Well, I’ve finally arrived and am very excited to be here. Not long after I landed, my host for the next little while picked me up in his small white Toyota and we made our way to Captain Cook in South Kona. The drive from the airport was long but scenic. I talked to my host, Kris, for a while about the island. He told me he had been there for only a few years, but loved being secluded from the world.
The island isn’t very populated, which he likes — I think I will too. He said one of the best things about the island was how diverse it was. In Kona, it’s dry and hardly rains. On the other side of the island in Hilo, it constantly rains. There’s even snow on one of the mountains! I got very excited about the possibility of exploring the different climates and scenery Hawaii had to offer
We were soon off the main road and traveling at about 5mph through an area from what looked like Jurassic Park. The big thick trees made an archway above the road, blocking out the sky and the squawking of all different types of birds were all around us. We drove up and down steep, muddy hills and the vines from the banyan trees fell from above, lightly scratching the hood of the car.
Big Island | Wow!
As we arrived at the “Surf Shack” as Kris called it, I was immediately in awe of his incredible view. Kris explained to me that since the island was still young, most of the land lacked development so a lot of the homes, schools, and business are built on hills further away from the shore. “Everyone has a good view when you live in Kona!”
View from the surf shack
As the sun set on my first day here, we ate an assortment of different fruits that Kris had picked himself from one of the neighboring farms I’ll be volunteering at: fresh mango, papaya, avocado and lilikoi (passion fruit)! Talk about eating on a budget! Tomorrow will be a day of exploring the island a bit more before getting to work.
— Porter
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