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It's been more than two years since I last traveled & vacationed by myself and I loooooooooooooooove traveling on my own. There's something incredibly empowering about being in complete charge of your own decisions while simultaneously vulnerable to your foreign surroundings. I told myself I would go into the trip with the following intentions:
- relaxation (TOP PRIORITY!)
- satiate my impatience for backpacking in Asia at the end of the year
- test out working remotely and while traveling
- rejuvenation (to help me survive this mad-busy summer)
Not even 3 minutes into boarding my plane did I befriend my in-flight neighbors and they offered me a ride to my hostel and lunch at their usual Korean spot. The wife is from Hawaii and he from Oakland, and they met by literally bumping into each other in a parking lot. So cute! They were the goofiest, sweet duo ever and it was great spending the afternoon with them.
I checked into my hostel and stepped out to the waters of Waikiki (that's not me, but she was as excited about the water as I was, hehe). A fellow hostel resident, Craig, joined me for the swim. In telling each other our life stories, I learned that he was the "wine guy" for Per Se in NYC for 2 years, and bounced around various reputable restaurants, his last being Momofuku Co. Whaaaaaaaaaaaat??! He grew tired of the "biz" and moved to Hawaii to surf. Simple as that.
For dinner, I skipped Denny's, Red Lobster and McDonald's (ha!!) and opted for Marukame Udon. SO GOOD & cheap! This bowl of udon with a half boiled egg cost me $4.25
