Entering a New World: Leaving Hawai’i
Hawai’i vs. The Mainland ~ A comparison of the Hawaiian Islands to the east coast of the U.S. mainlandIt’s Cold Outside
I’ve recently been talking to my friends and family in Hawai’i and they were telling me that it’s cold outside! What’s cold to them? 64 degrees. Pfft. I’d run out to the beach in a bikini in that kind of weather. My mom reassures me that everyone is in sweats and sweaters, all bundled up.
I remember when that was cold to me too. Ever since I moved to New Jersey, when I’d go home on winter break, I would never feel cold, at night, camping right on the beach, I never needed to cover up.
But you’d be surprised how well you adapt to tropical weather. If I moved back home it would take less than a year for 60 degrees to be cold again.
I’m not too sure how mainland weather adaptation works, though. I guess I’m used to the extreme cold and extreme heat. I don’t love it and just go on living like everyone else. Wearing gloves, hats and heavy winter coats. Knowing that it’s freezing outside. I wish it snowed more in New Jersey. The past three winters I’ve spent here have been mild at best. It’s been cold enough to snow, but there were no clouds in the sky. When it snows, the next day it’s usually 40 degrees outside.
Growing up in Hawai’i, on the island of O’ahu where the weather ranges from the low to mid 60s to the mid to high 80s doesn’t prepare you for…well anything. For a long time, I couldn’t even fathom how a place that can get so cold, cold enough to snow, can get so hot in the summer, hot enough to require air conditioning or death. It definitely makes me appreciate Hawai’i and how lucky I was to grow up in such a perfect place.
Mele Kalikimaka (Merry Christmas in Hawaiian)
As I said in an earlier post, I didn’t get to spend Christmas at home with my family in Hawai’i. Every year we celebrate with a huge family and friends Christmas Eve party—a tradition we’ve been holding at my home in Hawai’i for longer than I’ve been alive.
In Hawai’i the Hawaiian language is emphasized pretty heavily. If you’re in the public school system, a Hawaiian language teacher (also known as a Kupuna) teaches the language until sixth grade.
If you are in Hawai’i for Christmas, you’ll hear Mele Kalikimaka (meh lay kah lee kee ma kah) which means Merry Christmas in Hawaiian. Since it never gets cold in Hawai’i (to you mainlanders, at least) we celebrate by surfing and enjoying the sun as if that were our Christmas present. The Christmas songs are different (along with the traditional) but we have many Hawaiian bands that sing traditional music with a Hawaiian spin. Like the twleve days of Christmas. I’ve heard the mainland parody of this and I have to say, it’s not as good!
For a sample of the twelve HAWAIIAN days of Christmas here is the first line (tutu means grandma in Hawaiian)
On da first day of Christmas my tutu gave to me, one minah bird in one papaya tree…) then it goes on the numbah two day of Christmas… and so on and so forth with our local spin.
I missed home a lot this year, especially the nice weather and my dog. But there is always next year and I can’t complain since I had a pretty good mainland Chirstmas too.
A Mainland Christmas
So I celebrated my first Christmas and New Year’s in New Jersey. It was a lot better than I could have expected. I spent it with my New Jersey native boyfriend and his family (which feel a lot like my extended mainland family) and they welcomed me with open mainland arms, his mom with a strong embrace and knowing smile that I missed my family and the traditions that came along with this time of the year.
My parents sent me more presents than usual because I was spending it without them and they felt bad and missed me. So I had many if not more presents to open than my boyfriend. It was nice, a first for me.
Christmas in the mainland is different because of the music, accents and other minor details, but overall the main things are the same. Family and close friends come over to be together, everyone is happy and grateful to have each other at least once a year. They all laugh, tease, converse and have a good time, much like anywhere else in the world. The feeling in the air is the same, warm energy almost glowing with coziness.
I expected a white Christmas but I didn’t get one. It did snow a little so far this winter but not on the actual day, so I found myself still dreaming of a white Christmas.
The Hawaiian Race
There is no easy way to explain the culture of the Hawaiian Islands without accidentally forgetting something important. So, I will try my best.
First of all and this is a popular question, is Hawaiian an ethnicity?
The answer is YES! Hawaiians lived in the islands before they were discovered by the white man (haha) otherwise known as Captain Cook. Much like Native Americans, they inhabited all eight islands and lived a semi-civilized lifestyle (according to the invaders/discoverers.) Their time dates back hundreds of years before their “discovery” by mainland travelers.
They had their own language and customs. They lived in a well-oiled society, working among eachother. They are polynesian descendants. Their exact origin is only in theory because for a very long time their history was spoken, not written down.
People often confuse Hawaiians with people are from there-meaning they live there- and people who are actually Hawaiian. If you were born and raised in Hawai’i, you are not Hawaiian unless you are of Hawaiian ancestry. You could be born and raised in the mainland, but still be Hawaiian.
To deny that there is such a thing as a Hawaiian race would be completely incorrect. They exist, they were put to the test when discovered… and survived.
Homesick
I’ve been feeling really homesick for a little while now. No matter what state you’re from, if you move away, you’re likely to feel this way. But being from Hawai’i, where the world is so different from New Jersey, makes it a little harder. The weather is changing drastically. It’s getting really cold. In the past two winters I have experienced in New Jersey, I have a feeling this one is going to be rough. People have often told me that winters have been mild the past couple years, so I think this one is going to be a real one.
Every time the season changes from warm to bitter cold (in my experience, at least) I get a little sick; my throat hurts and my nose gets stuffed. Currently, my nose is not stuffed but my throat hurts. I have been told that I am sick, but if these are the only symptoms and when one is stuffed the other isn’t sore and vice versa, than isn’t it just my tropical island immune system adapting and most likely saying, “What do you think you are doing here?”
Anyway, prospects of going home are despairing, at best. I really just want to see my friends, especially my dog, Maka (pictured above at my beach) and feel like I’m me for a little while. I don’t know how many people feel this but my friends here know me as I was from 20 years old and on. I was a different person before that, not necessarily better, but I feel more like myself when I am in the islands. Like I don’t have to hesitate before saying something, think before I speak, look before I leap. Plus…winter? What winter? Winter is an absurd notion only mainlanders talk about.
I think the main reason, however, is because after Halloween, even before Thanksgiving, the Christmas spirit enters the islands in such a different way than here, in the mainland. Its still warm and a Hawaiian Christmas is celebrated. I will touch more on that later, but I was just feeling homesick, so I thought I would post on it. Thanks.
Good Luck and Happy living!
The Scarcity of Jobs in Hawai’i
There are jobs in Hawai’i. There is no doubt in my mind that you can find work! It’s not about whether there is work, but whether there is the work that you desire. Anyone can take up waitressing, secretarial duties, construction work etc., but can you find the career and stability that you’re seeking?
College graduates have higher aspirations. They want to become something and use their degrees they worked hard to earn (and paid a ton of money for), well at least most of them. But are there really opportunities out there for you?
I am currently not living at home, Hawai’i, (where I would love to be) because I want a career in the field of journalism and the chances of that happening (from entry level) are extremely low in comparison to most mainland locations.
I am not saying that if you want to work just to make money, survive and love where you live, you can’t do that. You can! But, for me, I want to love all aspects of my life; where I live, who I’m with and what I do.
The reality of living in Hawai’i is that it is an island. The resources are limited, which means, so are the opportunities.
Opportunity Comes-A-Knockin’
So, if you’re curious, I got the job I had wrote about earlier.
I am working for a newspaper that has an average circulation of 150,000 on weekdays and Saturdays, double that amount on Sundays and has a readership of about 650,000, not including the online readers. So there is a substantial audience and I am very happy to be a part of this company. Needless to say, I’m writing obituaries and taking care of the events calendar, but it’s definitely a start. I do have a theory about newspapers and how much longer they will be in existence, but that’s a whole different article. Read the rest of this entry »
Opportunities vs. Setbacks
Everyone who isn’t living under a rock knows that the economy isn’t doing so hot especially with the fall of some of the ‘greats’ on Wall Street.
In Hawai’i, it has always been a struggle to find good work or a worthwhile career. Many qualified recent college graduates living in Hawai’i are in more of a slump than their fellow peers living in the mainland.
I graduated with my Bachelor’s in Journalism from a mainland college. My intentions have always been to carve out a new life in the mainland. People ask; Why did you leave Hawai’i? Assuming the perfection of the paradise isles means beautiful beaches, tanned bodies and trees that grow money.
Well, here’s a reality check, work there is scarce, especially for grads who intend to fulfill a career in the journalism field. Now, I don’t know how marketable other career choices are, but I do know that you have to be better than your average graduate to land gainful employment in most fields. I also thought that the hotel business would be a rather abundant market, but unless you speak fluent Japanese or have outstanding experience, even the hotel industry can be more competitive than anywhere else. Read the rest of this entry »
