Hawaii is heaven.

After three flights, I arrived here late Friday night. The air smelled like flowers. That pretty much sums everything up right there. I arrived at the hostel to find a party in full swing. Friday night is free beer night, and everyone was out in the garden laughing and dancing. There are people from all over the world. I’ve made friends with a group of boys from Argentina, a girl from Switzerland, a couple people from Germany, and I’ve met others from England, Tunisia, Canada, and Hong Kong. Almost everyone seems to be traveling alone, so there’s a general feeling of friendship that brings us all together, everyone on their own kind of personal adventure.

My first full day here I went with two of my roommates to a beach near the airport. The wind was blowing madly, surprising us with periodic dark clouds that brought short bursts of rain. But even the rain here is wonderful, warm and soothing, nothing like the cold wetness of Seattle that seeps into your bones.

The next day was Sunday, and the hostel took two van loads of us to a beach 20 minutes away. “Big Beach” is your cliche Hawaiian beach: soft sand, palm trees, sparkling turquoise water stretching out as far as you can see. I attempted to body surf in the low, rolling waves, but after one painful faceplant in the sand decided to stick to floating instead. Later in the day, we hiked up a short cliff to the beach on the other side, “Little Beach” which was clothing optional. And wow. What an interesting experience that was. A few of the girls from the hostel took their clothes off, but I wasn’t brave enough. After dark, a huge drum circle formed and several locals (some naked, some not) performed fire dancing, swinging burning batons and lassos precariously close to some very important places on their bodies.

Yesterday’s tour was up into the Iao valley, this amazing jungle with streams and mountains and fruit growing everywhere. Our guide took us way off the main tourist path, hacking a trail up through the trees until we found ourselves on top of a small secluded lookout with 360 degree views of the entire valley. We were muddy, our legs scratched and bloodied from the trek, but I have never seen a group of people more fulfilled and joyful. It was an awesome experience. I ate fresh coffee and guava from the trees along the trail, and gorged myself on wild raspberries that we found in a clearing on the way down the mountain. When we reached the bottom again, we stripped off our filthy clothes and swam in a cool stream shaded by more guava trees. The fruit littered the banks, giving the air a thick, sticky sweet smell that mixed perfectly with the fresh breeze flowing down from the mountain top. I slept hard last night, the kind of wonderful deep sleep that follows a day of exercise and clean air.

Today I will find another beach, and I’m going to sleep in the sun and rest my muscles after yesterday’s excursion. I wish you were all here with me to enjoy this beautiful place. I’ll try to post more soon!