Day 2 • 27 June 2016 • Tour of Oahu

It was an early day for some of us, given the jet lag carried over from the U.S. mainland! And, as the saying goes, the early bird catches the worm — or in my case, a kit of pigeons.

A kit of zebra doves (Geopelia striata) coming to feed out of my hand.

Today was the day for the Oahu Grand Tour, which took us in a counter-clockwise direction around most of the island. From Waikiki, we headed south past the Diamond Head volcanic cone to the southeastern corner of the island, replete with views of the rugged, volcanic coastline. We stopped at Makapu'u Lookout to take in the contradiction of verdant slopes and turquoise seas.

Amanda Callahan is enjoying the view from Makapu'u Lookout. 

One very beautiful stop along our route, with both religious and natural significance, was the Byodo-in Buddhist temple. Set in a magnificent, lush garden in the shadow of a serene mountainscape, this is a replica of a temple on the outskirts of Kyoto, Japan, the last stop on our journey. Near the entrance to the temple grounds is a massive gong, rung by a wooden post, which transmits the prayers of those who ring it to the higher powers.

Byodo-in Temple. Photo courtesy of Jose Huerta.

Dakota Brooks rings the gong at Byodo-in Temple.

The Buddha statue inside the temple.

The temple grounds are also a place for animals, most of them introduced to the Hawaiian Islands. Some examples are shown below.

Spotted doves (Spilopelia chinensis), introduced from Southeast Asia, on the temple grounds.

Red-eared slider (Trachemys scripta elegans), a North American species, in a pond at Byodo-in Temple.

Black swan (Cygnus atratus), an Australian native, in one of the ponds at the temple.

Our journey continued to the northeastern corner of Oahu, including a spectacular, thin lava finger at Laie Point, including an island with a natural arch.

The island with the arch, viewed from Laie Point.

Ah, there is a strong magnetism between tidepools and biology students!

At lunchtime, we visited one of Hawaii's famous shrimp farms, where we had a lunch of variously cooked large, fresh shrimp — with the ponds of the farm right behind the ramshackle restaurant. Simple, yet delicious (and very popular!).

A spicy garlic shrimp lunch at Fumi's.

Along Oahu's north shore is where, during the winter months, some of the best surfing in Hawaii can be had. During the summer, the waves are rather mellow, but there are other points of interest. Some of the beaches host basking green turtles. Green turtles are endangered sea turtles, which are found in various places all over the world. Only in three locations, including here, do these animals actually come onto the sand to bask for a while, the heat warming them and assisting their digestive processes. There is a full-time turtle watch in effect at these beaches, and individuals who do come ashore are fenced off and protected by a team of volunteers. Note that this is not a beach where these turtles come to lay their eggs! They do that about 500 miles away on the French Frigate Shoals.

Mitzia Zambada, responsibly staying outside the roped off area around the green turtle (Chelonia mydas).

Our tour ended at the Pearl Harbor National Monument, which commemorates the attack on Pearl Harbor on the morning of 7 December 1941. It is a day, as President Roosevelt told Congress, that will live on in infamy, a day when two waves of Japanese planes attacked an entirely unsuspecting Pacific Fleet in an attempt to cripple U.S. naval capacity. While they succeeded in the attack, the Japanese military commanders did not anticipate the all-out response their audacious move would cause, which essentially led to the downfall of Japanese imperial military might.

Entrance to the Visitor Center.

The USS Arizona Memorial. The remains of the sunken vessel, and some of its crew, lie below the white structure shown here.

With so much ground covered and so many steps taken, we ended our day at Ono Hawaiian Food, an iconic eatery in the Waikiki area. Ono's is a small place, and one waits outside the door until a table is available. The menu choices are the epitome of traditional Hawaiian food, cooked in the traditional manner. We ordered the combination, which gives you a little bit of everything, but prominently featuring laulau — pork wrapped in taro leaf. This is accompanied by kalua pork, which is cooked in the ground on hot rocks, poi, the staple Hawaiian starch made from taro root, lomilomi salmon, a ceviche-like dish with tomatoes, and other delectable morsels.

Part of our dinner at Ono's, including (from left) kalua pork, laulau pork, and poi.

With everyone slightly jet lagged and experiencing a lot of sun and activity, this was a long day. We'll report again tomorrow!