WIR 20241020 – Waikiki at Night While the Shadows are Falling

I was in Hawai’i last week and it was an interesting time as always. I typically fly Hawaiian airlines out there and that in itself is a study in contrasts. I think they’re probably the last airline that feeds you something substantial during the flight at no extra cost, which is nice. How long that lasts since they’ve been bought out by Alaska is anyone’s guess. They’re usually a good airline to fly, but I don’t know if it’s my luck or what, but I’ve yet to fly Hawaiian without some kind of weirdness stepping in for a moment to say Aloha!

On the outbound flight, everything was smooth until landing and everyone was happy that we arrived about 20 minutes early. We taxied to the gate area and then stopped.

And we waited.

And we waited some more.

The Captain finally announced to the cabin that they were having trouble getting the Jetway to mate up to the aircraft so we could egress, which I have to admit is a new one on me. Usually with Hawaiian, I’ve had to wait in the penalty box until a gate opened up, or stop short of a gate only to be directed to another one, or finally get ready to turn to the parking spot but have to wait on ground crew to show up so the plane could proceed.

But it was Jetway issues. I appreciated the novelty.

At any rate, folks were standing in the aisle, thinking they were getting off the plane at any moment. But as minutes turned into a quarter hour, the Captain announced over the PA that they still couldn’t get the Jetway to cooperate and they were sending for a technician.

At this point, I’m thinking why not do it the old fashioned way with a ladder truck, but the 21st century seemingly has no memory of those legends from the long-ago 1900s, so we waited some more, happy that we used the lavatory before landing.

Even more so when the Captain announced that the Jetways were the responsibility of the State and we had to wait for a State technician.

The wonders of bureaucracy will never cease to consternate, as the groans of multiple passengers could attest, especially as one of the flight attendants announced that the lavs were being serviced and couldn’t be used.

As the the sky turned above, the issue was ultimately addressed and we were able to get off the plane and head to baggage claim, where we assumed our bags had been lazily cruising in circles awaiting our arrival.

But no. Even with the lengthy delay, the ritual of waiting for the bags was not to be denied. Even as we’ve shed all vestiges of the past in the mad dash to make it everything worse for the financial benefit of a few, it appears some forms must always be obeyed.

The rest of the trip was great. We stayed in Waikiki, because I’m touristy like that. Honolulu always reminds me of Vegas — the touristy area that the locals probably avoid like the plague, and then the rest of it that resembles North Vegas. But one of the nice things about Hawai’i is that not only is every island different, every island itself has distinct contrasts.

Oahu has a city side with Honolulu, but take the Pali Highway through the mountains and you’ll soon be greeted by a country atmosphere of small towns, gorgeous beaches, and natural beauty unspoilt by high-rises and congestion. Then keep going North from there and be treated to awe-inspiring views that’ll leave your jaw on the floor.

But we didn’t have time for that this time, so Waikiki Beach and Pearl Harbor it was. I’ve always like Waikiki Beach, and the weather as always was perfect the entire time. Our hotel room had a nice view of Diamond Head and it was right on the beach, so it was nothing to go and spend some time at the beach and forget what it was we wanted to do that day.

One of the things we finally did was visit the Pearl Harbor historic sites, specifically the USS Arizona Memorial and the USS Missouri battleship. They have the Missouri moored just a little bit away from the Arizona memorial, so you can stand where the war started for the USA and see where it ended four years later.

I’ll have posts for each of these places, but for all the chilling relaxation of a tropical isle, it’s nice to be back home. I decorated for Halloween this weekend and also installed a pegboard in the garage above my hobby desk, so I had a busy weekend right before what will almost certainly be a busy week of catch-up at work.

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