my great trip to hawaii

8/8/2019 My Great Trip to Hawaii

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My Great Trip to Hawaii

On one hot summer day, my family decided to go to Hawaii. Since it was going to

be my first time there, I arrived from the airplane with high expectations and a

bolstered spirit. At precisely 8:44 AM, Hawaii time, the plane landed on the island of

Oahu. Coming off the plane, we were tired and disoriented, and took quite a long time

to find out luggage and get our rental car. From there, I was expecting a short drive to

our condominium, but no. The endless one-way streets, side roads, and confusing

highway exits baffled us continually. Even our GPS, usually always trusty and reliable,

couldnt comprehend this strange labyrinth of boulevards and avenues. After a long

drive, we got to our condo and the day ended.

I woke up with the crack of dawn, ready for a first day of adventure in Hawaii.

Time to go grocery shopping! my dad exclaimed.

My first day in Hawaii was not going so well. A whole days worth of grocery

shopping passed sluggishly, and made even more long and tedious by my toddler sister.

Eventually, we finished up, and went to the world famous Waikiki Beach. From afar out

of the window of the car, Waikiki beach already looked like such a wonderful beach. But

that could not compare with the real, up-close beauty of it. The sand was soft and

golden, a picture perfect beach one always saw in the postcards and textbooks. The

water was also clear and blue, completely unlike the dark green-blue of the California

beaches. However, the beach was marred by a seawall that ran parallel to the sand,

about 50 yards out. The ugly, black concrete wall had a purpose in keeping the large

waves out, but scarred the serene, natural beauty of this beach. We stayed here for a

long time, and an amazing first day ended.

The second day, we made plans to visit the Bishop Museum and Pearl Harbor. I

was pretty excited to visit the Pearl Harbor, as I would get to see the historical


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memorials from the World War II Era. However, it turned out to be a total letdown. The

only memorial from the Pearl Harbor attack that we could visit was the USS Arizona

memorial. The Arizona memorial was just a small structure built on top of the wreckage

of the USS Arizona, with the names of soldiers that died in that attack. Although it was

sort of awe inspiring to see the view and discern the wreckage of the Arizona, it was a

letdown compared to what I thought it would be like. A great thing is that we got to tour

the inside of a submarine, the USS Bowfin. It was very amazing to tour the inside of this

submarine, and see the giant engines and torpedoes that brought it through years of

war. Looking over the cramped cabins, kitchen, bunk beds, and bathrooms, I could

almost imagine what it would be like to live in the USS Bowfin. There was also an

included audio tour, and it really allowed me to understand what went on in the

submarine and what all the machines were for. That submarine made the admission

price and the long drive worth it.

My family later decided to visit Waikiki beach and see the sunset. It was an

opportunity that we never had in California, and we were all determined to make the

most out of it. The yellow, orange, and red hues of the setting sun blended together into

the slowly darkening sky, and tendrils of dark orange stretched out above us. Everyone

watched as the glowing sun sank lower and lower into the sky, and eventually only the

tip of the bright sphere was visible above the mountains. Then, in a fraction of a second,

the sun simply disappeared. The Oahu sunset was a great memento to take back to

California.

The next day, I felt very excited. We were going to what I thought would be the

highlight of our trip, the Polynesian Cultural Center (PCC). Although the name made it

sound like some sort of museum, all the reviews I read on the internet made it sound

more like an amusement park of some sort. At around 11 oclock, we left for the PCC.

Right when we got there, it already felt like we had stepped back in time to the era of


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the Polynesians, with the thatched straw huts and dark skinned people wearing native

garb. Half of the day was spent looking at inhabitants from 7 different islands educating

us about their culture. While this sounds boring, it was all actually really fun and the

good humored natives there told jokes that made us laugh while having fun. Tree

climbing, fire starting, fishing, drumming, spear-throwing, and more were taught to us,

and I was already enjoying today very much. There was still more to come, though.

I learned that the Islands of the PCC werent even the main attractions! At

around seven, we ate a hearty dinner at the PCCs Gateway Buffet and went to watch

the main show, named H: The Breath of Life.

Within minutes of entering the pavilion, the show began. The first minutes of the

show were already breathtaking. The choreography and precision of all the performers

were of those that had been practicing for years, the light and visual effects were

stunning, and it was all just so overwhelming. Words alone cannot describe it. The

twirling fire knives, fire breathers, dancers, warriors, all made it such an enjoyable

experience. I feel that this 90 minute show was the highlight of my whole trip of Hawaii.

This incredible day in Hawaii was well worth the time and the 50 dollar admission price.

The next day was also packed with action and wonders. At around 7:00, we left

for the calm blue waters and yellow-gold beaches of Hanauma Bay. When we got there,

bright and early, I was incredibly excited. I had heard from all of my friends and the

magazines that Hanauma bay was incredible. Even as we walked away from the visitors

center and down the walkway to the bay itself, the crescent shaped bay and the patches

of coral spread out below us, a rippling, ever changing tapestry laid out as if to tempt us

to walk faster. It was truly the best beach that I have ever seen in Hawaii and California,

but that wasnt what we came here for.


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After getting all of our snorkel equipment ready, my mom, my sister and I got

ready to dive into the frigid water. I almost instantly got the hang of snorkeling, and

decided to go farther out to where the coral and the fish were. But on the way there, I

caught a glimpse of 3 silvery white fish with yellow bellies, and got distracted by them. I

followed them until another snorkeler scared them away, and traveled back to the

beach to report my findings. Turns out, though, that while I was swimming around my

sister and mom were both having trouble with the equipment. It was another hour and

a half or so until I could finally explore the coral reef.

The coral reefs werent colorful, like I expected them to be, but the variety of fish

there was incredible. In what seemed like mere minutes, I already saw over 10 fish, long

and thin and fat and short, colorful and dull, all types of fish. There were fish only an

inch thick but over a foot long and fish that could only be described as sunset colored.

The sheer majesty of this underwater world struck me, and I spent over a half hour

drifting around this spot to observe. After a while I started to explore other areas, and

unknowingly entered a coral depression. I was in the middle of a ring of coral, and it

just so happened to be that this was a home base for the fish. Here I saw large, purple

fish and a couple of blue yellow fish that looked straight out of Finding Nemo. Also, I

stumbled upon a haven of smaller fish, wish colors so vivid that my eyes hurt. But

floating in the ocean, with the fish around me and the flashes of sunlight penetrating

the water, it seemed like a whole new world that we had not yet actually discovered.

While learning about the planets beyond, I had not even bothered to wonder about

what might still be on the earth itself.

This snorkeling event was a great way to top off an awesome vacation to Hawaii.

All the wonderful things I experienced here will stay in my mind for the rest of my life.

Before coming, I had a narrower experience. But now, I feel that I witnessed something

truly beautiful and majestic.

my great trip to hawaii

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