Megan's travel blog: Waikiki, Oahu

After landing in Honolulu, by synchronicity we met two very nice chaps at the airport who were kind enough to drop us into the city. During the drive we were having a great chat about our travel plans and so on. Being the chivalrous Christian type, Brian who lived locally offered us the couch for the night, so Vanessa and I found ourselves having our first couchsurfing experience. Certainly not the sort of thing we would normally do but the whole thing just felt right. It is a truly humbling experience to meet someone who is willing to go out of their way to ensure a 2 strangers are safe on their travels and we were very grateful for their assistance and local knowledge.

We had a great chat about life in the US and Australia, shared stories, insights and travel experiences. After a rugged nights sleep on a camping mattress on the floor, we struggled with the backpacks and navigated the bus system to the closest backpackers. The backpackers was full and felt a bit dodgy so we utilised the nearest Starbucks for the free wi-fi to find a cheap but acceptable hotel nearby - the only reason to go to Starbucks IMO ;-) Mission accomplished and we soon arrive and spend 2 nights in a 'lovely' 70's decor hotel room ;-)

We spent a couple of low energy days around Waikiki beach. The famous beach strip is not for the claustrophobic; it is a strip of sand filled with beach chairs. Needless to say we didn't feel like spending much time there.

Crazy Waikiki Beach

I managed to achieve my goal of finding the only whole foods market on the island. OMG this place is amazing, they have absolutely everything. I spent about an hour geeking out at all the herbal and superfood products and made the most amazing organic salad for lunch. Why don't we have these in Australia yet??

I also checked out the hike at Diamond Head State Monument. This was a pretty decent hike uphill through the old military base.