It was weird to officially begin our program on a Monday, which was supposedly a public holiday, Easter Monday⊠well, where I come from anyway.
We were to meet 9am and the day before, I had already searched for the location. Itâs good to know where you have to be (also where to run when youâre running late!)
It was the day where I got to meet the other members of the cohort. The 15 of us travelled from 9 different countries, and now here we were⊠ready to embark on a 6-week journey together.
I sat at the table in the middle of the room, also known as our classroom. We had speeches by the important people of the organisation and we then introduced ourselves to everyone (This was something we had to do so many times with the various people we met. Usually itâs our name, country and job)
After having our photos taken for ID and signing documents, we broke for lunch before heading out on our first field trip. We took the bus to famous Waikiki for a historic trail walking tour with our guide.
It was quite a walk as we made our way down the path, past the crowds, past the nice and expensive shops, and the hotels. When we finished for the day, we had the chance to explore the area.
An interesting fact I noted was that food is not served on glass plates. Rather, itâs served in styrofoam containers. I guess this makes it easier to take your food away if need be. The only place youâd get proper plates is in an actual restaurant. Â Â Â Â
A colleague and I walked on that world-renown beach and through the hotels looking for an exit (we even went in a circle and came back to the same spot!) As we were going about, something caught my eye. There were many people holding out their phones in one direction. I looked to see what they were trying to capture. When I realized what it was, I too joined in on the âmadnessâ. It was a beautiful sunset! However, a mere picture cannot truly compare to seeing it with your very own eyes.
Standing on the beach and taking in everything around me, it was surreal. Who would have thought that one day I was able to be in Hawaii, with my feet sinking into the sand on Waikiki?
On our second day, we had a speaker from the Hawaii Tourism Authority share with us about tourism in Hawaii. I fell asleep during parts of her presentation as she mostly talked about numbers (which is so not my thing!), and because I slept late⊠unfortunately sleeping past 1am was something I did almost every night, and throughout my entire trip. Itâs a really bad habit, which I struggle to overcome, even back home. A few years ago, I made a resolution to sleep at 9pm, that obviously didnât go as planned!
We were then introduced to the Leading Change Course, although we were already told about this before arrival into Hawaii. We had to finish the necessary materials before leaving for Washington DC to attend congress. So me being the night owl, stayed up to complete it and passed the final assessment on the first try (Even though I hardly went through the readings! But I did watch the lecture videos by the course instructor) Donât judge!
After lunch, we had a video conference with a representative of SPTO (South Pacific Tourism Organisation) about tourism in the South Pacific. This reminded me of home as the speaker was in Fiji. The room where we had the session was pretty cool. A long table with several microphones around it with huge monitors on all sides of the wall.
Then in the afternoon, we had a group discussion outdoors on mats. We were given a predicament and had to decide from a group of characters, the best one to be saved from an incoming disaster. It was interesting as we all had differing opinions on the matter⊠and lots of laughs along the way.
Wednesday was a pretty great day in the classroom. It was because we had great speakers who kept us from falling off to sleep ahaha. The first speaker was an academic of the university who spoke on conservation and eco tourism.
Itâs sad that these natural environments are being damaged by overly excessive access to these areas. So much so that they are either closed off for a day to recover or even closed for years to fully regain what was lost due to human ignorance and selfishness.
Speaker two was from the Hawaii Film Office who shared how film/TV is a tourism promotion strategy and stories of film crews and stars who shot in Hawaii. The third speaker was from The Outrigger talking about Hawaiian culture and mass tourism. He shared that parts of the Hawaiian culture was losing its meaning and value. Â Â
They say âthe best is saved for lastâ and this was certainly the case as our final speaker brought with her so much intensity and passion. She was from the Hyatt Regency Waikiki Beach Resort & Spa, who also shared on the same topic as the one before her.
Speaking of how the Hawaiian culture was being degraded for commercialism, she reminded and encouraged us that we should protect our cultures from being lost to a world that doesnât appreciate its uniqueness. Her presentation really fired us all up! Â Â
We were provided lunch in the classroom and then we set off to visit The Battleship Missouri Memorial. We were part of a tour group as our guide explained the history of the ship and WW2. We then had time to freely explore on our own. I canât imagine what itâs like to live out on the open sea for months and even years on end.
On Thursday, we had someone from the organization speak about turning project ideas into reality. In the afternoon, we visited the Manoa Heritage Center where we toured gardens and the surroundings of a large house.
We got back to the classroom for our homestay orientation from someone of the International Hospitality Center.
Friday was our final day of orientation and classroom activities. We started with a trip to the King Kamehameha Judiciary History Center. Here, we took part in a mock trial of a real case that occurred many years ago.
Then we walked to Iolani Palace, the only palace on US soil. We had to wear a protective cover over our shoes before entering. It was heartbreaking to learn of the stories that had taken place inside. The Hawaiian monarchy was sadly overthrown in 1893 by a group of Americans. The Queen was then imprisoned in a room with no contact beyond palace walls.
Later, we had a group photo outside and a reception to mark the end of our first week.
On Saturday, I did my first washing. Why am I writing about something mundane as this? Well, I found it pretty cool to pop coins into a machine to buy a small packet of washing powder (which lasted me the 5-weeks in Hawaii!) I also found it cool to start up a washing machine with quarters and the same goes for the clothes dryer. Yeah, Iâm weird, right? Hahaha! The best feeling was collecting your laundry and it feels nice and warm. Yes, I donât have a dryer back home.Â
In the evening, I attended the spam jam with colleagues. We eventually split up due to the huge crowds. It was much easier to walk around without having to keep track of others. I found it pretty cool how thereâs an event dedicated to a beloved food product. All around, there was spam infused food, merchandise and even a costumed spam can. It was a great atmosphere although at times it felt suffocating.
Back home, I donât usually go out at night, and there I was⊠eating a burger on the grass by Waikiki beach.
On Sunday, my colleague and I went to look for our placement location, The Kahala Hotel & Resort⊠and it was a bit far. Waited for a bus which seemed like forever. We had to get off at a bus stop and walk 10-minutes into the property. Once we confirmed where it was and how to get there, we made our way back as it started to rain.    Â
Back in the dorm, I was nervous about starting our 4-week placement. I didnât mind if the whole program was just like our orientation week: classroom sessions and then field trips hahaha!