Maggie's First Trip to Hawaii

Aloha!

Last Wednesday, I made my first journey out to the South Pacific to attend a clinical training at the University of Hawai`i. Overall, it was an incredibly positive experience. The team that I will be working with was very welcoming, and our training went off without a hitch. I stayed in the New Otani Kaimana Beach Hotel in Waikiki, and had both an ocean and Diamond Head view. Pretty spectacular! Even though I was only there for about 72 hours, I had time to explore a bit around Waikiki and had a delicious Thai dinner with our lab at "Mekong II". (Note: One of Tommy and my favorite Richmond restaurants was Mekong on Broad St.) I took several nice walks on the beach and even managed to squeeze in a run at about 5am on Friday morning. The jet lag wasn't too bad on the way out, but really snowed me on the way back. The reality of this move is finally setting in, and is a bit overwhelming. However, I remain extremely positive and excited about this opportunity to live and work in such a unique and beautiful place. I go back this Friday (yes, it is insane) and will stay through next Wednesday. More pictures to come!

The pictures above include (in order) 1.view walking from my hotel into Waikiki area, 2. Waikiki from the Royal Hawaiian area, 3. the tallest palm trees I have ever seen 4. view of the beach from my hotel.

Love,

Maggie