09/03/2024
📷Oahu, Hawaii (2019)
For the Instagram-less, here’s a lengthy update..
I’m a big proponent of speaking from experience and Hawaii is the destination I have the most experience with. You see, I lived there in my early teens. My dad was stationed on Oahu at Kaneohe Bay and paradise became my daily life for 3 glorious years. Hawaii was by far my favorite duty station. It has the best beaches, ocean waves, snorkeling, weather, rainbows, sunsets, culture, cuisine, and so much more!
🏄🏼♀️🏝️👙☀️
A major regret in life was not learning to surf when I lived there. My family did take a short airplane trip over to the Big Island from Oahu and saw a black sand beach. That was a pretty unique experience. I did visit again 10 years later with my husband and that’s when the photo below was taken. We went skydiving🪂 and got our first tattoos✍🏼.
Living in so many different places meant going to various schools with different curriculum. I was lucky enough to learn about Hawaiian history and culture. Tourism is a huge part of the economy on the islands now, but it once was ruled by kings and queens🤴🏾👸🏽. The locals are genuinely sad about the lost sovereignty from Hawaii becoming a part of the United States and they work hard to preserve the Hawaiian language and culture.
Aloha and Ohana are two of the most well known Hawaiian words (thanks Lilo&Stitch), one meaning hello and the other family. Visitors get glimpses into the diverse culture with luaus that include live music🎶, lei making🌺, fire dancing🔥, hula dancing💃🏼, and storytelling🗣️. When planning a trip to HI, a luau is a great addition to the itinerary.
Immersing yourself in the culture of the destinations you visit is always worth it in my opinion. It gives you deeper understanding and a broader perspective. In this way, travel is a wonderful avenue for personal development.
I am passionate about travel but I’m also passionate about conservation and environmentalism♻️. We can only enjoy traveling to beautiful places if we respect and protect those places.
Avoiding things like harmful sunscreens and reducing (or eliminating!) single use items are some examples of individual efforts to help combat the damage caused by humans. It all starts with building awareness and making small changes in hopes that larger, more impactful changes will occur as a result of the collective effort.
Now, if the rest of the U.S. would just follow Hawaii’s lead and get rid of billboards and daylight savings.. 🤪
While watching Family Feud one evening (my husband loves turning it on right at 5 o’clock on weekdays), Steve Harvey asked “name a popular vacation destination” and wouldn’t ya know.. Hawaii was the number one answer, for good reason too.
Hawaii is a great destination for the adventure-seeker, the active traveler, the coffee enthusiast, the unique experiencer, and the nature lover.
It’s a versatile land that welcomes all kinds of travelers. Paradise is a synonym for Hawaii and it’s worthy of a top spot on everyone’s bucket list.
When you’re ready to see rainbows🌈, sea turtles🐢, luaus🌺, colorful beaches🏖️, and so much more, reach out! I can help you make the most of your vacation in paradise.
Want to learn more about Hawaii?
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