Aloha, the beginning

I have long had Hawaii on my list of places to travel. The opportunity just presented itself much earlier to me than expected. My good friends & classmates Michelle & Greg decided to get married in Maui. A place they have never been to, much less me. It was a wise choice. In their moment of happiness, I was given a chance to explore a near paradise. Aloha.


when last we met

My time in Hawaii was one that I will not forget anytime soon. Lots of good times, food, and adventures. From the top of a dormant & desolate volcano to the depths of a watery bay teaming with life. And many things in between as well. And for once my foray into nature did not come at the expense of my appetite. Granted it wasn't like I was hiking/camping. Anyways I stuffed my face more than any other trip in recent memory. Aloha indeed.

The adventure did not start off on a good note. My Southwest flight was out of Houston on a Monday at 10AM. Unfortunately my dad, who was taking me to the airport, couldn't go into work late that day. So we ended up getting up at 430AM, and I got to the airport at 6AM! If you know me, you know I hate waiting at the airport, much less 4 hours. Before the days of 9-11, I would regularly get to the airport with maybe 15 minutes to spare from the departure time. Those days are long gone.

The saving grace on this trip was I finally decided to purchase an MP3 player. It was the wisest decision I've made in a long time because it saved my sanity on those long days of traveling.


patiently waiting

So originally my flight itinerary was Houston to Las Vegas (2 hr lay over) to Honolulu. Well when you fly Southwest Airlines you have additional stops that don't require you getting off the plane. This was one such time because we were scheduled for a quick stop in Lubbock, Texas. Don't ask. While on the ground in Lubbock, the passengers were informed of delays at the Las Vegas airport due to construction & a thunderstorm. Everyone's connecting flight was going to be delayed as well, but no rescheduling was required. Well except for me of course. My flight from Las Vegas to Honolulu was going to leave on time, without me. Go figure. So I was rerouted to Phoenix after I land in Las Vegas and then I was to go to Honolulu.

All of this meant I would arrive in Hawaii about 5 hours later than I was suppose to. Funny thing is I actually arrived in Vegas 5 minutes before the flight to Honolulu was suppose to leave, but they told me at the terminal they wouldn't be able to get me and my bags on in time. Mind you, it didn't really bother me much all of that time spent on the airplanes & airports. I mean I was going to Hawaii for the first time! As long as I got there, nothing much could bother me. I had my music to keep me occupied.

When I finally arrived in Honolulu and went to the baggage claim to wait for my luggage, I was paged on the intercom system. I was thinking, "Oh no, they lost my bags." As I approached the desk there were my two bags behind the counter. It seems my luggage was able to make it on that original flight out of Las Vegas after all. Now that did irk me for a bit since I was told I couldn't take my original flight because there was not enough time to get me & my luggage on. Funny then to see them arrive before me. So there I was 10PM local time for Hawaii after starting the day at 5AM in Houston. That's close to 24 hours.

A good thing I had booked my flight out of Honolulu to Maui the next morning instead of the same day otherwise I would have to do more creative planning. So a quick recap. Houston to Lubbock to Las Vegas to Phoenix to Honolulu to Maui. All in the span of 36 hours.



Did I mention nobody greeted me at the airport with an "Aloha."