Little Lolly's Small Adventures: Honolulu, Oahu. Tour: Explore & Taste Oahu's North Shore

Our guide/driver, Paul, briefing us about today's activities

I was awake early this morning and tanked up on red bull to keep my eyes propped open. After breakfast and a quick kiss and goodbye to Paul, I was soon in the port terminal waiting for my assigned tour.

Like yesterday, the tour group was small with 11 guests. Our driver/guide (named Paul) soon had us on the road and heading across the island in a north westerly direction. Our first stop was at Byodo-In Temple within the Valley of the Temples. The temple is nestled at the base of the Koolau Mountain Range and is set in stunning surroundings. There is a crematorium and burial grounds within the Valley of the Temples, catering for anyone of any religion who wishes to be laid to rest in such a peaceful and beautiful setting. A family of cats met us at the bridge leading to the temple, one youngster coming over to me for a bit of a cuddle. In the temple's gardens there are a variety of birds including black swans; and in the ponds there are lots of koi fish. The temple itself is a half-sized replica of a 900-year-old Buddhist temple in Kyoto, Japan. When I rang the Sacred Bell using a soft wooden log, the resonating sound went through me - I felt at peace.

Inside the temple is a huge wooden Lotus Buddha, covered in gold leaf and lacquer. Out of respect, we had to take off our footwear before entering the temple. There was something quite awesome about the Lotus Buddha. Most people who were visiting the temple looked at it in quiet thought/reflection. Others took photographs and moved around quietly so as not to disturb the peace.

Soon it was time to get back in the bus and we headed to the coastline, stopping to see 'Chinaman's Hat' which is an eroded sea stack. Continuing on, we stopped at Hukilau Beach which is one of the beaches where "50 First Dates" was filmed. We had time to take photographs and put our feet in the warm ocean water, feeling the sand beneath our feet and the gentle breeze in our hair. It was warm and just ... lovely.

Lunch - hot n spicy shrimps. Yum!

Our next stop was for lunch at Fumis Shrimp Shack. I had 'hot and spicy' shrimp, others had shrimp with coconut, or 'original' or sweet and sour. There was an alternative for guests who didn't like shrimps or are allergic to seafood. The shrimps were served with rice, a piece of pineapple and a bit of lettuce. It was yummy. We were also given something to drink and had a choice of 'shave ice' or ice lolly ("popsicle" as the Americans call it) afterwards. The mango ice lolly's were out of stock so I tried the rainbow shave ice. Basically it looked like finely ground up ice cubes with a dash of coloured flavouring poured over it. Mine had strawberry, pineapple and vanilla flavours. It was refreshing in the heat but not as 'spectacular' as I thought it would be. I was grateful to have it though! Sometimes shave ice is also made by shaving an ice block.

Sunset Beach

After lunch Paul took us to Sunset Beach, well known for its surfing competitions. The gradient towards the water was fairly steep in places and there were plenty of signs warning of strong currents. There are also coral formations under the water surface which can be dangerous for inexperienced surfers.

Our guide, Paul, was determined to let us see turtles. Fortunately this is the time of year to be able to see them, sometimes coming out of the water to rest or to lay eggs. On the way there was a bit of a crowd a small beach and Paul briefly stopped at the side of the road for us to see out of the bus windows - there was a turtle resting at the water's edge. Unfortunately we couldn't really stop long where we were at the side of the road. A few guests managed to get some photographs but I didn't.

Our next stop was at Ali'i Beach where there was a turtle swimming in the water. There were lots of people snorkelling around the turtle. We stood at the water's edge and watched as the turtle submerged and then now and then surfaced to take in some air. I felt sorry for the swimming turtle - the swimmers were almost crowding it out in their eagerness to see it. Green sea turtles and Hawksbill sea turtles are protected by law and people are warned not to touch them, harass them, pick them up, ride them, etc. There is a hefty $25,000 fine if caught. I decided not to take photographs - my finger on the camera trigger is not very fast. The memories of what I saw in those fleeting moments are more important to me. One of the guests was able to get a nice photograph of a surfacing turtle and I was happy for her.

Our final stop was at the Dole Plantation, a pineapple plantation. There they have the world's largest maze and one can also take a tour around the plantation. Unfortunately we only had a ½ hour stop so there was no time to take a tour. Most guests went to the shop and tried pineapple ice cream.

Our tour came to an end and Paul drove us back to the ship. I got a bit sunburnt when we visited the beaches but it didn't hurt - it was nice to get a bit of colour to the skin and feel the fresh warm air.

We have now set sail for Pago Pago, Tutuila, American Samoa. It will be 5 days before we see land again.