The sea of the North Shore was brilliantly blue. Our car was a chartered minivan, but if I drove my car, SLK200, along the coastline of of the North Shore of Oahu island, what a pleasure I would get. I told my driver such a wish. His answer was an unexpected one to me, i.e. that idea was terrible. Convertible cars seemed to be unnecessary in the all-time hot island of Hawaii. All the convertible Mustang cars which were found everywhere in Waikiki were apparently rental cars without exception. When it comes to rental cars, I asked him if there is some mark on the license plate which indicates that the car is a rental one. In Japan, the license plate of rental cars has a specific mark on it. His answer was NO, and he added that such marks could attract vehicle burglars. I understood.
Several beaches were along the coastline and lots of tourists were viewing big waves and surfers. Unexpectedly, the best season of the beaches on the North Shore of Oahu island was winter. The waves in winter seemed to be far higher than those in Honolulu.
Three days after the cold front progresses to the Sea of Okhotsk and Japan is hit by a storm in winter, the waves produced on the Sea of Okhotsk reach the North Shore and they make there a paradise for surfers.
ノース・ショアの風景
オアフ島北岸のドライブは実に気持ちが良い。ミニバンではなく、自分のＳＬＫならどれほど気持ちが良いだろうかと思う。ドライバーにそう話すと、暑いハワイでオープンカーなどとんでもないとの返事。ムスタングのオープンカーが目立つのだが、すべてレンタカーだという。ついでに聞いてみた。ナンバープレートからレンタカーだと判断できるのかと。できないとのこと。レンタカーだとわかると車上荒らしに遭いやすいので、そのようなシステムにはなっていない、、、なるほど。
ビーチがいくつもあり、サーファーの姿もちらほら。波を眺める観光客も多かったが、ここのベストシーズンは冬だという。１２月の波は今よりも遙かに高く、サーファーが集まるとか。波の大きさはワイキキの比では無いと言う。オホーツク海に前線が張り出し、日本が冬の嵐になると、その３日後くらいに良い波が来るのだそうだ。遙かオホーツクの海から。日本の冬の嵐はノース・ショアのサーファーにとっては楽園を意味するようだ。
Comments