Hawaii

A couple of weeks ago, I went to Hawaii! It was a first for me, and it was a really different kind of first. I’d never been that far away from home. I’d never been to a Pacific island, or any kind of traditional tropical idyll. I’m a few weeks away from it all, so with a bit of distance, let me tell you all about it…

America, but not

Let’s get the obvious out of the way first - the weather. It’s hot, all the time. That kind of weather changes your wardrobe fundamentally, so everybody spent their time in swimwear, sandals or flip-flops, and sunhats. I was jetlagged most of the time and so spent a bunch of time wandering around at 6am…and I don’t know what it is about 6am (or 11pm), but beachwear seems weirder at that time than it would have done at midday.

We were staying in Honolulu and with it being a city, and the beachgear…everybody looked so fit. Having read so much about American obesity, I was wondering where exactly that might be.

Parts of Hawaii felt American, but only parts…so much of it felt more Japanese, or really, a place of its own. I had breakfast every morning in a cafe that could have been in San Diego, or New York. But then stepping out of the cafe, next to the palm trees, the surfers, and the sea was something pretty special.

Japanese as a second language and the preponderance of Asian restaurants gave the whole place a very different vibe than San Diego, despite the Target, CVS and Denny’s/IHOPs.

Activities

Ordinarily, I’m very price-sensitive, and would never have countenanced spending the amount I did on activities. However, I’d intended to go scuba diving, snorkelling and surfing before I went, and going to Hawaii seemed like a once-in-a-lifetime sort of thing, and I’d hate to regret not doing those things. So I went ahead and did them all!

Surfing

I went surfing the morning after I arrived - and it was fantastic. I managed to stand up for pretty much every wave I tried, in stark contrast to my experience surfing in Scotland. The waves were tame, long, and I had a personal guide. The paddling was pretty exhausting, and taking it at a leisurely pace is clearly the way to do things. Just imagine spending 4 hours (how long my guide said he goes out, when he’s going) with friends, hanging out at sea, riding a wave or two in, then heading to a bar afterwards. Being a teenager (or retired) in Hawaii has just got to hit different.

Scuba Diving

I’d worn scuba gear in a pool before (a long long time ago) and found it fine. This was very different. We had nearly an hour of safety briefings, all of which were carried out in a fun and relaxed way, but with a side dose of “this is very much a dangerous activity and you really do need to be careful” that has been absent from previous safety briefings I’ve received. We went down to around 50 feet, and it really is like an alien environment. It felt more like a video game than anything else, and I was surprised every time my foot touched the floor.

After about 10 minutes or so, I was better able to focus on my surroundings and less on breathing. We saw about 10-15 huge turtles, a bunch of eels, lots of tropical fish, and briefly, a white-tip shark.

There were two things that really stuck with me about the whole experience. Firstly, I was just not prepared for all three dimensions. Moving up and down was foreign to me, and I was frequently surprised by things appearing above me. Secondly, there was this overarching feeling of dependence…I basically took it as read that, if something went wrong and I needed to leave…I couldn’t. I’d have to close my eyes, breathe, and let the instructor try to keep me alive. It’s funny being on earth, and being that helpless and dependent on somebody. Simply kicking off the floor and swimming up not being the right answer.

Boating

We hired a catamaran and went out, snorkelled, drank, and generally basked in the surroundings. It was a wonderful treat, and the kind of experience I’m not likely to get again. Not too many notes on this one, other than boats are cool and I wish I had one. But a boat in a lake in England isn’t quite the same, is it?

Travel

Hawaii is a long way away. 23 hours in one direction. 19 hours in the other. None of the travel was awful, and all of it felt in the service of something great. I could get a sad conference room in any city in the world. I couldn’t get what Honolulu gave me anywhere closer.

Conclusion

I’ve been to Singapore, New York, San Diego, Spain, France, Italy, Sweden, Denmark, Greece (Zante), and probably some other places I’m not remembering. But realistically, Hawaii now tops that list. A work trip in Hawaii. What a treat. What a wonderful job I have, and what a wonderful life I live.