Hawaii

Written by Administrator | 02 March 2011

 After a whirlwind eighteen day adventure back home, it was time once again for me to pack my bags and head off on what would hopefully be my final trip to Atlanta. I was returning my usual way with a one night stopover in Hawaii, then straight through to a cold Atlanta. With my father Jono as my sidekick for the next three months it certainly will be interesting to say the least. Whilst in Hawaii for a night I had organised to catch up with a very dear friend from home Lib Munro who happened to also be there with a few girlfriends Billie Whitehouse, Ween Carroll and Hannah Boekemann. We meet at the Mai Thai bar on Waikiki beach which is a pretty hard spot to beat for a few cocktails and dinner. It was great to catch up with Lib as we hadn’t seen each other for so long and to meet a few of her friends. Though the next day was a little rough on us all and hoping into another aeroplane was the last thing I felt like doing.

It was just as we were about to head to the airport with the bags packed and a little guy still jack hammering away inside my head that my luck changed. Due to a severe snow storm that was hammering the south east of America all flights were cancelled to Atlanta as the city was shut down. “The next available flight would be in four days time, we apologise for any inconvenience this may cause you Mr Clift” the operator said. Well I had a smile from ear to ear with this news, we quickly settled back into holiday mode and put our thinking caps on as to what adventures we could up too.

With Tuesday being a beautiful day we thought that it would be a great opportunity to hire a car and head up the north shore to check out the famous surfing breaks. Lib and Billie joined us for the day and off we headed. It was amazing how fertile the farming land was when we driving through the DOL pineapple plantation on our way up there. We checked out the waves at Pipeline and Waimea Bay, and then had lunch by the sea at Turtle Bay.

It was after lunch however that our north shore adventure took a real twist. Dad had managed to track down a helicopter charter service and then convince the pilot that I would be able to get into it. Well prior to this transferring into 4wd was a challenge so popping up into a chopper was definitely going to be raising the bar. Though with a little heave ho from Lib and Billie we made it and with my headset on I was ready for takeoff!! The helicopter ride was truly amazing we covered the most of the island flying over Pearl Harbour, then down one of the prettiest valleys you can imagine where Jurassic Park was filmed only to follow a waterfall up into the mountains. We than flew over all the pineapple and coffee plantations on our way back up the north shore. Where flying over the different breaks really allowed you to see just how perfect yet powerful these world famous surfing breaks actually are.

The next day was a little overcast which worked out fine as it gave dad and I great opportunity to catch with Bill Malouf over lunch. Bill went to school with dad at Joeys and they have been mates ever since and he has also been very supporting of the foundation so we both were looking forward to seeing him. I last saw Bill twelve months ago in Sydney just before I flew out so it was great for him to see my improved movement and balance. It is also quite reassuring for me when someone who has not seen you in a while, can spot positive differences straight away. I think dad also enjoyed catching up with an old friend as well. As it is just as important for my family to receive support from friends during this little adventure as it is me.

We finished our little Hawaiian adventure off with a dinner at Nobu with all the girls. With Lib and Ween insisting they never eaten sushi or anything raw it was going to be an interesting evening. After convincing them that if there was a place for them to try it this was it, the girls stepped up to the challenge. Before we knew Lib was eating some kingfish sashimi in an amazing sauce like a seasoned campaigner. However her glass of white peach sangria was never too far away, in case something needed washing down. It was a great evening with the girls and the perfect way to end our little holiday with them. It wasn’t till we were on the plane that both dad and I spoke about great it was catching up with Lib and her friends over there and how much fun we had with them.