Aloha 2018 🌺

Traveling is truly therapeutic for the soul. During Winter Break, my family and I took a brief excursion to the breathtaking Aloha State -- HAWAII! We spent 4 days and 3 nights (definitely not enough time!) in Oahu AKA literal paradise, taking a relaxing break from our hectic lives. Although brief, our 3 days were quite packed with touristy (and fun!) activities. Here's a glimpse of our itinerary:

Day 1: Arrive in Hawaii around 9 pm and find dinner

Day 2: Waikiki Beach and leave for the Polynesian Cultural Center at 5 pm

Day 2: Leave for Pearl Harbor at 6 am (way too early!)

Day 3: Leave for Circle Island Tour (Sightseeing, beaching, ice creaming at Dole Plantation) at 7 am

Haleiwa

King Kamehameha I

beautiful lookout

crystal clear waters

Pearl Harbor

aloha waikiki

paradise!

Hawaii is truly an incredible place, with plenty of mouthwatering food and deeply rooted in traditional culture. By our last day, I had convinced myself that I was never going to leave this beautiful paradise. However, there is something called school that exists, which crushes this idyllic dream. Although so many tourists are reluctant to return to their daily lives and desire to stay in Hawaii for an eternity (including myself), many of the locals tell a different story. On the last day of my adventure, our tour guide was a native Hawaiian, who brought many new insights I previously had not given too much thought to. Today, the few pure-blood Hawaiians are being dislocated from their native lands with the increasing number of state real estate developments. Native Hawaiians face rapidly inflating land prices and are only given 99 years to lease acreage in the Hawaiian Home Lands (200,000 acres reserved for free use by residents who are at least half Hawaiian). Meanwhile, thousands of Hawaiians remain on a long waiting list for free plots on the Home Lands. As our tour bus cruised along the picturesque roads and scenery, the tour guide also shared his own story. Like many other Hawaiian natives who struggle to find jobs and survive due to the rapidly increasing costs of living in the state, he owns a coconut-picking business but also recently renovated an old school bus with the hopes of starting a new food truck business. The tour guide's story exemplifies the work ethic of many of the Hawaiian natives who struggle to survive on a daily basis. Hawaiian natives work hard and fight to preserve their unique culture and lifestyle for their future generations every single day, but continue to be challenged by the increasing influx of American culture. Despite the significant obstacles that Hawaiian natives face, their vigorous diligence and persistence are truly awe-inspiring.

On a brighter note, I had the pleasure of indulging in a wide variety of delectable foods in Hawaii! Here's a snapshot:

poke

famous garlic shrip

acai bowl

macadamia nut coffee ice cream

dole whip

My trip to Hawaii was definitely an eye-opening experience where I was able to understand more of the beautiful Hawaiian culture from both a tourist's perspective and that of a native. During our tour, our Hawaiian tour guide also taught us a bit of the Hawaiian language; I learned that the word "tattoo" was originally composed by the sound of the traditional tool tapping into the skin ("ta-ta") and the sound the client produces in pain ("oo!").

Hawaii is truly a stunning paradise that I will definitely be returning to in the near future! 🌴