A hui hou (see you later) Hawaii !

Weirdly I have woken up at 7:30 each morning here in Hawaii and this morning was no different. Brett and I ate a leisurely breakfast of bagels and coffee on the balcony and Dan joined us a little later. None of us wanted to move coz we felt like if we just sat there, our holiday wouldn't really be over. However, 11 am sharp saw the housekeeping team at the door and off we had to go. Brett had popped over the road to get us one last banana pie from Maccas and we intended to sit in the courtyard to eat them and say our farewells, but Dans shuttle had turned up early and was keen to get going, so it was all a bit rushed seeing him off. Yes, I cried again. Hawaii cried with me, Brett and I sat under an umbrella in the courtyard in the rain and ate our banana pies. It was still lovely and warm though.
We sat there for a while and read and then decided to have a poke around the Modern - a fancy hotel next door. We found Iron Chef Morimoto's restaurant in there so decided that having lunch there would be a great way to lift our spirits and finish off our lovely holiday happy rather than sad. It was so good - his maitai had a bit of almond liqueur in it and was hands down the best we have had. And we have sampled a few!
After lunch we purchased a bag from the ABC to add to our check-in and had one last wander. We came across a place where you could pick an oyster out of a bucket to get whatever pearl you found inside. You could then have it mounted as a piece of jewellery if you wanted to.  Brett did the picking and it was a lovely one.  I was reluctant to spend any more $, but was talked into having it mounted into a ring by the (very good) saleswoman and Brett. I have been VERY spoilt this holiday, it'll be a shopping free zone at our house for a while.
I settled in at the lobby and Brett popped up to Alamoana to see if he could find a satchel. No luck for him, but I had a great conversation with an old Hawaiian man who lived at the Illikai.
Just as Brett arrived back it was time for happy hour at the Hilton. We were just about to head over there and it started bucketing down again. We noticed that the restaurant on the top floor of the Illikai also had a happy hour, so it seemed only right that we try that instead. It has a glass elevator ride to the top and the view was fab. I got some fantastic shots of the bay and mountains from the bar - storm on one side and gorgeous day on the other.
Time to retrieve and repackage our bags, then off to the airport.  Apparently there is the potential that this storm will become a hurricane later in the week, so I guess it is time to go after all.  Break out the woollies, we're heading home!