Honolulu, Chicago and Iowa

Nov 20-28, 2021
AC105 YYZ-YVR, AC519 YVR-HNL, Nov 22 UA534 HNL-LAX, Nov 23 UA1069 LAX-ORD, Nov 28 AC7460 ORD-YYZ

With US travel somewhat back to normal, we had plans to make a return to Iowa for the annual family gathering. To make the most of the border crossing, I decided it would be nice to make the most of it and head to Hawaii first. Hawaii was one of the last places we visited prior to the COVID shutdown so it was a nice symmetry.

Nov 21

Having made our way to Waikiki the night before, we had the full day to revisit our favourite locations and enjoy the sunny weather.

Remains of an arson event at the normal surfboard storage row

Iconic surfing status with Lei along Waikiki Beach

Another piece of Waikiki street art

After a pretty low key day, we ended the day with drinks and snacks at the Regency Club at the Hyatt Regency as the sun set.

Nov 22

For our second full day, we did a little bit of nearby exploration. For this trip, we decided to keep it simple and rely on transit, so we didn’t stray too far, but made it to Diamond Head and downtown Honolulu.

Making our way up Diamond Head crater

Historic fortifications of Diamond Head

Great view of Waikiki where we started the morning

Rainbow from some localized showers

Looking away from Waikiki to Koko Head

Express pathway through the fortifications

Making our way down to Diamond Head

Seeing the traffic jam, we were glad that we were on foot

Checking out the tourist boat traffic from our balcony

More traffic

Hawaii State Capitol

Liberty Bell

Father Damien status recognizing the work supporting lepers in Molokai

Queen Lili'Uokalani the last sovereign monarch of the Hawaiian Kingdom

The Queen looking back on the Capitol

King Kamehameha statue, completing the royal collection

Classic architecture of the Hawaii Department of Transportation Building

We couldn’t leave Hawaii without having dinner with our friends Yuka and Robert. As always, they found a great place to eat and was great to catch up before we headed to the airport for the overnight flight to the mainland.

Nov 23

With a pretty long connection in LA, it was fairly late in the day when we finally made it Chicago. For a change, we decided to stay downtown and took some time to walk around the river decorated for the holiday season.

Macy's ready for the holiday shoppers

Millennium Park tree

Michigan Ave bridge with Wrigley Building in the background

The Mart lit up for Christmas

Looking across the river to Chicago Riverpoint building

After a long day of travel we headed back to the hotel.

Nov 24-28

We picked up a rental car Wednesday morning and made our way to Iowa City for the family gathering. Tom didn’t capture any photos, but we did have a great visit with a wonderful feast of food and we were glad to reconnect after a two year COVID gap.

Nov 28

After a great visit, we headed back to Chicago on Saturday evening and made our way back to Toronto on Sunday morning.