We spent the last week driving around the big island of Hawaii. I can now easily remember Hawaiian street names and attest to the rumor that Hilo is distinctively rainier than Kona. I have driven up, over and around the island, slept in a rental car, and hung my hammock on beaches and supposed ponds. I have snuck into state parks to set up camp, and snuck back out of state parks six hours later when the tide rose and almost swallowed our hanging beds. I have again slept in said rental car.
I have hitchhiked with a german photographer, walked two miles in the rain with all my belongings, and slept in a leaky hostel. I have used my travel Sriracha at almost every meal (thank you friends!). I have constructed budget meals from canned beans that would sort of blow you away, and made mac salad into a feast by loading it up with sliced cabbage and topping with black olives, baby corn and you guessed it...Sriracha. I have tried egg fruit, bought a mango that stunk up the whole car with a distinctly non-traditional mango smell (think overwhelmingly tropical and floral), and filled a glove box full of free avocados.
I've had a picnic in a target parking lot, seen a bounty of dead roaches and played with four beautiful children at the park. I have discovered that I actually dig papaya, enjoy knowing that everything I need can fit in a backpack, and have fallen even more deeply in love with my hydro flask (cold water 24/7 is a blessing in the Hawaiian heat). Much more to see and do, but here's what it's looked like so far:
