Hawaii

It was weird in a good way to be back in the United States. Everything felt a little strange like seeing store names that I recognized, using American dollars, everyone speaking English, and everything seemed so expensive! I think it was good that we stopped there for 2 days to sort of ease us back into American life.

The main event while I was there was skydiving! I had planned this in December and was so excited to finally do it. The first day, the winds weren’t blowing the right direction so I had to reschedule it for the next morning. When I finally got to go, I had pretty much prepared myself and was actually quite calm riding in the plane up to 14,000 feet. The plane was quite tiny and barely fit 12 people squished together. I had a harness that attached to another person who was basically responsible for everything, so I didn’t have to worry too much about anything. As I got to the edge of the plane, it finally hit me but I only had about 5 seconds to think about it before I was free falling at 120 miles an hour for an entire minute! It was the most exhilarating thing I have ever done and the scenery couldn’t have been better. I could see the entire north shore of Oahu and it was really beautiful. After free falling, the parachute was pulled and we got to float down for about 5 minutes just enjoying the view. I purchased a video and pictures, which are pretty hilarious/embarrassing. It was only 2 days ago, but it really feels like a dream. The rest of the time I spent on the beach in Waikiki and purchasing normal foods at the grocery store, which was very exciting.

Guatemala is next and I can’t believe it is the last port. I will be doing a Spanish immersion home stay for the entire 3 days we are there and I am excited to brush up on my Spanish. I’ll be home 2 weeks from today, see you soon!