Friday: Snorkeling and a festive Luau!

Aloha!

After seven beautiful days it’s time to say Aloha to Hawaii and all the amazing people we have met here. This trip has been an awesome journey for us all and we have enjoyed every second of it.

As a last day celebration we went snorkeling in the gorgeous Hanauma Bay, where we saw colorful fish. Some of us were even lucky enough to see sea turtles! At night we went to a luau, which is a Hawaiian party, at Paradise Cove. We made flower leis, got temporary tattoos (Polynesian style), did our hula and got our certificates as pro hula dancers. We also had some delicious traditional Hawaiian food! Since it was our last night everybody was excited (even the bus drivers) and we sang and danced as much as you can in a moving bus.  

We would like to thank all of you wonderful people who participated in this trip and the ones who were keeping track of all of us! This has been the best week of our lives and we have all become good friends that will last a lifetime! Mahalo to everyone!

Aloha and Ohana forever! Hang loose where ever you’re going next!

Iina Laakso, Heidi Mesiäinen, Vilde Svendsen

Our gorgeous snorkeling spot for the day! 

Snorkeling time!

A group shot at the luau! 

Sunset photos at the luau!

Thank you from the staff - Nathalia, Alanna, Emily and Leesa! We had a great time with everyone and hope to see you again soon! Mahalo!! 

Thursday: Pearl Harbor

Aloha!

Today we went to see the famous Pearl Harbor. There we did some voluntary work and had a tour inside of the ship. We got to see all the rooms, which gave us a real impression of how they actually lived. It was both interesting and sort of sad. The tour guide told us some of the history, both behind Pearl Harbor and what happened December 7th, 1941. After that we went to get something to eat, and the majority of the group got food from Panda Express. When our bellies were full, we went to see a short movie about Pearl Harbor. Then a boat took us to the USS Arizona memorial. Being there made us realize how horrible this event was. Some elder people were there as well, and seeing their reaction was really touching. 

When the bus dropped us off at the hotel, we had some free time. Some of us went to the beach, even though it was a little cloudy, while others went shopping. At night we met in the lobby, and headed for an amazing dinner at Mac 24/7. Later, we had more free time, where most of us went to the shopping street and enjoyed our last night of exploring Waikiki. 

Written by: Yvonne Lauvdal and Maria Holm Kaiser (Norway)

Welcome to the USS Missouri!

 

 

 

 Standing on the Surrender Deck where WWII ended!

                                            The students did a great job cleaning the battleship!

 Real men and women of the United States military!

 

 The entrance to the USS Arizona Memorial

 The view from within the memorial

A student looks to the list of the deceased within the memorial

Henna tattoos on the streets of Waikiki!

Wednesday: Diamond Head Hike & Bubba Gump Shrimp Co

We made it to the top!

Hawaiian shaved ice after climbing a mountain!

Froyo on the beach to celebrate! 

Aloha from Hawaii!!

In our fourth day on this wonderful island we went on a hike to a volcano called diamond head. We walked to the base of the mountain to stretch. We all counted in different languages for 10 seconds while stretching and then began our walk. The hike was awesome! The view was amazing. It was kind of exhausting, but definitely worth it!! We took a lot of pictures on the top and we were singing on our way down. Luckily there was a bus to pick us up after eating shaved ice and drinking smoothies.

After the hike we had some free time to shop, go to the beach, the hot tub or just hang out at the hotel. In the evening, everybody met in the lobby to go to the famous restaurant called Bubba Gump Shrimp which is named after the movie Forest Gump. There was two birthdays today and they had to stand on chairs and do some booty shaking to get to eat their cake and we sang for them. Then we went shopping in the biggest outdoor shopping mall in the world! It was so big that we didn’t know where to go first!

We are all enjoying Hawaii so much and we don’t want it to end. The time is going so fast and we’re going to miss the friends that we’ve made here so much.

- Mathilde, Rocio, Maria Paula, Laura, Sanna, Mackenzie, Brenda and Claudia. Hang loose, ALOHA!!! 

Tuesday: Scenic Views and Private Beaches

Spectacular views from Pali Lookout

46 Norwegians! 

Sunset from Waikiki Beach across from the hotel!

Today we had a pretty relaxing day, we went to a private beach and stayed there the whole day just hanging out, we stopped at Whole Foods on our way there so we had everything we needed for a perfect day on an isolated beach (like Nathalia said “just the beach, us, and a bathroom”)

It was so good to have a calm day and everyone had a really good time, some of us were playing volleyball, swimming, eating, relaxing, playing football in the ocean (one of my favorite parts), and dancing every kind of music (teaching the Norwegian girls to dance in the Brazilian way was the highlight of my day, I laughed so much!!)

Our bus driver taught us a lot about the Hawaiian culture, the “dry” and “wet” parts of the island, the best surfing place, the school were President Obama used to study,  the “Beverly hills of Hawaii” and all those kind of stuff. On our way back we stopped at this beautiful cliff and took pictures!

At night we walked to the Hard Rock Cafe Honolulu and had dinner there and then 2 hours to shop around Waikiki.

It was a pretty good day =)

Ana Carolina Torres Vaz - Brazil

Monday: Pineapple Galore and the Polynesian Cultural Center!

Welcome to the Dole Plantation!

Pineapple tattoos!

Bracelets with our Hawaiian names!

Pineapple Whip - delicious!

Our amazing bus drivers!

All 100 students on the North Shore's Sunset Beach

Let's learn to hula dance at the Polynesian Cultural Center!

ALOHA! Today was AMAZING! First, we went to the only palace in the United States, and we learned about the Queen, the King and their stories. We loved it because it was a nice opportunity to know more about the Hawaiian history. After that, we went to the Dole Plantation and we had such a fun time taking pictures at the photo booth and buying different kinds of souvenirs. We even found out what our Hawaiian names are! And we had chance to try fruits like coconut, mango, apple banana and the amazing pineapple ice cream. We headed to a little town to have lunch and then we stopped by North Shore, the most beautiful beach we have ever seen! Now, we definitely need to buy a new memory card for our cameras after all the pictures we took.. LOL And finally, we went to the Polynesian Cultural Center and I have to say that was a wonderful experience.. It was a way more fun than we thought it would be! Everything about that culture is interesting.. Food, dance, language and people. We watched a lot of shows that we're funny and we will never forget! A day to remember for the rest of our life.. We LOVE Hawaii!

Amanda Magalhaes and Victoria Lima (Brazil)

Sunday: Waikiki Beach Day!

So, today we started the day with a wonderful breakfast. Egg and ham. With this amazing power meal we headed to the beach. The sun was pretty sharp, so sunscreen was important.  We were split into groups and each group learned how to surf. We had a “base” at the beach, were we had all our stuff. While hanging at the beach, each group were taken out to the waves and practiced. A lot were surprised with how easy it actually was to surf. A really great experience and definitely a must on this trip! We also went on a boat and we saw dolphins, sea turtles and whales.. Amazing!

After we finished, people went out for ice cream, shopping etc. Just hanging around on a world famous beach, you know.

For dinner we went and got pizza! The rest of the evening was free time to shop in Waikiki!

Written by Ludvig Thomsen - Denmark

Saturday: We are HERE in PARADISE! :)

Finally the day of the trip has arrive, expectations are infinite and the excitement of meeting new people makes everyone very happy.

We are a hundred students all from different countries and even though half of us are from Norway we are already making good friends and sharing experiences of the wonderful time we’ve had in The U.S.A.

When the plane arrives in Hawaii, you can feel the breeze of the ocean and the warmth of the sun. The ride from the airport to the hotel is amazing, we could see a little bit of the city, the shops and the beach.

The hotel has a stunning view to the ocean, and we were just in time to presence the most gorgeous sunset.

After walking a little bit by the beach, the day ended with a delicious dinner in the hotel and the induction for this amazing expedition.

Maria Paula and Laura from Colombia