Oahu, Hawaii (Day 2)

The next day we had a rental that I was able to grab off of a great car rental app similar to Uber/Lyft, and we made our way out to Dole Plantation. After taking a tour of the plantation and seeing the MULTITUDE of crops they grow, we tried Dole Whip--a first for me--SO GOOD.

After we were done at Dole Plantation, we stopped by the Wahiawā Botanical Garden. It was absolutely gorgeous and had so many fascinating trees.

It was almost time for dinner so we went to a small Filipino restaurant called Merlina's Kitchen and got an assortment of things to try. There wasn't any seating in the restaurant so we went across the street to an athletic field and all sat in the bleachers and ate!

Oahu, Hawaii (Day 1)

My mom recently mentioned that she wanted to go to Hawaii, and I still had a companion pass through the end of this year where someone could fly with me for free, so we ended up planning a somewhat last-minute family trip to Oahu, Hawaii.

We stayed at the Aqua Oasis, a 10-15 minute walk from the beach and they had a cute, somewhat random koi pond in the reception area. We hadn't really planned anything for our first day, so we started off with the seven of us walking over to the beach to take a look.

We were totally fascinated with this amazing Banyan tree in a park off of the beach.

Banyan tree

Eventually, we decided to grab a couple of Lyfts and go to.... shocker... a thrift store! We split into two groups and made our way to Goodwill over on Beretania Street. I was hoping to find a hat for the beach and was able to find a nice off-white one with a black band. We picked up a few items and then walked a bit up the road to Plato's Closet. For a while, we were trying to find a bathroom which was surprisingly difficult. Eventually, we ended up at a grocery store and were able to use the restroom there.

We finally ended at the highly rated Keeaumoku Seafood for poke. We placed our orders and then called Lyfts to take us back to the hotel so we could eat. Oddly, even though it was two and a half hours later, we ended up with one of the same drivers, Sang!

waiting for the Taylors to catch up with us

GREAT, fresh poke

That evening, Lisa, Ella and I walked around the main street of Honolulu, Kalakaua Avenue. We saw a fun street vendor with lots of parrots, an amazing mall with a huge tree in the middle of it, and this SUPER talented musician!

Portland, Oregon (Last day)

For our last few hours in Oregon, we took a Lyft to the Portland Japanese Garden in Washington Park and explored one of the most popular destinations in the city.

In the first few minutes we were there, I saw a proposal underway. I didn't see a photographer hiding anywhere, so I started snapping candid photos of them and then offered to get a few posed photos after, and texted them the pictures. After they headed off, my parents and I decided to get a photo in the same spot, overlooking Portland.

Since it was fall, the colors in the park were so beautiful. Many of the trees were changing and dropping leaves. I was surprised by how many different mushrooms we spotted throughout, too. I always love a good macro shot, so I took plenty of the mushrooms!

macro shot of a mushroom

beautiful fall colors

Dad resting

another macro mushroom!

dad and mom

fall foliage

more mushroom macros!

The last part of the gardens that we explored was an bonsai tree exhibit with an amazing collection of bonsai.

black dragon bonsai tree, 50 years old

When we were done, we started to catch a Lyft back to the hotel to grab our bags, but then realized we were just across the street from the International Rose Test Garden. It was almost out of season, but we walked around that area as well and saw a few roses left. Then we hopped on a free park shuttle for a full loop and rode by Washington Park's archery range, Oregon Zoo and World Foresty Center, Hoyt Arboretum and more. We'd wanted to stop but quickly realized the park was quite large and one loop around was all we had time for. 

International Rose Test Garden

one of the final few roses in the garden

Once our loop was finished, we grabbed a Lyft back to our hotel to grab our bags and were off to the airport to head home. The flights home were easy with lovely views. We got to take a little piece of Oregon with us--Oregonian wine that I won in a silent auction during the annual meeting we attended.

wine from the silent auction