Circle Island Tour and Waimea Bay Beach

Bula vi naka! That's Fijian for Hello, Good health to you. I am loving it here in Hawaii. There is never a dull moment. This past weekend has been the best so far. I went on a circle island tour of Oahu. We went to the Valley of the Temples, the Swap Meet, Pearl Harbor, and WAL-MART!! I had never been so excited to see a Wal-Mart before. Trust me, when you are living on an island in the middle of nowhere and the closest store is 45 minutes away you will be glad to see one too. Anyways, the Valley of the Temples was fascinating. We went to a Budhist temple there which is a replica of one in Japan. It is fascinating to learn about different religions and cultures. After we left there, we went to the swap meet. It was overwhelming. If you ever come to Oahu the swap meet is THE place to go for CHEAP souvenirs. It is huge and you can find anything you want there. I got some t-shirts and leis for my family and it cost me less than $10/person. I got an airbrushed tattoo and it was cool. After that we went to Pearl Harbor which was sobering. It really put a perspective on what people give to keep this place free. The memorial was gorgeous and well done. If you didn't know, any survivors of the USS Arizona can be buried in the water with the rest of their ship mates. It was touching to go there. Then, when we left there we went to Wal-Mart. I got all of the essentials I needed including a FAN which I was very grateful for. On the way back to campus we stopped and got Matsumoto's Shaved ice which is world famous. It was good but honestly it wasn't that good (nobody get mad at me!). I love shaved ice though so it was wonderful to have one. Here are some pictures from the tour:





Today I went to Waimea Beach and it was absolutely gorgeous! The water was calm and it was the right temperature. It was sunny and the wind was blowing gently. Let's just say this was the best day to go to the beach. I don't have any pictures of Waimea and that makes me sad but I know I'll be going back there.