5 Realities of Living in Hawai’i
I moved to Hawai’i for the first time in 2013, and lived on O’ahu for a total of 5 years. Living in Hawai’i, there is the endless scent of plumeria on the breeze, sunny days in Waikiki, and the echo of “alohhhaaaa” running through the air within 10 ft of any tourist trap. I am blessed to have called O’ahu home for quite awhile, however there are a few things I know now that I did not know when I first arrived.
Bugs
When I say bugs I mean they will be in places you would never expect. I grew up in dry climates where finding a bug meant sticking your hand behind an old piece of equipment or finding them somewhere in the attic. In Hawai’i however, centipedes escape out of your car air conditioning vent (I almost caused a 7 car pile up on H1), cockroaches are the size of hummingbirds and fly through the air, and there’s spiders that rightfully belong in the Halloween section of Walmart. I don’t recall ever seeing these critters included in the post cards.
H1 Centipede
I was driving from Waimea Bay back to Honolulu with my friend Steph, when we both thought we saw something in the air vent of my Ford Escape. We couldn’t identify it so I continued driving down H1. Suddenly Steph yells out and I see a red centipede weaving in and out of the air vent on the dash- like a serpent. I pulled over to the shoulder as we both took off our shoes to kill it with. After several minutes we didn’t see it again and decided to get back in the car because Steph had to be at work in 30 minutes. Time went on, and we talked story trying to get our minds off of the stowaway. Then out of a horror movie, my eye catches something on my steering wheel, and there was our little vibrant friend mere inches away from me. While maneuvering my car, I slipped off a slipper and tried to hit it, as it slithered back into the interior components of my car never to be seen again. I didn’t drive for a week after that.
2. Traffic
I come from Southern California, I know traffic (5 south @ 5 is a party). However never in my life could I imagine it possible that it would take me over and hour and a half to travel 3 miles. You think Hawai’i and you imagine these quaint dirt roads with palm trees growing out of red dirt on the side, rather than that daydream you are surrounded by a river of metal and asphalt going a maximum of 1/2 mph. Lets not forget the moving truck in front of you with the back open and a bunch of guys sitting on plastic lanai furniture, this is 100% normal here. I mean what is the risk when we are barely moving anyways.
The only traffic that Instagram ever saw…
3. It’s Not Always Sunny
It rains a lot in Hawai’i, this is dependent however on which island you are on and what side of the island. On O’ahu you could expect sprinkling rain most of the year and a few times a week. Also, major tropical storms were not on my radar when I decided to move to Hawai’i… but they were on the weather stations. My first month living in Honolulu I experienced a hurricane aka a week’s worth of heavy tropical storms. One thing to note is the most dangerous parts of hurricanes (on O’ahu) is the long lines at Costco. When it comes to preparing for the rain, ditch the cotton pullovers and get yourself a waterproof windbreaker and an umbrella. You’ll thank me when you’re dry and not sweating.
Hurricanes
A screenshot of the rain radar a few days before Hurricane Lane was supposed to make landfall in August 2018. Stores were emptied and boarded up, but the storm never made landfall. Some animals did escape from the Honolulu Zoo though, which we lived only .5 mile from.
4. Not Always A Vacation
What you won’t see in the surf cult movies, posters, and magazines, is the behind the scenes. Life still happens in Hawai’i. There are still bad hair days, rent to be paid, and having to wait in long Walmart lines. Hawai’i tends to be romanticized for obvious reasons, but people still live normal day to day lives. Obviously there are perks, but don’t forget that you can run away from all parts of life on the islands.
Going For Broke
I had got my first apartment and not even 2 weeks later was in an accident on my way to work that kept me from working for about a month. Most days the only full meal I would eat came from work, and I was already scraping pennies to afford rent. It was a major blow and I thought my time in Hawai’i was up. Thankfully family helped me, and I had some emergency money saved up. But between rent, hospital bills, and other bills I was stretched pretty thin for awhile. Life had finally found me again hiding out in Hawai’i. In the end I bounced back and got to return to work, but I found out the hard way that bad days still happen in the islands.
5. Small Island + Small Living
Just like any living set in a city/urban area, there’s limited space. Hawai’i is limited due to the Pacific being less than 100 miles in any place that you stand on island. Thus the apartments and homes are smaller, car parking lots lack about 35% of the parking that they should have, and crowding can happen in a snap of two sandy fingers. But with smaller living spaces you tend to learn about what you can live with and what you can live without, and that is just part of simple island living.
Tiki Hut
This way my first apartment I had by myself. I lived off of South Beretania St. in Honolulu. It was 100 sqft and $600 a month. I had to share a restroom that was outside and built as an addition with an older gentleman named JC. It wasn’t much but it was my own space and after living with multiple roommates, it was my haven. After I met my husband we moved into a studio down the street from Waikiki beach, he was gone most of the time due to the military so I didn’t mind. I was used to living off much of nothing and learned the difference between wants and needs while living in these places.
Despite the small apartment, long traffic commutes, and bugs set out to torment you, the bad is outweighed by all the good that comes with Hawai’i. In my opinion the best part about living in Hawai’i, that is not talked about enough is the locals. I met some of the most sincere people I've ever met while residing there, and developed friendships that run deeper than some familial relationships. If you decide to make Hawai’i home one day, just make sure to treat everyone and the land with respect and Hawai’i will treat your days back with memories and experiences unlike any other place.
Ashlyn
Posing by a massive hibiscus flower in the neighborhood garden down the street from my apartment which stood at the base of Diamond Head
