The Adventures of Sunshine Gypsy: Happy Hawaiian Christmas

Lucky, lucky me I got to spend Christmas in Hawaii with my Aunt Kelly (thank you Aunt Kelly!). This was a much needed trip considering my heart had been feeling heavy with homesickness. Throughout my travels I’ve realize how much of “home” is people. I often refer to Vegas as my home out of convenience and, though I was born and raised there, it still doesn’t feel like home. The people, however, they are home, and it’s the people I miss. Aunt Kelly was the beginning of reunions from home.

When I landed in Hawaii I was underwhelmed. All the pictures I’ve seen and stories I’ve heard portray Hawaii to be insanely beautiful. The view from the plane was ocean and dirt… uhhh where are the palm trees? As soon as you get out of Honolulu the beauty reveals itself.

Scorpio likes chilling upside down

Day one first beach we went to and hung out watching surfers

We stayed in Waikiki, which is pretty, but touristy so the beauty was manicured and put on for the tourists. Just a short way outside of Waikiki the natural beauty begins to unfold. We spent a good deal of this trip driving around and taking in the scenery.

While at dinner on Christmas Eve Santa drove by on his bike

And Rudolph sat at the table next to us

Walking down the street in Waikiki

Iolani Palace - The only royal palace in the U.S.

Queen Emma's summer palace

The North Shore... So pretty!

Not the best name for a taco shop, in my opinion.
It was closed so we didn't get to see if it lived up to its name.

A random beach at sunset

Me and Aunt Kelly

Chillin on the North Shore

No idea what that structure was,
but it was cool.

I'm an animal lover. This little guy
didn't want to leave me... I give good
bum scratches.

On one particular day we drove to a beach that had a turtle sunbathing in the sand. I was fascinated, but now that I think about it, it’s a bit odd because the turtle laid there on the sand sleeping. I’m pretty sure the only movement that occurred was a brief moment when it opened it’s eyes and lazily closed them again.

Turtle on the beach!!!

The moss on the rocks was super green!

Drive-by shooting... slow down and
I'll snap a photo out of the window

Scorpio and Bongo hanging out waiting for a photo shoot.

Spam sushi... yeeeek!

On the way to turtle beach we stopped into the Dole Pineapple Plantation. If you’re ever in Oahu go to the Dole Pineapple Plantation and get pineapple ice cream! It’s lactose free, gluten free, cholesterol free, and a bunch of other frees and it is deeeeeeeeliciious! We took a wander through the largest maze in the world which just so happens to be located there and looked for “hidden” spots within the maze. It was an enjoyable afternoon.

On the way to the Dole Plantation

Pineapples grow on bushes! I knew this
already, but I still think it's really cool.

Pineapple ice cream... so yummy

Another day we went to visit Pearl Harbor. It’s a bit funny because all my life I’ve heard the story of Pearl Harbor so the image in my head was a war torn harbor. Obviously, it does not look like it did in 1941 after the bombing, but for whatever reason I expected to see the remnants of the attack. It was a normal harbor with big ships and placards with stories, maps, and pictures from the attack. There were also pieces from the attack that were displayed. I’m glad we went and I now have a modern image to accompany my 1941 images.

Whale watching has been on my list of things to do for years. When I was in 5th grade I went on a GATE trip to San Diego to do several things and one of which was whale watching. Unfortunately, the weather was not ideal for whale watching and it was canceled. Since then I've always wanted to go. Well guess what we did? Yet again, I had these images in my head of how things would go. I pictured the whale breeching the water and doing a double back flip twist right beside our boat. This did not happen… I know, I’m just as surprised as you are. We did, however, see whales surfacing off in the distance after spotting blowhole spray which was pretty cool, but very hard to catch on film. By the time you spot the blow hole and grab your camera it’s over. Then you have to stare out and scan the ocean in search of more blow hole spray just to grab your camera when you see it only to be too late again… and again.. and again. I did somehow manage to get a couple photos thanks to the burst mode on my camera which takes a bajilliondy (like 5) photos per second.

I don't know if you can tell by the look on my face, but it was
early and I was not exactly awake yet or thrilled to be posing
for photos. I'm not the best morning person.

I spy with my little eye...

My Pops is a fan of the TV show "Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives" and saw an episode where they went to a hotdog place in Hawaii. He was really excited about it, so naturally, we had to try it. They had gourmet hotdogs like lobster dogs, which is what I got. It was good. Not something I'd order on the regular, but it was cool to try it and I enjoyed it.

Safety first!

Lobster dog

We also hiked to the top of Diamond Head volcano to take in a 360 degree view. I was able to see Waikiki from the top. It only took about 20-30 minutes to get up to the top where a Christmas tree was waiting to greet us. The view was amazing!