Best Summer Ever!
During the school year everyone was offered a chance to go on a trip of a lifetime! This trip consisted of going to a part of the United States that is considered a prime vacation spot. Many showed up to the first call out meeting but most didn’t take it serious. After a few rounds of elimination and more meetings the number got down to ten people, three boys and seven girls. We lost the three boys and ended up with the awesome group that I know call my friends. Six other girls and I all met officially at our first after school meeting in Ms. Hartman’s classroom.
Before we left for the best summer ever we had to do some extra school stuff! This was probably my least favorite part of the trip. Having to add more school work to what I already had to do was no fun for me. I got to know the girls better and all of us hit it off right away! During class we learned things about Hawaii and its history. We all had to do a project and take tests. The tests were based on the reading materials that we got at the beginning of the week. Being a teacher’s assistant for Hartman I was able to see her every day and ask her more questions if I needed to.
When school finally ended we kept in touch through texting and we all started a countdown to when that day would come when we had to be at the airport at four in the morning. As the days counted down we got random texts from Hartman making sure we were getting ready for the trip. From what I heard Suzie was already packed by the time school ended! For me it was a different story I waited till the day before we left to get packed. The night before I was supposed to get on a plane to leave for Hawaii I stayed up till about two in the morning due to all the excitement that was building up in my stomach.
Leaving for the airport an hour later we got in the car and turned the music up way load so we wouldn’t fall asleep on the way there. My mother and I were both excited when I got out of the car and started to walk into the terminal. Not wanting to admit it my mother was sad to see me go for two weeks. When I made it inside I met up with Hartman and the other girls that were there as well. We were waiting for the kiosk to open so we could get our tickets. Since we had an odd number in our group I had two buddies instead of one. I decided that I would call them my children. They didn’t have a problem with it so that’s what I was called. After everyone from Whiteland, Batesville, Roncalli, and Brown County got there tickets everyone said good bye to their parents and we headed for security check. When we were waiting for Hartman and the Batesville Teacher Ms. Lynch, someone we heard very many things about, we found out that Hartman forgot to take off a bracelet and had to go back through the metal detector again. Lynch forgot she had sunscreen in her carry-on so she had that taken away. Most of us laughed because we all made it through fine and our chaperones didn’t.
When we got to our gate we were all asking each other “whose sitting next to me?” I didn’t care where I sat on the plane but everyone wanted to sit next to their friends. I ended up sitting next to my children Holly and Lisa. Our first stop was in Phoenix Arizona. When all of us got off the plane we made our way to the next gate. What seemed like a twenty minute walk and a thousand moving walkways later the group made it to the gate that would take us to Hawaii. First we had to wait due to our layover. The layover seemed like a forever amount of time. My friends and I walked around and got food that was way too expensive for its taste. While we ate we talked about all the cute guys that passed by. After we finished eating we walked back to where we were sitting and started getting to know the Batesville girls that were there sitting with us.
Boarding the plane was nice because it was freezing cold in the airport and it was hot outside. For the few minutes we spent on the walkway to the plane was a chance for us to warm up. Taking off from Arizona there was a feeling of excitement in the air because we all knew that when we landed we would be in Hawaii starting one of the best summers of our lives. Most people fell asleep during the flight over. By the time we landed we were happy to stretch our legs and touch ground after our 6 hour flight. The entire Hawaiian airport was outside and beautiful. By the time we got our baggage and we got our leis we met up with the awesome Uncle Dennis. Leaving the airport we headed to the beach that I came to love. The beach was named Hapuna. After going swimming I enjoyed my first sunset. A major plus was that it was on the beach. Later that night I found myself at HPA, Hawaii Preparatory academy. I was rooming with my friend Lisa. I unpacked and passed out. I hadn’t slept since the night before. Due to the time difference I woke up at five a.m. since I was awake I went to go take a shower. The shower was really cold. I finally figured out how to make my showers warm.
In the next upcoming fourteen days I had some of the best days and lessons of my life. We had class for four hours every day except for Sunday. Sundays were fieldtrip days. On one Sunday we went to the most active volcano on the Big Island. Even though it was raining the entire time I had a very fun time. The best part was seeing the glow of lava in the caldera of Kilauea. My most favorite lesson was when we learned about fish and their anatomy. My favorite teacher was named Monica. She also taught us Hawaiiana stuff like legends and myth and her family’s background. Another one of my favorite activities was learning how to make leis.
Making friends so quickly was something that made this trip more amazing. It made going places and group work easier. We went to places and didn’t have to stay with just our group from our school. My friend Kaitlyn was studying for her scuba license just like another chaperone who we named Parker Tall. Even though I had a hard time getting back up hill from the bottom of Pololu, which is a black sand beach, it was a very beautiful place to be. One of the least favorite things I did was getting sea urchin spawn on my hand because my friends made me take it out of our bucket. One of my most memorable moments but definitely my least favorite. I also liked when we made it to Lahina the whaling capitol of Hawaii. Lahina is located on Maui. We stayed there for our last two days of the trip which added up to the total sixteen days that our trip was suppose to last. On our last two days I had some more great memories. I was able to spend July fourth in Hawaii. That night they set off fireworks above the water! This was probably the best fireworks show I had ever seen. I had also got to go to a dinner with three of my best friends and Parker Tall. We went to Cheeseburger and Paradise. Since we were right on the coast we could see out the holes in the walls. I call them holes because there are supposed to be windows but they weren’t there. I had some awesome coconut shrimp that night. We had great chatter while listening to the ocean and the wind. My most favorite thing that happened was watching the sun rise above the clouds. I would love to go back and do the trip all over again because I feel like I grew up some. The trip teaches you to do your homework on time because it was due the next day. This trip had its ups and downs and I wouldn’t change one thing about it.
