Aloha from Hawai'i (March)
Stories, experiences & learning in the US - part 5
In early March, we visited Hawai’i for a short week. Honestly, I don’t think I ever realized that Hawai’i is actually part of the US (and not all native Hawaiians are happy about that), but it is! Even though it is still a 5-6 hour flight to get there from San Francisco. We chose to fly to the island Maui, a beautiful island with a mix of city, beaches and nature. Going to Maui also enabled us to visit Lana’i by ferry, the smaller island of Hawai’i that is 97% privately owned by billionaire Larry Ellison.
I was really amazed by what a unique place Hawai’i is. Its untapped nature is stunning. Its local culture is rich and something to learn from. The people are amazingly kind. And the vibe is super relaxed. For example, being in tune with nature can be extremely calming for the mind, which is why Hawaiians care a lot about preserving their native ecosystems. They have active reforestation projects, promote mineral sunscreen sunscreen as a reef-safe alternative, to keep their corals healthy and they do frequent agricultural screenings. One thing that did surprise us was the contrast between the presence of big American brands like McDonalds, Target, etc. versus the very ‘old-fashioned’ nature of much of the rest of Maui.
Especially Lanai was very ‘simple‘, but in a good way. I think Western culture has influenced how we see things and how difficult it can sometimes be before we’re happy and satisfied about something. Life on Lanai couldn’t be more different. A simple life can be very fulfilling, doing one thing very well can be very fulfilling, without much of the not-so-great aspects of Western culture and life. We drove around the island with a retired taxi driver, who was super enthusiastic to drive us around and tell us all about the marvelous island. That’s beautiful simplicity.
I also snorkeled for the first and second time on both islands, and even saw a grey reef shark in Lana’i! A more general lesson I took from it: sometimes you only notice what’s going on at the surface, not what’s going on underneath. You need the tools and awareness to see the full picture of something. Seeing that shark reminded me of that (and also scared me quite a bit haha).
Until next week!
Dimi