Kauai!

Well, I'm finally finding time to blog about this past weekend! We went on a trek to Kauai! It was absolutely gorg and completely different than Oahu! There were 3 other girls from the East coast on the trek, along with our crazy tour guide whom we dubbed T.G. He was quite entertaining to say the least! The first night there we had a beach party! It was quite rambunctious considering there was only 8 of us! We lit a fire, played in the ocean, and explored to pool! Quite a successful night! We took off early the next morn to Wailua Falls. After passing the DO NOT ENTER sign we climbed down the slippery slope. T.G. assured us we were ok; however, one of the east coasters did not agree and caused quite a scene on our small hike. We finally made it to the bottom and decided it was def worth the struggle! The water fall was huge! We got to swim behind the waterfall and do some exploring! Our next spot was the Kilauea Lighthouse. This stop was a bit of a dub, although I did see a seal! Next we stopped in Hanalei (famous city in Puff the Magic Dragon song) and ate some lunch and did some shopping. This was such a cute little town with something so warm about it. Everyone was super friendly which was something we weren't used to in Honolulu! After a rest we headed to The Blue Room. This place was amazing! It was a cave that had only fresh rain water in it! The water was frrrreezing, but so much fun! We covered ourselves with mud and hardened in the sun. Who knew I would get a spa day out of this?! Next we went to Tunnels Beach to do some snorkeling. This beach def made up for the lack of at Haunama Bay. We saw so many cool fishies and  even swam with sea turtles! I would hold onto the turtles back and swim along with him-- such a great experience! After a long day of traveling we headed back to the hotel. We ate at a local Mexican restaurant that was not quite up to the Tex-Mex we are used to! But it was good to have a meal outside of the caf, so we enjoyed it! 

The next morning began bright and early once again! We headed for Kipu Falls. We hiked through the brush and felt like we were in the movie Signs! We jumped off waterfalls and took so many cool pics! Our next stop was Waimea Canyon, the Grand Canyon of the Pacific! I have never been to the real Grand Canyon, but this thing was unbelievable! The view was spectacular! Next we went to Kalapaki Beach and ate lunch and did some shopping (surprise surprise!). Sadly we returned to the airport and headed back to Honolulu.

We went straight to Waikiki when we got home that night in hopes of finding some din din. When we got off the bus a gigantic screen was on the beach playing Enchanted. We all got Subway and watched the movie! It was the perfect ending to the perfect weekend! After this weekend we decided we needed to start making more use of our time! The things we did in Kauai would have taken us 2 weeks time the rate we have been going! 

Kelsey's bf, Charlie, arrived on Sat! This is why Kels couldn't go on the trek. We hope to show him a good time while he is here so we are planning our week in advance! Yesterday I went to Waikiki by myself while everyone else did homework ( I was rewarding myself for my 98% on my test!!!!!). After the beach we went sailing! Our instructor Jeff showed us how to put up the sails and I even got to drive! It was so much fun! Today we went out surfing again! The waves were much smaller and I stood on my board for a relatively long time! I'm exhausted from all these activities, but I know I must cherish it while I can! We are already half way finished here! I'm def getting used to having the beach within walking distance! Oklahoma def does not stack up to Hawaii (no surprise there!) But I'm off to do research for my paper! Wish me luck!!!

MAJOR tanlines!

OMG--my body aches all over! Today Libby and I went on a hike called The Ridge that is right by our apt! I heard about it so we treked off on another adventure! This time our new friend Tod came along, and thank goodness for that bc Libby and I would have been so completely lost without him! This wasn't like our typical hikes. We didn't ever reach that point where most hikes go to where it is pretty scenery and that "ta-da" moment! But it was very good exercise and of course a great time! Then Libby convinced me to go to Hula lessons with her! Ahhhhhh!!! So much fun, but so incredibly hard! We learned all the special techniques and Hawaiin words for ways of shakin your hips! (Libby's dream is to be Shakira!) But I am beat from all the exercise today and have been studying for my big midterm on Thur! Tomorrow is a national holiday here in Hawai'i so yay, no school! It is some big king's birthday/anniversary/dying date(?) so there are celebrations in Waikiki! I can't wait! I am finally going to buy a real lei for the occasion!

In regards to my post title, just let me tell ya about my AWESOME tan lines! It looks like I am wearing a white mask covering my eyes! Seriously, everyone I see comments on it and it is def NOT cool! I'm working on it though so hopefully they will be gone this weekend when we go to KAUAI! By the way I finished my book, 19 Minutes! This is by far one of the most influential books I have ever read! I am so used to reading such trashy girly books so this was quite a wake-up call for me! I def recommend it to anyone! (I now have all my roommates wanting to read it in hopes they will figure out what I was yelling about when I was finishing it last night!) Well I am off to go guilt Libby into giving me a massage--my body should not be this sore from Hula! Hope all you mainlanders are having a wonderful time and missing me like crazy!!

Maholo

Well the night at the club, Next Door, was a success! It was in a very shady part of town, but we survived! We tore up the dance floor and took tooooooooons of photos! The next day we chilled at Waikiki and watched Blue Crush for some helpful tips on surfing! This morning we woke up bright and early at 6:30 and headed to Hanauma Bay to snorkel with the RAs and some of their hilarious friends. When we arrived at the bay we were told we had to go through a special orientation since we were a group.  We were FULLY informed of the animal life in the bay and our instructor, Uncle Richard, warned us of the consequences of not recycling! Very random, but finally we made it out to the bay and did some snorkeling. This was a bit diff from Cancun snorkeling bc the water was extremely shallow and I was constantly afraid I was going to step on the forbidden coral! After a brief snorkel session we settled in on the beach and soaked up the rays. After roasting in the sun we decided to head home so we could make lunch. I hope yall have picked up on how our whole day revolves around our eating times. There have been many times when we have ran to the caf in hopes of making a meal. Wow. We are pathetic! But...after lunch we went to the Dub once again! It is by far our fav beach bc of the great people watching and quick and easy bus ride! We are now quite choicey on which bus rides we take considering the last long-trek we took on THEBUS ended up in some voming action from Kelsey! 

I finally got some tan lines today! It was scorching hot!!!! After some more hours of laying out (it is by far our fav past time) we hurried home for din din! We met some cute army/navy/academy(?) guys at the caf and might hang out with them tonight! I actually might have to do some studying tom! Oh no! This whole class thing is really getting in the way of my vacation! I constantly think how lucky I am to be here. Kelsey and I had a long talk about Columbine, 9/11, and just bad situations in general today and it made me realize how fortunate I am. Kelsey gave me 19 Mintues to read and it had this great quote in it: "Bad things happen because it's the only way we can keep remembering what good is supposed to look like."  I loved this quote and hope to remember it when a little slip-up happens. This is the most amazing summer ever and am already dreading July 5th when I have to leave this beautiful place. But I will stop  being all emo and say buh bye! toodles loves

Hang Loose!

Phew...these past few days have been jam packed! We are def loving everything about Honolulu and experiencing EVERYTHING! Tues Libby and I went to Waikeli to the outlet mall. Lets just say the website was way too nice in describing this "luxurious" hot spot! When we finally arrived in Waikeli (after the 1 1/2 bus ride mind you) we were quite shocked to see how little this place had to offer! However, I did purchase a great dress at this cute store Local Motion! There was a guy who worked there from OU! We sang Boomer Sooner loud and proud! After hitting all the stores (this took aprx. 45 min if that shows you how little it was!) we discovered we had missed the dealine for din at the caf! We decided to use Libby's Chili's gift card, only to discover she left it at the apt! Thanks to Mr. and Mrs. Quincey we had an amazing meal topped off with Libby's fav chocolate dessert! This was by far the greatest meal we had since we arrived! When we got back t the apt we decided we should make friends in the apt! We met these locals who seemed very laid back and chill-- the exact opposite of the annoying drunk Kentucky boys who live next door! After we chatted with the locals we called it a night!

Wed. has been my fav day yet! We learned to surf at Diamond Head! The waves were GIGANTIC! Our dumb instructor, Ryan didn't seem to know what he was doing and just kind of pushed us out into the ocean with the humongo waves! But after a few wipeouts I got up and loved it! Granted I lasted about 5 sec til I fell off, but it was def an amazing feeling. We left exhausted and covered in rashes from our boards! We decided we were gonna rent boards on Waikiki and improve our "skill points" as Ryan would say. That night we had some neighbors over and had a great time! The night ended in a success with a noise warning from the RA! 

Today we hiked Makapuu Lighthouse. We rode the bus as far as we could then attempted to hitch hike our way to the hike. Unfortunately this did not work and we hailed a cab! This hike was the hardest I had done so far, but was worth the pain I will be feeling tom! The view was absolutely amazing! It looked as if the ocean stretched on forever! We could see Kailua Beach and Lani Kai where we are going tomorrow! Tonight we are going to a club with these guys we met at Lulu's the other night! Hopefully it is a "blog-worthy night"!

This is the Life

Wow! I can't believe we have been here almost a week! We have seen so many beautiful places and met quite a few interesting people. Our first day at Waikiki we met many marine men that had not seen girls or alcohol in 7 months...enough said! They were quite entertaining to say the least. Some even let us borrow their canoes! That night we went to a great restaurant where we cooked our own meat (with the expertise of Chef Jeff), and Ashley and Jessica did a little rendition of "Summer Nights" from Grease. We started classes the next day, and it turns out my class is actually interesting! I'm taking intercultural communications which basically means our prof. tells gross stories about cannibalism and genitalia! 

We have been exploring Waikiki for the perfect laying out spot. We have yet to find one that meets our strict requirements: soft sand, no rocks in the ocean (so Libby can doggie paddle around, of course), a lively social scene, and some hot lifeguards nearby. One night we stayed at the beach until dark and explored the streets of Waikiki. Much to our fancy we found Elmo, live bands, balloon makers, karate choppers, break dancers, and much more! We were quite enthralled with them, just as the Asian tourists were with us. I felt like B Spears with the flashing lights and constant video cameras! Yesterday we went on a hike to Manoa Falls. This "beginner" trail was beautiful (don't worry I took thousands of great pics). After finally catching a cab home (more on the horrendous transportation prob later) we got ready for our first Friday in Hawaii! We met our neighbors from Kentucky and decided we would all go to a club by Waikiki. After wondering the streets for a while we decided on Club Lulu. Thanks to some friendly Brazilian boys we got in for free and danced the night away! We ended the night with Libby being chased out of the club by the bouncer. I think she is still hyperventilating! 

This morning Libby and I hiked Maunawili Falls. We were a bit groggy and arrived a tad bit late at the meeting place. We learned our lesson because riding 30 minutes in the trunk of a van is not my cup of tea! However, this hike was absolutely amazing!!!!! At the end there was a big waterfall that we jumped off of! In fear of catching lepriotirosis (??) we hurried home to shower off! Libby and I wondered the Ala Moana (the biggest outdoor shopping mall in the US) and then attempted to get home for dinner. As I mentioned earlier, we have not quite mastered the whole transportation thing around here. Thank goodness for tomorrow when our bus passes start so we don't have to shell out moolah for cabs and bus rides. Buuuut Libby and I thought we were getting the hang of THEBUS and climbed right on the "A" and prepared to go home. However, after 45 min of going in the wrong direction we realized our mistake! We found a cab immediately and returned to the mall for dinner (this impressive mall also hails the largest food court in the US). We finally got back to our apt and are currently uploading all of our pics!!