When I went on my study abroad to Italy four years ago, I was so lucky to make some awesome friends and we still try to get together as often as possible. Jo, Chelsea, Emily and I have been able to see each other in smaller groups since then, but because we're spread out all over with our Husbands the last time that we were all together as a group was my wedding! And... that doesn't really count anyway. So since Jo lives in Hawaii now and we're all relatively on the West Coast, we decided it would be perfect timing to all meet up for a girls' weekend in Honolulu!
This was the first day we all spent together back in 2008 on a day trip to the island of Capri
And this is us in 2012! We live in four different cities, have new husbands (and a baby on the way for Chelsea!) but we had just as much fun together as we did four years ago.
We spent our first morning there snorkeling at Hanauma Bay - always a favorite! Jo put together some fun videos from their footage from the trip, too. Here is the video from the first day:
Snorkeling Hanauma Bay from johanna franco on Vimeo.
After that, we headed over to Diamond Head to hike to the top
And then we rewarded ourselves with some awesome shave ice and malasadas. Yum!
We spent the next day on Pipeline beach and around the North Shore. Aaron (Jo's husband) grew up in Laie so we got to see all of his favorite places!
They introduced us to Ted's Bakery (to die for) AND, of course, we had to stop for some coconut shrimp. Yes, we ate A LOT of good food on this trip :)
Our afternoon at Pipeline beach was awesome and the weather was absolutely perfect. So was the water! We had way too much fun playing in the waves.
Here's another fun video Jo put together of our adventures that day:
On the drive back, we of course had to stop at the Dole Plantation for some pineapple whip. The five us us polished off this entire sundae. Don't judge.
We spent our last full day on the island on the North Shore starting at Waimea Bay and then hitting some favorite spots on our way into Laie. Here's the last of the videos that Jo put together from our day on the North Shore. And yes, we had to stop for more chocolate haupia pie at Ted's. :)
We also got to stop by the temple and the visitors center which I always love to do. Such a unique and beautiful place!
Even though it's ultra touristy, Waikiki holds a special place in my heart for all the memories I have from over the years. We had some time to burn before our flights left on our last day, so we headed over to Waikiki beach to get Yogurtland (my ultimate favorite) and walk along the beach for a while.
The four of us packed a lot into four days, but we're so glad that we had the chance to finally be together all at once! Jo and Aaron were awesome to let the three of us stay at their place for the weekend. We can't wait to go back for our next reunion. Maybe we'll bring our husbands next time. ;)
