too.”
“Yeah, I’m definitely
getting excited, the closer we get to it.”
We didn’t have a chance
to say any more as at that moment Tom came up and organized us all.
He’d checked us all in online before, handed out boarding passes,
and we all lined up to check in our luggage.
“So I was looking up
the place we’re staying at online the other day,” Lisa started as
we waited our turn to drop off our luggage. “It’s basically the
most amazing place ever. Every room has a view of either Diamond
Head, or the beach. We’re right in the middle of Waikiki, where all
the action is.”
“This is probably a
really dumb question, but what do you do in Hawaii? Like, do
you just sit by the pool and drink mai tais, or do you go out and
spend the day in the ocean, surfing, or what?”
“Well you can do
whatever you want. The resort we’re staying at can organize
basically any trip you want. You know what? I’m going to take you
snorkelling. We basically take a boat out, they take us to bays
that are filled with coral, tropical fish, turtles, octopi, and
more. It’s totally amazing, I guarantee you it’s something you’ll
never forget.”
“That sounds awesome!
I’m also going to learn how to surf, I think. It’s just one of
those things that I don’t think I should go to Hawaii without
taking a surfing lesson, even if I’ll be totally awful at it.”
“Definitely. I agree.
You should do that, while I sit on the beach and drink. Apart from
that, basically just relax. There’s a ton of shopping you can do,
or just lounge by the pool and have sexy men bring you drinks. It’s
awesome. You’re going to love Hawaii.”
We dropped off our bags
and went through security. Lisa showed me how everything worked,
and I’m pretty sure I made it through without looking like the lone
idiot who had never been on a plane before.
“Ok, we’re at gate 17.
Let’s go find a seat now, or we’re never going to get one at all.
We’re boarding in like, twenty minutes, so it shouldn’t be too
long.”
When we got to gate 17
there was an airplane already there, its enormous nose pointing
straight at me as I stared at it out the window.
“Is that what we’re
flying in?” I asked Lisa. It was enormous! I had never really
actually seen a plane close up before. I knew they were big, but
this was way bigger than I had thought.
“Yeah, it is. They’re
just cleaning it up now before letting us in.”
“Holy shit, that’s
huge.”
“Not really, it’s just
a normal sized plane,” Lisa said, laughing. “I always forget you’ve
never flown before, but yeah, this is basically the type of plane
you’ll take anywhere in the country.”
“Wow.” I stared at it
for a while after sitting down next to Lisa as we found a couple of
chairs. Don and Karen, the receptionist and another salesman from
our office, sat down across from us and we chatted for a while
until we were finally called onto the flight.
I was a little bit
apprehensive at first, and when the engines roared to life I
genuinely thought I was going to die, but the plane took off, my
stomach plummeted inside my body, and we were in the air. It was
all pretty uneventful after that, and seven hours later we found
ourselves landing in Honolulu.
Tom had organized for a
shuttle from the resort to come and pick us up. We climbed into the
seats, and I admired my new lei and enjoyed the heat. It was night
time now, just after eight, but it was still very, very warm.
Definitely nicer than the weather in Minneapolis, that was for
sure.
When we got to the
resort, an efficient looking blonde woman came out to greet us.
“Aloha, I’m Sandra.
Welcome to the Hibiscus Resort Waikiki. We’ve got your rooms all
organized, I’ll call out your names and please come and get your
keys. The pool is on the third floor, with a perfect view over the
ocean. It’s open 24 hours, and you’ll need your key to access it.
The gym is on the top floor, and you’ll need your key to