We got the morning off today due to our late night at the Polynesian Cultural Center the previous night. Some students took advantage to head to the beach early, grab breakfast/coffee/boba, or even to catch up on sleep. For me, I grabbed 2 mochi malasadas and an iced matcha to eat/drink on the beach. The sun was even out this morning for a little! Then, the clouds rolled in 🙁 After sitting on the beach for a while, a classmate and I went to an ABC Store to grab some supplies for the day.
For our class activities, we went to Marukame Udon. This place was so cool! We got to see the udon noodles being made from scratch and then plated for us to eat. It also had some tempura and musubi sides to order. There was a long line out the door to order our food though, but we only had to wait about 30 minutes.
After filling up on udon, our class headed back to our hotel and waited to take the bus to our next destination. We took public transportation to the Japanese Gardens at University of Hawaii at Manoa. There, we had our group discussion about the Japanese Americans in Hawaii with a focus on health, birth, and death. The discussion was very eye opening for many. For example, we discussed who we wanted to be present with us when we died or if we wanted to be alone. We also talked about the differences in Japanese Americans based on the generation they grew up in and how, as healthcare workers, we can better help and provide them holistic care in the United States. During class, Mother Nature seemed to disagree with us at some points. Koi fish were jumping out of the pond and splashing. It began to rain at one point. Also, a kukui nut pod even fell on top of one of the presenters’ heads during our discussion.
After class, we headed back to the bus. Some of our classmates hit the beaches. Others went to dinner. As for me and another classmate, my cousin picked us up to go hiking. Luckily, my cousin lives on the island and has taken us to some great places. Today, he took us to Manoa Falls. It was absolutely gorgeous despite the gloomy weather. I think that the clouds and gloom actually made the jungle look even prettier. I won’t say much more about the topic because I think the pictures do all the talking!
