Out to Oahu for ABBA
Sep. 28th, 2023 04:34 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
shannon_aWould you believe I'm off-island again?
Kimberly & I had wanted to go to Oahu for our anniversary last month, but we couldn't due to cat-care needs. But before I left for Germany, I noted that the Diamond Head Theatre was putting on Mamma Mia!, starting just before my return, and suggested we might go out there to see it after I returned if the situation had changed.
Sadly, the situation had changed for the worst by the time I returned, but a few days away to try and achieve some R&R still sounded like a good idea. So I looked up Mamma Mia ... and it was ALL SOLD OUT. Alas!
But apparently some ticketholders (maybe season ticket holders?) cancel here and there and seats can open up. So I looked again on Tuesday and discovered a pair of suits were available ... for the performance on Thursday.
I wasn't sure I wanted to rush right out the door, and I wasn't sure I wanted to turn around a trip to Oahu in two days, but ...
ABBA. MUSICAL.
So I grabbed the tickets while they were available and by evening we had hotel and plane as well.
We were able to take an 11.30am flight over this morning, which was a luxury because it gave us a whole morning at home. (For my last three flights I had to get up at 6am, 7am, and 3.30 am, if memory serves.)
The flight was absolutely nothing. I was able to read a few issues of _Black Science_ and by then we'd gone up and down and landed.
We took the bus out to Waikiki, which is a slow, meandering course, but there was no hurry because our checkin was at 3pm.
We stopped in at our favorite dim sum place in Honolulu and had several of our favorite dishes, none of which are available on Kauai.
Then we took the bus the rest of the way into Waikiki, arriving at our hotel a minute or two after 3pm, which is some timing!
Our hotel is the Ashton at Waikiki Banyan. As K. notes, it's on the slightly seedier side of Waikiki (out on the far side, overlooking the zoo). But the hotel seems nice. The rooms are all suites as far as I can tell, just over 500 sq ft. each, which is very nice. Not only did we get a kama'aina discount, making it quite cheap, but they also upgraded us to a "partial ocean view", which has Diamond Head on one side and Kuhio Beach on the other. It's gorgeous.
(And though we'd decided when we booked that it wasn't worth the extra $50 or so to get mountain or ocean views, we're certainly very appreciative of them, and the Ashton has won some loyalty as a result.)
Hoping the Abba tonight will be great.
Hoping we can get some relaxation and enjoyment after four very tough months. Even if it did mean leaving my island again for a few days.
Kimberly & I had wanted to go to Oahu for our anniversary last month, but we couldn't due to cat-care needs. But before I left for Germany, I noted that the Diamond Head Theatre was putting on Mamma Mia!, starting just before my return, and suggested we might go out there to see it after I returned if the situation had changed.
Sadly, the situation had changed for the worst by the time I returned, but a few days away to try and achieve some R&R still sounded like a good idea. So I looked up Mamma Mia ... and it was ALL SOLD OUT. Alas!
But apparently some ticketholders (maybe season ticket holders?) cancel here and there and seats can open up. So I looked again on Tuesday and discovered a pair of suits were available ... for the performance on Thursday.
I wasn't sure I wanted to rush right out the door, and I wasn't sure I wanted to turn around a trip to Oahu in two days, but ...
ABBA. MUSICAL.
So I grabbed the tickets while they were available and by evening we had hotel and plane as well.
We were able to take an 11.30am flight over this morning, which was a luxury because it gave us a whole morning at home. (For my last three flights I had to get up at 6am, 7am, and 3.30 am, if memory serves.)
The flight was absolutely nothing. I was able to read a few issues of _Black Science_ and by then we'd gone up and down and landed.
We took the bus out to Waikiki, which is a slow, meandering course, but there was no hurry because our checkin was at 3pm.
We stopped in at our favorite dim sum place in Honolulu and had several of our favorite dishes, none of which are available on Kauai.
Then we took the bus the rest of the way into Waikiki, arriving at our hotel a minute or two after 3pm, which is some timing!
Our hotel is the Ashton at Waikiki Banyan. As K. notes, it's on the slightly seedier side of Waikiki (out on the far side, overlooking the zoo). But the hotel seems nice. The rooms are all suites as far as I can tell, just over 500 sq ft. each, which is very nice. Not only did we get a kama'aina discount, making it quite cheap, but they also upgraded us to a "partial ocean view", which has Diamond Head on one side and Kuhio Beach on the other. It's gorgeous.
(And though we'd decided when we booked that it wasn't worth the extra $50 or so to get mountain or ocean views, we're certainly very appreciative of them, and the Ashton has won some loyalty as a result.)
Hoping the Abba tonight will be great.
Hoping we can get some relaxation and enjoyment after four very tough months. Even if it did mean leaving my island again for a few days.