Honolulu in 18 Hours

We were trying to remember the last time we flew straight from the East Coast to Hawaii might have been.   Our normal mode, in the last 30 years, has been to drive to San Francisco or Denver and fly from there, getting two trips in one.  It is possible that the last time was when Benjamin was about 20 months old, and we did drive the return trip on that one.  So this was a whole different way to get here, just getting on a plane and sitting there forever and ever and then getting off and finding ourselves back in Hawaii again, after a six year gap.

Travel stories can be kind of boring, and this was no exception. We left home at 5:15, everything went fine, we got to JFK and made the trip between gates with no hitches.  Then we sat on the plane for almost three hours, waiting for the de-icing teams to get to us.  It was snowing and cold, but not scary. Then it was a mere 11 hours of sitting squished together, watching movies, snoozing, wishing we were there.

And now we are!  As soon as you get off the plane and walk outside down that first hallway, you know where you are. The air feels so familiar.  It is warm and humid but not like Virginia in the summer. More like a nice day in May. And the trees are completely different -- they would be great to climb except for the first 15 feet to the lowest branches.  Then you could lie down on the horizontal limbs, like Mowgli in the Jungle Book (just saw that movie).

Went through the usual drawn-out rigmarole of car rental and we were on the freeway, heading to Puamamane Street.  This is the same house that has welcomed us for my entire life.  It feels almost exactly the same as when I was in elementary school. Sort of incredible.  They don't need air conditioning or heating so the houses are lightly built, with lots of air movement.  This one feels like it is made out of balsa wood, but that is probably an exaggeration.  Auntie Annette had cleared the dining room table, the whole house is clean and ready for guests.  In the past, our family has filled this house, sleeping on couches and floors, for weeks on end.  We feel like a very small entourage right now, but more of us are coming soon.

Auntie Annette and Uncle Freddy were ready and waiting for us (we were several hours late) so we could go to Aina Haina Chop Suey -- which closes promptly at 8 PM, even on Saturdays.  It was lovely to have food ordered (and ready) for us, like we were kids again. I think they ordered more sinful dishes than they usually would have, and we all ate happily.  Then a brief stop at Foodland so we could try to restock the kitchen -- Uncle says he is not going to cook while Jon is here. Jon can do the cooking.  I somehow don't believe him, but Jon will certainly cook.

Auntie Annette moved out of her bedroom and gave us her bed.  This tells me that we are really getting old. We always sleep in the living room!  But she has an extra bedroom that is clear enough for her to sleep in, and she says she couldn't really see sharing the bed with us, so we are accepting the royal treatment.

I woke up somewhere in the 3:00 hour (which is about 8:00 at home) and decided to give up on sleeping.  Naps later.  I doubt there will be enough news to write a daily blog, but I will write whenever I can't sleep anyway. It is wonderful to be here, and we haven't even seen anything in daylight yet.