Paradise Is a Feeling Not a Place

mahalo hawaii

Hawaii. A magical chain of tiny islands in the middle of the pacific. So perfect, so magical, so me. I made a huge life decision - to pack my bags, buy a one way ticket, and set sail into a brand new adventure leaving my love, Hawaii, behind. 

When I moved to Paradise 4 years ago I was just an 18 year old girl trying to make it on her own for the first time. I was completely culture shocked at fist and had the hardest time adjusting to my new life here. In fact - I was certain I was going to transfer from UH after the first year. But something deep inside kept me here. Kept me attached and kept me in love with my new isle home. 

Growing up in Colorado, a completely land locked state, I would watch Planet Earth and would get memorized by the ocean and the insane beauty in its depths. Every night I would dream of what it would be like to swim in oceans like that - next to turtles, rainbow fish, coral towns, and everything in-between. I am a born Pisces and have been in water my whole life so naturally I knew I wanted to live by the beach. I visited 4 schools in Florida and UH - but from the moment I stepped off the plane here I knew it was where I was maent to be. 

Fast forward a few years - and I was living my dream life. Living in Paradise with the love of my life going on daily adventures that just didn't feel real.  I was home. Everything here started to feel right. As soon as I feel in love with Hawaii, she loved me right back. 

She helped me experience SO much more than I ever thought possible. I checked items off my bucket list I didn't even know I had like skydiving, parasailing, swimming with sharks, and turtles, and so much more. The Aloha spirit was alive and well in me and I needed to share that with the world so SaltWaterVibes was born. The vibes that Hawaii gave me is something I felt the rest of the World needed too. I will never stop sharing about Hawaii, even while I am away, becuase I am just so passionate about it and helping others experience the same feelings, joys, and Aloha I did. 

I lived on Oahu for 4 years but 'rock-hopped' between the islands over 10 times. Exploring the most beautiful waterfalls on Kauai, stopping every mile on the Road to Hana in Maui, and running across fresh lava fields on Big Island are just some of the experiences dear to my heart. I have learned so much history, tradition, respect, culture and more in Hawaii I will forever be grateful.  

The experiences I have had here is what inspired me to write The Adventurer's Guide to Oahu. There are so many amazing adventures here but it is so so vital to have the right information before setting off. Through my years of experience I have become an adventure expert here on Oahu and can guarantee you some of the most unreal moments in your life. You can pre-order it now here or read more about it in this post! 

Now that I have set sail into a new adventure it has become evident to me that Paradise is not a place, it's a feeling. After living in one of the most beautiful places in the world I have grown to realize that paradise is so much more than the sand between my toes or the palms above my head. In my eyes - Paradise is the euphoric feeling we have when we are at completely content. Yes to some that is at the beach or climbing mountains, but I think we truly find our Paradise in happy moments with our loved ones. Rashawn in truly my paradise.

I am going to miss Hawaii way more than I am willing to talk about but I know in time I will be back home. Being in the most remote place in the world will give you an itch to travel and see more. Rashawn and I sold all of our belongs, packed our bags, and boared a one way flight to Japan.

We are going to travel around Japan and South Korea for almost 3 weeks before heading back to the states. After a quick stop here we are officially moving to BELGIUM! We are in a monumental time in our life where we have no obligations. We believe in living with no regrets and taking FULL advantage of every opprotunity we have, so when the opprotunity came to live in Europe - we just couldnt say no. This blog will always be full of Hawaii and I still have over 50 + posts on Hawaii to share with you all! But I want my business and brand to be bigger so SaltWaterVibes is offically going global. 

Mahalo Hawaii - for eveyrhting you have done for me and given me. I feel so so incredly belssed to have this as apart of my story and will forever be greatful. And to YOU reading this right now - thank YOU. The ablitity to share these places with you is such a privallege. So heres to going Global - cheeee whoooo!