Before arriving in Hawai’i- my week continued to be crazy and unpredictable. I spent a night in Cristina and Maddie’s room which resulted in us playing a middle-school, iTouch version of truth or dare. For reasons unknown (probably because of all the cold medication I was on) - I was wearing a life vest, a shirt from India, and jeans; along with some crazy bracelets- and my hair was pretty out-of-whack (Please note this was not a dare…I’m just crazy). Anyways- it was 3 am, and clearly I was acting like a drunken fool. I was running down the halls to find someone to wave to me (this was a dare), jumping off chairs doing impressions of Tarzan, and many other ludicrous things. Cristina was dared to brush my teeth- which was quite an experience in its own. Moving onward, every time someone said “and”, I had to bark like a dog- and when someone said “like” I was required to say “There you again!” It was quite an amusing game- and I didn’t go to bed until 7 am. We are all going mental on this ship- 10 days is way too long. But it makes for an interesting time, for sure.
Alright, so Hawai’i…I must admit, I was very impressed with Hawai’i, and being there made me wonder why anyone would ever want to leave. Honolulu is a HUGE tourist area- but filled with a lot of very cool things. I didn’t get a chance to head to the Arizona memorial, but I will definitely making a few trips back to Hawai’i. Barry and I headed out early in the morning to get stamps and tour the city before jumping to our fates. We almost got mauled over by an old lady in the post office line, we sat on bike racks that looked like bicycles and took tourist-like photos, and we went to the 30’th floor of a Banking building so we could ride the glass elevators which were on the outside of the building. Basically we had a lot of fun, and laughed at all of the trolleys filled with Japanese tourists. I was originally jumping in Barry’s group- and we were all going to dress up for the jump- but I switched last minute- Barry wore a white tux, and looked awesome! So my first day was already planned out for me- A few of the ladies and I were going skydiving. I had hopes that I would get an adrenaline rush from this. Lindsay, Liz, Denim and I packed ourselves into a van full of SASer’s, and off we went to skydive. The skydiving field was in North shore- and we’re here at just the right time for the big waves (just in case any surfer-types are reading this). Upon entering the driveway for skydiving I started to get really hyped about skydiving. After bungee jumping, and being in cars in Morocco- I feel invincible and unstoppable. The ladies and I waited for a while before we got to jump- but I was excited when we did. It was the 4 of us, 4 camera men, and 4 jumpers. My guy was Rick- He was absolutely awesome, and very worldly- my camera guy was Knox- who I am absolutely in love with, and I will leave it at that since family members read my blog :]
Lindsay’s jumper was Lyle- who I affectionately referred to as Lyle Lyle Crocodile- I also loved him. Her camera guy was older, and pretty quiet- but friendly. Denim’s jumper was quiet but her camera man… OH her camera man… Nacho… let’s just say, I also had a thing for Nacho. AHEM. Moving onward… I don’t really recall Liz’s jumper of camera guy- but I think she may have had Georgie.
So we all hop in a very decorated plane- and head up to 14,000 feet. It was one of the noisiest and best rides ever- especially since you’re sitting on a small wooden bench-practically in the lap of the person behind you (in this case- that would be Rick, my jumper- who I wanted to be attached to since he had the chutes).
Lindsay was freaking out the entire ride up- which was hysterical; all the jumpers kept telling her that they grabbed the wrong sized harness, and that she’ll just have to hold onto them when they jump. It was pretty hilarious- and also on film:] (Love you Lindsay!) Since Lindsay was freaked out- and right next to the door (which is clear by the way) - they made her go first- she screamed the entire time.
I was second- My feet went to the edge of the plane, and you would think my heart would be racing, but nope- Rick gracefully “fell” out of the plane with me, and it just felt natural. I had 60 seconds of free fall which was one of the most amazing feelings ever. Imagine sticking your head out of a moving cars window…only imagine it being your body at 120mph- It was awesome! My photos and video are a little ridiculous- especially since I was posing for pictures during my falls (in my video it looks like I am trying to sign a message to the world- too funny). The chute opened, which hurts your thighs- because you go from a laying position, to sitting up, and obviously the harness pulls on you. Rick and I did \many spins, and a few flips, where we went over our parachute (it’s hard to describe), and that was a lot of fun. I saw the most gorgeous view of North shore where the 50 foot swells looked like microscopic white caps. Rick was like my tour guide in the air- he showed me all around the area, and we slowly glided back to the ground. (Out of the 4 of us to jump I was 2nd, but last to reach the ground)
Now… you want to know what I was afraid of. The landing. I obviously didn’t want to slide on my ass like I had seen people do- But I also didn’t want to slam my ankles into the ground. Rick- my jumper reached ground first (don’t worry I was still attached to him) - and he gave me the okay to put my feet on the ground. Well- UNFORTUNATELY… I put my feet into his feet (which were running on the ground), and our legs tangled, and we tripped, and I did a somersault through his legs. It was absolutely hysterical and I really don’t know how it all happened, but I ended up with grass and dirt all over my ass. But it was well worth it. I realize that I am neither the most graceful jumper- nor the most graceful lander- but I have a heck of a lot of fun jumping off and out of things.
PS- The professional jumpers make landings look like a breeze- at first it looks like they’re going to slam into the ground, but then they gracefully glide- like they’re walking on water. Although I did see a single jumper face plant into the ground- it was pretty funny. Lindsay and I started talking to a group of pro jumpers where we proceeded to get invited to a rock band/ beach party- we didn’t end up going because there are crazy things that go on on Aloha Friday’s in Chinatown. But let’s just say- if we ever need a place to stay in Hawai’i- our backs are covered. Later that night I went out with Christine, Jennifer, and Stephanie where I proceeded to have Kobe steak (which really is to die for). Then we hit up China town to see what all the fuss was about- there was live music, hoppin’ clubs, and art galleries open- but nothing too extreme (especially compared to some of the things we have witnessed on this voyage). We came back to the ship around 11, where roomie and I continued to watch Sex and the City until we fell asleep.
The next day I was on a trip- with 3 other students, and about 12 lifelong learners- but it was a lot of fun. Our tour guide Auntie Em was humorous, and we all had a really fun time (even though Devil Rita was there). We explored all over the island of Honolulu, and I made many friends with all of the locals.
That night our ship headed towards Hilo- which is a fascinating place- it is on the Big Island of Hawai’i, and is home to the fish with the longest name (humuhumunukunukuapua’a) or (who-moo,who-moo, noo-koo, noo-koo, a-pooh-a-ah) Don’t worry- I knew about this fish since I was a youngin’ so I was a pro at saying it :p
It is home to many varieties of hibiscus (flowers) which happens to be the state flower- the yellow hibiscus with the red flute inside. Anyways… It is also home to the longest beach in the world? The highest mountain- Mt. Kauna- The only place in the world with black sand beaches, white sand beaches AND green sand beaches. Crazy eh?
Wal-Mart was the first stop in my plans since I needed packing materials. Then I became a victim of a tourist trap…fresh water pearls. Oh my heavens they were everywhere! I got to choose an oyster- tap 3 times, and say “ALOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHA! Very loudly- and then I got to keep the pearl (they let you open 1 per day in hopes that you will set it). Jennifer and I spent a lot of time together in Hilo, and we lounged on the beach, collected shells, rode in the back of trucks, saw sea turtles, and hung with the locals. We met some of the friendliest most amazing people- who will offer everything they have just to speak to you. Our first local was Danny- sweetest guy on earth (this is whose truck bed we rode in). Then after walking across molten lava (which was solidified… come on guys- I’m not that crazy!) and walked through a few beaches before meeting 3 lovely gentlemen Mackenzie, Junior, and Jonah. They offered us brewskies (which we declined), but also offered us Coke (as in coca cola…) to which we obliged. We sat there on the beach talking the day away with locals- we then decided as the sun was setting that we should head towards the ship. We opted to save on a cab and walk, and upon walking we stumbled upon a hostel/ice cream shop/botanical garden…. So we stopped, had some amazing ice cream, and walked through the gardens- it was pretty neat. We went back to find my very drunk roommate- so I spent a majority of my time split between Jennifer’s room, and Cristina’s room. The next day, Jennifer and I went to Ihop- which is always amazing, and spent the day doing absolutely nothing- it was a lot of fun.
When all students were back on ship we had a BBQ- which I loved because they had plain steamed white rice- that is all I had, and I was in heaven! Later that night they told us that they needed to tell us crucial information and that everyone needed to meet in the Union. Many students thought that Obama or someone famous was on ship for the 100th voyage- but instead they told us that due to weather we weren’t heading off to San Diego right away. They told us that we weren’t allowed to stay in port in Hilo because other ships had plans to come in and dock there- so they said we were headed back to Honolulu!!! AND, they were letting us get off, and our on-ship time wasn’t until 9pm! I have never seen our student body more alive than that night.
So- obviously the next day we were back in Honolulu- on O’ahu. I spent the day with some friends and we sat on the beaches of Waikiki, soaked up the sun, and sipped fruity cocktails out of pineapples instead of studying for our finals./ We also stopped at the world’s largest outdoor mall, and ate at a place called Islands (which is also in California)- It was delicious, but reminded me a lot of Red Robin.
Since then I have been back on the ship- I still have a little bit of my cold, and I have been getting sick pretty often, but all is well. My finals ended yesterday, and I handed in my last papers this morning by 10 am. So other than the alumni ball I need not worry about a thing. My bags have been 90% packed for a while- and now we’re finally headed to San Diego. I don’t know if I will update before San Diego, but I will do my best to do so.
I am almost positive I am forgetting a day I spent in Hawai’i- but this blog will have to do :p
This is Sam signing out.
