Oahu Archives | The Good Hearted Woman

Sunset on Hawaii {Pretty Pictures & Free Background Images}

Sometimes I just need to look at something peaceful and pretty. Maybe you do too.

From recipes to hikes to travel tips, the focus here for the last month and a half has been on our vacation to Hawaii earlier this summer. Thank you so much for indulging me – it’s been so much fun to relive our trip and share the best parts with you. Now that the summer is winding down and the kids are going back to school, I wanted to leave you with a last look at some of the beautiful scenes we experienced in one final Hawaii post.

Note: I’m the first one to admit that I’m not a professional photographer, but if one of these images catches your fancy and you’d like to use it for a background or some other [non-commercial] use, full-sized images are available to download here from my Flickr account, or just click the picture you like for a direct link.

↑ This was on of the first images I took on my Sunrise Photography Tour. I love the way the light reflects off the tide pools in the foreground.

↑ One of my very favorites! This image illustrates many things; the most interesting (to me) being that we never know when or how we will become part of someone’s memories. I have no idea who the guy on the beach is, nor do I know the tiny surfer in the waves, but because of this photograph, they will forever be a part of my memory of my first trip to Hawaii.

↑ My favorite part about the image above is the tiny paddle boarder making his way along the coastline. You don’t notice him right away, but when you do, he changes the whole story of the photo.

↑ A very exciting image for me: this photo represents the moment when I learned how to control the shutter speed to do what I wanted it to do.

↑ My kids’ Grandpa David used to take millions of pictures of trees, and I never really understood why. I think get it now though, because I could take pictures of the ocean all day.

↑ Dole Plantation Bromeliad Garden. I just think this is pretty.

↑ The first time I saw Hanauma Bay, I was overwhelmed by how clear the water was.

↑ You can’t really have a bunch of pictures of Oahu without a shot of Diamond Head. This was taken while we were on our dinner cruise on the last night of our trip.

↑ From our hotel balcony in Waikiki, you could literally see what was playing on the enormous television screen on the far left side of the apartment building on the right (fourth floor down). We weren’t trying to look, but that giant TV was like a bright, flickering fire that drew your eyes to it. Good thing the sky was more interesting to watch.

Until next time, Aloha.

Dole: The Complete Pineapple Experience

July 23 By Renée 11 Comments

Pineapple is no longer the lifeline of Hawaii’s agricultural industry that it once was, but you can still get the whole Pineapple Experience with a visit to the Dole Plantation, just an hour or so north of Honolulu. The Dole Plantation is about as touristy as it gets, but it is also a lot of fun.

POP QUIZ

Q: What is a pineapple?

a. The hanging fruit of the pineapple tree.
b. The underground root of a spiky-leafed plant.
c. The fruit of a terrestrial bromeliad flower stalk.
(Hint: The answer in is the image below.)

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This is tough for me to admit, but until I went to the Dole Plantation, I had no idea how pineapples grew. I was humbly reminded of the time, while taking a class on curriculum development in college, I learned about how some inner-city children needed to be taught that carrots came from the ground and milk came from cows. I was incredulous: who doesn’t know that? I’m sure small children in Hawaii would think the same thing of me and my ignorance about pineapple cultivation.

We took a ride on the The Pineapple Express, which carries visitors through a through a working plantation of pineapple and other crops, featuring fields in all stages of growth, from planting to harvest.

We also managed to make our way through “The World’s Largest Maze” – it took us just under an hour, which I learned is about average. The maze stretches over three acres and includes nearly two and one-half miles of paths crafted from 14,000 colorful Hawaiian plants. (I’m pretty sure that the Corn Maize on Portland’s Sauvie’s island is bigger, but who am I to dispute the folks at Guinness World Records?)

Our stroll through Dole Plantation’s eight different educational gardens gave us a glimpse at a wide variety of beautiful and useful tropical plants. The Bromeliad Garden was particularly striking.

There was also a large pond that held some seriously large koi.

Local artisans were on hand as well.

Our last stop started with a brisk walk through the Dole Plantation Store, which has more pineapple-related stuff for sale than I ever imagined could possibly existed. We headed straight for the Plantation Grille – for cup of their a world-famous Dole Whip! So, so, so good, especially on a hot day!

Check out my recipe for 4-ingredient Pineapple Ice Cream {A smooth homemade soft serve created in the spirit of Dole Whip}

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In Memory of Gallant Men {Pearl Harbor}

July 20 By Renée 11 Comments

Highlights and reflections on our visit to the USS Arizona Memorial at the World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument at Pearl Harbor.

{Part 1 of 2}

The average age of a serviceman stationed at Pearl Harbor during World War II was nineteen. Do you remember what nineteen looks like?

My Dad [age 17, standing on the right] with his buddies at Waikiki – 1944

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My dad enlisted in the Navy in 1943, twenty months into The War, on the day he turned seventeen. After completing basic training, he was assigned as a Torpedoman’s Mate on the USS Searaven, a submarine stationed out of Pearl Harbor.

The image above, taken on the beach at Waikiki in 1944, puts it all into perspective for me. Those faces were with me every minute we spent at Pearl Harbor, and colored every moment of my visit there, because while Dad and his buddies all lived through the war, so many faces as fresh and alive as theirs did not.

They were so very young.

The Shrine Room in the USS Arizona Memorial.

The World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument consists of nine historic locations in three of the westernmost United States: California, Alaska, and Hawaii. Of these, five are located within Pearl Harbor itself: the USS Arizona Memorial, the USS Oklahoma Memorial, the USS Utah Memorial, and parts of Ford Island and Battleship Row.

Before taking our scheduled tour of the USS Arizona Memorial, Mr. B and I took some time to walk around the monument, which includes a number of interconnected sites.

The Remembrance Circle lists every sailor, marine, soldier and citizen known to have died on Oahu on December 7, 1941, besides those listed on the USS Arizona Memorial itself. As I read through the list of civilians who died, I found myself thinking of all the living that was lost: the girls James never got to kiss…the sunlight that never fell again on Alice’s face… the young mother who never got to hear little Eunice tell her she was the best mommy in the world. It broke my heart.

The tour of the USS Arizona Memorial includes a compelling 23-minute film on the history of the politics, the people, and the attack on Oahu. After viewing the film, we boarded a US Navy operated boat for a short ride to the USS Arizona Memorial.

The USS Arizona Memorial is built over the remains of the sunken battleship USS Arizona, the final resting place for many of the 1,177 crewmen killed on December 7, 1941, when their ship was bombed by the Japanese Naval Forces. This loss of life represents over half of the Americans killed during the worst naval disaster in American History.

Some 500,000 gallons of oil continue to slowly seep out of the ship’s submerged wreckage, nearly 75 years after the attack.

Like many who tour the USS Arizona Memorial, our experience was reflective and somber. Mr. B is a six-year Navy veteran, which brought it all even closer to home for both of us.

Dear Lord,

Lest I continue
My complacent way,
Help me to remember that somewhere,
Somehow out there
A man died for me today.
As long as there be war,
I then must
Ask and answer
Am I worth dying for?

~ Poem Eleanor Roosevelt kept in her wallet during World War II

Just 355 USS Arizona Memorial crewmen survived the attack. During our tour, we were touched to learn that since 1982, the U.S. Navy has allowed those survivors to be interred in the ship’s wreckage upon their deaths. Following a full military funeral at the Arizona memorial, the cremated remains are placed in an urn and then deposited by divers beneath one of the Arizona’s gun turrets.

The Tree of Life, a sculpture designed by architect Alfred Preis, symbolizes rebirth and renewal, and serves as a reminder that we are all interconnected. This piece stands in front of the Road to War Museum and the Attack Museum, near the entrance to the USS Arizona Memorial tour. The same symbol is found on the side panels of the Shrine Room in the USS Arizona Memorial.

[In Memory of Gallant Men, Part 2 ]

If you are planning a trip to Oahu, Pearl Harbor should be on your itinerary. We strongly recommend getting your tickets for the USS Arizona Tour well ahead of time. For more information, including USS Arizona Memorial ticket information, please visit The World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument on TripAdvisor.
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