My Local Motion

So, I'm finally back from my trip to Hawaii, and it was amazing. First off, I was in Hawaii so it doesn't get better than that, but it was also nice to be away from Portland for a little while. For those who are interested, here's an abbreviated version of my trip:

Monday, March 23
After a five hour flight to Maui, I was pretty spent so I had dinner with my mom and grandfather. We went to this place called Zippy's, which I guess is the Hawaiian version of Denny's, because my mom insisted that I get their ramen. It was good, way better than Top Ramen, that's for sure.

Tuesday, March 24
We took a little trip to Lahaina, Maui, which is a former whaling village that has become one of the top tourist spots on the island. Going to Lahaina is always fun because it's been able to remain quaint while being touristy at the same time. We were lucky because there weren't too many people in Lahaina, so it was pretty chill. We had lunch at Bubba Gump's (yes, it's a restaurant based on the movie), and it was good food albeit pretty commercial.

Wednesday, March 25
This time around we hit up Paia, Maui which is located up country on the Northshore of the island. I really dug Paia because it was nice, quaint, and had a chill atmosphere. We had lunch at a place called Milagro's which was some kind of Mexican-Hawaiian fusion type place. Pretty tasty stuff. After lunch we headed over to Hookipa Beach where all of the windsurfers play. There weren't many windsurfers, but plenty of regular surfers that day. I didn't try either, but it was nice being on the coast and seeing the ocean.


Thursday, March 26
We left Maui for a bit, and headed over to O'ahu to visit my uncle and aunt. I really love hanging out with those two, and it's a shame that I don't get to see them that often. I was also able to see my cousin and her new baby, and he was adorable. Usually, I don't get gaa gaa over babies, but this kid won me over. My uncle also drove us around the University of Hawaii campus, the Chaminade University campus, and a local community college because part of my trip was to see if I'd like to live and work in Hawaii. Lunch was at some Chinese place, and the food was OK but not great, and later that night we watched a UH baseball game. The Rainbows lost, but the opposing pitcher did throw a no-hitter so that was exciting.

Friday, March 27
I spent most of the day on the UH campus to get a feel for the environment. It's a pretty decent campus from the looks of it. It's not the most amazing campus I've ever been on, but it's far from the worst. Plus, I had to but some UH gear for the trip home. After walking around UH for a while, my cousin picked me up and we went to this nice Japanese restaurant to meet up with the rest of the family. Before I knew it, my mom and I were on a plane back to Maui.

Saturday, March 28
This was a busy day because we had a memorial service for my grandmother, who passed away four years ago. We went to evening mass with some close relatives before meeting up with others at this local hotel for dinner. It was nice seeing some of my extended family, even though I didn't quite know everyone there.

Sunday, March 29
Headed back to Portland :(

Overall, it was a great trip. I had a blast hanging out with my mom and grandpa, and seeing my uncle and aunt is always a plus. I also realized that being in Hawaii feels like home. I could definitely see myself living there in the future.