oh sweet sweet reflection.

it's been but two days since my homecoming, and all i can do is think about the amazing summer i spent in hawaii.

how can this be any better.
it's like a picture perfect movie that i will forever replay in my memory. i'd have to say, i came into the whole trip a little scared, and a little nervous, but excited on the whole. but i never ever would've guessed i'd have as much fun as i did. quite plainly, i'd have to admit that it was the most amazing experience of my life thus far. and that's quite a statement! especially after being alive for 20.75 years now and all. (;

malama aina. malama kai.
ohhh hawaii nei, and your beautiful lush, tropical land. i don't think i've ever grown to appreciate my natural surroundings as much as i did while in hawaii. i've always been a bit on the environmental side, but i've never appreciated it or truly enjoyed it as much as i did this summer. first of all, the ocean was, is, and will always be my love. and to think that i've always enjoyed the waters here on the coast of california, but coming to hawaii?! lol it was almost too much for me! with the perfectly blue/green waters (which by the way is my favorite color), the clarity, and the warm temperature, i was in love. i already miss going to the beach nearly every other day, and tried to make up for it yesterday and today by going to our beaches. buttt...i'd have to say it was a fail. because we literally do have "doo doo water" (as many of the locals might say)--btw, i most definitely watched a dog crap in the ocean yesterday and therefore confirming the doo doo water--and it's cold, and just basically sucks. but then again, i was pretty spoiled for the past 7 weeks. aside from the water, the foliage and greenery on the island was to die for! going hiking was such a treat for me. gosh nature is b-e-a-utiful.



broke da mout.
can we say "nom nom nom"? oh goodness gracious was the food good! from plate lunches, to hawaiian food, to spam musubi, to korean bbq, japanese, and more! i never thought i'd grow to love asian/island food SO much. i'd have to admit i even enjoyed the poi. with sugar, that is. (; i miss mochiko chicken like none other right now. haha. if it was available on the menu, i ordered it. SO good. L&L is just not going to cut it! i loved branching out and trying new things. With the exception of bittermelon though. HA! thank you auntie bettie. i will truly miss all the amazing fusion of foods that hawaii has to offer. my tummy is craving it already! in fact, i think my roomies and i will be attempting to make spam musubi next week :) jackpot!


my brahs, my cous's, my friends.
although the weather was phenomenal, the scenery breathtaking, the thing that made the greatest impact on me would have to be the people. i don't think i've ever made such close and loving friendships in such a short period of time. man, i am blessed! right from the start--meeting matt and nicole. out here in cali, people don't ACTUALLY call when they say they will. especially when you've just met someone new. but MATT, you did! at 7:30 am the next morning in fact. hahaha. that will forever make a lasting impression on me. and then you took me "surfing" and taught me pidgin! and then became my unofficial cousin. i'll never forget. :D and to nicole, for being so gracious as to inviting us places and introducing us to your friends. you are SO blessed for having such a strong group of girlfriends! in fact that's something i've always longed for. then Jo, my partner in crime. oh man! i had SO much fun with you girl. you took me everywhere, got all my "list of things i wanted to do while in oahu" completed, and spent so much time with me! i loved our heart to heart, our jokes, and ADVENTURES! i can't WAIT for you to come visit for west beach. it's going to be epic. :) thank you thank you for all the rides and good times!

now i could go on and on about every single person i met and all the kindness each and every one of you showed me, but that would just take way too long. i hope you all know how much of an impact you've made on my life, and how truly grateful i am for it. from letting us cruise at your place night after night, to dim sum in chinatown, to paddleboarding, mocking my "yes's" in a fist, sleeping less than 4 hours a night, teaching me how to float, putting up with my poser pidgin texts, for naming me ne-yo, to taking us to the airport, to making us that AMAZING cityside cd, to night swimming, to family bbqs, to birthday bash skanking, to lanikai, to northshore adventures & honu land, to taking me to international marketplace on a limited time, to making us dinner when the dining commons closed, to introducing me to bubbies!, and getting us into level 4, for showing us the dolphins, slash basically the whole island, to carrying your butt in both bp and mini golf, to singing tearing up my heart with me at karaoke, to picking up sea cucumber POOP and not being ashamed, to getting pulled over, lying, and getting away with it, for letting me and becca dance on you, for putting up with my sucky volleyball skills, to poor hearing--"what? WHALES?", for sprinting to the bus one light before it arrives, for zippys all day everyday, for SANSEI's, to jammin on the ukelele, for late nights in the dorms, to d&b's & free tokens, for getting me a discount on clothes!, for helping me get through my embarrassment at yardhouse, for the cute honu shell gift, to westside sunsets, diamond head surfing, to your ridiculous swagger walk that you tried to blame on me, to smiles, laughs, and the TIME OF MY LIFE. thank you all. i will never forget. without each and every one of you, this trip would not have been the same. i hope we'll all stay in touch so that we can get ready for some more fun times when i return! (hopefully in mayyy. and hopefully if i get a job & move out there :]) much love. ♥





bumbye.
oh man, although all this reminiscing may sound sad sad panda, i smile and think, i will someday call this place my home too. it's been a dream of mine since i was in high school to one day move to hawaii, and once i graduate college in march, it is an actual possibility. i've never felt more comfortable in a place in LIFE. not newbury park, not santa barbara. i truly think i'm meant to live there. the nature, the food, the culture, the people--all a perfect match! soo, with that said, my hopeful plan is to come out again in may before the majority of the college kids get out and job hunt like crazy! and then who knows what will happen from there. :) i guess i'll just have to leave it up to God. i know He knows what's best for me anyway. but yeah, hawaii- i miss you already. i cannot wait to be back! garans bal barans. :)

♥♥♥summer of a lifetime.