The Waikiki Commute

OK. Commutes are now interesting…or at least, the new commutes I am discovering since I no longer drive to work are interesting!

My Crested Butte commutes were absolutely gorgeous. I had the whole vista of the west Elk Mountains before me as I bicycled to work every day…and the thrill of sailing down the bike path and into town before I headed home. In the winter I had the fortune to be skiing down from the top of the Silver Queen lift to get to the Ice Bar half way down the mountain. The commute got shorter as the season got older and my skiing improved! Now I walk. But it’s still a commute: I am still trying to get to work.

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Here is the corner of the street - next to the Starbucks and across from the park and the beach and also looking across Kapiolani Park

Waikiki Beach and Walk in the early morning

My new commute takes around 40 minutes a day each way. The good thing about it is that it is on foot. I could take the bus if I wanted, but usually in the morning it is nice and cool (at least at first) and there are very few people around…and I don’t sweat until I get at least 15 minutes into the walk! And who wants to sit on an air-conditioned bus on city streets for 30 minutes when they can walk along the boardwalk instead!

Coming back in the evenings is also a treat: usually the sun is starting to set over the ocean and it’s generally pretty incredible. I wouldn’t want to miss that for the world… In the morning I share my commute with joggers and early rising tourists who are still trying to get used to the time difference out here (we are 3 hours behind Colorado and 2 hours behind the West coast). I walk past the park towards the beach and then along the beach walk for a while.

Here is a Banyan Tree. This one is halfway down Waikiki. They are pretty cool: when their branches get too long they put out extra "roots" from their branches to support themselves - they are also densely shaded underneath and a favourite haunt of the local birds...

Usually the sun is out and the water sparkles in all different shades of blue as it rolls into shore. Then there are the shops: Cartier, Coach; Dior, Ferrari and a bunch of others that I can’t remember off hand -it’s really not my thing, but that’s obviously not the case for the tons of Japanese tourists out here. Safe to say, there are a lot of designer stores here!

After the stores I walk past several parks that are filled with incredible trees that sprout beautiful and fragrant flowers in astonishing hues, and plants of every colour. I love the birds of paradise and the smell of the hibiscus flowers as it floats in the air as I am walking by. Dama de la noche is also every where. I remember the smell from Spain, but I’m not sure if it’s a kind of Jasmine in English or not.

Past the parks is the canal with its army of canoeists and kayakers where I

love watching the outrigger canoes as they paddle their way quickly to or from the ocean, and the view of the masts rolling slightly in the breeze in the Ala Wai harbour. After that, it’s pretty much a city walk, but even the busy avenue I walk down towards the school, Kapiolani, is usually a little cooler since it is shaded with huge trees which spread their branches over the pavement.

Unfortunately these photos really don’t do justice to the colours that I really see every day…but at least it hopefully gives you a taste of my daily walk...