Surf City

Evan and I began our day with what's becoming our typical trip to Eggs N' Things for breakfast. This morning we tried the Strawberry Waffle. They gave me a huge cup of fresh whipped cream, which was yummy, however, by the time we got back to the condo, my waffle was soggy from the strawberries, I guess I should have asked for them on the side. I think I'm going to stick with the omelets and other egg options, though I'm tempted to try their crepes as well. Vacation is 50% about food with me. I don't want to waste calories on food that's no good!

We left the condo this morning planning to drive across to the windward side of the island, along the Pali Highway, over to Kailua Beach (the guidebook claims the water here is 78 degrees year-round), however, about 5 minutes into the trip, Evan decided to take a nap. Since it's been difficult to go far without Evan having one of his daily meltdowns, we decided on a whim to drive up to the North Shore instead. Our ten minute drive turned into a one-and-a-half hour one, but a beautiful, scenic one at that.

Including, part of the drive just north of Kualoa Ranch on the left of Kamehameha Highway, I thought the scenery looked like a scene out of Lost. Same with Kawela Bay. It turns out from looking at the guidebook once I got back to the condo that I was right, which is pretty cool.

So, we drove along and checked out Sunset Beach, where a junior surfing competition appeared to be taking place (you can see the beach, the waves, the surfers, and the people sitting around, all from the road), drove by Ehukei Beach Park (Banzai Pipeline) and over to Waimea Bay.

Unfortunately, the waves didn't look quite as cool as Waimea Bay, so we went back to the Banzai Pipeline, parked the car, and hung out at the beach, watching the surfers and wading in the water, which I insist is warmer than in Waikiki. The North Shore is absolutely beautiful.

After all of this, I insisted on finding a shrimp truck for lunch. They are everywhere along Kamehameha Highway as you approach the North Shore, and are supposed to have the best, freshest shrimp anywhere. Picture an ice cream truck, only that sells shrimp, and that has been written all over and signed by people with permanent marker, comparable to a dive-bar's bathroom stalls. We drove down to Hale'iwa, the local surfing town, for lunch, and found a gravel parking lot along Haleiwa road, on the left directly across from the McDonalds. It had a Giovannis' shrimp truck, Hono's Famous Kahuku Shrimp Truck, some Thai place, and a truck called Food for Thought. Apparently Giovanni's and Hono's are two of the chain restaurants of the shrimp truck world. Jon seemed a bit leery, but I think I made a believer out of him.

We ordered some really great black bean chili french fries from Food for Thought, and a plate full of a dozen, peel-n-eat "butter spicy" shrimp. We had to wait, while they cooked them fresh in the truck, and it was worth it. The sauce was so good, I actually wished they sold it in a bottle so I could put it on some chicken wings.

Evan slept on the drive home, right down the middle of the island and past the Dole Plantation. The drive was pretty easy, and quicker than the oceanside drive getting up there.

Traffic was pretty bad near the condo once we got "home", so I walked to Ala Moana Center to pick up dinner and replace my Oahu Revealed book that disappeared when our car was broken into yesterday, hence why I didn't know where the Lost sites were as we passed them. Anyhow, the walk was nice, and I picked up Italian food from Assaggio's for dinner. It was good, but coming from Cleveland, with places like Little Italy and Galucci's, I'm spoiled and it's hard to compare.

Evan's in bed now, sound asleep, and I think I'm ready to head there myself.

Aloha.