Well the drive from Gulgong to Sydney Airport was relatively uneventful. A little bit of rain and one missed turn because I decided to do it with out the GPS and didn't see the sign in the mist. Check in went smoothly, all the staff at Hawaiian Airlines have been great. The lounge at Sydney airport left a bit to be desired, however it was all very much first world problems. Boarding was unexceptional, the flight left on time and arrived in Honolulu on time. The lay flat bed let me get about 5 hours sleep, which is more than I sometimes usually function on. The meals were excellent and the service attentive. So why am I officially old? My seat mate for the 9.5 hour trip was a perfectly pleasant woman who worked on the tech side of eCommerce and for the briefest of exchanges made every weary bone in my body cry out in unison. After some ever so brief pleasantries and a quick chat about her flying on to LA and me laying over in Honolulu for five days before flying to New York and then jumping on a cruise. Her first question to me. "Are you retired?" So needless to say my ego was somewhat bruised and while I could put it down to the fact that I did tell her I was cruising, it is probably more indicative of the fact that I am in my 60th year and there are more years behind me than in front of me. With that sobering thought I finished my Pinot Grigio, stretched out the seat to a full recline and slept until about 90 minutes before we landed.
So its 30 degrees here in sunny Honolulu. I'm staying at the Prince Waikiki and I've got say the hotel is great. They let me check in early, I've got a harbour front room that sits directly in front of the harbour and the ocean. There is plenty of room for my luggage and so a few moments getting organised and I was ready to sally forth to the Honolulu Lawn Bowls Club (about a mile away). You can see by their about page it was actually founded by an Aussie, Dr Richard Ebsworth and built by Australian servicemen just prior to the second world war. I can find no further trace of the good Doctor online however Aussie's are a rash all over this establishment. It seems there was a party of twenty bowlers who attended in 2023 from the Halekulani Bowling Club (owned by Mounties). Reading through some of their old newsletters it seems that we Aussies have started a tradition of streaking across the green at the end of the tournaments they play in. Thank God I won't be bowling. I will call in tomorrow and drop off a shirt and stubby cooler and make their acquaintance. Then I'll push on to the Bishop Museum, apparently its full of dinosaurs.
I finished my first night in Honolulu by blowing the budget at Chart House. Here I had a most agreeable Sauvignon Blanc, and out of this world Cabernet Sauvignon from the Napa Valley, and a shot or two 16 year old Lagavulin. The meal consisted of Ahi Sashimi (which is Hawaiian for "fire" named for the yellow tuna and how fast it moves through the water) followed by a rib eye fillet. All perfectly agreeable. Now its time for bed ready for the old to have a big adventure tomorrow.
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