Wednesday 14th April 2010

Hello, Honolulu!

Stu was very excited to see all the yacht masts.

I, on the other hand, have seen enough 'boat' to last a while...!

Once the sun came up we could see the channel markers quite clearly marking the safe passage in to Ala Wai Yacht Harbour. We could also quite clearly see the surf breaking on the reefs either side so were quite happy with our decision to wait until morning! The reefs make a great surf break, apparent by the number of early morning surfers waiting for the perfect wave.

We entered the harbour and tied up the the fuel dock so I could go the the harbour office and announce our arrival. When I arrived back at the boat 25 minutes later, berth secured, Stu informed me that he had been talking to the guy at the fuel dock/cafe - Curtis - who said that we could have a berth at the Hawaii Yacht Club for not too much more than the harbour office was going to charge. The promise of better facilities, access to the bar and restaurant and opportunities to meet more people made the decision easy for us, and we got a berth right outside the yacht club. We are literally 15 metres from the yacht club door! As well as making food, drinks and showers (nice showers!) very convenient it also means we're meeting lots of people, some of who come for a wander around the boats, see our Aussie flag and come on board for a beer and a chat. We're also in a prime spot to hear the live bands (whilst drinking out own drinks on board and avoiding bar prices!!) and, as we discovered this evening, a prime spot for watching the local dinghy racing.

We spent the day tidying the boat befre having a quick explore around Honolulu and Waikiki, discovering the wonder of 'shave ice', which is very popular around here. Basically a snow cone - but surprisingly tasty and refreshing in these 28 degree days :)

We are 'parked' behind another Australian boat. Mike bought his Hallberg Rassy 40 in Vancouver and is leaving on Friday to do pretty much the same trip we are. Apparently the number of Australians who come through here after buying boats on the west coast of America is huge (so we're not the only crazy people!!). Mike has done a lot of single handed sailing, including his trip from Vancouver, but has a couple of mates flying out to do the next leg of his trip with him to Kiribati.