E Komo Mai

Welcome to Hawai'i!

E komo mai or 'welcome' in Hawai'ian.  I'm on the ground in this most gorgeous place!

Having been here a week, I'm starting to settle in a bit.  But, not too settled, I don't have a job yet!  I had my interview with one person last week and it went well, but one of the decision makers was sick, so I'll have another interview this week.  Fingers crossed!

Most of my time here has been spent prepping for interviews, but I've also been checking out the city.  Waikiki is obviously the tourist paradise that you imagine.  The business district is 15-20mins west of Waikiki by bus and very similar to the downtown of most cities.  The main differences being that here is relatively small and most business people wear Hawai'ian shirts.  Yes, seriously.  Business slacks and Hawai'ian shirts.

I'm staying between Waikiki and downtown (not sure if people here call it "downtown", but I will) in a very local and heavy traffic area.  It's not a long-term spot, but it's cheap, safe, has a grocery store, restaurants and the main bus lines nearby.

walking around Kaka'ako

Another place I checked out, which I doubt most tourists get to, is an area called Kaka'ako.  It's kind of the Shoreditch (London) or Lower East Side (NYC) of Honolulu complete with industrial/ warehouse buildings, street art and of course the relatively recent organic cafes with great coffee.  No hipsters, but it felt very homey.  To top it all off, they have a night market and food trucks at the end of every month, so hopefully I'm still around.

As for working out, I’ve been running, swimming and doing strength work down at Ala Moana Beach Park, which is about 15min walk straight down from my place.  It’s a nice beach, bigger than Waikiki and with less people, so great for swimming.  From one end to the other is just over 1km.  The water is relatively calm but moves enough to throw off a mainly pool-bound swimmer like me.  It’s incredible to do all this outside for free!

Ala Moana Beach Park
pic from www.hawaiiforvisitors.com

I also popped into a local tri/bike shop and picked up loads of info on races.  I’ve got some picked out, so let’s hope we’ll be here long term!

30/30/30 Challenge

Swim 13

Bike 4
Run 30+