Given the allure of the Islands, I think you’d be hard-pressed to find someone who hasn’t dreamed of visiting Hawaii. I’m fortunate to have family living on O’ahu, so I visit more frequently than a desert dweller like me deserves. Let’s take a little trip around the Island of O’ahu and pick up some fun ideas for a visit & some trivia for an Aloha-themed #bardchallenge. Shall we?
Honolulu, on the South Shore, is the capital of Hawaii. Most visitors land in Honolulu at the Daniel K. Inouye International Airport, named after Hawaii’s first United States House Representative. Honolulu is home to Waikiki, with rows of sky-high hotels, shopping, restaurants, and the appropriately named Waikiki Brewing Company.
Honolulu is also is where you’ll find the Pearl Harbor National Memorial, home to the USS Arizona, which has sit on the ocean floor since 1941. Over 4,000 people per day come to visit the museum and memorial at Pearl Harbor!
Head on over to the East Side and check out Kualoa Ranch. You should immediately recognize the place since more than 70 movies and TV shows have been shot there. Movies like Jurassic Park, Jurassic World, King Kong, Godzilla, Mighty Joe Young, and 50 First Dates & TV shows Lost, Magnum P.I. and Hawaii Five-O were all filmed on the Ranch. You can take a guided tour by vehicle, horse, bicycle, or elect to zip-line over the top of the Ranch! Just beware; some Jurassic Park dinosaurs might still lurk around.
On the South Eastern edge is Koko Crater Botanical Garden, one of the most unique gardens in the world … it’s in the crater of a 50,000-year-old volcano! Walk along the nicely packed dirt paths of this 200-acre garden and find palms and plants native to the island and from Africa, Madagascar, and the Americas.
Head inland and North to get a taste of the Island Life at Ko Hana Distillers. The Agricole rum made at Ko Hana is from fresh sugarcane grown on the property. And, while the sugarcane must be processed while fresh, it takes two years of barrel aging the Rum before anyone can taste it. Thanks to the special Koa wood barrels used in the aging process, these rums have a magnificent red hue.
A little further North and you can find the Waimea Falls tucked deep in the Waimea Valley. The falls are named for the reddish water that pool below. The water gets the red color from the high levels of iron oxide in the Hawaiian soil. The Natives believed these waters contained healing properties and would visit the red pools to bathe the sick. The surrounding valley is filled with lush vegetation and an amazing assortment of flowers and palms.
OK, I think you’ve earned yourself a nice beach day after taking that adventure! But we’re not quite done. Just to make sure Gemini (Bard) can find enough tidbits to stump the #BardTrivia gang, lets throw in some random facts about Oahu, shall we?
- The island’s first documented European landing occurred in 1779 by Captain Charles Clerke
- Oahu’s Iolani Palace is the only official royal palace in the United States.
- Duke Kahanamoku, the “Father of Modern Surfing,” was born on Oahu.
- US President Barak Obama was born in Honolulu and lived there during parts of his childhood
- O’ahu is the 3rd largest Hawaiian island at around 597 square miles in size
- Oahu has a very large population of feral chickens that can be found roaming all over the island
- The official bird of Honolulu is the manu-o-Kū, or white tern (not the chicken)
- The North Shore of Oahu is known for it’s big waves. In 2023, Australian surfer Laura Enever paddled into a massive 43.8-foot wave, the largest recorded for a female surfer.
- Daniel K. Inouye International Airport handles over 21 million travelers per year
Thank you for reading. Have you visited the Hawaiian Islands? Any rad memories or photos to share?
I’m ready for Gemini to do its thing, 
, I never visited island I hope to visit here.
. It blows my mind that people on boats were able to find it in the first place.
. My record is 4 inches when I tried to do a little boogie boarding.
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