Hawaii - Jeff Campbell [91]
TOURS
Pearl Harbor tours that are widely advertised in Waikiki range from shuttle buses to excursions in WWII-era amphibious armored vehicles (aka ‘ducks’). These tours don’t add much, if anything to the experience of visiting the memorials and museums, however. Pearl Harbor boat cruises do not allow disembarking at the USS Arizona Memorial.
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EATING
Bowfin Park has concession stands. The Battleship Missouri Memorial and Pacific Aviation Museum have fast-food cafés. Down-home local eateries are flung farther east along the Kamehameha Hwy (Hwy 99) near the Pearlridge Center mall.
Chun Wah Kam Noodle Factory (485-1107; Waimalu Shopping Center, 98-040 Kamehameha Hwy, ′Aiea; items from $1, meals $5-12; 7:30am-6:30pm Mon-Sat, 8:30am-4pm Sun) In a minimall chockablock with Asian takeout joints, fanatics will line up for these manapua stuffed with anything from char siu pork or kalua pig to black sugar or taro. Generous mix-and-match plate lunches could easily feed two people.
Kuru Kuru Sushi (484-4596; Pearl Kai Shopping Center, 98-199 Kamehameha Hwy; items $2-8; 11am-9pm Sun-Thu, to 10pm Fri & Sat) This island chain of sushi bar runs its classic Japanese nigiri sushi, kalbi short-rib rolls, vegetable croquettes and fruit-jelly desserts around a conveyor belt. Plates are color-coded by price, so staff can quickly total up your bill after you’re stuffed to the gills.
Forty Niner Restaurant (484-1940; 98-110 Honomanu St, ′Aiea; mains $3-10; 7am-2pm daily, 5-8pm Mon-Thu & 5-9pm Fri & Sat) This little 1940s noodle shop may look abandoned, but it’s a jewel-in-the-rough for anyone craving old-fashioned saimin (local-style noodle soup), made here with a secret-recipe broth. The garlic chicken and hamburger steaks aren’t half bad. No air-con, though.
Poke Stop (Map; 676-8100; Waipahu Town Center, 94-050 Farrington Hwy, Waipahu; dishes $4-10, meals $9-14; 8am-7pm Mon-Sat) It’s a longer detour west of Pearl Harbor, but we’d drive all the way across the island just to bite into these spicy eggplant fries, deconstructed sushi bowls, gourmet plate lunches and over 20 kinds of poke – the furikake salmon and ‘Da Works’ ′o′io (bonefish) will leave you salivating for more.
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GETTING THERE & AWAY
The USS Arizona Memorial visitor center and Bowfin Park are off the Kamehameha Hwy (Hwy 99) southwest of Aloha Stadium. Coming from Honolulu or Waikiki, take the H-1 Fwy west to exit 15A (Arizona Memorial/Stadium), then follow the signs for the USS Arizona Memorial, not Pearl Harbor; the latter lead onto the military base. There’s ample free parking outside the visitor center and Bowfin Park.
From Waikiki, TheBus 42 ′Ewa Beach is the most direct route, making stops outside the USS Arizona Memorial visitor center between 7:15am and 3pm, taking about an hour each way. TheBus 20 Airport-Pearlridge detours to the airport, taking about 15 minutes longer. Both routes run at least twice hourly. Slightly quicker VIP Trans (836-1037, 866-836-0317) shuttle vans depart from Waikiki area hotels every 30 minutes starting around 7am, costing $6/11 one-way/round-trip.
Civilians are not allowed to drive onto Ford Island, an active military base. Instead, a frequent free shuttle bus picks up ticketholders outside Bowfin Park, stopping at the Battleship Missouri Memorial, then the Pacific Aviation Museum.
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WAIKIKI
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Waikiki – just the name alone will have you thinking of boundless horizons, Pacific sunsets and hula dancers gently swaying to the beat of island rhythms. Once the playground of Hawaiian royalty, this remains O′ahu’s quintessential beach.
After emerging from the long shadow of WWII, Waikiki recaptured the popular imagination as an idyllic tropical island vacation complete with flower leis, aloha shirts and romance. Celebrities like Elvis sang about it and strummed ukuleles, while bronzed beachboys walked on water thanks to their long wooden surfboards.
Today Waikiki is experiencing a renaissance. Although tacky tiki