By Penny Nunes
For as long as I can remember I’ve wanted to travel to Hawaii. The gorgeous scenery that I see all over the internet, on my friends’ social media posts, and on T-shirts or posters at the mall has always been something I’ve dreamed of seeing in person. This summer, my best friend Kaia Costa, gave me the most amazing opportunity of going. Since we met, Kaia and I have been on a million vacations together, yet this one was especially exciting. For Christmas this year, Kaia blessed me with a trip to O’ahu, Hawaii.
We were originally supposed to go over spring break in April. However, there were unfortunate storms all throughout the precious islands, (keeping those affected in prayers), our trip got postponed until summer. It was 100% well worth the wait. We left in June, prime summer! The plane was extra long since I was waiting for the best week of my life. Not only did we get to go to Hawaii, we got to stay at one of the nicest hotels, The Hale Koa. It is a military only hotel, and since Kaia’s incredible step-dad, Justin, is a veteran we got the best experience of staying there. It was drop-dead STUNNING. Everywhere you turned, greenery, flowers, sun, and beach access only 10 feet from our room.
The island was better than I could have ever imagined, it had the best food. Pineapple is already my favorite fruit, but now I get the chance to say that specifically, pineapple FROM Hawaii is my favorite fruit. Waking up early to go to different beaches, jump off of rocks, explore the North Shore, eat yummy food, and walk around Waikiki at night created only the best, most incredible longest lasting memories EVER.
I can not forget to talk about Hawaiian shave ice…Kaia, her sister Lily, and I were craving shave ice (and I had never tried it), so we searched up the best place to find it. The one it took us to was such a long line so we went to a hole in the wall down the street. It was the best thing that could have ever happened to us. The people were so nice, and the ice was SO GOOD. We went back just about every night…and the nights we didn’t get ice, we got mango ice cream from the ABC Stores. These were addicting, I couldn’t help myself. I still reminisce about both of these treats and all their glory.
I’m so grateful for this experience I got, and for my best friend who gave it to me. Thank you, Kaia, for bringing me along with you so I could make my dreams come true. I love you, Hawaii!
