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Am I using the right words? I'm Chinese/White mix from the mainland. Grew up in an all White town and had some real trouble fitting in. Now I'm seriously looking at moving to Hawaii. Would it be easier to adapt?
I just graduated college with liberal arts degree, spent some time in Shanghai and Orlando. So it'd be Honolulu because I like urban living. My last job was at Disney World in FL, so I have hospitality background.
I've saved up $8500 and have an $800 airfare coupon. Is this enough to move to Honolulu, get settled with job/housing before running out and having to leave? Oh, and I have a car and no debt. How is public transportation? I'm used to riding the bus in Shanghai/Orlando.
My main interest is really the racial issue. I know Hawaii has a unique culture, but I still think it'd be easier for me to fit in/feel at home/adapt locally than anywhere on the mainland. HI is the only place where my ethnic background isn't an extreme minority. How true is this? Should I save up more?
I've saved up $8500 and have an $800 airfare coupon. Is this enough to move to Honolulu, get settled with job/housing before running out and having to leave? Oh, and I have a car and no debt. How is public transportation?
Should I save up more?
Save way more - at least triple or more.
And while you are saving - do some reflection on why you aren't fitting in. Whatever problems you are having likely won't be solved by running away to Hawaii.
And while you are saving - do some reflection on why you aren't fitting in. Whatever problems you are having likely won't be solved by running away to Hawaii.
I agree whtviper good advice.
Op though Hawai'is population wise is majorly Asian it's not like living in an Asian or foreign country anymore like our aunties or tutus could remember it when Asian culture was more dominant. Oahu and Honolulu especially are becoming more and more like any mainland city. Asian culture still plays a role in Hawaii in the foods, festivals and even day to day rituals.
Whtviper gave you some good advice. I would add that you should at least visit before you decide to move. Try a few times and more then a couple weeks each time and stay away from tourist areas. Yes it's expensive but in all honesty it will save you a lot more money and heartache if you decide to move without an ideal of what life us like here and hate it or can't find a job. Also do a lot of research and do more. Good luck.
Is $8500 your entire life savings? Let me just say: you better have an exit plan. You have to think "worst case scenario" when it comes to a decision like this. We already have enough homeless here as it is. What's your rough budget for monthly expenses? How much do you expect to earn if you manage to find a job in your field here? You should at least do some research before coming here with questions. If you come up with a budget some knowledgeable posters here would be able to tell you if it's reasonable, then you can go from there. But it seems like you have no clue about the financial situation here.
If your problems fitting in are indeed due to your mixed race, there's a good chance you wouldn't have those problems in Hawaii but if there are other reasons for you not fitting in (ex. you're just plain weird) those will likely to follow you if you move here. I'll also echo the poster above me in that you should visit and look around here before moving. Look at the job market, prices, rentals, transportation, etc.
You are what is referred to as a banana. Yellow on the outside and white on the inside.
Don't come here just looking for a place to fit in, just being Asian won't do it.
Why not some place like SF, LA, NY? A million other places have large Chinese cultures. Here it is blended into the term "local" which is as foreign to you as Sweden.
You have to look at why you are not fitting in and what you are trying to escape to.
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Yes there is a issue with your approach to fitting in. If you have a chip already on your shoulder. Here it will quickly be Amplified, and you will have the same issues here. You need to fix the reason why you do not fit in?
Yes there is a issue with your approach to fitting in. If you have a chip already on your shoulder. Here it will quickly be Amplified, and you will have the same issues here. You need to fix the reason why you do not fit in?
Let me just add something to this. The OP may indeed have an issue of fitting in that has nothing to do with his mixed race but there are also legitimate issues regarding being non-white in a mostly white town. Those in the majority may not see this but those in the minority often do. If that's indeed the case with the OP then moving to Hawaii may ease the feeling of being an outsider but at the same time there would be other issues he might face here regarding fitting in, specifically fitting in with locals (regardless of race) with him being a mainland transplant. Anyways I'm more concerned with his financial situation than anything else. Finances are my biggest stress living here, and I'd assume it's that way for a lot of people.
Wow. Lots of assumptions and negativity on this forum.
OP - You have $8,500 in cash, an $800 plane ticket + a paid-off car and zero debt. You are doing better than 98% of just-graduated college students. Pat yourself on the back.
While you can definitely have more in savings before making a move here, I don't find making a move to Honolulu in your financial situation as particularly risky as others here do (assuming you are in your early to mid 20's). Here is my advice -
1) Sell your car before you move. Since you mentioned you are accustomed to using public transportation there is no need for a car in urban Honolulu. I have no idea what your car is worth but converting that asset into cash will serve you well when you move here.
2) Get a roommate. You should go on Craigslist and find a roommate willing to take you sight-unseen. You can likely find a habitable room in a house or apartment building in the urban core for about $1,000-$1,200/mo incl utilities. You won't get anything nice in that price range so keep your expectations on a home's size, age, condition, finishes and amenities to a bare minimum. Being a recent college graduate with no debt and no need for a parking space will make finding a roommate easier than it is for others.
3) Start applying for a job before you fly out here. Being young, hapa and fresh out of college with a diploma in hand and having some experience in hospitality should improve your prospects of landing a hospitality job here. The International Market Place in Waikiki is starting to fill hundreds of positions; it might be a good place to look. Have several interviews locked and ready to go within days of getting off the plane. With the limited savings you have, you will need to land a job much sooner than later.
4) Make sure you have an exit plan in case things don't pan out nearly as well as you think they should. Do you have credit cards (with sufficient credit line) that you can put some expenses on in case you have to move back with most of your cash savings depleted? Family or friends around that can support you financially in the case of an emergency? If you have no access to temporary emergency funds or assistance at any level from friends or family, you really increase the risk of the possibility of becoming homeless.
I find it funny that some posters here think a young college graduate needs $30K+ in cash + a paid off car and zero debt to make a move to Honolulu. It's as if they think the only young people that should move here have to be trust fund babies.
You may be surprised that being hapa in Hawaii will likely lead to the opposite experience you had in Florida. Being of ambiguous descent here is highly desirable in many ways.
As for "fitting in," living in a low-income neighborhood on Oʻahu with roommates for a few years should help with that.
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