Blogs from Hawaii, United States, North America - page 142

Rebecca and I got married October 18th in Maryland and then promptly headed out to Hawaii for some relaxation. After a stopover in Atlanta, we arrived in Honolulu late Sunday. We explored the city, enjoyed the weather and got some needed rest. On Monday we caught a small plane to Kauai. We stayed at the Marriott Resort for 8 nights. The weather was perfect and the hospitality was just as good. It was a tropical paradise complete with a warm sun, sandy beaches and frozen drinks. It was the perfect compliment to a long month of wedding preparations.... read more

Today my group took a day-long tour of the west side of the island. Since O'ahu is quite a diverse island, it was a nice break to get outside of Honolulu. While Honolulu and Waikiki are full of attractions and things to do, I felt like I was getting a one-sided view of what O'ahu is really like. Today was my much needed escape. We started out with a hour outside of 'Iolani Palace, which is the only imperial palace on American soil. It was only in use for the last two monarchs of imperial rule of Hawai'i—King Kalakaua and Queen Lili'uokalani—since it was actually the second royal palace to be used in the kingdom of Hawaii. The whole complex was really beautiful looking. We were briefed by our tour guide (aka bus driver) about the ... read more

It's been a busy few days in O'ahu. Even though everything in Hawai'i is relaxed (why hurry in the sun?!), I've been keeping things at a high intensity level with work. Luckily, I've still been able to get in a lot of fun time (definitely perk of working in the leisure industry). Past few days' highlights include: catamaran cruise on the Na Hoku II, surf lesson in Waikiki, fish tacos at Duke's Canoe Club, and Pearl Harbor (in the rain). ... read more

Aloha from Hawai'i! I'm here on the island of O'ahu, actually on business. I've been here for a few days now, but today is the first time I've been able to actually slow down a bit and take in some of the sights. Since I graduated from the University of Illinois I have been working for a travel agency that specializes in tours for foreign exchange high school students studying in the United States. It's business, but what better place to do business than in Hawai'i... especially if you're from Chicago! I'm having a hard time believing I'm still in America though. Europe seemed more familiar, despite the fact that I didn't need to exchange money and there's only a slight accent here in the Islands. Riding around in our rented van on the highway is ... read more

After a mere 11 hours of sleep last night, we started our day by throwing on the hiking boots, filling up our water pouches, transferring the trail mix from the big bag to the small, and heading for the jeep. We had picked out a hike in the Waimea Canyon that would take most of the day, so we were headed out early. Our drive out to the Canyon was gorgeous, as we approached both the coast and the canyon at the same time. Everything here is green, but the different shades of green are so impressive. Somehow we missed the first turn, but that allowed us to explore a little more and catch a later turn that got us to the same place. Eventually we found the canyon road and headed up to about 4,000 ... read more