Hawaii!!

Hawaii was awesome- wow it felt SO good to be on land! Getting off the ship we had to go through customs but Bridget and I were smart and sneaky and were literally the 10th people off!! The sunrise was amazing going into Hilo that morning- we woke up around 6:30 and we were able to see the moon set and the sun rise- it was gorgeous. We got off the ship at 9:30 and we walked into town- about 2 miles- I was kinda dizzy being on land-it was weird.
We went to a farmers market and got tons of fruit. we got 3 big ripe papayas, pineapple, this other lychee fruit for literally 2 dollars- it was crazy cheap. Then we went to these jumping rocks that one of our friends showed us. He goes to the University of Hawaii so knows his way around the island well. we had to walk through this jungle path then over rocks and across a stream and down more rocks to get there- but it was worth it and really cool! We stayed there for a few hours and there were probably 15-20 sas kids there. Then bridget and i were really hungry so we went back into town and got the most amazing sushi. it was so fresh and good and tasted amazing- especially after all of the bland and not fresh ship food we have been having. We relaxed outside and walked around the town checking out different shops. For the rest of the afternoon we went to a bar and got drinks then went to another restaurant and got fresh fish to go- at this point we needed to start making our way back to the ship so we walked back and ate our fish at the pier before getting on the ship. It was the perfect end to a great day.
It was such a good break from ship life and so good to be on land, relax, and have good food!

Today we were refueling in honolulu but we had classes and had to stay on the ship but literally everyone was out on the 7th deck using their phones to call people, check up on things at home, and figure out japan and china plans. I was in front of my computer with my phone as a hot spot for almost 6 hours today- planning is hard!!! made a lot of reservations with great group of friends so japan and china are looking very good!!

It was a gorgeous day today and nice that the ship was docked so it wasn't rocking. We set off around sunset and I happily put my phone back on airplane mode and signed off instagram, Facebook, etc. I was talking to a few friends as we were pulling away and losing service about how we were so relieved we wouldn't have to check our phones again- it was a weird feeling literally not caring about any social media and looking forward to turning it off- i didn't expect to feel that way but i do!
It was really wonderful to be able to talk to my family and friends though!!

So now we are officially headed for Japan!! We get another extra hour of sleep tonight so almost 5 or 6 hours behind est now!

I am heading to bed- tomorrow is an A day- so only one class- plenty of time to enjoy the sun before it starts getting cold as we head for Japan!

Ill post again tomorrow!


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