Honeymoon in Hawai'i - Days 1 & 2: Oahu

When we last left off, our intrepid honeymooners were planning the trip of a lifetime, and T.J. had agreed (albeit grudgingly) to risk death and heart attack on a helicopter tour of Kauai....

For weeks he told people that I was trying to kill him on our honeymoon. My response? "Well, at least I'm doing it at the end of the trip, after we've done all the other good stuff. You won't be missing anything." :-P

He changed his tune a little bit in the 24-hour period before we left for Hawaii because this is what it looked like outside our house:

***Accurate representation of winter in Pennsylvania.***

So yeah, even a fiery death here...

seems more appealing than living like this:

(Okay, not really...........................but almost.)

Because we'd booked our flight about eight months in advance, Delta saw fit to change our reservations at least three or four times. Add to that the delays we had getting back to PA from the in-laws' house (thanks a lot, Atlanta airport!), and we ended up with about 24 hours at home in PA to unpack from the wedding/holidays, do laundry, pick up last minute items, and repack for Hawaii. 

Our flight from Pittsburgh left at 7:15 a.m. on Dec. 29 (Thursday), and we connected in Atlanta for the 10:55 non-stop to Honolulu. Ten and a half hours of flying. It wasn't nearly as bad as we were dreading, thanks to the abundance of free movies available on the plane. I watched Midnight in Paris, Crazy Stupid Love, X-Men: First Class, 30 Minutes or Less, and Tree of Life on the flight over, which I would rate as Very-Good-Because-It's-About-Awesome-Writers-and-Artists, Good-Because-Emma-Stone-Is-In-It, Ehh *half shrug*, Spare-Yourself-Even-If-You-Like-Jesse-Eisenberg-And-That-Guy-From-Parks&Rec, and Total Snooze--as in, I couldn't stay awake during it and have no idea what it was about. We actually landed an hour early thanks to non-existent headwinds and disembarked the plane sometime after 3:00 p.m. Hawai'i time (8:00 p.m. EST), so all in all we spent about 13 hours traveling. Not bad for traveling more than 5,000 miles, if you trust Google Maps. (Which also suggests that, instead of flying, you drive cross-country and take a kayak from Seattle to Honolulu.)

We enjoyed walking through the Honolulu airport, which is partially open air (well, hello there, sunshine and blue sky!), and we joined the crowds at baggage claim, grabbed our three huge suitcases, and made our way out to the Thrifty shuttle. The shuttle ride to the off-site agency was short and painless, and since we are Blue Chip members, our car was outside the main office waiting for us when we got there. Within minutes we were loaded up in our Ford Fusion and on our way to the Waikiki Marriott!

Traffic wasn't great, but the drive through Waikiki was nice, and our trusty Garmin got us to the hotel with no problem. The Marriott is a huge, two-tower resort that takes up a full city block, so we had to circle the block once to find the self-parking garage. Valet ended up only being $5 more a day, so we probably would have done that if we'd known (the self-parking garage goes up and up and up), but we always found parking eventually, so it didn't end up being a problem. 

The hotel was fully booked (or at least in our price range), so we ended up getting an upgrade from the city-view room we'd booked to an ocean view.

View from our balcony that first night.

We hadn't eaten anything but airplane food for about twelve hours at that point, so after we dumped our bags and oohed and ahhed over the view, we went down to the Moana Terrace restaurant in the hotel. It was happy hour, so we got to start our vacation off right with $6 cocktails (pina colada for me, Blue Hawaii for T) and yummy $5 appetizers (sweet potato fries and kalua pig nachos). The sun set while we were eating, and it set fast. Our table was about as far from the railing as you could get, but T.J. noticed people getting up to take pictures of the sunset, so I went over to see the view. After I'd snapped a couple of pics with my cell, I went back so he could go over and see it, but by the time he made it to the railing, the sun was already gone! As we'd learn over the next week, the sun rises and sets very quickly in Hawai'i.

Thanks to the five-hour time difference between PST and EST, we were exhausted by that point and ready to hit the sack not long after dinner (around 8:00 p.m., I think), but that was okay, because we had to be up by 4:30 a.m. for our excursion with Shark Encounters!

...

What the world looked like to me for the next eight or so hours...

...

The next morning we had to rush to get ready because we had at least an hour drive to the North Shore and a 6:15 check-in time with the Shark Encounters crew. At that time in the morning, we were able to make the drive in a little less than an hour, but since we were a little late leaving and made a couple of weird turns thanks to the GPS, we arrived just in time for check-in.

Before leaving for the harbor, we popped a few Dramamine because we'd been warned about how rough the waters in the cage are. I don't usually get seasick, but I'd read enough reviews to be wary and decided to err on the side of caution. I was so glad I did, because when I opened my car door at the harbor, I was greeted with a strong fishy smell, which immediately made me feel nauseous. Few things make me feel as queasy as the smell of rotting fish, and this particular smell was rolling off a fishing boat getting ready to head out for the morning. Luckily, they left a few minutes later, and I was able to sit in the car until then.

Once Chris and Philip, our Shark Encounters crew, were ready for us, we joined the other people who would be heading out with us that morning: a couple from Canada and a woman from Texas with three pre-teen girls. It was a little after 6:30 by this point, and the sun was just beginning to rise as we headed out. By the time we reached the cage (about a 15 minute boat trip), the sun was up and the fishing boats were swarming around the spot where the cage was.

Looking pretty tired, but I'm ready for the sharks!

The cage was attached to a mooring that had been in place for several years, creating a mini ecosystem for the kinds of fish the local sharks love. Thanks to the abundance of fish in the area, shark sightings are nearly guaranteed, and Shark Encounters doesn't have to chum the water the way some companies do. (Although it would kind of be cool to see the sharks in action, I think.) The cage floats right at the surface and only holds eight people (picture of cage with people in it), so they usually split the guests into two groups and each group gets about 20 minutes in the cage. Since there were only eight people on board our boat that early, though, we all went into the cage together and got double time.

Are you sure we're all going to fit in there?

I'd purposely picked the 6:30 tour because the water is supposed to be calmest early in the morning. Winter on the North Shore is the roughest time of year on the water (which is why all the major surfing competitions are in December), but on the way out to the cage, Philip commented on how fortunate we were that the water was really calm that day, and when we first got into the cage, it really wasn't that bad.

Philip and Chris told us the only rule for the cage: find a spot and plant your feet on the bar at the bottom and hold the bar at the top. That way you wouldn't be tossed around the cage when a swell hit and wouldn't bump into other people. Well, apparently, the Canadian couple, T.J., and I were the only ones who got that memo. No sooner had we entered the cage than the Texas woman and her kids started banging around the cage, floating and knocking into the rest of us. And they were, umm, bigger people.

I'm already a little...nervous...in the water. If T's biggest fear is heights, mine's of drowning. In my proud, youthful days, I used to be one of those yahoos who said I wasn't afraid of anything or the only thing to fear is fear itself or some other such nonsense, but in the last couple of years, it has become more and more clear to me that I have a near crippling fear of drowning, or more specifically, of not being able to breathe (see Disastrous SNUBA Incident of 2009). So put me in a cage way out on the ocean, add rolling swells of salt water, some inconsiderate fellow-snorkelers elbowing and kicking you without the smallest apology, and a dry snorkel you pop in your mouth and immediately can't breathe through, and I'm already in a bit of a panic before I've even seen my first shark.

The snorkel was the new one T.J. bought me as a wedding present (we bought each other snorkel equipment), so I'd never tried using it before, and when I took that first breath and drew no air, I freaked out a little. I basically threw my snorkel and mask at Philip, who was up on deck, and asked him to give me one of their masks and snorkels. The new snorkel worked much better, but I was already a little shaken at that point, and I'd had more than one taste of salt water, which makes me even more nauseated than dead-fish smell.

When I finally managed to calm down and put my face underwater, I saw my first shark, a ten-foot Galapagos circling the cage. The water was crystal clear, so even though I couldn't see the bottom six hundred feet below me, I could perfectly see the shark as he swam beside and beneath us. Eventually he was joined by another Galapagos and then a black-tip, but we never saw swarms of sharks the way they show in the pictures online. Still, just seeing the sharks swimming in their natural habitat, just feet away, was a really cool experience. Unfortunately, I had a hard time focusing on the sharks and appreciating what I was seeing because I was constantly being kicked and shoved. I was basically just huddling against the side of the cage at that point, focusing more on dodging blows than on the sharks.

Unfortunately, even though T.J. seemed to be getting more out the experience than I was, he too was becoming increasingly frustrated by the conditions, and in particular by the fact that the swells were getting larger and larger. At some point I noticed he'd been on the surface for much longer than normal and went to check on him, only to learn that the constant motion was making him feel seasick. "I feel like I'm trapped in a washing machine," he said, and it was then that I saw them--the giant swells heading toward us.

From the boat, the swells probably looked rather tame, but from in the water, they looked colossal--especially because they completely blocked the horizon. You know how if you feel seasick you're supposed to watch the horizon or some other stable, unmoving object? Well, unfortunately, there were none within sight. So then I started feeling sick, too, and ten minutes before we had to get out of the cage, I was motioning to Chris that I was ready to come out.

Once I was back on dry...fiberglass, Philip hosed me down with warm, salt-free water, and I grabbed my towel and went to sit on the center bench, eyes locked on the horizon. T.J. joined me a few minutes later, feeling just as miserable as I was feeling, so much so that he actually asked me if I would mind going to the front of the boat to get our ginger candy from my bag. Unfortunately, I felt like if I moved one inch I was going to hurl, and he wasn't looking any better, but a few minutes later he sucked it up and went for the candy and water. The candy helped tremendously, but what really helped me was the fact that I, umm, lost my stomach contents a few seconds later. I've never gotten seasick before (and the only time I've had to take Dramamine was when I was on a cruise that went through a tropical storm), so for me to get sick-sick on that boat, after being in that cage, means it was pretty bad. I know Philip said that was a calm morning, so I can't even fathom what a rocky morning is like!!!

I think I hid getting sick pretty well because no one was around at that point except T.J., and I was also rinsing my mouth out with water and spitting that out. Within seconds it was over, and I felt soooo much better, but poor T was sitting there looking whiter than I've ever seen him. Everyone else started climbing back on board after that and soon we were headed for shore.

Once back on dry land, we headed for the safety of our car, distributing ginger candy along the way to people waiting for the next tour. Some of them said they hadn't even taken Dramamine and are prone to seasickness, so I hope they survived the trip okay. :-(

I know this review seems extremely negative (and it was probably my and T.J.'s least favorite thing we did), but in all honesty Chris and Philip were wonderful and I probably would have enjoyed the trip very much if it weren't for who was in the cage with us and how big the swells were. If I could have just put my face in the water, breathed through my snorkel, and not looked up for 20 or 30 minutes, it probably wouldn't have been bad at all. But in those conditions, it was impossible. So if anyone is considering doing a tour with Shark Encounters, what I would suggest is 1) go in the summer, when the water is calmer, 2) take a big enough party that you aren't stuck in the cage with rude strangers, 3) don't eat breakfast, and 4) take plenty of cold bottled water and ginger candy with you.

Seriously, I almost feel bad telling this story because Chris and Philip were so nice, especially Philip, and if I could have just ridden the boat out there, listened to his stories, and then come back, I probably would have had a fabulous time. I'm sure they are the best at what they do, and if you want to do a caged shark encounter, they are definitely the people to go with; my experience just wasn't the most positive as far as the actual cage (or washing machine) was concerned.

When we got back in the car, we looked at the camera pics and videos and were kind of disappointed in how they turned out. Our little underwater Pentax does decently enough when you are shooting inanimate or barely moving underwater life, but the sharks were just too fast for T to focus on them, so the pictures were all far away-looking and grainy. Just to give you a brief idea of what we saw, though, I'm attaching one of the few short videos he took:

We waited  a few minutes for T's stomach to settle down, and then he cranked the car...and the engine light came on. Even though the engine light isn't usually a big deal, the car had been running kind of rough, so T decided to call Thrifty to see what they had to say. They suggested we drive back to Honolulu and switch the car out, which we agreed to do, even though we had originally planned to visit some North Shore beaches and drive around the windward (eastern) side of the island.

Having to drive back to Honolulu ended up being a blessing in disguise because we were both feeling pretty grimy at that point and hungry, too. We got back to Thrifty in less than an hour, switched out cars (another Ford Fusion, but this one with duel climate control. Woohoo!), and stopped by McDonald's for breakfast on the way back to the Marriott. Full and feeling much better, we got cleaned up and I worked on a new plan for the rest of the day.

Since the plan originally had been to start at the northern part of the island and drive south along the coast, we decided to work backwards instead and see how far we made it. We left sometime between 11 and 12 and headed south along the coast past Diamond Head.

As you can tell from this map, that red highway basically goes all the way around the eastern side from the North Shore  around to Honolulu, so instead of starting at the top and driving around, we decided to start at the bottom and drive toward the top.

There are three things we were really thankful for this trip: our GPS, the Thrifty drive guides they leave on the dashboard of each rental (and have for each island), and the thorough reviews of fellow Cruise Critics, which I printed and brought with us. We did a lot of scenic drives (sometimes we like to just cruise around with the windows/top down and check out the views--that's our method of relaxation).

This particular drive was one of our favorites. I took the directions from Cruise Critic GypRasc, so I have her to thank for them, but she borrowed the route from the Circle the Island Tour a lot of local tour companies run for tourists who don't have (or don't want) rental cars. We kind of tailored the itinerary to our interests and dropped some stops GypRasc wasn't as enthusiastic about, so we ended up just focusing on the lookouts, and we only made it about halfway around before it was time to head back to the hotel. The only place we wanted to stop that we couldn't was Hanauma Bay--the parking lot was full by that time of day and they were waving people on when they tried to stop.

Since this review is already getting ridiculously long, I'm just going to do a photo montage of all the lookouts where we stopped: 

Koko Crater. This wasn't on the original itinerary, but there was a nice lookout spot for it on the left side of the road shortly before we reached Hanauma Bay.

The lookout before you get to the Halona Blowhole. Pretty sure the Thrifty map calls this one the "Molokai Lookout," although we certainly didn't see Molokai from here.

Hmmm, what could possibly have me so captivated?

Maybe this! Halona Blowhole Lookout. (Halona Blowhole sold separately.)

Tiny beach below Halona Blowhole Lookout where they filmed a key scene in From Here to Eternity.

Makapuu Lookout. That's Makapuu Beach Park below, and this is also the trailhead for the Makapuu Head hike. (Also where we met the local who had never been to Kauai!) All these ocean lookouts are starting to look alike, though, so let's move on, shall we?

After this the road winds more inland, and you drive through some small towns. Eventually, we ended up here:

Nu'uana Pali Lookout. Nice views but tends to be a bit more overcast since it's on the windward side, and it's super windy up there. Bring a sweater! Also, you have to pay $3 to park, which made this the most expensive view of the trip.

Photograph of me photographing the thing I photograph the most--weird, twisted trees. On the way back to our car at Nu'uanu Pali.

My favorite place that we visited that day was Byodo-In Temple, a part of the Valley of the Temples Memorial Park, a vast cemetery partitioned into "neighborhoods" for various faiths and ethnicities. There are sections for Catholics, Buddhists, Shintos, various Protestant denominations, etc., but the biggest tourist draw is the Temple.

Fun fact: The Temple also appears in the first season of LOST as Sun's father's home.

Byodo-In is a smaller replica of its Japanese namesake, and it's surrounded by small waterfalls, koi ponds, and covered meditation spaces. Not to mention it sits at the base of the Ko'olau Mountains. For $3 a head, you can tour the Temple, see the giant Buddha, feed the fish, and ring the sacred bell.

T.J. ringing the sacred bell

The sacred bell, or bon-sho, is three tons of brass and tin carved with scenes and images. Visitors use the shu-moku, a wooden log, to ring the bell before entering the Temple. Supposedly, striking the bell and listening to the gentle ringing cleanses the mind of evil thoughts and spirits.

Inside the Temple is the Amida Buddha, a nine-foot tall carving covered in gold leaf. It sits on a raised platform, so it seems much, much larger than nine foot. In the temple around the Buddha are images of Boddhisattvas--wise, self-sacrificing beings who help others achieve enlightenment. (All that research I did on Buddhism for my World Lit I students finally paid off.)

Stop calling attention to yourself, Temple! I'm trying to shoot the Buddha! (This picture would be so much nicer if I could figure out how to change the depth of field on my Nikon point-and-shoot.)

This looks...uncomfortable. Someone get these koi some breathing room!

Black swan! I'm sure they're nice and all, but that movie has ruined my opinion of them.

The ghost of me visiting Byodo-In. Oh, wait...no, that's the real me. 

You can't help but feel calm and relaxed when visiting Byodo-In. The entire place is so beautiful and so photogenic, I think it's impossible to take a bad picture of it. More than that, though, the place feels sacred, peaceful, and it's a nice reprieve from the hustle and bustle of Honolulu and Waikiki.

We had one more stop to make after Byodo-In--the Tropical Farms Macadamia Outlet. This place was a little tricky to find because we didn't know its actual name and we couldn't find it in the GPS. Eventually, we found an address for it online, and away we went. It was several minutes away, but I think we stayed on the same road (Kamehameha Hwy?) to get there. It's only a couple of minutes before you reach Kualoa Ranch, at any rate. (More about the Ranch when I write about our final day in Hawai'i.)

We finally found the Outlet, and it really is just that--an outlet. For the most part, it's just a place to pick up some good local treats. It's not nearly as built-up or flamboyant as the Dole Plantation (which also means it's less crowded), but they do offer a farm tour we didn't take. They have lots of unique souvenirs and handmade crafts, too, but we came for the nuts, and of course we had to try every flavor.

They have all kinds of flavored macadamias, such as Kona coffee and honey-glazed, but our favorites were the caramel-coated and the salted, so we bought several bags of those. They had other kinds of candy, too, and some caramel popcorn that was to die for, but we didn't buy any. :-( My least favorite thing was the garlic and Maui onion macadamia nut, which was just...blech. I'm sure there are people who love it (Maui onions being as popular as they are), but I was happy to erase that flavor from my mouth forever with a big handful of caramel popcorn. (Good thing you could take as many samples as you want.)

Statues outside the Macadamia Outlet

It was around 4:30 by that point, and since we knew we wouldn't have time to do the Kualoa Ranch tour that late, we headed back to Waikiki. The drive back is only about half an hour, but it took us a little longer with rush-hour traffic. Since our dinner reservations at Duke's weren't until 8:00, though, we had a couple of hours to relax and get ready for dinner, and we also decided to leave early to do some browsing at International Market Place.

On a map, the distance between the Marriott and the Market looks a bit daunting, but it's actually a rather pleasant walk along Kalakaua Avenue, which is the main strip in Waikiki. It's lined with huge, multi-story resorts and fantastic shopping, all the designers you could possibly want. Even nicer, Kuhio Beach Park takes up one side of the street from the Marriott to the Hyatt, so for most of the walk we could see the ocean.

The sidewalks were pretty full of people shopping or heading out for the evening, which made for a fun, festive atmosphere. Along the way we checked out the other resorts, and I made T.J. promise that the next time we are in Waikiki we'll stay here:

Moana Surfrider Westin resort

I just loved the facade of this building, so I'm definitely going to keep it in mind for the next time we're there. (And there will be a next time.)

We had about an hour to kill before our dinner reservation, so we wandered around International Market Place for awhile, but none of the stores we first looked in really had the kinds of souvenirs we like to buy.  We finally ended up in the Christmas Store, which offers personalization in minutes on anything you buy. They also have a giant book of Hawaiian names, so you can get your personalization done with your Hawaiian name, if you like. They even had my name in the book! (Lacy=Laki) Unfortunately, we didn't see the name book until after we'd purchased our little people and told the sales associate how we wanted them personalizaed ("Honeymoon in Hawaii - 2011" and our names). Still, it's a cute souvenir to bring home, and she had it ready for us within ten minutes and then we were on our way to Duke's!

Duke's is in the Outrigger hotel directly across the street from International Market, so it was a very short walk. The restaurant is at the back of the hotel right on the water, and even at 8:00 at night it had a very long wait (as I've heard it does most nights). We were thankful we had a reservation because in less than five minutes we had a table.

We chose Duke's because it seems like one of those "things" you just have to do while you are in Waikiki, no matter how touristy it seems. Reviews of Duke's vary wildly from those who live for the place to those who loathe it. From the reviews, I have to say that I got the impression it was some kind of tacky Margaritaville-style beach shack, but it was far from it. It was actually a pretty nice restaurant. I loved the ambiance, and the wait staff (at least ours) was fantastic.

I was all set to try the fish tacos a reviewer on Cruise Critic said she tries every time she goes, but they weren't on the menu! (I found out later they are on the bar menu, which you can probably request in the main dining room.) We weren't super hungry, so we thought about splitting a meal (the meals certainly aren't beach-shack prices), but since T wanted fish and I wanted red meat, we decided just to go ahead and order separate meals. T had the macadamia nut and herb-crusted swordfish with a side of rice, and I had the top sirloin with caramelized Maui onion demi glace and Yukon Gold mashed potatoes.

T.J. thought the swordfish was "very, very yummy" (his words; I just asked), and although I honestly don't remember much about my steak, at the time I enjoyed it, and I loved the potatoes. In the past few months, I've become convinced that the only way to make mashed potatoes is with Yukon Golds, and Duke's certainly didn't disappoint. The best thing about dinner at Duke's, though, is the mega salad bar that accompanies every dinner, including super delicious rolls and muffins.

After we finished our entrees, we decided to order dessert. I really wanted to try the pina colada bread pudding because it sounded amazing, but I also knew that if you're at Duke's, you have to have the Hula Pie, since that's what it's most famous for.

Another picture of Hula Pie to add to the hundreds already on the Internets. Can I have some more please?

So obviously that's what we ordered. Chocolate cookie pie crust, macadamia nut ice cream, hot fudge, whipped cream, and chopped mac nuts?! What's not to love?

I was still lamenting the fact that I didn't get to try the bread pudding, though, so imagine my surprise (and happiness!) when I discovered that Duke's serves it on their breakfast buffet! Our server assured us that no reservations were necessary for breakfast, so we decided we had to come back in the morning for the buffet.

Happy and full, we headed back to the hotel to turn in before 10:00 like the old fogeys we are. (Though, to be fair, we had been up since 4:30 a.m.) On the way back, I had to stop by the Duke statue in Kuhio Park so I could take a picture of the man himself...

Surf legend Duke Kahanamoku

...and that, my friends, ends our first full day in Hawaii. Are you as exhausted as I am?

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What would one man do for love? (Hawai'i Edition)

To anyone who really knows me (or even reads this blog), it should come as no surprise that I was planning my honeymoon long before I started planning my wedding. I was never one of those little girls who fantasized about big white fairy-tale weddings (although ironically I sort of got one). Instead, I dreamed of backpacking Europe with friends or going on African safari with my future husband and kids. In recent years, when the possibility of marriage became more of a reality, I started investigating destination weddings, and Hawaiian weddings in particular. Despite my fantasies of a ceremony on a white-sand beach framed by palm trees (cliched, but beautiful), eventually I had to accept that getting married in Hawai'i was Not Going to Happen. Too many people balked at the idea of not being able to attend (family mostly), and I knew I couldn't ask people to pay $1000 a plane ticket to watch me get married in my dream location.

So instead we chose Disney. It was a compromise--a destination without being too far for most of our guests to drive, yet far enough away that only the people who really wanted to be there would make the trip. (Plus the added bonus of having someone else do all the work/coordinating for me!) So immediately I started thinking about Hawai'i as a honeymoon destination.

Here was my rationale:

1) It's December. It's cold. That eliminates so many places we could honeymoon (such as Europe) because I hate the cold. I already live in the frozen tundra; why would I want to honeymoon there?

2) The Caribbean is great in December, but we've BTDT (been there, done that). How many cruises have we taken down there already? Several. We've done the Yucatan, we've done Central America, we've done the Bahamas, Jamaica, and the Lesser Antilles. What's left? The Dutch ABCs? Sure, we haven't been to Aruba, Bonaire, or Curacao, but let's face it--it's more of the same. We'll go one day, but for our honeymoon? Not special enough.

3) What about southern Europe? For awhile T.J. got it in his head that we should take a southern European cruise. You know, Spain, Canary Islands, Morocco, maybe Tunisia (if it's safe there now). I think he was just trying to make me happy because he knows how much I love Europe and want to do a European cruise. But none of the major (American-affiliated) cruise lines run itineraries in the winter, and the European cruise companies we checked out all had major negatives--mainly the number of Americans complaining about how many people were smoking on board and how you can't escape it, even in your cabin. Since T.J. and I can't stand the smell of cigarette smoke, spending our honeymoon trapped in a moving box with thousands of smokers didn't sound appealing.

4) A lot of people I know opt for smaller, more intimate honeymoons. Renting a cabin in the Smoky Mountains, or a condo on the Gulf Coast. But I grew up in those places. I'm the kind of person who says, screw the wedding, let's blow it all on the honeymoon. (And oh, did I ever.) A honeymoon is a once-in-a-lifetime thing (you hope, anyway), so why would I do something I've done a hundred times before? The same goes for a Disney honeymoon. A lot of Disney brides (most Disney brides, I think) opt for a Disney-moon, staying another week or two after the wedding. But considering how many times I've been to Disney in my life...(pretty much the only places we vacationed growing up were the Smokies and Disney)...that just wasn't an option for me. (Although we kind of got a mini-moon at Disney, since we vacationed there for a few days after the wedding.)

So if I've ruled out the Caribbean, all of Europe, anywhere remotely cold, and anyplace I've ever been before, what does that leave?

HAWAI'I! 

(And also Australia, New Zealand, Indonesia, and the Seychelles, but let's be realistic here....)

I loved this antique-looking map so much I bought it in postcard, magnet, and wall poster form while I was there.

Anyone who's ever traveled with me before knows that when I learn I'm going to an exciting new place, my goal immediately becomes SEE ALL THE THINGS! My traveling motto is "I can sleep when I get home," and I will run you ragged trying to see every museum, landmark, literary site, wad of gum, giant ball of yarn, Sasquatch footprint a place is famous for. I will make sure you (or I, if you aren't ready to leave early enough) try every renowned ice cream, steak, chocolate bar, coffee, or local fruit hailed by tourists and locals alike, and I comb through guidebooks and travel websites trying to find the most out-of-the-way, must-see things to see and do. 

Fortunately, T.J. has become accustomed to this and knows to just go with it. (See "clipboard of fun" reference in Tuesday's London blog.) So when I said I not only wanted to go to Hawai'i for our honeymoon, but that I also wanted to do a seven-day cruise of the islands (because HELLO, if I'm going all the way to Hawai'i, I have to see the Napali Coast/Maui whales/Big Island volcano erupting/North Shore surfers), he was okay with it. He was even okay with postponing the honeymoon for a couple of weeks after the wedding just so we could do this particular cruise, and he didn't even panic when he saw how ridiculous the price of the plane tickets would be for us to fly out around New Year's (over $1000). He was even okay when he saw how expensive a balcony stateroom would be on this particular cruise (he always insists on a balcony room) because I explained that doing any other Hawai'i cruise (Royal Caribbean, Carnival, Princess) would require leaving out of Vancouver, Ensenada, or Tahiti and we'd be at sea at least five days. NCL is the only cruise line that leaves and returns to Honolulu with no days at sea (only beautiful, blissful days on the four major islands), and was therefore our only option for a Hawaiian cruise. 

So when do you think he started to panic? Was it when I told him that I wanted to do a twenty-eight mile bike ride down a mountain notorious for its switchbacks, or that I wanted to hike around the world's most active volcano? Was it when I told him I wanted to do a caged snorkel with sharks in Oahu? 

Nope. 

It was when I said that the thing I wanted to do most, the thing I had dreamed about since the first time I saw a picture of the Napali Coast, was to take a helicopter tour of Kauai.

Don't YOU want to take a helicopter tour of Kauai after seeing this picture?

You have to remember, my poor DH is no fan of heights, and even though he's done some impressive and scary things for me before (such as climbing to the top of Ek-Balam and ziplining through a Belizean rainforest), he's also sworn he won't do those things again. 

Ek-Balam. Can't really blame him on this one. Over a hundred steep, crumbling steps with no handrail? Even I was a little queasy climbing down! 

See how happy he looks up in the treetops? And yet he has refused to go ziplining with me every time I've asked him since then.

And just when he got used to the idea of being a thousand feet off the ground in a glass bubble and checked the safety records of local companies, I dropped another bombshell on him. If I was going to be flying over some of the most gorgeous scenery in the world, I wanted to make sure that my pictures honored that. And the best way to get gorgeous pictures without worrying about sun glares and reflections on windows? Fly with the doors off, of course!

So my sweet, wonderful husband, who fears heights more than he fears anything else, agreed that on his honeymoon--the time he had always imagined being blissfully relaxed and happy with no worries in the world--he would brave a small, four-person, doors-off helicopter just to make me happy. I'm pretty sure he spent the rest of the year (and especially the week leading up to the flight) a nervous wreck, but he did it--he flew in that helicopter with me. (Spoiler alert: He loved every minute of it.)

Over the next week or so, I'll be writing about our Hawaiian adventures and sharing with you a few of the thousands of pictures we came back with. First up will be our introduction to Honolulu and our time swimming/being shaken sick in an open-water cage surrounded by sharks (video included). But for now I'll leave you with just a couple of pictures to whet your appetite for things to come. Aloha!

...

In the next few posts you can expect:

Fishies! Lots of fishies! (Or in this case, a school of yellow tang.)

Hula dancers! Shaking their stuff on the dance floor.

Magnificent sunrises! (Or in this case, dawn. You'll have to wait until my Maui post to see the actual sunrise.)

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Final 2011 Recap: The Move/Wedding Whirlwind

One of the reasons the end of the summer was so chaotic and stressful was because I was working (teaching and research-assisting PB) full-time at the same time I was planning a huge move. Friends, I am no fan of moving. From the time I was three-years-old until I was eighteen I lived in the same house, the house my parents still live in, longing to be one of those transient people who move whenever they get the urge. SoCal in the summer? That sounds nice. Key West in December? How about Paris in April? Yes, that's what I thought I wanted, not to be physically tethered to any one place, to be able to pick up and go whenever the mood struck me.

Then I went to college. And I moved at least twice a year for the next four years. In and out of dorms. In and out of summer apartments. I never moved home-home again, so you're probably thinking, how much can a college kid own?

A lot. Over the course of those four years, I acquired more and more books, a couch, a desk, an old-school desktop computer, and lots of clothes (which compared to now, seems like almost nothing), so I dreaded those days at the beginning and end of summer when I would have to pack my bags and brave the Alabama heat. And mostly I dreaded the cleaning that comes with moving, trying to move all of my possessions out of one place and into another, plus scrub the floors/showers/sinks (and later ovens/refrigerators/cabinets/countertops) and patch up all the picture holes it had seemed like a good idea to hammer in the wall when I first moved in.

So when I moved to Auburn and got to live in the same place for three years, and then moved a few streets away and lived in the same place for two years, you can imagine how happy I was to get to stay in one place for longer than a couple of semesters. So I acquired more things, of course--a dining room table and chairs, a full living room suite and big, flat screen TV, a study full of furniture, multiple bookcases, a queen-sized bed and dressers. On top of all the books! When I buy books (as opposed to renting them/checking them out of the library/downloading them on my Kindle), I somehow forget that I will one day have to move each and every one of them.

With just one week left before my move from Auburn to middle-of-nowhere, PA, not a single box had been packed, not a single piece of furniture sold. I was trying to get rid of as much stuff as possible, so I put most of the furniture on Craigslist, bought boxes from U-Haul, and, in the middle of grading final papers and exams, started loading up my books.

Twenty-five boxes worth.

The move was stressful. It took three days, a full day of which was just loading the truck with my things. I was still selling furniture on the day we pulled out, and anything unsold that I didn't want to move got left on the curb or by a dumpster. I gave up trying to clean/patch walls and just decided I'd rather my landlord take it out of my deposit. Best $200 I ever spent.

Two days later, I was an official resident of the smallest town I've ever seen. It started raining the day I got there, and the sun didn't come out for another three months. (Little rain, but all clouds, all the time.) Less than a week later, I started my new 9-5ish job--the first time I'd ever worked full-time outside of education. I knew no one other than my fiance and a family I used to babysit for, and I wasn't sure how to make friends in a place so small. (I'm still not sure.) I was an administrator now and felt estranged from my academic family. No one spoke my language.

In October, though, I got a few days reprieve to go to Alabama to see my family and friends, meet with my dissertation director, and attend the Auburn Writers Conference. And in many ways that short trip saved me. I felt happier, fuller, there than I had in quite some time. My days were full of lunches and dinners with people I love, long meetings with mentors who were full of encouragement, and, of course, writing workshops that forced me to examine my priorities and look at writing in new ways. I met many wonderful writers, and spent so much time with people who spoke my language, that I couldn't help but leave feeling blessed that I'd been able to escape PA for a few days to attend and see everyone. (And four straight days of sunshine and short-sleeves certainly helped.)

I flew back to PA determined to change the terrible habits I had fallen into--and for awhile I did. I worked diligently on my dissertation for a few weeks, then focused more on my novel for the first couple of weeks of NaNoWriMo. I was hitting goals I hadn't thought possible, and I was doing it fairly easily.

But then life caught up with me. I got sick, not once but twice in November, and I haven't been in perfect health ever since. I chaperoned a disastrous student trip to NYC that left me angry and emotionally and physically depleted. I spent five days at the in-laws, which I enjoyed as a form of escape from PA, but during which I got no work done. And then I had that wedding to plan.

I'd been good about wedding planning in the spring, but during the summer and early fall I did almost nothing. Fortunately, I had done most of my booking in the spring, and during our July planning session with our wedding coordinator we had knocked out a lot of the big decisions (menu, cake, floral), but there were still a lot of small details to attend to, and I was second guessing a lot of the plans we'd made in July. The last few weeks before we left for Florida were spent frantically emailing back and forth with my coordinator and florist and making a wedding newsletter, times guide, escort cards, table numbers, menus, a sign for the candy buffet, and any other craft projects I could think of.

A few of my projects--wedding newsletter, ceremony program, labels for candy favor bags, and times guide

Perhaps my favorite thing I made--wedding times guide for the welcome bags in the shape and design of a Disney park times guide

I didn't order my "Here Comes the Bride" banner until three weeks before the wedding (special thanks to Stephanie at Exclusive Elements for rushing it to me), we ordered wedding favors two weeks before (Murano glass bookmarks, wine stoppers, letter openers, and bottle openers from Favor Warehouse), and I didn't get the newsletter in the mail until a week and a half before. So needless to say, I was procrastinating and pretty stressed those last few weeks.

But it all came together so beautifully, and the weekend itself was almost completely stress-free.

The wedding was on Friday, December 16th. My last day of work was the 13th, and then T.J. and I flew down to Orlando on the 14th. Our plane landed around 2:15, and then we waited for his older sister and her two little boys to land so we could all take the Magical Express together to Coronado Springs. This was probably the most stressful part of the day because we didn't meet up with them until 3:00, and I had a 4:30 mani/pedi appointment at the CS spa. But we made it to the resort with some time to spare and then we were swept away to the VIP check-in area. We were given balloons, told what building our party was staying in, and then headed to the room to check it out.

Imagine our surprise when we opened the door and saw this:

Although I initially thought Disney had done this for us, it turns out my amazing little brother, who's a Disney cast member, got one of his friends to let him in our room so he could set this up for us.

The amazing gift basket Cody put together, knowing my loves for both hot tea and all-things Alice

And it wasn't just a gift basket and some decorations, but a SUITE, with two full baths, a HUGE living room, and separate bedroom. There were closets to spare and a kitchenette with sink and fridge, none of which we were expecting. We'd paid for me to be in a regular old room, and at first I thought this was just a nice wedding upgrade they give to all the brides, but my hair stylist told me no, she'd never seen a bride get a suite like that. So to whomever pulled the strings and gave us that upgrade, THANK YOU! That suite truly made our first couple of days magical (and gave us loads more room to put together welcome bags and get ready for the wedding).

I had to rush off to get my mani-pedi then, and the girls as the CS salon were very nice. I had my nails French-tipped, and though I loved my toes, I wasn't a hundred percent happy with the manicure. I have really good nails, so I didn't use acrylics, and I could still see part of the whites of my nails below where the whites of the polish ended. No one else could really see it from a distance, but it still bothered me for the next week before I took the polish off.

As soon as the manicurist was done, though, I had to rush back to my room (all the way on the other side of the complex) because we were all going to Downtown Disney for dinner and to meet up with my brother, Cody. (Yay!!!) I probably should have waited a little longer for my nails to dry, though, because within ten minutes one of T's nephews had stepped on my big toe and smudged all the white paint!

There was no time to get it fixed then, though, as we were off to Downtown Disney, where we ate at Earl of Sandwich (I had the amazing holiday sandwich with turkey, stuffing, and cranberry) and I got to see my little brother for the first time since August! I'd missed him terribly (we'd lived together the whole time we were at Auburn), so it was good to be reunited. Afterward, we wandered around and looked at shops for a while until the kids got too tired.

The next day was full of errands (finishing the welcome bags; delivering them to the Wilderness Lodge and Pop Century, where other guests were staying; going to UPS and Walgreens), including going to the salon to get my toenail fixed. Unfortunately, we got there and everyone was gone to lunch! I started to panic when an anonymous cast member (who swore me to secrecy) swooped in and saved the day! Toenail fixed, I rushed back to change for the rehearsal/dinner.

Rehearsal was at 3:30 at the Wedding Pavilion, but we were 10-15 minutes late (not everyone loathes being late as much as I do). This was probably the most stressful thing that happened the whole weekend (as our contract said if you were 15 minutes late they could cancel the rehearsal), but it ended up being okay. Our coordinator, the wonderful Michelle Wenzler-Dorr, was very kind about the whole thing, and since my brother and cousin Brittany (my MOH) were already there, she at least knew the rest of us were coming. The whole rehearsal probably took 15 minutes at most, and then I hopped in the car with Cody and Britt, and we headed to Pop Century to pick up my grandmother, sister, and friend Carrie.

After being in PA for so long, it was soooo great to see my friends and family again, to have most everyone I love gathered together in one place. This was especially so once we reached 'Ohana at the Polynesian, where we had the welcome dinner.

I think we'd been standing near that fire for too long.

There were around 40 of us there that night, some people I hadn't seen in many months and sometimes even in years. They gave us one loooong table so we were all together, and the kids had fun doing the coconut races and the hula, and everyone praised the food. T.J. and I were perhaps the least impressed people there (I've eaten there a couple of times before, so I know how good the experience can be, and somehow this time we always ended up getting food last and sometimes not at all.), but it was still  fun. Afterward a bunch of us went down to the beach to wait for the Magic Kingdom fireworks (they were at 8:00 that night), and for some people it was the first time they'd ever seen them. It's so nice to share things like that with people when they are seeing them for the first time.

When Brittany and I got back to the room (she stayed the night with me), I had another surprise. The bed was covered in rose petals and gift bags of lingerie! Because I didn't want a real lingerie party (the very idea makes me feel a little nauseous), T.J.'s mom, grandmother, and sisters had decided I should have my own private one, so they'd left the packages there as a surprise. It was so nice and definitely unexpected!

The next morning was the wedding, so I tried to get to bed at a decent hour. My alarm went off at 5:15, I think, and I took a shower, came out to check my phone to make sure the photographer hadn't called, and discovered my phone had completely crashed! Of all mornings! My photographer, Jason Angelini, was supposed to call to get my room number, and all of the other vendors only had my cell phone number, so if there were any problems, they wouldn't be able to reach me. Not sure of what to do, I had Brittany call and wake up T.J., and even though we hadn't planned on seeing each other before the wedding, he came up and we started looking up numbers and making the necessary calls.

Crisis averted, he went back down to his room just before the vendors started arriving. First, Sue and her assistant from Carolyn Allen's arrived to steam my dress. Since we had the suite, they could just set up shop in the extra bathroom (which was huge) and have the place to themselves. They did a great job (everyone thought the dress looked beautiful), but if I'm honest I don't know that it needed steaming. I'd been really careful with the dress ever since I'd picked it up from alterations, and considering what happened to it a couple of days later,* the professional steaming was probably unnecessary.

Next, Patricia LeJeune and her assistant from LeJeune Artistry showed up. They did my hair and make-up and Britt and T.J.'s grandmother's hair. They did an amazing job. My hair and make-up looked even better than I could have imagined, and everyone commented on how great my hair looked. Patricia's make-up job was flawless, and the fake eyelashes she gave me were those individual lash kind, not the whole lid, and they looked so natural. Before she left I bought a MAC compact from her and a tube of lipgloss to touch up my make-up throughout the day, and I have used both of those products almost every day since. They are subtle enough to look great anytime.

With just minutes before the limo was to pick me up, I squeezed into my dress, put on my heels, and threw the last few items I might need into my handbag. Cody, who became the official mover-of-all-things-I-don't-trust-the-porters-with, showed up to take the gift basket and a couple of other things that wouldn't fit in my suitcases, and that's when the trouble started. On the way out, he called up to let Britt and me know that the limo was in front of the lobby, so we headed that way, even though Michelle had said she would send the car to our building. Well, we got to the portico, and there was no limo. We thought maybe he'd driven around to our building and would come back, so we waited. And waited. Meanwhile, I'm standing outside a resort decked out in my wedding dress, and little girls are pointing and staring, and people are congratulating me left and right, and all I want is for the limo to appear! Finally, we get a call on Britt's cell (Michelle had been trying to call mine, but of course it wasn't working.), told the limo driver where we were, and he circled back around to the front of the main building. We clambered into the back and off we went!

We were supposed to have half an hour for pictures with Jason at the Grand Floridian, but thanks to the limo confusion, we only had about fifteen. Again, though, everyone I met was so nice and courteous. The limo driver (Frank?) was so good at putting me at ease (I was pretty nervous at that point), and Kelly, Michelle's assistant who met as at the GF, was so nice and calming as well. All of the bellhops, greeters, and random tourists we met congratulated me, told me how beautiful I looked, and little girls would walk up, tug on my skirt, and say, "I really love your dress." I always thought I would hate that about getting married at Disney (the whole princess treatment and spectacle of being the center of attention in front of so many people), but it was actually really nice. (Two days later, when T.J. and I had to get dressed back up in our wedding-wear for our Epcot photo shoot, the people at Wilderness Lodge hardly gave us a second glance, and I was thinking, "What is wrong with these people?" lol. GF spoiled me.)

Britt and I took pictures in a couple of different locations in the lobby at GF, and then we went back out to the limo and around to the Wedding Pavilion. Michelle and Rana, her other assistant, made sure everyone was inside before I got out of the car, and then they escorted me to the Bridal Suite. I was in there less than five minutes, no lie. Long enough to get a sip of water and for Ron Rosenzweig, our officiant, to come back and briefly review the ceremony with me. I didn't even have time to sit down, and then the processional began.

It was short -- just T.J., his dad (his best man), Britt, and our banner boy nephews, Elijah and Taylor -- and then it was time to make my entrance.

Our banner boys, Taylor and Elijah

So happy my little brother could walk me down the aisle! :-)

I'm pretty sure as soon as those doors opened and I heard my song ("The Ludlows" piano theme from Legends of the Fall), I flew down the aisle, because I don't really remember the walk at all. And then I was on stage, holding T.J.'s hands, and he was crying, and I was repeating vows after Ron and exchanging rings with T. It all went really fast, but with the exception of what Ron said (which I was told was quite lovely), I remember most of it pretty well. I remember getting teary as I walked to the altar for the sand ceremony and the organist started playing "Moon River," and how I got a bit too eager with the sand and spilled some on the table. How I wasn't really sure what to do when I turned and was introduced as a married woman for the first time, and how T.J. took my hand and led me out, and then it was all over.

"Hey, why do I still have so much sand in my jar?"

So relieved the ceremony is over!

I'm so happy we chose to have a morning wedding because it meant that, A) the nerves were over by 10:15, and B) we got to enjoy a full day of wedding activities instead of just a few hours. People say your wedding goes by so quick, and it does, but we got to celebrate from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., so we got to relish the moment a little longer than most.

After the ceremony, we stuck around for pictures and sent most everyone on to Narcoossee's, at the GF, where we were having our cocktail hour and reception. We actually were able to finish up a little before the cocktail hour ended and join our guests for a drink, and we also got to see the reception decorations before they were destroyed. lol

Michelle showing us how they set up the candy buffet.

Centerpieces with my table numbers.

Menus I made.

The reception was very low-key. We had our first dance (to Ben Folds' "The Luckiest")...

...and then a beautiful tropical-themed lunch buffet. 

In case I forget what day I got married, my aunt helpfully added the date to the corner. :-P

Afterwards we mingled with guests, cut the cake, and then the caterers whisked the cake away to slice it up and serve it to everyone. Every layer of the cake had a different flavor (the bottom was almond cake with amaretto filling, the middle was yellow cake with tropical mousse filling, and the top (anniversary layer) was yellow cake with white chocolate orange mousse, all with buttercream icing), and they were all good. As in, the best wedding cake I remember having (and I'm not just saying that because it was mine), and so much better than it tasted when we did the cake tasting.

CAAAAAKKKE! Yum yum. And I sorta, kinda designed it myself. (Well, pieced the design together from some I found online.)

One of my favorite pics from the day (until we get the professional ones, of course).

I only wish my dress hadn't been feeling so tight or I would have eaten more! (And more of that pina colada bread and sazon-laced rice, which was my favorite thing from the menu tasting last July. Yum!)

After the reception ended, T.J. and I went around to different resorts with Jason and (hopefully) got lots of great pictures, and then we went back to the GF and checked into our two-bedroom, three-bath suite! It was by far the most amazing room(s) I've ever stayed in, and it was a shame we only had it for the night. (Disney comps you one night when you get married there and have a certain number of guests stay on property.) We didn't have much time to enjoy the room, though, because we had to quickly change and head to Epcot for our Dessert Party!

From 8:30-9:30 that night, we had the lower UK terrace reserved for our party, and our wedding guests gathered for one more bit of fun and magic. The desserts were delicious (including cheesecake, fruit tarts, chocolate eclairs, pistachio cannoli, and fruit salad)...

...and I got to spend some time with Jamie (of London-flat fame), who didn't make the wedding because she'd gotten into a car accident that morning. :-(

At 9:30, after all our socializing was over, we sat back and relaxed as Illuminations, Epcot's light and fireworks show, began. We had the most perfect seats in the house, and it was like the whole show was just for us. It really was the perfect way to end the day (especially considering how much I love fireworks).

The next couple of days were spent playing in the parks, and in general just having a great time with our friends and family. We had lunch at Liberty Tree Tavern with my family; had our picture taken in front of the castle with my grandmother, who had never been to Disney before; rode rides and watched parades with the nephews; and saw the joy on their faces when they saw Mickey, or Buzz, or some other character they idolize.

Elijah and me waiting for Fantasmic.

I've been to Disney enough times now that I didn't feel the need to rush from one side of the parks to the other, that I didn't get upset if lines were too long or if I didn't get to ride something I love to ride (like the Haunted Mansion or Toy Story Mania--don't laugh; that's my favorite ride at HS). Instead, I could just relax, soak it all in, enjoy the company, and find perfect contentment in ending the day with fireworks and a Dole Whip. It truly was the most perfect 4.5 days I could ask for, and I wouldn't change anything about it,** even if I could.

* T.J. and I scheduled with Disney to have wedding portraits done in Epcot's World Showcase two days after the wedding--which meant we had to get all dressed up again, have my hair and make-up done again, all that. The night of the wedding, I gave my brother my dress to take over to the Wilderness Lodge, where he was staying and where we were moving the night before Epcot pictures. When we got to WL that night (after midnight, I might add, because of fireworks), Cody and T.J. went to get my dress, and it turns out my brother had left it in the trunk of his car. With his suitcase on top of it! (Boys just don't think about these things.) I thought for sure it was ruined, especially when I pulled it out of the bag and it looked like a wad of crumpled tissue paper. I really wanted to cancel the whole photo shoot at the point, not least of all because I was exhausted and had to be up in four hours for Janet Melnick to do my hair and make-up. We put the dress in the bathroom, though, with the hot water on high, and steamed it for a couple of hours. The next morning, it was almost as good as new! That's why I say if my dress can survive that and still look decent, it certainly didn't need professional steaming the morning of the wedding. Oh, and we were super happy we kept the Epcot appointment. Our Disney photographer, Stephanie, was fantastic to work with, we had so much fun playing in the different countries before the park opened (Canada, UK, France, Morocco, and Italy), and if the pics look anything like the ones she showed us on her camera, they will be gorgeous. (To see the kind of shoot we had, click here.)

** Even the phone dying ended up not being such a big deal. I had to go almost a whole week without a phone, but that was actually kind of liberating, and I was rewarded by getting to ditch my glitchy Samsung Fascinate and get a new iPhone 4s. :-) So it all worked out in the end.

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