Lanikai Wind

This is the Windward side of Oahu and as we arrived in Kailua, Tomcat and I agreed that this is where we should have stayed. The entire area is incredibly laid back, with a cool local store, the Kalapawai Market, and a tidy neighborhood with numerous painted mailboxes. We were actually told to skip Kailua's beach and head down to Lanikai beach. It was easily missed, but I spied a public pathway and we soon realized these paths run between several houses in the neighborhood. We parked along the road and made our way to Lanikai, one of the most beautiful beaches we've ever seen.

I was in heaven, lying on a pristine beach wondering what would become of my New Year's Eve lavender hair in this Hawaiian sun; Tomcat was taking Doodle out to a small coral reef; Little Man was in awe of some college kids tossing a football in the waves until he got the grand idea to dig deep holes in the sand (with his hands). We thought all was well with the world until Peanut was found scrunched down in one of these sand holes trying to escape the wind. They call it the windward side for a reason and Peanut was howling in no time as the sand whipped at her from all directions. Needless to say, we left our post-card perfect paradise after only 30 minutes.

The drive alone was worth it though. I wanted to take the Likelike Highway (pronounced likey-likey) just so we could make stupid jokes like, "Oh, I likey this place so much" and it paid off. It is an incredibly scenic drive, however, green and lush with tall mountains that look like they've been clawed by some prehistoric beast. We have a favorite book called the Friends of the Menehunes about the legendary elf-like people who live at the top of the mountains in Oahu and the kids kept asking, "Is that where the Menehunes live?" And as usual, they started doling out parts so they could act out the story in the car.

Our road trip has officially begun again!