An Insider’s View of Living in Paradise Part 1

The upside of living in Hawaii

We have now lived in Hawaii for a total of five years. That is longer than any other state we have lived in my entire adult life. I have a love/hate relationship with living here. A lot of people view living in Hawaii as paradise, and while it is always gorgeous, and the weather is perfect, it has challenges that make it extremely hard to live here.

The cons will be for another article for another day, but today I will discuss the pros.

Eternal Sunshine and perfect weather

Hawaii has one thing that makes it unbeatable, and that is perfect year-round weather. The sun shines 365 days a year, and even a day with a slight overcast is beautiful. I only need one summer wardrobe for myself and my children, so there is no need to change clothing seasons. We all have flip flops by the door.

However, living here, I never check the weather, no matter what day or season, you can almost always count on perfect weather for any outdoor activity.

Gorgeous beaches, views, and hikes

I mean, this is what is known for, and it’s true. If I am having a poor mental health day, all that I need to do is drive on the H3 highway that starts out in a tunnel and ends with an explosion of massive beauty. Leaving the tunnel you see the waving Ko’olau mountains with an aqua beach backdrop. It’s jaw-dropping.

The hikes are also some of the best in the world! The terrain can range from tropical rainforest to a banana and orchid forest, to a waterfall, and then to cascading green mountains. This rapid change of scenery can happen all on a two-mile hike. It's remarkable.

The culture

Ohana means family, and that is indeed what these islands are. There is a level of respect for the family unit that I have not seen anywhere else. Every adult is called aunty or uncle before their first name. They genuinely understand the islands as one big family.

Aloha is a word that everyone knows and means welcome or a gracious goodbye. It is honestly said and meant in love, and there is a spirit of the island that is unlike any other place.

Aloha is a word that everyone knows and means welcome or a gracious goodbye

Free-range chickens

Free-range chickens are another thing that makes this island awesome! They are everywhere! They are walking beside me when I am going for a jog. Or they crow at me from a tree when I am going for a walk.

I see them in the parking lots of grocery stores and restaurants. The chicken families that I see during my walks outside feel like part of my Ohana. They add another level to the charm of living in Hawaii.

Fruit trees

The fertile volcanic ash soil of Hawaii makes it ideal for growing certain crops like pineapple. The Dole plantation is here, and as you drive by, you can see a massive field of pineapples. On walks through nature, you can also find bananas, papayas, and guava that all grow wild.

Coconut trees flourish here as well as mangos. In the springtime, all you need to do is drive up to a massive mango tree in the wild, and you can grab a year’s worth of mango from the ground to freeze. People in Hawaii also have flourishing Lychee trees as well as avocado trees.

It is a tropical fruit paradise, and you don’t need to have a green thumb to grow them yourself.

Flowers

Another gorgeous crop here is all of the wildflowers. The state flower is the hibiscus flower, and they are vast and beautiful. As soon as you get off the airplane at the airport, you are greeted by the smell of plumeria flowers. They are everywhere.

Even though we have a small yard, we have two large plumeria trees that keep our ground covered with their raw beauty. Most of the leis you see are made of these flowers, and its easy enough to make them yourself with a needle and string.

Orchids are a flower that is known to be hard to grow in most places, but not in Hawaii. Here they grow in the wild. I have several pots of orchids on my porch, and they need very little attention. They flourish in all of their splendor year-round.

Whales

Whales are something that I did not fully realize were a significant part of the islands until I had lived here a couple of years, but they are quite a sight to behold. Kohala is the name for the humpback whales that come to Hawaii from December to May.

They love to come to the warm shallow waters of Hawaii to breed, birth, and nurse their young. For this reason, you can often see mothers and babies that are swimming alongside each other. Many boat tours specifically go out to observe whales, but during peak season, you can see them standing on the coast of the islands in places like Makapuu lighthouse.

It is truly a sight to behold and has deep cultural traditions with the Hawaiian islands, as seen in their ancient petroglyphs.

Final Thoughts

These are the things that I love about living in Hawaii, and I am forever grateful to have had these five years and counting of experiences. I will share my cons in another article, but even as I write to reflect on all that I love about this Aina or land, it makes me feel truly grateful to live here.