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I cannot believe I am actually sitting in my Waikiki apartment and writing on this forum. Just three weeks ago we were reading all the posts here to make a decision whether to move to H6onolulu or not. We fell in love with Honolulu the first time we visited and when my husband got the job we were beyond excited and made the decision to move. Now that I think back, it seems that there were far more discouraging posts rather than encouraging. For people who are looking to move here, I just thought i'd give our story...
My husband was to start his job in mid July, we came here stayed at a hotel for 4 days and honestly walked 4-6 hours each day just looking for apartments that had rental signs/or any buzzer system to call the manager. It was tough on the first day, we had no leads and all apartment managers were off of work before 3:00 pm. While we were on the mainland, I looked all over Craigslist and so there happened to be some showings on our second day. We saw two apartments and walked all over again with not much luck. The apartments we saw were usually not like shown on the pictures. By the third day we started to worry, we were getting desperate..we went all over Downtown with not much luck (well also because our budget was about 1200 to 1300). It almost seemed as if there just wasn't any rentals available. Finally towards the evening of our third day I found two studios that could be shown to us right away, one was 1200$ and the other was 1060$, they were both clean, small yet furnished and both in Waikiki, both in great locations. We thought since it would be our starter, we'd go with the cheaper one and we even got it to go down to $1000 for 6 months. It's small but plenty good for us. It's no luxurious 2 bedrooms we had back home but this would do for us until we get on our feet. I love our home now..we really don't need any bigger apt yet..
Now, about things being expensive...i was in shock when I went into FOODLAND ( a little grocery store right in Waikiki), everything seemed three times more than what we were used to. Peanut butter $5, Bread $4..i was discouraged when I was at that store..i felt as if we'd have to give up so much food. But this gets better, we found a SAFEWAY about 10 mins away from our home and I realized FOODLAND just has the prices so high because they can!!!...there were many great sale items in SAFEWAY..so now we do our grocery there, and i feel much better about our groceries.
Believe it or not I feel as if the food quality is somehow better, the vegetables are tastier and fresher and even the meat tastes better. It may just be in my head but i feel much better about eating the food here than back home on the mainland. Now we only have one last issue..
My husband has somewhat of a decent job and we could afford living here on only one income but I am not a person who could sit at home..or i will just go crazy. So I started looking for jobs here, granted that it has been only 3 weeks but it seems hard. I have my MBA degree but minimal experience in the Banking industry. I am trying to get into the banking industry and i have applied to numerous positions and haven't gotten any calls. At this point, a job is a job and I am trying so hard to just get my foot in the door at a bank but it seems that my resume just gets tossed away . I have been applying online, even for a teller position (which I totally don't mind starting as). I thought about walking into the bank branches after submitting an application but i don't know how they would like it...Any thoughts would be appreciated, just how do you get a job here?. Should I go to employment agencies?..should I walk in and talk to branch managers?..it seems that people all know each other and get jobs through networking but since i am a newcomer i don't even know where to start..
(the meat and vegetables/fruit (unless specifically Hawaii/local labled) you are getting at Safeway here is the same food you would get at a Safeway in California)
Aloha, I cannot believe I am actually sitting in my Waikiki apartment and writing on this forum..
Aloha, and welcome. I hope you continue to enjoy your new home.
Be sure to search the archives here for previous posts. There's a wealth of information here, and it can save you a lot of time to pull up past answers to your questions. Food prices, job hunting, etc., it's all in there.
Quote:
Originally Posted by anewcomer85
Believe it or not I feel as if the food quality is somehow better, the vegetables are tastier and fresher and even the meat tastes better. It may just be in my head but i feel much better about eating the food here than back home on the mainland.
It must be the euphoria. 85% of the food sold in Hawai'i is shipped in from the mainland, and it's not always easy to find local produce or meat. For really fresh local flavor I recommend the farmers markets, but Buyer Beware. Ask where things are from.
Thanks for the replies, i think the fact that food tastes fresh to me is because back on the mainland we lived in the Midwest.
As for staffing companies, what are the pros and cons and just how do they work?..Thanks in advance!
Thanks for the replies, i think the fact that food tastes fresh to me is because back on the mainland we lived in the Midwest.
As for staffing companies, what are the pros and cons and just how do they work?..Thanks in advance!
Off the top of my head - I would think the biggest pro would be having the ability to expand your network of people you know. As you mentioned in your original post - many times landing a position here in Hawaii is who you know. Temp jobs get you in the door - and if you get noticed - it may turn into a permanent position or give you a better ability to get to know managers and get a permanent position.
The con - most of the jobs listed are really low-level.
As for how it works - go to the site, look over the jobs - and apply.
As far as applying to local companies - lets say banks in your situation. Your cover letter is very important. You need to make sure you have a compelling story in your cover letter that convinces employers you are here long-term. There is always a hesitation to hire a recent transplant - train them - and then poof - they are gone.
You mentioned you'd even work as a teller. There are no shortage of teller help wanted ads on indeed.com - but when the banks are hiring a teller, they want - a teller. Saying you have an MBA on your resume and applying for a $20K teller job is another red flag - they aren't looking for foot in the door tellers. Entry level tellers do not require a college degree.
Another recommendtion is to try to get hooked up with some recruiters - and make sure your resume is loaded on careerbuilder.com
Makes sense what you said about teller positions. I am just curious, i thought cover letters were supposed to be super professional and less personal. Do you have any clues/examples as to how I could include a compelling story?..sorry to keep bugging!!..
Makes sense what you said about teller positions. I am just curious, i thought cover letters were supposed to be super professional and less personal. Do you have any clues/examples as to how I could include a compelling story?..sorry to keep bugging!!..
The purpose of the cover letter is to sell yourself - it also gives you an opportunity to briefly explain your relocation.
I cannot believe I am actually sitting in my Waikiki apartment and writing on this forum. Just three weeks ago we were reading all the posts here to make a decision whether to move to H6onolulu or not. We fell in love with Honolulu the first time we visited and when my husband got the job we were beyond excited and made the decision to move. Now that I think back, it seems that there were far more discouraging posts rather than encouraging. For people who are looking to move here, I just thought i'd give our story...
My husband was to start his job in mid July, we came here stayed at a hotel for 4 days and honestly walked 4-6 hours each day just looking for apartments that had rental signs/or any buzzer system to call the manager. It was tough on the first day, we had no leads and all apartment managers were off of work before 3:00 pm. While we were on the mainland, I looked all over Craigslist and so there happened to be some showings on our second day. We saw two apartments and walked all over again with not much luck. The apartments we saw were usually not like shown on the pictures. By the third day we started to worry, we were getting desperate..we went all over Downtown with not much luck (well also because our budget was about 1200 to 1300). It almost seemed as if there just wasn't any rentals available. Finally towards the evening of our third day I found two studios that could be shown to us right away, one was 1200$ and the other was 1060$, they were both clean, small yet furnished and both in Waikiki, both in great locations. We thought since it would be our starter, we'd go with the cheaper one and we even got it to go down to $1000 for 6 months. It's small but plenty good for us. It's no luxurious 2 bedrooms we had back home but this would do for us until we get on our feet. I love our home now..we really don't need any bigger apt yet..
Now, about things being expensive...i was in shock when I went into FOODLAND ( a little grocery store right in Waikiki), everything seemed three times more than what we were used to. Peanut butter $5, Bread $4..i was discouraged when I was at that store..i felt as if we'd have to give up so much food. But this gets better, we found a SAFEWAY about 10 mins away from our home and I realized FOODLAND just has the prices so high because they can!!!...there were many great sale items in SAFEWAY..so now we do our grocery there, and i feel much better about our groceries.
Believe it or not I feel as if the food quality is somehow better, the vegetables are tastier and fresher and even the meat tastes better. It may just be in my head but i feel much better about eating the food here than back home on the mainland. Now we only have one last issue..
My husband has somewhat of a decent job and we could afford living here on only one income but I am not a person who could sit at home..or i will just go crazy. So I started looking for jobs here, granted that it has been only 3 weeks but it seems hard. I have my MBA degree but minimal experience in the Banking industry. I am trying to get into the banking industry and i have applied to numerous positions and haven't gotten any calls. At this point, a job is a job and I am trying so hard to just get my foot in the door at a bank but it seems that my resume just gets tossed away . I have been applying online, even for a teller position (which I totally don't mind starting as). I thought about walking into the bank branches after submitting an application but i don't know how they would like it...Any thoughts would be appreciated, just how do you get a job here?. Should I go to employment agencies?..should I walk in and talk to branch managers?..it seems that people all know each other and get jobs through networking but since i am a newcomer i don't even know where to start..
OVERALL, We haven't regretted moving here!..
New comer, congrats on your move! Where did you move from? Did you bring your car?
We moved from the middle of nowhere (Kansas) to middle of nowhere (here) ..No we sold both of our cars. My husband likes it without a car here. He takes the bus back and forth between Waikiki and Downtown. We sure couldn't live without cars in KS, but the the bus system has been impressive so far..
Thanks again Whtviper1, I really appreciate your help. That cover letter looks great, i will have to work on mine.
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( a little grocery store right in Waikiki), everything seemed three times more than what we were used to. Peanut butter $5, Bread $4..i was discouraged when I was at that store..i felt as if we'd have to give up so much food. But this gets better, we found a SAFEWAY about 10 mins away from our home and I realized FOODLAND just has the prices so high because they can!!!...there were many great sale items in SAFEWAY..so now we do our grocery there, and i feel much better about our groceries. 
..No we sold both of our cars. My husband likes it without a car here. He takes the bus back and forth between Waikiki and Downtown. We sure couldn't live without cars in KS, but the the bus system has been impressive so far..
