Hawaii

  When most people think of Hawai'i, they think of an island paradise. Why is that? I can only speculate for other people, but for me there are many reasons.

  After flying for hours over the blue Pacific Ocean, it is nice to finally disembark from the airplane. Right away you feel like you're in a special place when you breathe in the soft air that smells of palm trees and tropical flowers.

  Arriving at Honolulu International Airport on O'ahu, you're greeted with an Aloha and beautiful gardens.

  Without a doubt the beaches in the Hawaiian Islands are spectacular and who wouldn't want to spend the whole day at the beach snorkeling or with a good book? Hawai'i is more than beaches though, there are volcanoes, mountains, valleys, bays, rain forests, and waterfalls - all sorts of sites to explore.

  Hawaii, the 50th state of the U.S., includes eight islands -- Hawai'i (also referred to as the Big Island), Maui, Molokai, Lanai, Kaho'olawe, O'ahu, Kauai, and Ni'ihau -- four of them  have the biggest populations and the most visitors with O'ahu, nicknamed the Gathering Place, with the largest amount.

  It is hard to decide on just one island to visit, as they are all different. You have the option of picking one island to visit and explore, or do some island hopping. The islands are close together and it is a quick flight between them.

  The food is special in Hawaii, with the mix of cultures on the islands from Hawaiian, Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Portuguese, Filipino, to name a few, there is an interesting blend of food that only leads to  happy taste buds! 

  Try some malasadas, Portuguese doughnuts! They can be plain or filled puffs of fried dough. If you're in Waikiki, Leonard's has been around a long time and for us it's a tradition to go there at least once when we're on Oahu.

  Try some poke - cubes of raw ahi or salmon, with seasonings. It is so popular that there are places cropping up on the mainland U.S. serving this delicious dish. When in Hawaii, some of the super market stores like Foodland or Safeway, have several kinds of prepared poke in the deli or fish section. It's hard to select just one, so we often get two or three in half pint size containers to try, and then return the next day for more!

  Spam musubi is a popular snack. This is a fusion of musubi, which is a Japanese rice ball, with Spam cooked with some seasonings, wrapped in nori (Japanese dried seaweed). In this case, the spam musubi is battered and fried, adding a crispy outer shell. 

  Hawaiian plate lunches are large plates of various protein, such as chicken teriyaki, fish, hamburger patty with gravy, with sides that include two scoops of rice and two scoops Hawaiian macaroni salad. Some places will have a mini version which is half the size.

After all that sightseeing, then back to the beach! The sight of the ocean with the flat horizon far away, the salty smell of the ocean with the coconutty smell of sun screen and the sound of the waves. It’s the most relaxing place on earth!