If you had asked me this before February 2013, I would have answered Ireland. But, in February, I went to Hawaii. I have never dreamed of going to Hawaii. I do not like the sun. I do not warm, beachy, sandy, vacations. I do not like bathing suits. I love the ocean, but I do not like being in it. The things that live in it scare me.
But, Hawaii was very different than Florida, California, East Coast, New England, and other beach locales. I was talked into going on this trip because Hawaii has active volcanoes and I do LOVE volcanoes. I immediately fell in love with the Big Island. On Hawaii, there are 10 climate zones represented. In the whole world there are only 12-14 climate zones
(depending on who your reference is). It goes from arid desert with an average of 10 inches of rainfall on the west coast, to the 300 inches rain that can fall in Hilo on the east. The geology is fascinating. Volcanoes, rain forest, cloud forest, tropics, and ocean/beach. While we there, I could not go up the Mauna Kea because there was a blizzard. Amazing. It has two of the world's tallest mountains, if you measure from where they start on the ocean floor.
I went snorkeling and, for the first time in my life, I was not afraid of being in the ocean. In fact, I stayed in the ocean so long communing with the tangs, trigger fish, needle fish, sea turtles, lion fish, and anemone fish, that I got a mad sun burn on the back of my legs. Next time, I will take more breaks to apply waterproof sunscreen, or I will wear a wetsuit.
People in Hawaii are genuinely nice. Really nice. Friendly. Helpful. Conversational. I really enjoyed the conversations I had with the local people there.
I know if I lived there, I would walk, bike, hike, play tennis, swim and run more than I do now. I would get more vitamin D. I might even stop loathing bathing suits. I actually lost weight while I was there. since we mostly ate from local farmer's markets (lots of avocado, pineapple, and fresh greens), and fish. I think my first large purchase would be a sea kayak and spray skirt. There is not a ton of inland recreational kayaking on the island, so I will have to go out into the big water.
I would be slightly concerned about hurricane and tsunami threats, but other than that, I'm all in for the island life.
Again...that lottery win would be helpful. Living in Hawaii is expensive.
I chose Hawaii too! I had forgotten about the pineapple until I read your post. The pineapple is so fantastic! We hiked in the rain forest on our trip and swam in a few pools with waterfalls. The water in those pools was the freshest water I've ever been in! Absolutely amazing!
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