It has been more than 13 months since we last travelled, that was a trip to Australia. Although we did spend a week in July in the Poconos with Joe Jr, Ellie and their families; and a couple of days in Cape May after that. I might get to post some pictures from those two trips when I get around to it.
When Ellie told us her idea of moving to Hawaii for several months to ride out the COVID-19 pandemic, I thought that was a bit drastic. Turns out the idea was good, as she can work reasonably well from five time zones away, and the kids are young enough that not going to school – such as it is – won’t put them that much behind their peers. We of course miss the grandkids, as they had been staying two to three nights with us each week since the end of summer.
Our original plan was to visit in February as United scheduled non-stop Newark – Honolulu flights. Soon after we made the booking, however, we were notified that those flights had been cancelled and we were going to make a stop on the west coast. We didn’t feel comfortable doing so, so rebooked for the non-stops in March. And we got notified about those cancellations. As we both got our second COVID vaccine shots by mid-February, we decided to take the trip.
There are health forms one has to fill in, and a COVID test also is required to avoid quarantine in Hawaii. The actual steps are quite simple, but we got sent so many notices that made things sound complicated. The most difficult thing – and potentially most expensive – is to get a COVID test. Our son had to scramble to get tested when he came down to visit for Christmas. Things are much calmer now, we could readily get an appointment at Walgreens (South River), and the drive-through testing involved nothing more than putting a cotton swab in a nostril and rotate several times. Anne got her results within a couple of hours; I had to wait about six to get mine. The cost of these tests is covered by insurance (in our case Medicare), other providers charge over $100. The rapid test offered by United at Newark cost $200 last time I checked.
Not having travelled for more than a year, we spent a lot of time making sure the house is properly alarmed, and the trip preparation process was a bit daunting. Now (Wednesday night) sitting in a hotel room, things feel a lot calmer.
Wed 3/3. Since our flight on Thursday is quite early, we decided to stay at the Newark Marriott the night before. And we had a Marriott certificate we needed to use anyway.
The wait for Uber was longer than usual – not too many cars on the road – and we checked in a little after 6. We don’t plan on eating dinner, but did bring along plenty of snacks.
Accommodation. Newark Marriott (1 night).
Thu 3/4. We woke up around 6:15 am to check out of hotel and to catch the shuttle to Terminal C. We left our room at around 6:55 and got to the terminal at 7:05 am. Was the terminal crowded! People were at the lower level (regular check in area) waiting to be sent up the escalator in groups, and the line was long. We found a CLEAR agent who took us to the beginning of the line, but when we got to the TSA level we were sent to the wrong end. To get to the pre-check side we had to go up one floor, walk to the far end, and take the escalator down. On this end both CLEAR and TSA pre-check worked reasonably well, and we were through in less than 15 minutes, and that is with me having been “randomly selected” for an ID check.
While everyone was wearing a mask, social distancing simply wasn’t possible given the number of people in the terminal, and some of the narrow passages (not helped by these eateries put in a couple of years ago). I would have felt very uncomfortable if I had not had my COVID vaccine shots.
The positive aspect of this trip is that both our flights got upgraded, using Plus Points. The EWR-LAX flight is in a 787-10, so we get the Polaris seats. They are fine, but not as good as I imagined them to be. Meal service was a “pre-packaged” affair, but the entrée was hot. I just finished the movie Tenet which had things moving forward and backward in time, simultaneously. Even if it makes sense (and I am not sure it did), it would be difficult to follow the two timelines simultaneously.
We landed at LAX ahead of schedule, and I thought I would go visit Alaska Lounge as part of the Priority Pass program. It is in Terminal 6, but easily walkable from Terminal 7 without leaving the secured area. But it was too crowded and we had to wait for may be 20 minutes. We ended sitting in the Terminal 6 gate area for a while – it was much quieter.
It was about an hour before departure that we got back to the United gate, and to our chagrin found out there was a long line waiting to be “wristbanded.” Some people in front of us seemed to take a long time, with one lady having to dig through her documents at least three times. For the well-prepared, it was a simple scan of the QR code the Hawaiian government sent us, and to make sure we are whom we are, the whole process took maybe two minutes.
Even thought LAX was a bit quieter than EWR, social distancing was still impossible around the gate areas. And we saw this crowd near the gate serving a flight to Orlando. Disneyland is closed, so all the fans are heading out to Disney World.
The plane had a “cleaning delay” (someone else might have coined the term already) so we ended up doing the usual priority boarding. This 757 is the first one I encountered that had no seat back screens, and no wifi while over the Pacific. The purser thought it was not supposed to happen, even though the “Flight Status” has this information for a few days already. The seats in Business are about the size of the Premium Plus seats, and I don’t understand why they don’t put in a foot rest - it is easy enough. We did get a warm sandwich for lunch.
The area of the airport we landed was very quiet, with most restaurants closed. Dollar car rental is a shuttle ride away. The line waiting for service was long; I waited about 45 minutes before I was served. And at some point a woman came in and said it would be a 45 to 60 minute wait for a car after signing the rental contract. I ordered the “house special” and was offered a Chevy Spark (very small car) right away; which I took. The drive to the hotel and subsequent hotel check in were both straightforward. The one-bedroom apartment was a bit worn, but reasonably clean. The one disappointment was there was no washer/dryer (as described in the Hotels.com website).
We ordered takeout from House of Wong, a short drive from the hotel.
Accommodations. Aston at Waikiki Banyan (7 nights).
I summarize what I have learned about the health declaration process in the following two paragraphs.
Hawaii Safe Travels. The process feels a lot more daunting on paper than reality. For Honolulu, one first registers at the Hawaiian Government website, which asks for inbound flight information. That can be done any time (one creates an account). Within three days of departure, one takes a COVID test from one of the trusted partners, and uploads the test results to the Hawaiian website. (The reports we get says we were tested Monday, our flight from LAX was Thursday; we did it exactly 72 hours before departure time, but could have done it any time during the day. We did it at Walgreens whose reports specify only the day, not hour; and I also know it to be true with Vault. When it’s 24 hours before flight to HNL, Hawaii sent us a questionnaire, we answered the questions, and within minutes got a replay with a QR code. At the United gate for our LAX-HNL flight, the agent scanned our QR code, verified our identity, and put a wristband on us. Upon arrival, the authorities waive you through when they see your wristband. I am told if you don’t have a wristband, you just have to show the health staff your negative COVID test. My understanding is those who can’t demonstrate they tested negative are subject to a 10-day quarantine.
LAX restrictions. California discourages unnecessary visits, and suggests voluntary quarantine, but says nothing about transit passengers. For LAX arrivals one is expected to fill in a form, which is quite straightforward. Other than an acknowledgement that the form is filled out, there are no follow ups.
Fri 3/5. We decided it would be prudent to practice social distancing for a few days as we don’t know even with vaccination we can still be carriers of the vaccine. (After so many people have been vaccinated, one would think the statisticians would have some results already.) So we brought our masks along when we visited Ellie et al. We brought takeout to their house for brunch. The non-descript Café Kaila was quite crowded, and they checked my temperature before I was allowed to pick up the food. We were happy to see the young people, and they were happy to see us. We spent most of the time in their place, but did venture out to the Tantalus Lookout and the Jungle Swing (which has exactly one swing hanging from a tree). We went back to the hotel for a short while and rejoined Ellie et al for an early dinner. The kids go to bed before 7 pm.
We stopped by Safeway to pick up some basics like milk and bread, and I walked along the beach trying to get my exercise in. I forgot to bring the Apple Watch charger, so the watch ran out of battery last night – there went my streak, and my hope of achieving this months challenge of 1000 calories burned a day for nine days.
Sat 3/6. Weather during this time of the year can be fickle. We have had rain on and off quite a bit the last couple of days, from drizzles to light. Not enough to ruin the day, but enough to make you plan if you want to be outdoors for an extended period of time.
The weather forecast yesterday said it was going to be raining quite a bit. It has been a much nicer day than that, although there is the occasional passing drizzle.
We started the day at the Koko Railway Trail which is the old tram track that hauled supplies up to the top of the volcano Koko to supply the military post there. The track is not in use, but is in pretty good shape thanks to ongoing restoration efforts. I walked from the base (at 250 feet elevation) to about 410, not too difficult, but I was worried about my weak knee. The top is at about 1100 feet, and the last stretch is very steep.
This was followed by visits to Spitting Cave and China Wall. People were jumping off the wall into the ocean, and quite a few scuba divers were practicing ocean rescues. The water is amazingly clear. Dolphins and sea turtles were readily seen from the shore.
We picked up food from South Shore Café and ate at the Ala Moana Park. The beach was quite crowded (although social distancing wasn’t difficult), Ellie et al decided to go in the water, Anne and I returned to the hotel to take a rest.
After a late and heavy lunch, Ellie et al were just going to have smoothies for dinner. We joined them for the berries and tropical fruit concoctions Kuau cooked up, with tofu added for extra protein. The Apple Watch cable I ordered also arrived, a couple of days ahead of schedule, which is nice.
On the way back we stopped by Leonard’s, around for close to 70 years, to buy some malasadas which are best described as Portuguese donuts. One special flavor is Lee Hing Powder, which is made from preserved Chinese plums. They were quite good.
Sun 3/7. Today was basically a shrimp truck day. On our prior trips we have tried these roadside shrimp trucks before, and we hit the “well-known” ones today. When we got to the grove in Haleiwa a little before 11 am, the place was already quite crowded, but we could find parking this time. What we ordered: 2 shrimp plates and 2 hot dogs from Giovanni’s, Kalbi from Honos, and Loco Moco & Kalua pork from a third place. Loco Moco is a Hawaiian breakfast dish consisting of rice, hamburger meat, and fried egg; and Kalua pork is pulled pork. Quite a bit of food, but we managed.
It was then a short drive up to Matsumoto Shave Ice where flavors come in varieties including Green River.
Towards the northern tip of the island is Turtle Bay. We visited the Pillbox built to guard the area during World War II. Ellie and Kuau went for a dip in the ocean, Reid and Maisie decided to do some tree climbing (they are both pretty good at it). Anne and I held Everly when her parents went for a dip, and was she unhappy. It may be attributable to her being tired and hungry, or while she seemed to enjoy us from a distance, the feeling didn’t stick around when we were close. Afterwards she smiled at us again.
By the time we were ready to leave the beach area, it was after 3 pm, and some wanted to try another shrimp truck. This time it was Fumi’s, a few miles away on the other side of the tip. The shrimp wasn’t as good, but we enjoyed the clean dining area and the clean washrooms.
Lunch was at Teddy’s. For dinner Anne and I got take out from House of Wong to bring to Ellie’s house. The kids ate quite a bit too. Their appetite seems to have improved a lot since we last saw them in New Jersey.
3/9 Tue. A quiet day. Laundry in the morning, then bought some food at Duck Lee and brought to Ellie’s place for lunch. It was supposed to be rainy so we decided to stay in. Turned out to be dry most of the time. The kids played outside most of the time, and I took a hike up the ridge (about 2.5 miles roundtrip, 750 feet rise in elevation), with some portions that are quite steep. I did another walk of about 3 miles after we got back – still didn’t meet the 1000 calories objective.
3/10 Wed. I had an
ACCESS call at 11:30 am my time, so took advantage of the morning by walking
with Anne to the beach, and also did some additional walking on my own. During the phone call Anne drove to the
Market City Shopping Center and bought lunch from Duck Lee and Gina’s, a Korean
restaurant.
We then met up with Ellie et al at Aiea Trail where we took a short walk. There were rumblings of thunder, even though the sky was mostly blue. The rains the last few days made parts of the trail muddy and slippery, Reid and Maisie sure enough fell a couple of times, but were not bothered.
After Shimazu’s for shave ice, we went back to our hotel room to pick up the leftover lunch to bring to Alencastre. Ellie bought some Japanese. That was our dinner.
Rain was coming down quite heavily, accompanied by thunder and lightning. Our drive back to the hotel started unexceptionally. Then a lightning flash, and everything went dark around us. Without any street lights, we had to depend other drivers’ common courtesy at intersections to be able to get home. That the wireless network continued working helped. We got back to our hotel safely, and electricity was not out in the area. Power in the area was restored in a couple of hours.
The area has been inundated with rain the last couple of days, with much flooding and a report of someone swept down a river.
Continued ...
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