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There it was the most famous volcanic crater in the world, Diamond Head, a symbol of Hawaiian existence, and the gem of Waikiki. In a few days, we'll become a part of that existence as our plane glided over Honolulu and taxied safely on the airport tarmac. From Dante's Kona of the Big Island to Pilar's North Shore of Oahu, the beat goes on.

for us. We took Rte 1, or Kamehameha Hwy and headed north, passing by Aloha Stadium, where the NFL Pro Bowl is played at the end of the football season. We continued on, until we reached Schofield Barracks, and hanged right onto the Dole Pineapple Plantation. Suddenly, we saw the sea on the horizon and the topography of the land played tricks on our eyes. In front of us was a long, long stretch of land with red soil, broken only by lush green vegetation. Just beyond it was the blue sea that merged seamlessly with the blue sky, and made the sea as if it was above us. It was dreamlike, very surrealistic, but had a seductive quality, inviting us to stare forever.

The following morning, we took a bus tour around the island. Pilar booked the tour with Roberts Island Tour. We were blown away by our tour guide/bus driver. Besides being instructive about the island, he was a hell of a funny man. He interspersed his narration with funny anecdotes.

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... and then we were back at Waialua, passing by the Sugar Mill, where most of our forefathers earned their living in the '20s. The mill was once the heart of sugar cane plantation life. Today, we saw many small businesses in the original grounds of the mill, serving Waialua village and nearby towns. What remains of the mill was the original large smoke stack, and three to four old-style warehouse buildings. And for you Moms out there, this was the source of "C&H Sugar" you

Waialua is a village on the North Shore of Oahu at the foot of the Wai'anae Mountains. From Pilar's house, you could almost touch its towering peak, which reminded me of the solitude of this place, and made it extremely endearing and recalled the Hawaii of days long since passed. We began our ride here and cut thru a neighboring Hale'iwa Town, that were crawling with Japanese tourists, along Kamehameha Hwy. We traveled northward along the world famous North Shore of Oahu. We heard the pounding surf in Waialua, Haleiwa, and Waimea, amidst song and laughter in the tour bus. The view was a typical residential housing, trees, and rock walls. It is about small farms, big waves that break almost a mile distance away, parks and beaches, roadside fruit stands and shrimp shacks, a bird sanctuary, and a valley preserve and other-worldly landscapes. These are among the reasons to stop between Waialua and the surf Mecca of Sunset Beach.

Swaying Palms. Warm waters. Sun, sand, sea and surf. These were hard to resists for any of us. It was just another day in paradise. We took our first break here, and what a break it was, indeed! I saw the fabled wave of Sunset Beach. It seemed like a mile away, when I saw a swell broke, and slowly crept towards shore. It created a long shredable point break, and then connected to an east swell which made up the longest wave I have ever seen in my whole life. I could only imagine the infinite possibilities for creativity and fun surfing these endless waves. I was stoked! Someday, I'll come back and surf these waters. Surfing captures one's body and soul through the very power and fury of the ocean, and it never let you go. That's the enchantment of Sunset.

From here, we rounded the island, and found ourselves on the eastside of Oahu, heading south towards Kahana Bay. But, not so fast. Along the way, we passed by the famous Turtle Bay Golf Course, with its breathtaking variety of vistas for each course, long fairways in dense ironwood forests, and greens on the edge of the ocean.

We proceeded south along Plantation Road. Oh, wait a minute. Is Hollywood here? Is that a film crew at a distance? Having seen these film trucks all over Los Angeles on any given day, there was no mistaking that they were shooting movies on this side of the island. There they were: trailers, lunch tents, porta-potties, lights and cameras. Hollywood in Hawaii! In our tour! What a treat. We were on location. Could I ask for more?

A few miles, northeast of Sunset on Hwy. 83 is Kahana Bay, our next stop. The bay has a sandy beach that slowly dips into the water as the Kualau Mountains dramatically rise in the background. From a distance, at the middle of the bay, there were fishermen with their boats anchored. Then, out of nowhere we heard a bellowing sound coming from the boats. Our tour driver snapped out a Triton seashell, the size of my head, and started blowing it, towards the direction of the boats, as if to greet them, "Aloha" for us. Because of the close proximity of the mountains, the sound was amplified and it sounded like we were inside a concert hall.

The beach was pretty well hidden from the road by tall beach pines at its outskirts. And, the water was calm. Also, I noticed that unlike the
other beaches we passed by, here, there were no stand concessions nearby. I hope it remains that way, untainted, unspoiled and unbridled
by civilization. A few miles south of here, is the famous tropical Farm Macadamia Nuts.

The lush scenery of Kualoa Farms, where the Tropical Farm Macadamia Nuts is located, gave me the shivers. It looked primordial, breathtakingly beautiful and serene. The details of the green ridge walls are so vivid and defined, a reminder of the violent eruptions that formed these islands, millions of years ago. I swear I heard the pounding footsteps of T-Rex across the base of these incredibly majestic mountains. Was not Jurassic Park shot here? Just outside the store, are very old (500 years old?) towering acacia trees growing vigorously with luxuriant foliage. I was dwarfed by this majestic, out of this world landscape. Sanctity. Sacred. Holy. Nirvana. These were the thoughts that crossed my mind. Why would there be profanity in this world, when such sacred beauty exists?

coffees, spices, cookies, arts and crafts. And, of course macadamia nuts! Pilar got me a bag of Kona Coffee Glazed Macadamia Nuts. I bought a bag of Honey Roasted Coconut Glazed, and to this day, I popped one each day to save and savor its flavor.

For some reason Kamehameha Hwy which is Rte 83, is named Kahekilli Hwy when you are in these parts of the island. From here, we took a hard left, and suddenly in front of us, was scenery out of Indiana Jones. It was a vast area of lush, rolling green hills and without the flowers on the ground, you would not know that it is a cemetery. It was here where Marcos was interred for a time at a private mausoleum overlooking the Byodo-In temple, until his body was moved to his hometown, Batac.

Hidden In the Valley of the Temples Memorial Park is the Buddhist Byodo-In Temple. Strangely, I felt a dejaveu. I know, I have seen this temple before. And, sure enough, our tour driver told us that this was often used as a background of the popular TV series Magnum P.I. It is surrounded by a large, lush, traditional Japanese garden, complete with an entrance bridge, a creek around the temple full of golden koi, and peacocks strolling about the grounds freely. At the left side of the entrance hangs a sobering three-ton bronze bell. The girls had fun ringing it before entering the sanctuary.

Inside the temple is a nine-foot Lotus Budha, covered in gold and lacquer. Behind and to the left of the Temple is the Meditation House, a place for private thought and inner peace. The Temple is landscaped against a backdrop of the Ko'olau Mountains, which added tranquility, beauty and grace to its stunning architecture.

There's a gift shop where you could buy fish food and feed the koi. Interestingly, when the girls tried to scatter the fish food with their hands, the birds (are these wrens?) alighted and ate from their open hands, as graceful, gliding swans and brilliant colored koi waited below. We lingered here a bit, to wait out the showering raindrops, which added solemnity and dignity to the Temple's grandeur.

We proceeded towards Honolulu, and besides the million dollar houses on top of the hills, it was uneventful. Until, Kahekilli Hwy makes the Hinamoe Loop with Likelike Hwy. No kidding. At first sight, I thought it was a misprint, but I took a second look, and the sign reads, "LIKELIKE". Figure it out. I did. It is pronounce LEE-keh-LEE-kee, and was named after a Hawaiian Princess, Miriam LikeLike. If you live on the southeastern side of the Koolau Mountian range, and wants to go to Honolulu, the quickest way to get there is to take LikeLike Hwy and pass underneath this mountain

range, thru the Wilson Tunnel. However, our tour was not scheduled to go the to the capital city. Instead we veered to the South Eastern shore between Hanauma Bay and Sandy Beach Park to the Halona Blow Hole.

Halona Blow Hole looked like a well visited tourist spot, since we have to vie for a spot on a lookout deck to take a shot of the beach and the rocky point down below where the water spout is suppose to surge through a hole in the ledge. To our dismay, there was no geyser. The blowhole works only when the surf is up forcing the water to explode upward creating a geyser. The sea looked tame that day, and there was not enough force to get a water surge through the hole. But, north of the parking lot, we saw Halona Cove, a small sandy beach where people were wading in the water. Tourists, I bet. Also, there's a small monument atop the Point, honoring those lost at sea. Then, there's the Hollywood connection, again. One of my favorite movie classic, From Here to Eternity, was shot here. The love scene on the beach, between Burt Lancaster and Deborah Kerr , where water was

We were late when we arrived at the Memorial Visitor Center. There was not enough time to see the ships, since the Park close its doors at 5:00 P.M. But, we had enough time to browse inside, including the museum where it shows the everyday lives of soldiers and sailors. There is also an extensive collection of photos of Pearl Harbor, before and after the attack.

At the back of the building is an open lawn adorned with palm trees and well manicured grounds. We walked to the edge towards the water, and looking southwest, we could see the USS Arizona Memorial gleaming in its white splendor. There are waterside tablets that correspond to the actual location of the events that transpired in that infamous day of the attack, Dec. 7th. 1941. Also, there are photos of landmarks with quotes and historic anecdotes that explain the meaning of the place.

As we walked out from the Center, just before the main entrance doors, is the USS Arizona anchor, which was salvaged from the wreckage, and weighs just over 19K pounds. What we saw here, were powerful reminders of the attack, deaths, survivors, and massive violent destructions of U.S. naval forces. On the other hand, this memorial also stands as a proud testament to the strength and courage of the men and women who gave up their lives for their country. We cannot help but felt sorrow and pride

And, so with these feelings we drove to the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, another memorial to those men and women who served in the U.S. Armed Forces around the Pacific theater of combat.

This cemetery is located just north of downtown Honolulu in the PunchBowl Crater. The graves were marked with granite markers. Because of air pollution regulation, the tour bus was not permitted to linger on the park. We followed a long driveway that made a U-turn in front of the Memorial. The Memorial consist of steps, flank by walls that are etched with names of those who were never recovered from battle. At the top of the stairs is a female statue, known as "Columbia" standing on a prow of a Navy carrier, with laurel branch on her head. Also, the Memorial has a small chapel that pays tribute to the various battles fought in the Pacific.

As we completed the U-turn and headed out, we had a great view of the Honolulu sky line, Diamond Head and the ocean. What a contrast. Behind us is a peaceful atmosphere, inviting us to relax and take our time. In front of us is the hustle and bustle of modern living, with all its aches and pains, full of stress and chaos. This cemetery is saying that it is the result of such uneasiness. And, so don't forget, because those who do, tend to repeat the past.

The Dole Plantation ceased operations in 1991. It was started by James Dole around the turn of the 20th century when he bought a 61-acre tract of land in Wahiawa, and established his pineapple plantation. He built a pineapple cannery in Wahiawa, and created a huge market for canned pineapple.

The first thing that caught our eyes when we arrived at the Plantation was the red dirt on the ground that surrounds the Visitor Center. It reminded me of the red soil on top of the Cabangaran ridge, before you descend to Gubang. It is known as oxisol, containing a high concentration of iron oxide, and out of this earth springs the noble pineapple.

The Visitor's Center has a pineapple garden, a maze, a train ride, a restaurant, and a huge gift shop. It was here, of all places, I found the most seductive gift in the Dole Plantation gift shop; a Chocolate truffle, made from Waialua-grown cacao with extra-dark bean, filled with ganache.

At the onset, I mentioned about the Wai'anae Mountains that fronted her house. What you did not know is the beach on her backyard. Each morning, as the dawn breaks, as the sun rises over the ridge, the air crisp and fresh, I would get up and heads directly to the beach, where the water's surface was mirror smooth, reflecting the orange clouds of dawn. There was no one around but me, and the entire beach was mine, with the exception of little birds with long beaks, scurrying and probing the sands, and running up and down avoiding the next surf surge. What I did not realize then, but I do now is that Wiailua is off the beaten path. Tourist Tours from Honolulu to the famous beaches of Waimea and Sunset Beach stop by the Dole plantation in Wahiawa then turn right proceeding head north, missing this historic town of Wiailua.

With this kind of spectacular surroundings, it is hard to say goodbye, especially when you are reconciled to beauty and unafraid of time. A special place where you can reflect your journeys thru life, and reconcile your destiny to your beliefs. Can you recognize the perils of calm, menaced only by sun, sand, surf, flowers and palm trees? Can you forget time, amidst music and laughter? When you have Nita, spewing funny anecdotes like an incessant Madame Pele. When you have Celie and Manuel creating palatable cuisine that rivals the best chef in the world. When you have the best host and hostesses of Dante and Pilar that could put Hilton Hotel to shame. When you have Loida as steady as can be, always planning our next move. When you have Etta and Taling gracing our conversations. Why can you not make time stand still? And, be happy!