back from Hawaii
 

My lovely bride of 30 years and myself just came back from Hawaii yesterday after spending over a week there. We stayed on Oahu at the Makaha resort which is on the western side of the island. We went to Pearl Harbor and the memorial is very touching as you get close to it, knowing how many lives lost was very sureal. We also did island guided tour,official Hawaiian lua,dinner cruise,snorkeling,hiking we had a blast. I was a little surprised on how many homeless folks setup makeshift camps on the beaches:( I guess the cost of living vs. the wages = many homeless. We had a great time celebrating our 30th wedding anniversary. The flight is a long one:mad: but if you can catch some sleep isnt't too bad. Road signs/directions on the island leave a little to be desired:rolleyes: Honolulu is a major city and is crammed with tourists, but most are scantilly clad so life was good:D Now a trip to Germany is in orderSmileWavy

Next time you go post here first and we will direct to to the real Hawaii.

SmileWavy

It is all good! Welcome back.

I miss Hawaii more in the summer (in the heat & humidity), than I do in the winter!

Post any pics if you like!

After spending a week there and driving almost the entire island ( several times ) I think at some point in time we saw the REAL Hawaii. We took aprox. 400-500 digital pics that we'll have to sort thru. Don't get me wrong we had a great time we were just surprised by a few things. I would say there is a chance we'll go back but there are too many other places to see in the U.S. and other parts of the world that we will probably go see. I really want to go see the Porsche factory and if we can tie in Oktoberfest at the same time I'm seeing a win/win vacation!!!

Hawaii is great. Lived there for 5 years and now miss it. Will probably never live there again though, I was in the service than and had access to the commissary. Couldn't afford groceries there otherwise.

LOL, That is putting it lightly.

Hey, that is a funny coincidence, my wife and I just went to Hawaii (Honolulu) in May for our 30th anniversary as well. It was great fun. In the past we have mostly gone to Maui, so the change was nice. I lived on Oahu back in the early 70's, so it was fun to go back. I still prefer Maui, but Oahu is OK by me.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1215559587.jpg

That whole coast is the only place I've seen such a thing. From what I've read, it's because it's tolerated. However, I had also read that there was a major push to clean up that crap. Beautiful beaches there . . .other than all the blue tarps and crap cars people are living (drinking) in.

So how bad was it during your stay? Pict's?

We stay on the Waianae(west side of Oahu) coast every winter and are pretty familiar with that scene. You have some very desperate folks living in those parks, as that is the last resort for many. In the past 2 years the state has built at least one large shelter near Makaha and many have gone there, but there needs to be another solution, which is affordable permanent housing opportunities. Hawaiian real estate is very expensive, as you can well imagine, and even modest places are well beyond the reach of working people. We saw several of the larger encampments cleared out and seemed much better than a few years ago.
The state changed the rules on camping(they are all "camping") and now the permit only runs for a short period-then you must leave the park with all your stuff. Some families are living with many generations and cousins, etc, in one house in shifts, just to stay off the beach. Very sad situation. There is also a drug problem, mainly with homeless ex-west coast bums who are living the life for "free". The cops are like a cloud over the area, and pretty effective for what I've seen.
I agree, it is shocking to see it the first time, all those blue tarps on some of the most beautiful beaches. However, the Hawaiians have a way of taking care of each other and they will work through it, I am sure. Lots of homeless in NY and Miami too, just not where the tourists can see them.
We didn't take any photos, it's like taking a photo of the Amish..