Where in the World is Allison? Hawaii!!

While I only spent the day in Hawaii, I still feel like Ingot to see and do a lot. My morning started bright and early at 5am as I watched the boat pull up to the islands and prepare to dock. As I did this I also got to see the flow of voyagers waking up to cell phone service after a week of semi isolation on the ship. Yet, no judgement coming from me because I was awake for the same reason - to FaceTime my sorority sisters during preference tea at home. 

Finally, about 2 hours later I saw the Aloha tower and another hour after that I was receiving my passport to be cleared by US immigration. The immigration process was really interesting because we didn't have to get off the boat; instead, we went to the Kaisersaal Union to pick up our passport and hand it to the officer standing at the other side of the door. Once he nodded his head and gave my passport back, someone from SAS would take it and we were free to leave the boat. I had a feeling this would not be happening in any other country but it was a cool experience. 

Everyone on the ship met up with their field programs for the day. Since it was a one day port everyone has to have a field program to get off the ship. My field program was a catamaran sail and snorkel. Myla was also on this program and we spent the day together exploring the ocean and streets of Waikiki as well as meeting other new SAS friends! 

The trip started with a 15 minute boat ride to a hot snorkel spot just off Waikiki beach. This is where we met Krush and Sushi- the captain and dog of our boat. Our group was quite big so we split up into two groups. My group swam first and ate lunch second. We got our fins and masks and hopped into the water. It felt sooo nice to jump into the ocean I had been staring at for the last week. As I jumped in the blue green salt water enveloped me and suddenly I was surrounded by schools of fish -this was my Ariel Little Mermaid moment as the fish made a circular like tube around me. As I kept swimming I saw a handful of turtles and many different types of fish. The real highlight of the day was definitely swimming right up next to one turtle and just following him as we both swam. It was magical!

Soon that came to an end as we had to switch and get lunch. Lunch was turkey sandwiches, chips, and pineapple slices - honestly, after the same type of food all the time on the ship, this was heavenly. After eating, I gave myself a hot sec to digest before jumping and diving off the side of the boat repeatedly. As is probably expected , I was one of the last people to leave the water. 

By the time we got back to land we were all getting tired but also ready for more. We listened as a cultural practitioner from the main island told us about native Hawaiian culture, schooling, and tools. The talk was actually quite interesting - I learned that kava is commonly used throughout Polynesia, Micronesia, and Melanesia not just in Fiji where I first learned and tried it. For those of you who don't know what Kava is, it is essentially traditional drink made from the root of a tree found in the pacific which is ground up and mixed with water or spit and then drank in a social setting. The drink has an anesthetic which makes the drinker experience a feeling similar to being drunk or high. In Hawaii it is used by natives as a social drink generally by elders rather than drinking alcohol. 

Once the presentation was over we took the bus to the center of Waikiki where we were given 2 and 1/2 hours to shop, wander, and enjoy the beach. Myla and I Spent about 1 hour shopping and eating shave ice and coffee before enjoying the rest of our time at the beach. I had already been to this area of Waikiki but the shave ice was to die for, especially with the heat from the sun all day. Just before we were about to leave the beach, Kelly and some other found us after their Pearl Harbor tour ended.  We took pictures, talked, and watched the sun start to set as the day began to fade away. 

We hopped on the bus to the terminal to board to boat where we were greeted by security lines about an hour long solely of SASers trying to get back home to the ship. It was madness but it was a madness we would learn from as my friend group decided we would get back early from each port and watch the country from the top deck i stead of exploring later and waiting in line for hours, plus we don't was dock time for getting on the ship late. You live and you learn - am I right? 

Eventually we made it back onto the boat where I met up with all my friends to hear about all their amazing stories from Hawaii! This is honestly the best part because you get to watch everyone's faces glow as they share their stories and memories.