Finding out for the first time that I would be leaving for Hawaii filled me with excitement and anticipation for days. It was finally happening. Then came the long wait in the months leading up to the trip, and it could not go by fast enough. The more I thought about it, the farther away it seemed. With only a little time left before departure, we started reserving the excursions we wanted to do while we were there. There was so much to see and do in so little time. Everything was planned and packed into a week full of sightseeing, adventures and unforgettable experiences.
Now all I had to do was wait again. Finally the day came, and the dreaded ten-hour flight to paradise was ahead of me. I stayed up all night waiting for the moment to roll my bags out of the house and head to the airport. Everything felt a little surreal. In just ten hours, I would be landing in the middle of the Pacific Ocean at one of my bucket-list destinations. The flight itself was not so bad since I slept through much of it, and the rest of the time I spent catching up on movies and tracking the plane as it slowly moved closer to those tiny specks of land in the ocean.
Finally it was time to land. I was so lucky to have a window seat because the aerial views were incredible. I could see Diamond Head, Pearl Harbor, jagged mountains, dramatic cliffs and crystal-blue waters. It was amazing. I left wearing a sweatshirt and arrived ready to put on my swimsuit. I was finally here. I could not wait to experience everything people always talked about and to see for myself the beauty I had only seen in pictures. Now it was my turn to take those pictures and describe what it felt like to snorkel in clear blue water with tropical fish, swim with sharks and attend my very first Hawaii luau.
It was all such a blast. Of course it went by in the blink of an eye, but I came home with unforgettable memories and the hope that I would be able to return again soon.
Now all I had to do was wait again. Finally the day came, and the dreaded ten-hour flight to paradise was ahead of me. I stayed up all night waiting for the moment to roll my bags out of the house and head to the airport. Everything felt a little surreal. In just ten hours, I would be landing in the middle of the Pacific Ocean at one of my bucket-list destinations. The flight itself was not so bad since I slept through much of it, and the rest of the time I spent catching up on movies and tracking the plane as it slowly moved closer to those tiny specks of land in the ocean.
Finally it was time to land. I was so lucky to have a window seat because the aerial views were incredible. I could see Diamond Head, Pearl Harbor, jagged mountains, dramatic cliffs and crystal-blue waters. It was amazing. I left wearing a sweatshirt and arrived ready to put on my swimsuit. I was finally here. I could not wait to experience everything people always talked about and to see for myself the beauty I had only seen in pictures. Now it was my turn to take those pictures and describe what it felt like to snorkel in clear blue water with tropical fish, swim with sharks and attend my very first Hawaii luau.
It was all such a blast. Of course it went by in the blink of an eye, but I came home with unforgettable memories and the hope that I would be able to return again soon.