Oahu is definitely more on the touristy side, especially in Waikiki, where skyscrapers meet the beach and money and the consumer society rules (and where you must no forget to decently tip the waitress, otherwise she gets pretty angry I learned on my first evening out... welcome to the U$A!)). Unwilling to pay a fortune for a crappy hotel I moved a little outside of downtown to the youth hostel, which turned out to be a very nice place and definitely worth the 25$ per night.
On Waikiki beach I tried to surf for my first time and it indeed was big fun, at least I managed to stand on the board only after a few tries, and that felt pretty cool :-) After moving to Waianae in the South West I tried two more times and again it was pretty much fun. And I meet this crazy guy Danny who would teach me a few more moves on the board, although it sometimes was a little hard to understand him. But then again, nevermind and don't ask too many question, just get on the board and hang loose ;-)
I would have loved to go on the surf a few more times, but unfortunately my bad lower back talked me out of this (and would do so for the rest of my stay on Hawaii, what a shame). Being somewhat unable to do any big moves I just hung around my Airbnb place for a couple of days, but lucky me there were a bunch of other guests staying there, a nice couple from Cincinnati, one from Vancouver and a German girl, so in the evenings we would just have a beer or glass of wine together and some good talks. On my last day I also managed to move a little more and use my rental car again so I drove once around the island and found a few really beautiful places near my home, on the North Shore (where the massive waves in Winter come in) and on Waimanalo beach on the East.
Staying in Waianae also meant to be a little off the tourist hot spots, usually only the working class people and the Hawaiian people live here and there are not many foreigners around. On my trip to Hawaii I met other a little more well off locals from Honolulu who would tell me to be cautious about going to this corner of the island because it could get, I don't know, somewhat dangerous around the people living there? Anyway, on the contrary to this I only met very friendly people, saw joyful family gatherings by the beach and some guys would even approach me for a shake hands or a quick chat. One young chap told me, after he heard about my worldaround tour, that he had never left the island in his life so far, but would very much love to do so once he has the money. I just found when you keep your openness and don't let yourself be confused by some bad stories there is a lot to gain. I also remember that American girl I've met in Australia, she had lived in Hawaii for a couple of years and told me quite some bad stories about the islands, about people cheating, stealing, or even worse, and even though I'm not doubting she had her share of bad experiences as these things do happen here, it doesn't mean that you have to come here in a suit of armor and avoid the experience of meeting new people, greet them, talk to them and hear their stories.
And then, there was Kauai :-) I learned one new analogy here in the States, people refer to magic places like Kauai as being very powerful acupuncture points on the meridians of our globe. And yes, I could really feel this when I got there, so it was one of these rare places where I just felt welcome & home from the very first moment (usually it takes a couple of days), beautiful nature, people and spiritual energy everywhere. Moreover I was so lucky to meet my new Airbnb host Isha, a soundhealing therapist and in many more ways talented woman, who would show me around the island, take me for hikes, to a soundhealing workshop, drumsessions by the sea, spiritual gatherings and who introduced me to a bunch of her lovely friends.
On Kauai I also bumped into this very special Energy Art teacher Zorrik, who for the first time in my life made me experience how it has to feel to be centered, to only notice and not think or judge, to be at peace. Only for short moments though but still, I got a taste or glimpse of how it is to see your inner light. I always have difficulties in learning anything about energy work no matter if it's meditation, Qi Gong or Shiatsu, when people only talk about it and therefore are addressing the already hyperactive mind only. But this guy would kind of see your energy working, give you an instant feedback if you're on the right way, use a lot of imaginations and analogies, or just take you by the hand and move them until it feels right and at peace. To me all of this was quite amazing and new and I hope I get the chance to follow this path deeper in the future.
I called Kauai God's backyard and a helicopter flight over the island made me feel once more, how much beauty and bliss is all over this wonderful place. And I'm definitely gonna be back some time.
So after 10 days in this goregours place I sadly had to leave, but at the same time was also ready for it, I thought, maybe I just got some kind of spiritual overdose which I had to digest first ;-)
Big Island was the last of the Hawaiian islands to visit but I only had time for a few more days there. Which was ok too, since I didn't connect with that place as much as with Kauai before, which of course was hard to top of course. Anyway, it was definitely worth to go on a stargazing tour up Mauna Kea and to see the sunset up on 4'200m asl (I had to take out my winter clothing again ;-) and to visit the Volcano National park. I would have loved to see some lava flowing but this time there was no possibility to do so and of course nature does not follow people's touristic ambitions :-)
Now onto the US mainland to check out Hollywood ;-) and the coast up North. And to spend a week at another high energy spot on mother earth, the Esalen institute in Big Sur.
And then, there was Kauai :-) I learned one new analogy here in the States, people refer to magic places like Kauai as being very powerful acupuncture points on the meridians of our globe. And yes, I could really feel this when I got there, so it was one of these rare places where I just felt welcome & home from the very first moment (usually it takes a couple of days), beautiful nature, people and spiritual energy everywhere. Moreover I was so lucky to meet my new Airbnb host Isha, a soundhealing therapist and in many more ways talented woman, who would show me around the island, take me for hikes, to a soundhealing workshop, drumsessions by the sea, spiritual gatherings and who introduced me to a bunch of her lovely friends.
On Kauai I also bumped into this very special Energy Art teacher Zorrik, who for the first time in my life made me experience how it has to feel to be centered, to only notice and not think or judge, to be at peace. Only for short moments though but still, I got a taste or glimpse of how it is to see your inner light. I always have difficulties in learning anything about energy work no matter if it's meditation, Qi Gong or Shiatsu, when people only talk about it and therefore are addressing the already hyperactive mind only. But this guy would kind of see your energy working, give you an instant feedback if you're on the right way, use a lot of imaginations and analogies, or just take you by the hand and move them until it feels right and at peace. To me all of this was quite amazing and new and I hope I get the chance to follow this path deeper in the future.
I called Kauai God's backyard and a helicopter flight over the island made me feel once more, how much beauty and bliss is all over this wonderful place. And I'm definitely gonna be back some time.
So after 10 days in this goregours place I sadly had to leave, but at the same time was also ready for it, I thought, maybe I just got some kind of spiritual overdose which I had to digest first ;-)
Big Island was the last of the Hawaiian islands to visit but I only had time for a few more days there. Which was ok too, since I didn't connect with that place as much as with Kauai before, which of course was hard to top of course. Anyway, it was definitely worth to go on a stargazing tour up Mauna Kea and to see the sunset up on 4'200m asl (I had to take out my winter clothing again ;-) and to visit the Volcano National park. I would have loved to see some lava flowing but this time there was no possibility to do so and of course nature does not follow people's touristic ambitions :-)
Now onto the US mainland to check out Hollywood ;-) and the coast up North. And to spend a week at another high energy spot on mother earth, the Esalen institute in Big Sur.
