Location: Hilo, Hawaii, USA
Today, is probably the most exciting day I have had in a few days. I was so excited to be on land. I never knew how much I would miss land. This morning we decided to get up extra early (yes, I did get up early) to see the sunrise as we made our way to Hawaii. Sadly, it was cloudy/not clear as we came into Hawaii. Here is a picture from our attempt at seeing the sunrise!
My plan for the day was to hang out with Shelley and Mike and explore Hilo. Mike is from Fort Collins and sailed on the Spring 2012 voyage -- so he knows his away around. We were planning on walking into town, hitting up an Internet Café, and just getting to know the town. It took over two hours to get through customs and get the ship cleared to get off . Boy, I hope it goes faster at other ports. I was just so excited to get off the ship. I have no idea how I'm going to handle the nine/ten day stretch from Hawaii to Japan! Although, I was able to talk to my mom during this time! Oh how nice it is to hear a familiar voice! It's one thing not to speak to someone in a few days, it's another when you CAN NOT speak to them. No option.
Once we were off the ship, we walked (approximately two miles) into downtown Hilo. It was a toasty walk with the humidity in Hawaii. We found a great Internet Café! Shelley and I grabbed a snack while Mike Skyped his girlfriend back home. We had a sandwich and an iced latte! Afterwards, we walked around downtown Hilo going in and exploring a few of the local shops. I snatched up a few postcards to send to people at home! We sat in a park for a little while to absorb the local scenery. It was so pretty! I also had the chance to send a few text messages and talk to Mickey on the phone!!
One of the few things I was determined to do while we were in Hawaii was to grab a hamburger, fries, and a soda. One of my last chances to be an American for a few months! We were successful in accomplishing that goal! We ate at the Hilo Burger Joint. It hit the spot.
We went back to the ship to drop off our laptop and other goodies that were in our backpacks. We were off to Wal-Mart to pick up anything that we had forgotten before we leave the States. I grabbed a little bit more sea-sickness medicine since the waters between Hawaii and Japan are supposed to be really rough (someone said on a scale of 1-10, these will be an 8 in roughness), 7UP (for my tummy), and a coloring book. Yes, I am 20-years-old and purchased a coloring book. We have nine to ten days on the ship without a break. Yes, I will do my schoolwork but we don't have an outlet to take a breather on the ship. Typically, I would watch television or do something similar. We don't really have television shows on the ship (other than the ship's movies/documentaries and the movies that we all brought).
We made our way back to the ship to go to bed. We had a long day and have a long day tomorrow!
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