Day 1: Home to Honolulu, Hawaii

-
Day 1 (7/9/2002): Michigan-Hawaii

The set time for the Gerald R. Ford airport was for 8:15 am to meet. Everyone arrived and we had plenty of time to check in, despite the strict security. Our plane took off on time from Grand Rapids and we arrived in Detroit a few minutes later. It was not a problem to catch our desired flight to Los Angeles.


We made great time flying, arriving in Los Angeles almost half an hour early. Unfortunately our flight to Honolulu was delayed by a couple of hours, so we stayed approximately 6 hours at the airport. We received $10.00 for food at the airport and basically passed the time waiting. A fellow from New Zealand (his name was Andrew) was passing through the airport, coming back from back packing Canada and the Mediterranean. The girls flocked to him and some exchanged names and e-mail addresses. We finally got on the airplane (Hawaiian Airlines) and arrived in Hawaii at about 10:00 pm local time.


Tami Van Prooyan, Lauren Simpson, Jessica Smith, Jessica Golumbisky, and Melanie Huhn in Hawaii



Adam and Joy met us at the airport and so my group of 19 was complete. They were:

·         Elizabeth Simpson                                                     Frank Fitzpatrick
·         Tamara Miller                                                            Joy Emily Smith
·         Terrell Miller                                                             Adam Newell
·         Jessica Golumbisky                                                                                       Linda Graham
·         Barb Fitzpatrick                                                        Abby Haystead
·        Lauren Simpson                                                Gustave Rogers
·         Luke Simpson                                                           Stella Wilcox
·         Tami Van Prooyen                                                     Melanie Huhn
·         Jessica Smith                                                                Lil Vroma                     



                                                                      
Adam Newell and Luke Simpson at the hotel in Honolulu
                  
·  

We arrived at the Ohana Surf Hotel and got the rooms at almost midnight. The kids were excited so they went exploring the area with Beth. They didn't last too long, coming to bed at quarter to one.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Day 8: Surfer's Paradise

-
Image
Day 8 (7/17/02): Surfer's Paradise A lot of people got to sleep in today. Those who went to the 4 wheel drive tour of the rain forest left the hotel, Mercure Resort Conalia, at 8:00 a.m. We took off west towards the continental divide , occasionally stopping to see breathtaking views or animals such as kangaroos, wallabies (very similar to kangaroos but with different habits, as was explained to me). Abby Haystead and Terrell Miller overlooking the Great Australian Divde We stopped at an Alpaca ranch. The animal looks very similar to a llama and has fur that is seven times warmer than sheep's wool. The prices at the boutique also indicated this. Later, we had tea at another great view. Tea, coffee, or juice was served as well as fresh banana cake and cookies.  We continued on to Lamington and Mount Tamborine National Parks to see a rain forest. One was high up in the hills close to the continental divide. I had not realized that rainforests can be in ma
Read more

Day 6: Sydney to Coffs Harbor, Australia

-
Image
Day 6 (7/15/02): Sydney-Coffs Harbor Today's journey is the longest by bus. We started out after breakfast toward Coffs Harbor. We heard some Australian songs like Waltzing Matilda, the G-day song, Tie Me a Kangaroo Down Sport, and The Vegemite song. Everyone was quiet and sleepy during the morning. We took a break for snacks and lunch on the way. Some brought stamps, ate the local grub, and bought some food for evening meal. A typical moment on the bus Jessica Smith and Lauren Simpson with their new hats After lunch, We had a music quiz on famous movie songs. I also found out some more information on our tour director Jonathan Johnstone. He was currently on break from the "uni" (university) and is studying to become a primary school teacher. We arrived at the Coffs Harbor at around 4:00 p.m. The hotel, the Opal Cove Resort at Coffs Harbor had a great pool and outdoor swimming facility. The beaches could be heard from the hotel room. It was too dang
Read more

Day 7: Coffs Harbor to Surfer's Paradise

-
Image
Day 7 (7/16/02): Coffs Harbour-Surfer's Paradise We got up extra early to see the sunrise. It was set for 6:58 a.m. but arrived a little earlier. There's nothing like seeing a sunrise against the setting of a beach and the roar of the ocean. We continued our trek along the Pacific highway, actually seeing Kangaroos in fields along the road.  Along the way, John played a VCR tape about Kangaroos and how they interact in their society. We stopped at Cape Byron, the eastern most point of Australia. We saw the lighthouse and dolphins in the ocean. We didn't see any whales.  the eastern most point in Australia Around lunchtime we stopped at Byron Bay Township for a few hours of beach and shopping.  Despite the cooler weather and water, it was fun to be in the ocean.  We continued north and arrived in Surfer's Paradise around 5:00 p.m. An hour late, John took us downtown where we all took off shopping and eating supper. Intere
Read more