Diamond Head Hike

 
Happy Friday, Y'all! 

While Jon had some time in between looking at houses we took advantage of checking out our first Hawaii hike.  Diamond Head is the extinct volcanic crater that is always seen in the backdrop of  famous photos taken at Waikiki beach, and since we were close, we thought we'd give it a try. Of course we went in the middle of the day with high temperatures and lots of people, but even  then it honestly wasn't bad.  I always pictured everything in Hawaii to be super lush and green, but Diamond Head is actually quite dry and brown.  It's really cool, just different from what I expected. The view at the top of the hike is an incredible overlook of Waikiki (another famous photo).  The hike itself was about an hour long and had some stairs, with an alternative less-steep route towards the top. If you ever visit Hawaii, you have to do this hike. It's a tourist staple.  I've been trying to soak in every second of free time that Jon has before the Army consumes him.  We totally need to come up with a Hawaii bucket list.:)

The first of our days in Hawaii

Aloha!

The first of our days in Hawaii have been full of work and play.  We landed on a Sunday, and Jon had to report to work the very next day.  Fortunately he was able to secure some leave for several days to look for a home.  This task has proven to be interesting as we have lingered between the big decision of buying vs. renting.  We should be here 2-3 years, and have never purchased a home so it would be nice to finally have a place that is ours.  For now, we're still in our hotel and making it work.

We are staying in Waikiki which seems to be the busiest area on the island.  It's full of the hustle and bustle of tourists shopping and checking out the amazing restaurants.  Since we're here we've decided to play along a bit.  We eaten some awesome food, explored around the island, and been in awe of our surroundings.  I don't think it will actually sink in that this is where we live until we get a place of our own.