The Start of an Unforgettable Hawaii Program!

Most of you don’t know who I am, my name is Alexa Northrop and I’m part of the Hawaii Semester Program. We’ve been here for about two weeks now and it’s been a wild trip!

We started in Kona, where we went on a massive thigh/glute-building hike with beautiful views of the island shore where we snorkeled. We also went for coffee which was such a delightful treat in the morning before our activities, and before you ask, yes the coffee here is pretty amazing with such deep notes of chocolate and citrus. Definitely a must thing to get here.

We took a deeper look into Hawaiian culture by talking to a local and native activist, who enlightened us about the land and the culture and how it came to be. It was a very eye opening experience. She taught us a traditional style flower lei-making. Then we moved to the town of Hilo where we went to help with a fishpond restoration project. We learned all about why fishponds in Hawaii are so important to the ecosystem and the community. They are truly doing some amazing work over there; it was an incredible experience to see and feel the restorers’ passion for what they do. That team is filled with such beautiful souls, nothing but the best to them. They also taught us how to make Hilo style leis, which was such an incredible experience to be a part of.

For some fun time, we went to a goat farm. We had a blast over there and got our spirit animal, Himo. That place is so much fun and they have such a cute little shop filled with local things #supportlocal. We then went to do some yoga, our instructor was literally the best on the island. The three days of trying all different levels were guided through perfectly and made you feel very Zen.

We also went to a coffee shop nearby that was so innovative and delicious. They served the wildest drinks and food, everything was 10/10 and you can’t go wrong with any choice, but I do recommend the boho brew. We then went to Mauna Kea where we saw the best sunset and stargazing that anyone could’ve asked for. Our tour guides were the sweetest and super informative about everything on the trip up. Also shoutout to my birthday twin aka my tour guide, he’s a real one, nothing but good vibes to him and his future.

But by far the best thing about this experience so far has been how everyone has been so welcoming and open to letting us learn about what they do and why they do it, it is beautiful to see people so passionate about things. We’ve only been here for such a short amount of time and we are already growing and learning in such amazing ways individually and as a group.

Oh, and I forgot to mention, Hawaii is one of the only states to have FRIED McDonald’s apple pies so you know I had to snag a couple of those while I’m here. Also happy birthday to my brother Jay, love you bro bro <3

Anyways peace out and Mahalo:)