Monday filled with pancakes, poi and Disney!

James here...

Like most mornings (and not only like most here in Hawaii) we started off with a grande skinny half-caff you-know-what...

As the caffeine surged through our veins and kicked us out of our post-cocktails from the night before daze, we figured it was time for breakfast. 

Anna Miller's 24 Hr Diner over near Pearl City was a restaurant we visited the first time we came to O'ahu. 

Conveniently situated in the middle of the southern coast close by the one freeway that spans from east to west, it was the perfect place to stop for a couple of people hungry for a feed on their way out to explore the island for the day. 

Ruthie had the semi-healthy breakfast with an egg white omelet while I went full-evil and mashed a plate of pancakes topped with macadamia nuts and syrup. BOOM.

Actually, I ordered an omelet too but it wasn't cooked properly so I skipped the healthy living impulse pretty quickly and got hold of the pancakes you can see above... (which I am now hungry for again as I write up this blog post!).

I lost Ruthie for a few minutes but then found her playing the lucky-dip machine outside the entrance to the diner, surrounding by kids who were eagerly awaiting their turn... Ruthie won the Ray Stantz Ghostbuster... but she couldn't get the Marshmallow Man! Haha - this was one of the highlights of the week for me, Ruthie was REALLY into the game!! 

Onwards... besides laying on the beach, which is the BEST thing to after your stomach balloons up from a morning feed, the SECOND best thing to do is to go shopping... the North Shore Market Place is, interestingly, on the north shore of the island. The small shopping area on the side of the only main road that goes across the northern coast line looks like a mining town from a wild west movie. 

Ruthie has been after some local jewelry for a while and at last she found something she liked... pineapples! I think they look really good! 

Ready for a dip in the ocean and some time on the beach we jumped in the car and took a drive over to the south eastern side of the island where the new Disney resort opened up the week before we arrived. I was expecting to see a gaudy looking hotel on the side of the beach that looked like Mickey Mouse had thrown up all over it, with Disney characters all over the place, Buzz Lightyear toys on sale in the lobby and kiosks selling junk food for $10 a pop... surprisingly, the place looked really classy and not a pair of mouse ears in sight!

The lobby and the four buildings that make up the Disney resort are set around and in between some beautiful pools and lagoons. They have some for kids with water features, some for adults only with a swim-up bar and family pools. There was also a pool filled with tropical fish where you can learn to scuba dive, looks amazing and for over $500 a night - so it should!

We wandered around for a short while to take in the sights and see the various amenities before hitting the beach. Ruthie was quite excited to go snorkeling, as you can see below! I just paddled around... I could hear muffled "MMMM!" and "HHH!!! MMM!!!!" coming from under the water at various spots around the lagoon as Ruthie tried to tell me about the crabs and tropical fish she was seeing... haha! 

Ruthie decided to get some pampering at the spa, getting herself a manicure, while I did what McGrath's do best on a lazy afternoon... I took advantage and extreme delight in a good sit-off on the beach! :)

We dined at one of the resort's restaurants - all you can eat for $40 and let me tell you, when someone charges us $40 for a buffet - we ate ALL we could eat... it was pretty good though, loads of fresh fish and other seafood as well as loads of authentic Hawaiian dishes, my favourite being the poi - mashed tarot leaves with the consistency of wallpaper paste. Believe me though, it's great to dunk your BBQ pulled pork into. Oh, and of course we got involved in a cocktail or two...

To round off a day of complete and utter indulgence (Weight Watchers New York we'll be home soon enough) we went across the street from our hotel back in Waikiki for some world famous coconut pie and cocktails at the House Without a Key beach-side restaurant at the Halekulani Hotel across the street. Samantha Brown, anyone?

Full to the brim, we finished off the evening with a movie back the hotel. As rom-coms goes, it was pretty funny!