Hawaii

After spending four very relaxing days in Hawaii I am now officially back in Texas. It's so good to be back, but I still haven't seen most of my family. At first I wasnt looking forward to being in Hawaii, but it turned out to be a very nice break between Samoa and home. I did a little bit of shopping, rode around the island on the busses, went to the beach, watched some surfing, and basically just chilled. It was wonderful, although a tad bit cold.

I came back to Houston on Saturday and have been staying with my sister at Rice until she finishes her finals on Tuesday. It worked out perfectly because this way I've gotten to say hi to all my friends back here before they leave for the holidays. Next semester is going to be so awesome. I've decided however that I really prefer just hanging around with no work, so I think that maybe I should just crash on campus next semester and not take any classes. That would be a lot of fun. However, I dont think my parents would be amused. What a shame!

As for culture shock- there hasnt been much. Wandering Ala Moana mall on Tuesday I kept wanting to speak Samoan, and it took me a little while to realize that I could actually call people on their cell phones, but mainly I'm just glad to be back. Yes it was a wonderful experience, but I'm not ready to give up everything here to move back and live on a tropical island. I realized that I'm not quite who I thought I was. Then again, I suppose that's part of what studying abroad is really about- discovering yourself. Hopefully I managed to do that. I think I have.