This past week I had an amazing opportunity to take a short break from the never-ending stream of school and enjoy a family vacation with my in-laws in Hawaii. I loved the new experience and hope you enjoy my recap of the week. If you're going to Hawaii anytime soon, this should give you a good idea of what to expect!

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The Great Airport Marathon

Starting on Saturday with a sunny disposition in Detroit, we were getting a little moody at Las Vegas before finally flying into the islands with crazy, slap-happy excitement. It was a long day of being stuck in a flying tube with crying children and coughing people, but we made it and no one got sick on the trip!

Flying in at sunrise on Sunday made the clouds around us surreal and dreamlike. Even though I was super tired, I tried to appreciate the beauty just outside my window, which turned out to be a major part of this trip: stopping to enjoy the beauty of the moment.

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Monday

We decided to take a biking tour down the volcano, which was a little scary because of the several switchbacks and the high coasting speeds. Like, you could be going over 20 miles per hour at any given time, but we had great guides and no one got hurt.

Mount Haleakala is one of the tallest mountains in the world. In fact, it is taller than Mount Everest when measured from base to peak; it's just a lower elevation overall because its base is far below sea level.

Speaking of the sea, we headed to the beach after our bike ride! Big Beach was beautiful, I don't think I've ever seen sand so fine and soft. The waves were really choppy that day, but I pushed myself a little to overcome my fears and got into the point where I could barely touch the ocean floor. I did body surf involuntarily back to the beach a couple times, but I was laughing most of the way.

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Tuesday

After an early morning flight to Oahu, we went zip-lining! We had so much fun with our guides and our group, challenging ourselves to longer and faster lines. We even zipped upside down! If you want a great time, CLIMB Works at Keana Farms has your back. While you're there, ask them what "base cheeks" are.

No trip is complete without a temple grounds visit to the local temple! (When you're a geeky Mormon that is.) All the temples the church has in operation have beautifully kept grounds and are places of beauty and peace.

Another beautiful building on Oahu is the palace of Hawaii's royalty in downtown Honolulu. Obviously, it is no longer used, but it houses some great historic pieces from the Constitutional Monarchy's Heyday. An interesting fact I learned was that it had a telephone, indoor plumbing (ex: flushable toilets) and electricity several years before other seats of power like the White House or Buckingham Palace did.

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Wednesday

Wednesday was probably my scariest day. Deep water and I are not exactly friends, so I was super nervous as we set out on a snorkeling trip. The views off the boat were gorgeous and we even saw a couple pods of dolphins!

I did it! After a minor anxiety attack when I jumped in and couldn't see, (I wear strong prescription glasses) the best crew member EVER told me they had prescription goggles for my use. I got back in and LOVED all the colors of the fish and the reefs. It was even cooler to see sea turtles (my favorite!) up close and hear the fish nibbling away at the coral (it sounds like someone wrinkling wrapping paper).

After a great morning, we headed back to the Lahaina docks to do some shopping downtown. With a wide variety of options for tourists, locals, price and products, Lahaina is one of the best places to go to do some souvenir shopping.

Another sight you literally can't miss in Lahaina is the block wide Banyan tree!

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Thursday

Thursday was kind of a bust for us. We started out on the Road to Hana which is known to be both beautiful and treacherous. Once we got to the national park just past Hana, we were super bummed to find that the hike to Waimoku Falls was closed for trail repair. We still did the hike to the Seven Sacred Pools (pictured above) before heading out the back way around the island.

After stopping for a moment at Charles Lindbergh's grave, we met up with traffic as a large tree had fallen across the road. It took an hour, a couple chainsaws, and a bulldozer, but we were able to continue around the island to enjoy a botanical garden and feed the goats Surfing Goat Dairy.

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Friday

We headed back out to the Lahaina docks Friday morning to go parasailing, which was surprisingly smooth and silent. I definitely thought there would be more wind noise all the way up there. After grabbing a delicious lunch at Cheeseburger in Paradise, we stopped by the aquarium to get even closer to local wildlife. I guess I never realized how big some of the saltwater creatures could get!

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Hop, Skip, and Jump Home

Another long day of flying made for some more uncomfortable sleeping on planes among strangers, but we made it home safe. We hopped from Maui to Oahu, skipped from Oahu to Las Vegas, and jumped all the way home to Detroit. As much as we loved vacationing in the islands, there's nothing like sleeping in your own bed after being away.

Hope you enjoyed the trip. Aloha!