What Made you Move to Hawaii ? and other questions.

[tikiyaki]

For those of you not born on the islands...a few questions.

What made you move to Hawaii ?

How long did it take you to adjust to island living ?

What do you miss about where you moved from ?

Is Hawaii a final destination for you ?

What do you love about living in Hawaii, and what don't you like about it ?

What did you give up to live in Hawaii, and what does Hawaii have that you now CAN'T give up ?



I know, well covered territory to some extent, but I don't believe I've seen a specific thread on this, all in one shot.

Discuss.....

[lavagal]

Re: What Made you Move to Hawaii ? and other questions.

[QUOTE=tikiyaki;134302]For those of you not born on the islands...a few questions.

What made you move to Hawaii ?
The USAF in 1981.

How long did it take you to adjust to island living ?
About two months.

What do you miss about where you moved from ?
Missed? I was in the California desert. I don't miss a thing. But I'm from NJ and I miss real hoagies and real philly cheese steaks.

Is Hawaii a final destination for you ?
yup.

What do you love about living in Hawaii, and what don't you like about it ?
From the moment I arrived I've met, and continue to encounter, people with sincere aloha. I love that I was taught to surf and am welcome in the lineup. I love that my kids are growing up here, learning from a kupuna who visits their school. I love the weather. I love having fruit trees.

What did you give up to live in Hawaii,
Being close to my family, all on the East Coast.

and what does Hawaii have that you now CAN'T give up ?
A relaxed pace. Beautiful views. The ocean.

[timkona]

Re: What Made you Move to Hawaii ? and other questions.

What made you move to Hawaii ? Recommendation of a friend who knew how much I love the ocean.

How long did it take you to adjust to island living ? 14 days to get a job, a place to live, and a surfboard. Showed up on time with a clean piss test and a good work ethic, and stood out from the crowd instantly.

What do you miss about where you moved from ? Cultural variety such as plays, concerts, art museums, etc that are not essentially rooted in Hawaiiana.

Is Hawaii a final destination for you ? Yup. Dug in like an Alabama tick.

What do you love about living in Hawaii, and what don't you like about it ? I love the ignorance that permeates society at nearly every level which makes it real easy to make a good living here. I don't like the racism which is a natural by-product of the ignorance.

What did you give up to live in Hawaii, and what does Hawaii have that you now CAN'T give up ? Gave up family connections. Can't tear me away from the warm ocean.

[AbsolutChaos]

Re: What Made you Move to Hawaii ? and other questions.

What made you move to Hawaii ?

A good job opportunity, plus the fact that I was single and figured now was the time to make such a "drastic" move from the Midwest.

How long did it take you to adjust to island living ?

A year maybe...? The hardest part was finding friends and learning where all the "fun places" were to hang out.

What do you miss about where you moved from ?

The arts scene, the lower cost of living, my mom's Indian home cooking, the thrift stores, fall, wearing winter clothes/dressing up more, and good Mexican food.

Is Hawaii a final destination for you ?

For now; my boyfriend has family and a house here, and I'm happy here too.

What do you love about living in Hawaii, and what don't you like about it ?

Loves: Obviously the weather, the friendly people, fresh seafood cooked in a myriad of tasty ways in restaurants, the Asian-influenced cultural atmosphere (and being able to "blend in"), having a relatively secure apartment in an area where I feel comfortable going for walks at almost any hour of the day and which is within walking distance of many decent restaurants, shopping opportunities, grocery stores, etc. It's also nice that my friends look for excuses to visit me!

Dislikes: Obviously the high (and continuously higher) cost of living, the traffic situation, overcrowding, the high cost of flights to go anywhere else (other than the outer islands at the moment!), the threat of tsunamis/earthquakes, the bloated/inefficient government, high taxes.

What did you give up to live in Hawaii, and what does Hawaii have that you now CAN'T give up ?

I gave up: the opportunity to take longer vacations, the chance to save more money by living in a place with a lower cost of living, my friends/family back in Ohio along with being around for their important moments in life (weddings, etc).
I won't give up: my boyfriend and our two crazy cats, the weather.

[koloagirl]

Re: What Made you Move to Hawaii ? and other questions.



1. What made you move to Hawai'i?

A deep and growing love for the islands and the culture over 15 years of visiting and being involved in Hawaiian culture.

2. How long did it take you to adjust to island living?

As far as "adjusting" - since I already had ohana on Kaua'i when I moved here, it was much easier -- but there was a feeling of "not being on vacation, but not really settled" for about a year before I felt totally "moved in".

3. What do you miss about where you are from?

Friends that I made there.

4. Is Hawai'i a final destination for you?

After 10 years of living here, I can definitely say "yes"!! I haven't been back to the mainland in 8 years now and I don't miss it a bit, contrary to what I thought when I moved here!

5. What do you love about living in Hawaii and what don't you like?

I love the lifestyle, the people, the 'aina - the pure quality of life.

I don't like people who are unkind to others and who exploit the 'aina for pure monetary gain.

6. What did you give up to move to Hawai'i and what couldn't you give up?

I gave up friends and a home that we built ourselves in the mountains.

I couldn't give up living in Hawai'i!

[tutusue]

Re: What Made you Move to Hawaii ? and other questions.

What made you move to Hawaii ?
For several years prior to my first visit at 16 years of age, I'd had a yearning way in the pit of my soul. I still can't describe it adequately. That yearning to live in Hawaii intensified with each visit. I finally just did it...18 years and 2 kids later!

How long did it take you to adjust to island living ?
I adjusted with the first step out of the airplane for my first visit!

What do you miss about where you moved from ?
I miss the way Laguna was in the good ol' days! If I lived there now I'd still miss that. What I miss most now is knowing that for the first time in my life I no longer have family in my home town.

Is Hawaii a final destination for you ?
Definitely. I tried moving back to my home town in the early 90s. I lasted a year. I was so homesick that I was taping old Hawaii Five-Os and Magnums in the middle of the night to watch the next day!!

What do you love about living in Hawaii, and what don't you like about it ?
Love? The feeling of living on an island...isolated but not alone; surrounded by the ocean...and that there's a beautiful little beach right outside my door. The people. Living amongst such racial diversity. The Aloha spirit. The scenery. The weather. I love the year 'round summer!

Dislikes? The anti small business climate. The cost of living, altho' it's almost exactly the same as my home town. The homeless situation.

What did you give up to live in Hawaii, and what does Hawaii have that you now CAN'T give up ?
I gave up living close to relatives.
I learned in the early '90s that I can't give up being surrounded by the Aloha spirit. Ditto for the ocean and the weather.

[glossyp]

Re: What Made you Move to Hawaii ? and other questions.

For those of you not born on the islands...a few questions.

What made you move to Hawaii ?

The better half was born and raised here and always wanted to come home.

How long did it take you to adjust to island living ?

It isn't island living that required adjusting as I came from an island. If I amend the question to adjust to living in Hawaii, I'd answer, not yet.

What do you miss about where you moved from ?

The warmer weather, the crystal clean ocean and healthy coral reefs and brillantly colored fish. Being able to get to the ocean/beach in five minutes and not have to search for a spot and then being able to have a glass of wine on the beach. Flying to Asia cheaply and quickly. Having a half dozen excellent Thai restaurants to choose from, ditto Korean and Vietnamese. Village fiestas almost every weekend.

Is Hawaii a final destination for you ?

Definitely.

What do you love about living in Hawaii, and what don't you like about it ?

Still working on what I love, but one is coming through the tunnel on the H3 and the amazing view of Kaneohe Bay. Another is when there are dozens of waterfalls coming off the Koolaus. I like Waimanalo and maybe someday I'll live there and have a horse or two. It also makes me happy that overall dogs/cats/other small animals are well served by their owners and the Humane Society along with the numerous other animal protection groups.

I don't like the politics, the taxation codes which place a undue burden on small businesses and the self-employed, the unions (the bus strike of '03 happened a week after I arrived) and the unending number of bad drivers and traffic jams.

What did you give up to live in Hawaii, and what does Hawaii have that you now CAN'T give up ?

See answers to what I miss. What I can't give up? The love of my life!

[christa]

Re: What Made you Move to Hawaii ? and other questions.

What made you move to Hawaii ?
larger than life magnetic pull combined with job

How long did it take you to adjust to island living ?
a little over a month to get own place then less than a week to meet most of the island

What do you miss about where you moved from ?
california? um, nothing! wait. maybe baja fish tacos.

Is Hawaii a final destination for you ?
according to the psychic lan vo it is.

What do you love about living in Hawaii, and what don't you like about it ?
love: friends, boyfriend, chinatown, my job, the small town in a big city
hate: not so much hate, but miss: men in suits

What did you give up to live in Hawaii, and what does Hawaii have that you now CAN'T give up ?
gave up: career (and salary was cut in half), family in california, friends abroad
can't give up: small town in a big city.