How exciting we have now been dropped off at the airport to begin our adventure. Thanks Frank and Thanks to Angie and Chloe for dropping us off today. We will be flying United Airlines from CVG to Denver, CO, Then Denver to Honolulu.
Gnorbert wanted to get in on a little vacation action
They have you really packed into this 777. 10 people across.
We all found this to be funny but a little scary at the same time!?!? How many years has it been since you were allowed to smoke on a plane??? Just a little info the bans started in 98 on flights less than 2 hours then complete ban on all flights by 2000. We could not Google it while we were flying but we had made a decent guesstimate of 20 years. So our fear was that our plane was at least 20 years old. You then begin to wonder about how many miles this plane has!!!!! Scary Stuff. Then we asked the flight attendant about the ashtray and no smoking sign on the same door. She explained the planes go through very strict design regiments and every single ounce counts and it cost a ton of money to do a design change so when they upgrade they just leave little things like the ashtray alone because its cheaper to keep it.
11 hours 15 minutes, one layover and 4 extremely numb butts we have arrived in Hawaii
Once we arrive and
pick up our luggage we then realize we are going to need something larger than a full size vehicle to get us to the Aulani and to the cruise ship on Saturday.
We get to Enterprise and are looking for a vehicle and explaining to the gentleman our situation. Donna and I both saw the van in the picture below and giggled as we sent it to Brenda and Charlie who were sitting at the front of the rental place with our mounds of luggage. Brenda responded almost immediately " Nooooooo" I believe she had bad memories of the van like this we rented in California last year. The step up was so high we had to go and buy a step ladder to get in and out of it. We let her off the hook when we pulled around front with the actual vehicle we rented.
This is the little beauty we rented a 2016 Honda Odyssey. Very spacious could easily accommodate our mounds of luggage and us through out the week. It had all the bells and whistles. We figured most of them out by the end of the week.
So excited to get out of the airport area and take in the beauty of the island. We cruised through town then hopped onto the into the H1. Which in my mind was going to be this beautiful scenic highway just like Highway 1 in California. I can tell you I read and studied a lot about the islands and all of the great things there are to do on them. Once we entered onto the H1 Highway we found out we have possibly landed in LA, this traffic was not in any of the travel brochures. This is not your typical Island feel, pace or beauty. Nothing calm, serene and beautiful about this. We ran smack dab into afternoon rush hour traffic. Holy crap this was insane. bumper to bumper traffic with speeds up to a whopping 25 miles an hour (when you were super lucky) This wonderful traffic jam occurs every afternoon between about 3:00 - 6:30. Lots of fun. ( please note "lots of fun" is with much sarcasm) Traffic sucked!!! At this rate we should be at the Aulani somewhere around midnight.
We have finally arrived to Mickeys beautiful home in Hawaii. The Aulani Disney Resort
The entrance to the Aulani was beautiful and we were so excited to see what all the Aulani had to offer us.
Once we arrived they parked our car we were greated with the aloha spirit we each received a lei and a refreshing drink we were then escorted into the lobby for our check-in process which was very quick and efficient. We also found out our room had been upgraded to a garden view room.
As always Disney puts so much attention to detail it is just amazing. You can look at the same room 10 times and find something you missed.
The arches in the walkways are made to look like wa'a (canoes) hanging upside down
This is our room before we trashed it with our mounds of luggage.
Loved our little Mickey out of the towels and the quilt. It is a traditional Hawaiian Applique using two contrasting colors and radial symmetric patterns.
Thought for sure we would be buying one of these awesome Mickey surfboard lamps. After we saw the price we decided the picture of it was good enough.
After unpacking we went downstairs and enjoyed a great buffet dinner at the Makahiki. We tried several traditional Hawaiian treats.
The artwork on the wall depicts legends and myths of the islands
There are other notable design elements for guest to discover in the buffet area itself. For example, the curving walls are embedded with tiles made of coconut fiber that lend a natural and organic backdrop for the art. Look up and you'll also see this Hawaiian treat used in another design element. In fact, the entire ceiling consists of coconut tiles, augmented by a scattering of mirrored glass mosaic tiles. This is to be reminiscent of a starry night.
As night falls entertainment comes out and you can listen to Hawaiian favorites outside on your balcony or from the bar on the first floor.
The Aulani at night is just as beautiful as it is in the day.
We traveled makai (towards the ocean) to go and here Uncle tell us a story at the fire pit.
The Menehunes were supposed to have been a wonderful people, small of stature and of great activity. They were always united in doing any service required of them. It was their rule that any work undertaken must be completed in one night, otherwise it would be left unfinished, as they did not labor twice on the same work; hence the origin of the saying: "He po hookahi, a ao ua pau,"--in one night, and by dawn it is finished.
There was a man who lived in a village and he did not have his own wa'a (canoe). He decided one day he was going to build his own canoe so he traveled high into the mountain into the koa woods to find the perfect tree. by time he got to the top he just picked a tree and chopped it down. (CHOP, CHOP, CHOP, CRASH) He was very tired from his travel and cutting down the tree he decided he would go back home and start early in the morning working on his wa'a. While on the hunt to choose a tree one should not rush, it is not just a matter of picking a tree and building your wa'a you must follow the traditions and ceremonies for the making of the wa'a.
The menehunes had watched the man just randomly pick a tree with out the proper respect and did not even take the time to see that the tree was not straight it was twisted. So they decided they would put the tree back as if it had never been cut down.
When the man returned in the morning to begin working on his wa'a he could not find the tree he had cut down the day before. The man figured he must have gotten lost on his way into the koa woods. He decided he would cut down another tree. Once again the man randomly chose his tree and cut it down.(CHOP, CHOP, CHOP, CRASH) When he finished he was too tired to begin the wa'a so he made his way back down the mountain.
The menehunes had watched the man again just pick a random and this tree was clearly not a good tree for a canoe it was way too short. So they once again put the tree back into place as if it had never been touched.
The man made his way back up the mountain the next morning and to assure he did not loose his way again he had marked the way down the mountain so that he would for sure find his tree. Once the man arrived to the spot where his tree was he was very confused. It was as if no one had ever been there let alone cut down a tree. So the man went and chose another tree, but this time instead of cutting the tree down he dug a big hole until the tree fell over the crawled down in the hole so that he could see what was happening with the trees he had been cutting down.
As night fell he heard voices and laughing it was the menehune coming out and laughing at the man for taking down another tree that was not fit for a canoe. This tree was straight and tall but the wood was decayed and the heart of the tree was defective. The menehune decided to mess with the man one more time and put the tree back into place. Just as they began to work on picking the tree up the man hopped out of the hole and scaired the menehune and they began to scatter away and hide. The man was able to reach and grab one of them. Not just any menehune he was the king of the menehune's.
The man sat and talked to the king and ask why they were doing this to him. The menehune explained that the man had been choosing the wrong trees for the canoe and were having fun with him by making him think he was crazy. The king explained to the man that the there were traditions and ways to pick the koa tree for the wa'a it was more or less a religious act to build the wa'a.
The first tree you pick was twisted and would have never made a reliable wa'a. The second you chose was to short and would not have made it in the waves of the ocean. The third you chose had a defective heart because you were never patient enough to allow the Elepaio bird to assist the finding of a tree with a good heart.
The man admitted he had no clue how to build a wa'a. The king of the menehune made a deal with the man and said that if you release me the menehune's and I will build you a canoe and bring it down the mountain when it is finished. The king then sent the man back down the mountain to build a house for the canoe.
The man began building the house for his canoe and in a week after the menehunes prayed and allowed the Elepaio bird select their tree. Once it found the tree it made its (KAKAKAWAWEEE) sound and chose a tree with a good heart. they also made a sacrifice to the gods. Once this was done the menehune took the entire night to build the canoe because they only work on building something one time and for one night. The next morning the man awoke to find the most beautiful canoe in the village and he had built the wa'a a very respectable house.
The man enjoyed and fished from his wa'a for many years
The moral of the story is you should always be patient and respect what nature is giving you and you will prosper.
A menehune inside the Aulani
There are over 300 hidden through out the Aulani.
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