ALOHA!

Sunday was a rough day at sea… the waves had calmed but everyone was so ready to get back on land. It’s a little disheartening because the trip from Hawaii to Japan is going to take twice as long! I think once we hit Vietnam and the weather warms, it may be easier since people can sit on the deck and get some fresh air. Nothing really of note on Sunday – my work study student is pretty awesome, we had a tasting of Hawaiian fare (which was pretty good), and I had a mini dance party in my room to the station that shows where the ship is and plays some music… destiny’s child came on and some bruce springsteen… it was pretty good!! After that I was on bar service duty… we have a lot of duties. :P Bar service is like chaperoning a dance but not as fun. I stand in a corner and make sure no one brings in water bottles, bags, and that no one leaves with beer/wine. There is no music, no dancing, and we just stand there and watch the students talk for 2 hours. Hopefully people will start talking to me soon! LOL oh well!

Hawaii was pretty great! Day one (after we cleared customs which ran VERY smoothly and was awesome) we explored downtown Hilo, had sushi for lunch, and then made the ever important Target run (this girl SERIOUSLY needed some cold meds.. it’s coming, I can feel it). After attempting to navigate the Hawaii bus, and with the help of a few “friendly” locals, we made it back to the ship with enough time to drop off our loot and head out to dinner. I had serious plate envy at dinner… like I honestly have never had it that bad. I ordered fried shrimp (which was delicious), and it came with AMAZING macaroni salad, and mashed potatoes (and gravy). Craig and Willard had the Mocho Loco (which I didn’t order for dinner because I was expecting to have it for breakfast) which is (layered in a bowl starting with the bottom) two cups of rice, choice of meat, gravy (the brown kind), and two eggs. Craig let me try his (he had a beef patty and chili as his meat) and it was soooo dang good. I regret not getting it with sausage… or spam… or really anything.

On Wednesday I made much better food decisions. We went to the Hilo market (which might be the most favorite thing I’ve done so far). At the market I had a croissant and hibiscus tea with a hint of orange (DELICIOUS) for breakfast.. then I got going. We sampled all kinds of food and fruit. I split a giant avocado with Kelly, tried star fruit, and hawaiian sweet bread. Everyone was so nice. We spent a long time in the food section and then went over to the craft side. There was some really neat stuff. After we walked downtown, went in a few shops, and made our way to the post office where I sent two packages and 9 postcards on their way to the mainland. We then stopped for "lunch". I had curry chicken empinada and an egg roll and Ube ice cream (which may have been my favorite thing I ate). Ube is the Hawaiian sweet potato, and it's BRIGHT PURPLE (go tigers!), and tastes delicious without being too sweet. After the post office we met up with the rest of the group back at the market and grabbed a van cab to Rainbow Falls which is a beautiful waterfall. We took some photos, explored a little, and headed back to the ship.
Ship time was awesome.. we were expecting huge lines when we got to work at 4:00. Then the radio said there were only 136 not yet checked in. Then two buses pulled up and we were only missing 30.. steadily everyone got back to the ship. Everyone had to be on board by 6:00pm… we had all but one on board at 5:45pm. I am honestly so proud and impressed by this community! The students, faculty, and staff all got back and it was wonderful! No one was running to get the ship, no one was late, no one tried to bring on contraband. It was quite refreshing compared to the horror stories I’ve heard about past voyages. I have to say, we have a really great community going so far and I think it’s largely due to the respect the students have for our executive dean. He’s straight with them and honest, and pretty awesome. I truly hope that this continues throughout the voyage!

In other news, sissy booked her flights and the travel agent confirmed all our plans so Sister Reunion: South Africa IS HAPPENING!!!! <3