Forging Away - Part I: A Vacation in a Size 10

I have not written in a while. In fact, it has been more than a month since the last time I wrote! But it has been a very busy month, with many activities, a lot of achievements, changes, and new plans for the upcoming months. A month without writing is a long time, so this is going to be a multi-part blog, with the first installment being posted today. Here's Part I:

Hawaii - Wonderful vacation!
Andrew, the girls and I went on vacation to Hawaii, and what a great experience it was! We stayed in Oahu, and spent 9 wonderful days there. We had a couple of activities scheduled, like visiting the Polynesian Cultural Center where we took part of the Ali'i Luau, which included visits to villages of the Islands Nations of Polynesia (Tonga, Tahiti, Marquesas, Hawaii, Fiji, Aotearoa, and Samoa), Hula lessons, a canoe pageant, and of course, a delicious dinner, followed by a fantastic show, Ha - Breath of Life. 
My Bear and I at the Ali'i Luau
We also went snorkeling, which was also an awesome experience, and a first for the girls and I. Ileana and Andrew jumped into the water right away; Amanda and I were a bit afraid, but finally jumped in too and had a lot of fun. It is a magic world under water, with all the colorful fishes and plants there. To top it off, we also saw dolphins swimming by us.

My beautiful girls at the snorkeling trip
Our last big adventure was a visit to Pearl Harbor. Of course, with my hubby and Ileana being big history buffs we had instant access to information throughout the tour. It was moving being at the USS Arizona Memorial, and seeing the list of those that perished during the bombing. It was equally moving to be standing at the very same place where history took place, like when we were in the USS Missouri at the exact spot where World War II came to an end.

September 2, 1945: World War II came to an end
Then and Now
We did a lot more while in Hawaii. We visited the Hawaii Plantation Village, where we learned about the different ethnic groups that went to Hawaii to work on the sugar plantations, including Puerto Ricans, who arrived in Hawaii in 1900. It was so interesting to be so far away from home and know that my people had been there for a long time.

Puertorriqueños en Hawaii
We were there only 9 days, but we did so much that it seems as if we were there for much longer. So many pictures, so many experiences that it is impossible to put this down in a blog. Writing this has made me relive this wonderful vacation all over again.

Of course, I could not finish this first part without a big achievement for me. All the hard work that I had been doing for months paid off. I was definitively more fit and was able to handle all the walking and even the hiking at Manoa Falls, which although considered an "easy" one, it can be difficult considering the altitude, the muddy paths, etc. And it all came to a close when I was able to get on my size 10 bathing suit. Oh, did it feel good to get into that bathing suit without problems! I felt great; my girls complimented me, and my hubby loved it.

Success!
It has been a long journey, but the results have all been worth it. And it has encouraged me to continue on my journey to get healthy. But I will tell you more of that on Part II later on this week. Be sure to come back!

Rosa

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