Aloha

When I went to Hawaii, I was amazed that I could leave Texas at breakfast time, get on a plane for 12 hours (more or less), and arrive in Hawaii before lunchtime.  Back in 2001, I spent about 10 days on the islands of Hawaii and Oahu.  I don't remember if that plane ride was really 12 hours (I'm pretty sure it wasn't), but it felt like I was on that plane forever.  What I do remember is that I had the greatest time.

So what's so great about being on an island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean?  Well, what not great about being on an island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean?  Over those ten days, we went hiking through a rain forest, drove through a desert, watched a volcano explode both from a helicopter and from the lava fields, saw the most beautiful waterfalls, went snorkeling, watched the sun set from atop the world's tallest mountain (if you measure from the ocean floor), visited white and black sand beaches, went to a luau, visited some historical sites, and did lot of shopping, eating, and general relaxing.  The only thing I wanted to do and didn't get a chance to was go whale watching.  Unfortunately, the whales were not visiting Hawaii during the time I was there. 

Some things I didn't know before going to Hawaii:

• there are deserts in Hawaii
• you can be comfortable wearing shorts and a tanktop at 5:00, and need a parka by 7:00
• without the glare of the city lights, you can see the Milky Way and a million more stars (yes, I'm a city girl, and no, I'd never seen the Milky Way before)