HEALTHY TRAVEL REVIEW: Oahu, Hawaii

ILIKAI MARINA RESORT HOTEL

I spent MANY HOURS researching hotels to stay at for our trip to Oahu in the Spring. I knew I wanted three things:

1)  It had to be on the beach

2) It had to have a kitchen

3) It had to be within walking distance of shops and public transportation.

The lovely view from our hotel room at the Ilikai Hotel

I finally decided on the ILIKAI MARINA RESORT HOTEL, which offered all the things I was looking for! And what a great choice it was! Although not an ocean front hotel (there is a lagoon between the hotel and the ocean) our room still had a spectacular view of the beach, ocean and beautiful sunsets.

The lagoon in front of the Ilikai Hotel at dawn

The lagoon was a great place to rent paddle boards, which my kids did whenever they had a chance.

Going for a swim in front of our hotel at sunset we were
treated to a beautiful view of Diamond Head.

The best beach for swimming was just in front of our hotel and a short walk to the left (North). There, the water was warm, it wasn't too crowded, and we had a lovely view of Diamond Head.

Ewan surfing!

Just a little ways further up the beach was a perfect spot for surfing, and my son Ewan took surfing lessons. The swells were plentiful yet tame enough for a beginner.

A sunset view from our room at the Ilikai

It was so nice to have a FULL kitchen in our room where we were able to relax in our room after a long day out at the beach, or sightseeing, and just cook a nice meal for ourselves. A kitchen allows us to have more control over what we eat and we are easily able to include a few healthy meals for ourselves when traveling.

Just because we prepared some of our own meals did not mean we didn't indulge and enjoy a lot of local food and drink. There was a nice market around the corner from the hotel with a lot of fresh produce and a good selection of organic, vegan, and gluten free foods. We had some really nice local ice creams and sorbets too, with beautiful flavors like passion fruit, guava, mango, coconut, and, of course, pineapple! The Ilikai also had a shop in the lobby of the hotel, where you could find some good emergency foods, and it even had a small section of frozen food, a refrigerated section, local wine and beer, and a small selection of produce.

One memorable treat I unexpectedly indulged in was some really nice pineapple wine. Yep, you read correctly, PINEAPPLE WINE! Not something one would think to sip with their evening meal at home, but in Hawaii, it was the perfect compliment! When I saw it in the market, I knew I had to try it, and I'm glad I did. It was delicious!

A glass of Maui Blanc was perfect as a nice
treat before dinner.

It was a nice and refreshing wine, not too dry, and just perfect to sip while watching the  sunset

The wine I found at our little shop around the corner
was called Maui Blanc, and it was delicious! 

In the evenings, our room at the Ilikai had a nice balcony, perfect for relaxing and watching the sunset before starting dinner.

Fireworks at the Hilton Hawaiian Village

                

On Friday nights guests at the Ilikai are treated to a fireworks show, compliments of their neighbor, the Hilton Hawaiian Village!

We couldn't help making some Macadamia Nut
Pancakes, there were a variety of mixes available
at most shops in a variety of flavors as well as
buckwheat, chocolate, and banana. We made sure
to always add our own fresh fruit and nuts

We ate breakfast in our room most mornings which allowed us to relax and have a leisurely morning before our active days out. The balcony was wide enough to do some early morning yoga, or stretches if you prefer, and the view was all we needed to keep stress free. The ocean was at our front door so sometimes we went out early (Hawaii time is 3 hours behind so we were up early!) for a nice walk on the beach, where we had the beach to ourselves most days

Eating with this spectacular view made every morning special.

We took full advantage of being able to make our own breakfast and bought a package of Macadamia Nut Pancake Mix! Yum! There were a few recipes on the package, one was dairy free, and we always added some fresh local fruits and nuts. I’m still dreaming about the breakfasts we made!

The beds were VERY comfortable and the staff at the Ilikai VERY accommodating, making sure we had all the pillows, blankets, and kitchen supplies we wanted and needed.

As far as staying healthy in a hotel, we made sure to wash all the dishes before we used them, especially since there was no dishwasher. We, of course, wiped down the room when we

arrived (see my post “Hotel Survival Guide”) and made sure we had all the towels and pillows we needed. The dishes were plain (no decoration or writing), which means probably lead free, and some of the pans were non-stick/Teflon, but some were not, which was great, but each room is privately owned and therefore, will each have a different set of dishes, pots, pans utensils, etc.. If you are particular about what you cook with, bring it with you.

WHAT'S WRONG WITH TEFLON/NON-STICK PANS? GLAD YOU ASKED! THEY ARE TOXIC, ESPECIALLY OLD ONES! I use stainless steel pots and pans at home, and they are more expensive, but totally worth the money to keep these toxins out of your food.

Want more info? READ THIS: http://www.rodalenews.com/nonstick-pan-chemicals?cm_mmc=TheDailyFixNL-_-1730600-_-06092014-_-Nonstick_Chemical_Slipping_Out_of_Pans

DETAILS

HOTEL

Waikiki Marina Resort at Ilikai

1777 Ala Moana Blvd.

Honolulu, HI  96815

(808) 954-7417

Most rooms are King bed and sofa sleeper, if you want two double beds, request them when you make your reservation. We had a Jr. Suite with patial-ocean view. 

CUTE MARKET AROUND THE CORNER

Food Pantry

438 Hobron Lane

Honolulu, HI  96815

(808) 947-3763

Not cheap, but nothing is on Hawaii! Small, but will have most everything you need including a small selection of organic foods.

SURFING LESSONS

Gone Surfing Hawaii

(808) 429-6404

Fun lessons for groups, private or semi-private lessons.

Mai Tai Bar at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel

The perfect Mai Tai from scratch

Alcohol, in general, doesn’t have many health benefits, so I try to keep my alcohol intake to a minimum. But, as I have said before, when I travel, I sometimes just want to have a something special and local, and just have fun and partake in some local food and drink. I love fun mixed drinks (margueritas and mojitos are favs), but I can’t stand the thought of pre-mixed drinks or mixers with loads of artificial ingredients and additives I can’t pronounce. I feel, if you are going to splurge on an alcoholic drink, make sure your drink is fresh, made from scratch with fresh ingredients. On this trip to Hawaii, I was really looking forward to having a Mai Tai, but I wanted to have a nice, fresh one. So I did a little research and I found out most travelers voted the BEST Mai Tai i Oahu was at the Royal Hawaiian on Waikiki Beach. The hotel was on my list of places to see anyway. Nearly 100 years old, the Royal Hawaiian is a beautiful classic vintage hotel (built in 1927), famous for it’s pink exterior and decor, and colorful history of famous visitors. Their bar, aptly called the Mai Tai Bar, sits right on the beach, with a stunning view of the ocean, and… they make their Mai Tai’s from scratch!. So, after a long day of surf lessons and swimming in the ocean, my kids and I walked down the beach (about 15-20 minutes) from our hotel to the Royal Hawaiian. 

It was late afternoon and we didn’t have lunch so we were hungry and ready for drinks and nibbles! We found a perfect table facing the ocean, right as the sun was setting. My kids ordered some fresh juices, along with some french fries and sweet potato fries (the only vegetarian items on the menu) and I, of course, ordered a Mai Tai. They had several Mai Tai’s on the menu, but the one I ordered was called the “scratch Mai Tai, made with fresh squeezed orange juice, fresh pineapple juice, Bacardi Superior, and whaler’s dark rum with fresh fruit on the side. It was delicious. It wasn’t cheap at $12.00 a drink, but I loved it and sipped it slowly while watching the sun set and loving the relaxing time with my kids. 

Researching the best Mai Tai on Oahu made from scratch inspired me to look into the recipes for all classic cocktails, and I came across a nice cocktail recipe book called, “Organic Shaken and Stirred” which I purchased from Amazon.com.

http://www.amazon.com/Organic-Shaken-Stirred-Highballs-Cocktails/dp/1558324364/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1421739091&sr=8-1-fkmr0&keywords=organic+shaken%2C+not+stirred

It has lots of fresh recipes for cocktails, all made from fresh ingredients, and the book also has a nice reference section on some brands of organic alcohol. My local grocery has a nice selection of organic gins, which I love, and makes me feel better about having the occasional Gin and Ginger in the summer (organic gin with organic ginger brew, on ice. YUM!)

☼

Anyway, the Mai Tai at the Royal Hawaiian was delicious, as was the entire experience at the Mai Tai Bar in the Royal Hawaiian Hotel. I recommend it highly!

Royal Hawaiian Hotel

2259 Kalakaua Avenue

Waikiki, Honolulu, Hawaii

Hawaiian Airlines: Vegan/Vegetarian In-Flight Meal

   

Oahu, Hawaii
Spring 2014

I used to LOVE traveling by air when I was younger, it was such a pleasant experience. Flight Attendants were always pleasant and happy to see you, planes were less crowded, and I looked forward to the in-flight meals. Now a days, the flight is my least favorite part of traveling.

Which is why I'm so happy to share my recent experience on Hawaiian Airlines. We flew Hawaiian Airlines from Sacramento to Oahu, Hawaii this past Spring, and it was really a nice experience. The flight attendants were friendly, and I really loved all the Hawaiiana they had on board: Hawaiian Music, staff in Hawaiian dress, and the meal with a Hawaiian theme along with pineapple juice and a and mixed tropical fruit juice offering with the beverage service. When I booked our flights the reservationist informed me that Hawaiian Airlines is the only American domestic carrier that still offers a free meal on their flights. I no longer eat the food provided on airplane flights (see my post on "Staying Healthy in the Air") but I was happy to hear that for my son's sake. He loves the in-flight meal as I did when I was younger. Hawaiian Air does not take special meal requests, so I could not special order a vegan/vegetarian meal, but the offering was very nice, and as it turned out VEGETARIAN!

A nice breakfast meal of fresh fruit and crackers, but
the best part was the chocolate macadamia nut!

The meal, or snack really, was a mid-morning meal of fresh fruit, crackers, and a package of chocolate covered macadamia nuts. Very nice. My other son and I did not starve however, we went to Starbucks at the airport and got a muffin (him) and a lovely, hot oatmeal with the works (me) along with a drink for the flight. Although I prefer to bring my own drink on an airplane flight, I did have a pineapple juice on the way to get into the Hawaiian spirit with my kids. We even bought some Hawaiian Air ear buds (I loved the little Hawaiian Air logo on it!) and some snacks that were for sale. All in all a great flight!






Why don't I eat the food on an airline anymore?

Why don't I drink the beverages offered on a flight?

Do a little research before your next flight and see what recent studies have found out.
Here are a few to get you started.
http://www.cnn.com/2010/TRAVEL/12/22/bt.germs.breed.on.plane/

DON''T DRINK THE WATER!
http://www.forbes.com/fdc/welcome_mjx.shtml

and don't forget to read my BLOG POST on "Staying Healthy in the Air"!  
ALOHA!

Bach Flower Remedies for Fear of Flying

Bach Flower Remedies are a perfect natural remedy for
emotional issues.

Bach Flower Remedies are lovely all natural tinctures that are used to support one’s emotional health, gently ease a person’s stress and enable peace and harmony to replace any distressing feelings.  Dr. Edward Bach developed 38 flower essences , each prepared from the flowers of wild plants, trees, or bushes, and made into tinctures,  which are used to treat a specific emotional issue of an individual. I LOVE THEM!

Bach Flower Remedies are available at health food stores and online. They come in little bottles with a squeeze drop top. Once you decide which remedies might be best for your current issues, squeeze two drops into a cup of spring water and sip at intervals, OR squeeze 2 drops directly onto your tongue, swish around in your mouth for a minute, and swallow. Repeat as needed. The essences are alcohol based and the dropper should not ever tough your tongue or inside of your mouth. I put several 6-8 drops in a liter bottle when I travel and sip it throughout the day.

ASPEN
This remedy is appropriate for someone suffering from FEAR,  APPREHESON, AND WORRIES, about things NON-SPECIFIC. A good example is if you are afraid of flying or travel by sea but you cannot say exactly why, just that you have an uneasy feeling about it. This remedy will help relax you and steer your thoughts towards happier ones. It’s not for someone who suffers from severe panic attacks , fear of a KNOWN specific cause (see MIMULUS below) or more serious fears.

 MIMULUS

This remedy is for fear from KNOWN causes such as illness, death, accidents   and pain. If your fear of flying stems from something specific, such as you are afraid of a plane "accident", falling ill while in the air, or claustrophobia, this remedy might be for you. If your fear is more general and non-specific, you might try ASPEN (above).

     

RED CHESTNUT

This remedy is for those who have selfless over-concern, fear or worry for the welfare of others.  If you are a parent or guardian traveling with your children or family members and are more worried about them than yourself this may be for you. I worry about my kids A LOT, and I use this remedy often, even when we are not traveling. It may be my favorite Bach Flower Remedy.




FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE SEE MY POST ON BACH FLOWER REMEDIES FOR TRAVEL: http://healthygypsytraveller.blogspot.com/2015/02/bach-flower-remedies-for-travel.html

NATURAL REMEDIES: ARNICA OIL for Aches and Pains 🌸

 

 So many times when I travel I have days when I am on my feet ALL DAY! There are the days spent outdoors hiking, swimming in the ocean, or maybe cycling to a great picnic spot, but there are also just those days when you are walking around enjoying a new town, shopping, having lunch, catching subways, or even a day at a museum when your 10,000 steps a day can easily turn into 15,000-20,000 steps a day! That recently happened to me on our trip to Hawaii in March, when we packed too many things into one day and by the time I got back into our hotel room at the end of the day, I was dead tired. Not only was I exhausted but my legs were achy and actually wobbly. I was grateful we had a kitchen in our room and didn’t have to venture out to dinner after such a tiring day. To get my aches and pains under control I did two things. First, I took a very warm bath with 2 cups of Epsom Salts and soaked for about 15 mintues. I know I have mentioned several times how great an Epsom Salt Bath is. It is a wonderful detox as well as the best thing to sooth tired and achy muscles, any time, anywhere. When I got out of the bath I felt much more relaxed but my legs and feet were still a bit achy and I knew I needed some ARNICA.  ARNICA is a little miracle in a tube, tablet or bottle. Many of you may know it as a wonderful remedy for bruises, but it is also amazing for achy muscles. I found some beautiful ARNICA OIL by WELEDA at our local Co-op, and thought I'd give it a try. I poured about a teaspoon in my hands and rubbed it into my legs and feet. It smelled so nice and felt great and, honestly, within 10 minutes, my tired, achy legs were back to normal. I couldn’t believe it! When I was in the bath, I thought I might have to take a couple ARNICA homeopathic remedy tablets and then lie down and rest my feet until they felt better, but after I used the ARNICA OIL, my aches were gone! I had no problem cooking dinner and then going for a nice relaxing nighttime stroll on the beach before bed. In future I’m going to include WELEDA ARNICA OIL with all my travel essentials. A must have! 

Arnica cream and gel is great too, especially for bumps and bruises. It is a staple in my "natural" travel first aid kit.. I also carry Arnica homeopathic tablets in my purse, which are especially when my kids get bumps and bruises during an active day out, and they are easy to tuck inside a pocket, purse, or day-pack.

As with all homeopathic remedies, if you are traveling on a plane, ask if you can have your homeopathic items hand-checked and not sent through the x-ray, as this weakens their properties a bit. Personally, in recent years, I haven't had too much luck getting things hand-checked because of heightened airport security, so if you do have to send your beloved remedies through the x-ray more than once or twice, just make sure to increase your dose slightly to make sure you get the full strength necessary for full effectiveness.

ALSO SEE: All Natural and Homeopathic First Aid Kit for Travel

Airlines Dirty Secrets

I guess these aren't secrets anymore! Another article on the scary stuff on an airplane and what to be careful of. I knew about the airline water, blankets,  and bathroom floors but it's always distressing to hear again.

Read this article on Budget Travel:
http://www.budgettravel.com/feature/airlines-dirtiest-secrets,33050/?page=1

An Easy Way to Fit In Exercise While Traveling

I find one of the hardest things to keep up with when I travel is daily exercise. Time changes, jet lag, social events,, and new and unfamiliar locations make it difficult to fit in some exercise. So MY favorite thing to do while traveling is walking. Actually, it’s my favorite exercise at home too. It’s easy on the joints and muscles, needs no equipment except good walking shoes (more on this later), and you can do it anywhere! My new favorite item is my Step Counter or Pedometer and I love the new popular goal of doing 10,000 steps a day. Studies show that walking at least 10,000 steps a day insures you are getting enough activity to get all the great benefits of regular daily exercise. I use my pedometer at home every day and I love to challenge myself to see if I can get at least 10,000 steps a day. I find that on a trip, it is often even easier to reach my 10,000 steps a day goal. Last month when I was in Hawaii, even on the laziest of days I got to at least 12,000 steps. Walking to the beach, walking to restaurants, and even shopping added up ,my steps really quickly.. And that didn’t even count the activity I did in the ocean snorkeling , swimming and paddle boarding. I have to say that Hawaii is an easy vacation to fit in a fair amount of daily exercise, but if you set you mind to it, you can easiy reach that 10,000 step goal every day! ANYWHERE!

Try it at home first before you leave on your trip. My favorite pedometer is the Omron. It is the top seller on Amazon right now, and I love it too! Take a look...

http://www.amazon.com/Omron-HJ-112-Digital-Pocket-Pedometer/dp/B0000U1OCI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1398279110&sr=8-1&keywords=omron+pedometer

There are also some books available about the benefits of reaching 10,000 steps a day for good health. I haven’t read these books, but you might want to ❤

http://www.amazon.com/000-Steps-Your-Optimal-Weight/dp/1566252873/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1398279197&sr=8-1&keywords=10%2C000+steps

Doctors recommend a minumum of 30 minutes of exercise 5 days a week for optimum health ❤

Too Much Indulgence On Your Vacation? Time To Get Back On Track...

Organic green tea with fresh ginger and freshly squeezed lemon

A Nice Detox Day to Get Back on Track ❤

Yesterday I hosted a (vegetarian!) Spring Tea for 16 guests. It was really lovely but a bit of an over-indulgence for me. I don't drink alcohol very often but I do LOVE nice sparkling wine and champagne, so for my Spring Afternoon Tea I served mimosa's, my favorite cocktail. Although I did all the right things: 1) I used my favorite LOCAL sparkling wine (I live near Napa Valley!) and organic orange juice, 2) I drank a large glass of filtered still water between mimosas and 3) I spread out drinking them over several hours, I still went to bed not feeling as healthy and, well,  "clean" as I usually do. I also partook in a few cookies and chocolates throughout the late afternoon, and then had quite a late dinner. All these things added up to a general feeling of blahhhh for me. I don't indulge too often, but love to entertain, and, of course, sometimes just have some fun and try new things, and I realize that this happens most often when I travel. Although yesterday I hosted this Tea at my home, I had guests from as far away as France attending, and realized that when you travel there are times you throw caution (and healthy habits!) to the wind and just have a good time. So when I woke up today, I knew I needed a little detox day! I'm not a great believer in a fasting detox, and know that they aren't easily done when traveling, but I usually do a few things after an indulgence that really help me get back on track. 

On normal "non-detox" days, I start my day with a green tea latte I make fresh with Almond Milk, but this morning I brewed my organic green tea plain and left out the milk. Instead I added a few slices of fresh ginger and squeezed in a half of a fresh organic lemon. Perfect start to the day. For travel, I always brings my own organic green tea, but the fresh lemon and ginger might be harder to find on the go. If you think you may be needing a little detox here and there while traveling and don't have access to some fresh food, bring along some green tea and ginger tea and brew them together. Lemons can usually be found fairly easy in shops, and fresh is preferred over the lemon juice concentrates available at markets, which usually contain undesirable additives.

For breakfast, I had a big bowl of berries! Fresh organic strawberries, blueberries and blackberries! Perfect!

My favorite detox soup always starts with a miso base.

FOR LUNCH I was actually hungry, which is always a good sign for me the day after an indulgence, so I decided to make a light healthy soup. My soup stared with a fresh miso soup base and I added some sliced daikon radish, carrots, sliced ginger, shitake mushrooms, and some brown rice noodles. YUM! I also added some calcium and omega-3 rich nori on top. The perfect light meal. 

Daikon radish, shitake mushrooms, and ginger
are the perfect additions to a detox soup.

If you do not have access to a kitchen when you travel, most of these ingredients are readily available at most Japanese Restaurants. 

I will drink my detox green tea throughout the day, go for a walk in the sunshine (must get those 10,000 steps in!), take a nap, and end with a light meal tonight.  My final farewell to my overindulgent day, will be a soothing detox bath before bed. 

2 cups of epsom salts added to a warm bath is one of my favorite detoxes. Dr. Oz recommends adding some Baking Soda as well if you prefer. Hmmmmm. So good....

This is a great regime to follow to get yourself back on track after a little indulgence and if not possible to do while you are away, is easy to do when you return home after a stressful and perhaps, overindulgent, trip.

Finally, a good night's sleep, and tomorrow I will be back on track, although thinking fondly of those mimosas....❤