So unfortunately for Courtney, she had to work Monday-Friday. We both got up at 0430 to go for a run along the canal and did her usual routine of a post-run/walk at the Starbucks a block or two away from the hotel. It was one of those Starbucks Reserve places, so it was decorated fancily and served all their reserve and nitro coffee. Courtney has been out there a lot, so they knew her name and order when she walked in. They have a Hawaii-specific cold brew nitro coffee with coconut cream, so I had to try it.
On the way back to the hotel I found an ID and credit card that someone had likely dropped in a drunken stupor the night before. I thought, "Oh great! There's a police officer right here." I interrupted the officer's texting by knocking on the window, handing him the ID and credit card and asking him if this was the right thing to do. He sighed heavily as if I was being a pain in the ass and said if the credit card wasn't there I could just drop it in the mailbox, but he guessed he'd take care of it. I'm so sorry to disturb you, sir!
We got dressed and Courtney dropped me off at Pearl Harbor to see the USS Arizona Memorial. If you don't have tickets in advance, which you need to get far in advance, they release tickets first thing in the morning when they open, which is 7am. I was in line at 0630. I got to the front of the line and was told I had to check my bag (nothing bigger than a wallet) and the bag place is cash only. Stupidly, I had no cash. These two lovely girls from LA gave me $4 when I offered to PayPal them the money, and I ended up spending some time walking around the memorials with them. They were both great, we social media connected, and I enjoyed seeing their Hawaii pictures. Hopefully we can catch up some other time in the future. I do need to plan a trip to LA soon!
The USS Arizona Memorial starts with a video of the attack on Pearl Harbor. Then you board a boat and go to the memorial, which is incredible. It's a small view post supported over but not actually touching the USS Arizona, which is essentially a tomb for the crew who were unable to make it out. There is a wall with the names of the men who died, some details about the attack sequence, and one of the most awe-inspiring and surprising things, the viewpoints into the parts of the ship that are visible from the deck. There's oil on the surface of the water. Still. There is ~500 gallons of oil remaining that slowly leaks out and the US Park Service monitors it to ensure it doesn't cause a huge environmental impact to the bay. It's a very moving, well done memorial.
Back on dry land there is a typical museum-like exhibit to walk through and learn more about the attack and the impact it had on Honolulu. It was well worth the effort to get there so early.
So let's backtrack to a few facts: Courtney went to work and I had no cash. I learned, after departing the gate and collecting my bag, that the buses in Hawaii are, you guessed it, CASH ONLY. The security guard graciously watched my bag while I ran in and got cash from an ATM inside the park. Then he sent me back in one more time to have one of the cashiers change out a $5 bill for four $1 bills and four quarters, because the bus is $2.50 and also only accepts exact change. Thank you, security guard.
I finally head back toward the street and notice an Uber/Lyft driver that I had seen in the parking lot slow down and roll down his window. He asked if I was going to Waikiki and if I wanted a ride. I said I was going to take the bus. He asked me how much was the bus? I told him it was $2.50 and he offered to take me to Waikiki for $5! I bolted across the street and hopped into his car. My new friend Reddi was from Sweden and knows Marcus Samuelsson, the famous chef whose autobiography I had read not that long ago, so we started off with great conversation immediately. He said that he makes good money driving people to Pearl Harbor but that nobody ever takes a ride back and he usually just rides back alone. His wife is a nurse and he asked if I was interested in moving to Hawaii to work since they are always short PAs and I gave him my card. He worked as a school counselor up until a month or two ago when they tried to get him to sign a crappy contract, so he said no and started driving for Uber until he finds his next counseling gig. If I recall correctly, he's been in Hawaii for 16 years and loves it. He gave me his card so that I could call him if I needed a ride anywhere. Thanks, Reddi!
I forgot to mention that it started raining at Pearl Harbor. No, seriously. It started raining in Hawaii. I walked the Waikiki Beach strip in the rain (that's enough of the Waikiki beach strip, by the way - too touristy!). I popped into the Apple Store to see if they had the keyboard I wanted for my new iPad Pro, but they did not. Moving on... I did check out board rental on the beach near the Duke statue and it was EXPENSIVE! $20/hour and $5/hour each hour after. They were also junk boards and the guys renting them were rude. Awesome.
I wandered over to Waikiki Brewing Co. and sat down to have a late lunch just before the rain really started coming down. I was famished! It was 2 or 3pm and I hadn't eaten anything and had just had coffee around 5am. The head brewer of the Waikiki location started off taking care of me, and he was nice. The beer, however, was just okay. I ordered a sandwich and some tasters but they were out of the jalapeño and asked if it was okay for me to wait 20-30 minutes for it while they switched the kegs over. Sure! No problem. A nice couple, Melissa and Jason, sat down next to me to take refuge from the rain and have lunch. They're from Orlando and lived in LA, and they just moved to Southie in Boston about two blocks from my old apartment. Small world! Back to my taster of jalapeño beer. It took forever and finally the second waiter (whom I did not care for much) checked on it for me. The head brewer eventually brought me a full beer which I thought was an
apology, but when the waiter took my bill, which at this point had no jalapeño beer on it, to update it for me to check out, he charged me for a full beer. I was really irritated since I didn't order a full beer and waited literally an hour plus for it. Of course, I didn't complain because I am so non-confrontational, but I left 15% instead of my usual 20%. At least the dessert was good.
At this point it was pouring rain so I went back to the hotel to read and take a quick nap. I wasn't totally acclimated to island time yet, but I was getting there. I think I was in the hotel for 20-30 minutes before Courtney came back from work, so my timing was perfect. We had dinner across the street at the common eatery market and found some really delicious ramen in there. On the way out we wanted dessert and stopped at this chocolatier. Whatever you do, do not stop there. The guy was so obnoxious, pushy, and annoying. On top of that, his chocolate was nothing special!
Courtney had to work in the hotel, so I bought an umbrella, changed and went to Duke’s to meet Chris, who is some Army Warrant Officer helicopter pilot that Courtney met for me on Bumble (I was not planning on using a dating app in Hawaii, but Courtney wanted to swipe and matched me with this guy). Long story short, she matched me with him Saturday afternoon and we had been texting since then and were supposed to meet up finally. Up until now, this was hands-down the best, most interesting conversation I have had with someone from a dating app that I hadn't met yet. I guess aviation nerds have a lot to talk about? So needless to say, I was somewhat excited about this. I got to Duke's, sat down at the bar, and then it started to torrentially downpour. I mean, microburst style torrentially downpour! I messaged him to see if he was washed away to sea and he said he was soaked so he was going home. I offered to go meet him in the rain so that we were both soaked, but he declined and said he wanted to go home. I got stood up! After that he completely blew me off. Pssh! Men are weird, delicate flowers, apparently. And thus ends the story of my "dating" in Hawaii, and yet another entry for the book I may someday write entitled, "Adventures in Dating in Your 30s." Back at the hotel Courtney and I read for a bit, chatted about how ridiculous that whole situation was, and went to bed.
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