Just north of Kailua is Kane'ohe, home to the Byodo-In Buddhist temple in the misty foothills of the mountains.  This is an exact replica of the 900-year-old temple of the same name in Uji, Japan ... down to the grounds and landscaping.  Cross the footbridge from the parking lot, and you enter a different world filled with peace and serenity.

Below left:  Alison rings the temple bell for good luck (at the price of a small donation).  But this is much more fun than lighting a candle.

Below right:  The koi pond at the temple.

John and Alison fake swinging on a banyan tree root in downtown Honolulu.  This tree is one of a circle of several daughter trees surrounding an ancient mother, no longer there.  Very like redwoods in California ... but the banyan daughter circle comes from roots dropping from the mother branches rather than the redwoods sprouting from roots in the ground.  These banyans are located in a park between the Hawaii State Capitol and the Iolani Palace.

A view from the Punchbowl crater rim, showing downtown Honolulu, Waikiki, and the Diamond Head crater in the distance.  Hawaii is full of volcanoes; a few active, but most retired, like these.  Punchbowl is home to the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, containing the remains of veterans of WWII and later wars.