolulu Hawaii