We finally made it out of Tokyo! First stop…Waikiki, Oahu. This is a nice place to get away from the hustle and bustle of Tokyo. It’s a little like the Gold Coast in Oz but with a little more class. Waikiki itself is not that big. You can walk down the main street in less than 30 minutes and but you can spend your month’s salary in 5. This place has been built for tourist and it has been done well. However, I do have a few complaints.
1. Where are the combinis? There are the ABC stores which sell everything from ugly Hawaiian shirts to drinks, but these do not match up with the convenience stores in Tokyo. AND…they are only found every 5th store and not every 2nd. This means that you might have to walk across a road before you can find convenience at your fingertips.
2. It is very hard to find healthy food. We have walked across Waikiki and back looking for a decent looking, healthy sandwich, to no avail. Who knew people could live off cheese and Starbucks? Is this a warning to us for what’s to come on the mainland?
3. Hawaiian shirts. Who knew there were so many designs? You’re probably wondering how many ways can people design a shirt badly…Come to Waikiki and you will find out. Enough said.
4. Public buses. Yes, they are cheap. Yes, they do come frequently. But I think I have found the culprit for Global Warming. These buses could re-freeze the fraying edges of the North Pole. In addition, they must be the oldest, gas guzzling vehicles on the planet. We had the fortunate opportunity of riding a bus for over an hour today to visit the USS Arizona, a large battleship sunk in Pearl Harbour. By the end of the trip, I had to be broken out of the ice that was encapsulating me. Another gripe I have about the buses is that they never advertise the fastest trips to tourist attractions on the right buses. They suggest that you take the 1.5 hour bus ride out but there is actually an express they reserve for the locals which passes all the tourist attractions as well….BAH!
You’re probably thinking that I’m ungrateful and a whinging and whining tourist. So be it! It’s my holiday and I’ll do what I want to. However, I am looking forward to more swimming and surfing tomorrow…or at least as soon as Matt gets over his sunburn…WHICH he got from not listening to me about putting on sunscreen. This was also after not listening to me say, “Are you sure you want to wear your sunglasses in the water?”. 5 seconds…WHOOSH…sunglasses gone.
Posted by tokyotrouble 
