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Hello Everyone,I'm a long time reader (4 months) and first time poster. I got the idea of moving to hawaii from talking to my coworker who grew up in Hawaii (20 years ago) and move to the mainland to get married.
This is my first time visiting to hawaii.
I'm very excited and at the same time a little nervous.
There are two reasons why we are going.
1. The first reason is that we are on Vacation.
2. The second is to explore Hawaii and understand what it would be really like living there.
We are staying for 5.5 days and 5 nigihts at a Hotel by Waikiki.We also rented a car.
We plan to rent our snorkel gear from Snorkel bob.We plan to rent our body boards from Surf Braddah.
We plan on dining where the locals do.
Lunch Wagons, Helena, Kozo Sushi, Palamera Market, Zippy'sMatsumoto Shave Ice
We are only doing a couple of tourist activity such as:
Hanauma Bay, Diamond Head Hike, Polynesian Culture Center, Waimea Park.
We are not interested in doing the Pearl Harbor memorial, any museums, the zoo, aquarium or the water park.
The rest of the time, we plan on touring the neightborhood of Honolulu, Ewa Beach, Kailua, Kanahone
My Question:Is there any other place or activity that we should do to in order to get a better idea of living in Hawaii?
thanks for your time and feedback.
-Hawaiianfoodlover
Last edited by hawaiianfoodlover; 12-16-2009 at 11:03 AM..
Reason: need spaces
We just got back from a similar fact finding trip, and one thing I would recommend is to learn to take the Bus wherever you go. You will meet and talk with people both at the bus stops and on the bus itself. The Bus goes all over the island and if you get a 4-day pass is super cheap. You can get the passes at any ABC store there in Waikiki.
My Question:Is there any other place or activity that we should do to in order to get a better idea of living in Hawaii?
-Hawaiianfoodlover
You are very clever to explore first!
I suggest you visit stores, look at and write down prices.
Grocery stores - pretend you are going shopping just as if you were living there. Look at eggs, bread, rice, oil.. whatever you would normally buy. Make a shopping list first, and then write down the prices you see, whether regular or on sale. Do this during you whole visit, so you get a range of prices from different stores and different promotions. Then later on, calculate what you would spend for groceries. Is it still in your budget? If so, no problem.
Furniture and household - also go to household stores, and shop for what you think you would need during your first 6 months. That would be anything you didn't move over. Think about furniture, linens, lighting. Also think about the more mundane - new lightbulbs, paint & supplies, picture hanging hardware, scissors, tape, stapler... really anything you see. Again, make some lists, but then also write down things you see that are not on your lists. Add up the numbers and figure out what it will cost to relocate (the first 6 months) and also what it might cost on a regular basis.
Activities - Snorkeling and body boarding are great, and generally free once you have your equipment. Remember to look at traffic and parking and all of that, for the times of day you would be doing those things if you had a job and worked. Is the beach more crowded on the weekends? Can you find free parking nearby? Again, these are not barriers, but just be sure to get a realistic view of what you are looking at. Going to the beach on a Tuesday at 9am is going to be very different than Saturday at 9am.
Driving versus bus - If you can afford a car, rent it for at least part of the time. As you said, this will allow you to explore further. Also be sure to drive the freeways and streets during rush hour, so you can see how long it will take you to get from home to work, or work to the grocery store, or home to activities. It might be tempting to do what's easy on vacation, but a true test will be as if you are commuting or running errands during off hours.
Meeting people - You might go to a community meeting, or canoe club, or any other local group gathering in an area where you might live. Or for activities that interest you. You will meet great people who are really helpful and can tell you what's available to your interest.
Have a great time. All of these suggestions are intended to give you a good 'local' view of the area and activities. None of them are barriers, but since you are interested in the reality, all I suggest is that you take an approach that gives you the most realistic result.
Yeah they serve non-alcoholic drinks, take the 19 or 20 bus to get from the airport to waikiki (i assume thats where your hotel is).
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