Where I've Been Off To

This picture basically explains why I haven't been online for a while.

This crazy-looking guy is my brother, Remy.

One day I was in Murcia and a few days later I was thirty-six thousand feet above the Pacific Ocean, acknowledging how crazy life can be sometimes! Five intense years of work and two majors later, Remy graduated from University of Hawaii at Manoa (we were all okay with attending graduation).

The ceremony was very traditional, but in the complete opposite sense of how you might view the word. It was full of Hawaiian traditions; my favorite being the Lei Ceremony. After a pretty chill, relaxed ceremony, attendees were herded to the soccer field to adorn graduates with leis. Each attendee places a unique lei over the graduate's neck. Since Remy had so many friends and family members fly out to congratulate him (along with classmates and Kappa Sigma brothers) he had so many leis, he could barely move his head! Each lei was totally different and some were handmade: various tropical flower leis, a knitted lei, cup-of-noodles on a string, airplane bottles of liquor strung together, and various other snacks in a chain!

The three ducklings in a row

Remy and Mom at Matsumoto

After a while of collecting leis, Remy took us on a tour around his beautiful campus. There was an old tea-house sent in from Japan, a koi pond, and lots of pretty landscaping. As refuge from the heat and sun, we ended up at Yogurtland. Possibly one of my favorite eateries on the planet Earth, I filled up on lots of yummy toppings and frozen yogurt (you pay by the weight so you get as many toppings as you want).







While my visit was a surprise to Remy, Josh (our oldest brother) surprised me! It was so nice to get to hang out with the both of them, especially after being away in Spain for the past four months!

The next morning, we took a drive around the island of Oahu (the most populous and happening one, where the university is located). We drove all around North Shore, where a lot of surfing tournaments are held. Remy took us to Matsumoto, a famous shave-ice joint. I wanted to get some more typical, Hawaiian flavors, so I went with Lilikoi (almost a perfume-y, sweet taste), Lychee (sweet, fruity flavor), and Green tea!

We paused our roadtrip for about an hour's lounge at a lovely beach. My parents actually got in the water for once!

Me and ma bros

Our next hop out of the minivan was a spontaneous pit stop at a fruit stand. We tried fresh coconut, mango, papaya, pineapple, and coconut milk--yummy!

We kept on driving along the island, stopping every so often to snap a few pics!

Some locals enjoying a neat little enclosure

Mom peering through a tube

We stopped at a blow hole, but I couldn't get any pictures of the actual spout--I didn't think to take my camera out until afterwards, oh well. Although the current was pretty strong here, it sure looked like a cool spot to hang out!

Since it was Mother's Day, the whole family (aunt, uncle and grandma included) went out for a nice dinner at Charthouse. The gelato for dessert was soooo yummy and it made Mom pretty happy!

Josh with Mom and her favorite dessert.

...More to come!