Hawaii!

It’s been about two weeks and I am still in disbelief that this is my life. I spent four days in Hawaii and have fallen in love with the people, culture and land. We pulled into Hilo ( the big island) at 5:45 Monday and it was go, go, go ever since. The First day in Hawaii was spent at the top of Mauna Kea. I was able to watch the sun set at 14,000 feet and was fortunate enough to star gaze at 9,000 feet. The observatory is the best in the world, and I actually got to use it. Still in shock. Day two in Hilo may have been the best day of my life. Jessica, Marisa Allison and I decided to be a little spontaneous and got into a van with a woman named “Suzy Q” She was absolutely CRAZY ahaha. We later found out her real name was Theresa but wasn’t a true fan of her name so she asked us to call her suzy q for the day. We hopped in her van and met some of the best people. Including Erika, Ricardo, Andrew, Gabby, Alex, Ryan, Jordan, and Tam. Little did we know we were in for quite the adventure? First we hit the store picked up some drinks and snacks and then headed to “paradise”. We made a quick stop on the side of the road for tangerines because Suzy said it was a must. From there we stopped at a local lava rock beach for some pictures and then headed for the hot springs. When we got there the site was incredible. We hopped into water that had to be at least 75 degrees and relaxed for a few hours. Don’t worry Suzy jumped in too, but she decided to jump in with her t-shirt and underwear, what a site! We then traveled to a town that had been covered with lava( the Pompeii of Hawaii) this area was so upsetting, knowing that 191 houses had been covered by lava just 20 years before was unsettling but he view to the volcano was incredible. (Luckily people are finally starting to return). From there we were off to Boiling points but just as we were on our way Suzy pulled to the side of the road so we could get our modeling shoot done ( she pulled out leis from the back of her van and proceeded to take pictures of us with a coconut tree and ocean in the back ground). We went to boiling pots next at peepee falls. This is where the true fun came in, cliff jumping. Jumping off 60 feet cliffs into the water was an experience I will always remember. The day was almost over and we had one final stop, Suzys house to grab tourist magazines where she claims to be in ( the photo looks NOTHING like her) But she insisted it was and then signed a copy for each of us and dropped us back at port. We got to port and the ship headed to Honolulu. When we arrived Allison,Rachel,Allison and I Decided to head to the aquarium ( which wasn’t that great) and after gave Surfing a try. Our teachers name was Big Mike and we surfed for the afternoon. Getting up and riding that wave was so exciting. However, the only picture taken of me was falling so I have no real proof I stood up but I did, The night life in Honolulu was something else, and we headed back really late that night. Day four was spent at the Psychiatric State Hospital for my global mental health class and it was pretty interesting. Allison and I finished up our field trip and headed to Walmart to grab last minute things and then she bought a rail pass. We hitched the shuttle back to the Ship and spent the ride talking with some of the crew. The Crew on the ship has to be the best group of people in the world. They are all SO nice and go above and beyond to help you with anything they can. Last night we pulled out of port and have began heading to Japan. Let the sea sickness begin, and the 11 day journey pass by quickly!

Is it Tuesday the 19th  already??

 

 

I had the time of my life in San Diego and now I'm in the middle of the ocean on my way to the big island  ( Honolulu) in Hawaii. So far this experience has been incredible minus the sea sickness part. I ended up getting so sick that i needed a shot, but so far its worked really well ( knock on wood). Sunday night and all day monday consisted of orientations, and today was the first day of classes. I had global mental health and global studies today, and so far they seem amazing and im anxious to learn more about these subjects. We left mexico on sunday night an hour behind, but when the harbor masters set us free, EVERYONE was ont he back deck screaming and chanting, its such a sureal feeling. Am i really on a voyage around the world? I nned to keep reminding my self that over and over because it really doesnt seem real. The boat is pretty big and i've gotten lost a few times, and its hard to get used to using military time. On a side note, i used my cellphone for my alarm clock this morning and i set it for 7, however, i forgot about the time change and woke up to get ready at 4 am. Whoops! good thing my roommate woke up and informed me that i was crazy. I'm looking forward to the big island and hilo!

The Map of my Trip!

!12 days!!

The count down has begun. I leave for San Diego in 12 days. I have been planning for this trip for about a year now and it is finally here. I just started to pack and it's really starting to feel near imposible! I'm generally an over packer, and am really trying hard not to be on this trip- which hasn't been too successful thus far, especially since I'm going to so many different places:

San Diego, CA USA *
Hilo / Honolulu, Hawaii USA
Yokohama / Kobe, Japan
Shanghai / Hong Kong, China
Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam
Chennai / Cochin, India
Port Louis, Mauritius
Cape Town, South Africa
Tema (Accra), Ghana
Salvador, Brazil
Fort Lauderdale, FL USA


I am doing this trip with my roomate and great friend Jess and we are both ready to start our voyage! It's crazy to think how quickly our fall semesters went by, and how quickly our journey approached us. I have been so lucky to have the support of my friends and my hometown of Berkley. The middle school in town has been so helpful and i really can't thank them enough. I am very excited to share my experiences with those at home to let them know theres much more to the world than our little town.

Is this really happening?

As the departure date creeps up, I am still in disbelief that this is actually happening! I cannot believe I will be leaving in about a month to sail around the world. I bought my plane ticket to San Diego and will bed arriving January 13th with Jess and her dad. Since neither of us have been to California we decided to go a couple days early to check it out before we leave for mexico to get on the boat! How crazy? I cannot wait!