Lakehouse: first visit to Hawaii

Years ago, Absher Construction did many projects in Hawaii. But the bad economy made them unable to get jobs for several years. But, they recently won a bid, and Stephen selfishly volunteered to relocate to a tropical paradise. Stephen traveled to the island of O'ahu for some planning meetings in August. Ginger got to tag along!

We met Stephen's new QC (Quality Control) Manager, Steve. Steve came to Hawaii for college as an international student from Korea. He married another Korean international student, and they've raised their two children on the Big Island. Steve wants to relocate to Washington after this project is complete. He's familiar with local companies.

We had a fun team dinner with Absher and their architects, WJA Design Collaborative. They also designed the project Stephen worked on in Rhode Island.

We visited Pearl Harbor. There are a variety of ships and museums to see there. For this trip, we chose a submarine, which went on a revenge mission after Pearl Harbor.

Exploring the USS Bowfin submarine.

 

We visited the beautiful memorial built on top of the sunken USS Arizona. This memorial is free to visit, although you do need to schedule a time. Groups leave on a boat together to access the memorial. We are reminded to be respectful; we are standing in a graveyard. 

 

There were historical markers telling about the Arizona. We were moved by the story of the survivors who have chosen to have their cremains returned to the ship with their fellow crewman. 

Another good place to visit with some history is the Diamond Head Crater trail. It's just 3/4 of a mile long, though some parts are steep! The main challenge was the heat of the day. 

Amazing view from the top.

The trail includes several old military lookouts,

A section of this spiral staircase was incorporated in to the hike.

Of course, we tried to spend lots of time at the beach. Although Stephen will be working in Kanehoe (on the other side of the island) we stayed in Waikiki, where most of the hotels cater to tourists. It's a short walk to the beach. We liked this path where surfers store their boards.

Several catamarans go out for evening cruises.

Ginger loves all the tropical flowers, especially hibiscus.

Our favorite tree in the banyan, which send out roots from its high branches to connect to ground again and again.

Sunset on the beach.

We are excited to move here!