Firsts are always unique. They always remain close to our hearts—they kind of get imprinted in our memory. So, far I have talked about my things in this series. Now, let me touch a different area. I am trying my hands-on writing about a travel destination. This is not my usual genre, so please bear with me if I make any mistakes.

 

Austin was the first city I landed in the USA. Austin is the capital of Texas. We lived in Austin for seven years. It’s beautiful, full of greenery, unlike India, where Capital cities are bigger. In the USA, mostly capital cities are not the largest cities in their state. Austin has the college city feel. I didn’t find anything over-whelming when I started my new life. Life is pretty smooth and easy to adjust for any newcomer. In past years, it has grown a lot. For this post, I am not going to talk about Austin. I want to take you to my first travel destination that I explored in the west. And that is Hawaii.

 

 

“Whatever God Has Created Is Good, and Nothing Is To be Rejected.”

 

These were the words that come to my mind whenever I find close to nature. When one is surrounded by water from all the sides, water as clean and clear as a crystal, and whichever direction it may be, you will find cascading waterfalls, greenery, and mountains rising above the clouds. And if God asks me for my wish, I would pray to God to give me the power to capture that moment into my fist. This is how I felt being at Hawaii – Land full of greenery and scenic beauty. Nothing can be more soothing to your eyes than to see the Sunset beyond the Ocean as if Ocean opens its arms and trying to embrace the sun rays and to let the night come to begin a new day.

 

Hawaii – an isolated island, place which, I think, God has created, taking a lot of time and patience. Polynesians came to this place, and this is how Hawaii came into existence, and after this, each island (there are six islands in total) was recognized as a separate kingdom. To pronounce Hawaii correctly, then pronounce it following the spelling Hawaee. Hawaiian alphabets are created by New England Missionaries. It has only 12 alphabets (5- vowels and 7-consonants).

 

 

‘Aloha’ – Hawaiian greeting word, which means Hello or Goodbye. When you just arrive here, you are a ‘Malihinil. But after you spend a considerably long time, you will become ‘Kamaaina.’

Places that we explored at Hawaii were,

Diamond Head: The famous volcanic crater in the word which is 3,520 feet in diameter and 760-foot summit. This name was given by the English sailors who mistakenly thought there were diamonds lodged in the crater’s soil.

 

Byodo-Iin-Temple: It is a Buddism Temple,  a scale replica of a temple in Uji Japan. Byodo-in-Temple which translates to the “Temple of Equality.” It is made entirely without nails. Before entering the temple itself, we were all invited to ring the bon-sho, or sacred bell, that sits in a small bell house to the left of the temple. It is said ringing this 3-ton brass bell just once before entering the temple will purify the mind of evil spirits and temptation before meditation. Inside there is a 9-foot tall Lotus Buddha statue.  You are only asked to remove your shoes before entering as  a sign of respect. The temple’s pond is also filled with koi, a Japanese decorative fish that is a symbol of love and friendship.There is no other place where you can see an authentic Japanese temple situated against the gorgeous backdrop of Oahu’s soaring Koolau Mountains.

 

 

Polynesian Cultural Centre (PCC): This is a place one should not miss. Polynesian means “many islands”. It’s a living museum and considered to be one of the widely visited tourist destinations in Hawaii. It has two multi-cultural shows.

Horizons: Where the sea meets the sky. A spectacular evening show, the largest performance of its kind in the world.

 

One more thing that grabbed my attention was in Hawaii; you are not supposed to wear your shoes while entering into somebody’s house. Here, beauty is at your footsteps. Hawaii is a place of dreams. The overwhelming beauty, fragrance, and color of flowers and the fresh air will take you to a new dreamland.

 

So, this was about my first travel destination after came to the USA. I tried give you a feel of Hawaii through this post. If you travel to the USA and visit this place then I am sure you will be mesmerized.

 

This post is a part of #BlogchatterA2Z. My theme is “Dollar Nation – Are You Ready To Explore the West Thorough My Eyes?”

You can read the previous posts by clicking on each alphabets.

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