Jenni goes Stateside: Aloha from Oahu

Wow what an emotional moment; the end of my Stateside posts! I've been back in England nearly 2 weeks though so I suppose it is time (even if I don't want it to be). Atleast I'll be going out with a bang; Hawaii was amazing and one of the most beautiful places I've ever been too! And never have I seen so many vowels used in so few words!
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After experiencing, the fast paced cities and the scenic national parks, it was nice to finally experience a relaxing beach holiday. Although we're a family who don't do things by halves and so instead of just lying on a beach towel for 5 days, we decided to make the most of our time there and we went on a swimming-with-dolphins day! We went out on a boat, fully kitted out in life jacket, flippers, face mask and snorkel, and found them nearly straight away and there were loads of them! They're spinner dolphins so they were doing lots of flips and it's mating season so we saw loads of baby dolphins (too cute for words). The second picture shows just how close to them we were (yes that's me, no I don't know what I'm doing with my legs). We also found a tiny baby octopus which was cute but no match against a baby dolphin. Then we went on the boat round to turtle bay (the part of the Hawaiian island where turtles live, not the Caribbean themed restaurant) and went swimming with giant sea turtles. The photographer guessed this one was over 50 years old! It did make me feel a little like I was shooting a sequel to finding nemo, especially when the turtle stopped swimming and let itself be carried by the current. Maybe there is fact in fiction afterall (or in Disney/Pixar films atleast). We also spotted a little sting ray and loads of fish, including a black and white striped one exactly the same as Gill out of finding nemo (I see a theme occurring here). It was such a surreal experience, having dolphins and sea turtles swimming just underneath you and it's definitely something I won't be forgetting anytime soon!

If you could write a list of clichéd things to do while visiting Hawaii, I'm pretty sure we would've ticked them all off. Not only did we swim with dolphins but we also went to a Polynesian dancing show. No there were no grass skirts or coconut bra's but apart from that it was exactly how I imagined it. It was really nice dancing and they all had amazing singing voices (which is more than can be said for me so I tend to steer clear of any karaoke or other singing opportunities). I also spotted the Hawaiian doppelgangers of Sam Faiers and of my friend Leah - well they do say we all have one!

 

Okay I'll be the first to admit I'm not a sporty girl; I go running but that's purely to stop me putting weight on and not because I actually enjoy it. But body boarding is a sport I really do love. I've only done it before in Devon so it was a novelty to do it on Waikiki beach (well there is no better place afterall). I didn't have time to learn proper surfing so I left that to the experts and stuck with my small board. Although it's still one of the most tiring things you could ever do! After you've waded all the way out to where the waves break (and it stays shallow for ages so you have to wade for miles), you catch a wave back to shore and then have to keep repeating the whole thing over and over, with huge strong waves coming at you from all directions. I can see why water sports keeps the likes of Cameron Diaz in such amazing shape! I'm normally the worst of my family at any sports we attempt to play together, tennis being pretty much my worst, but with this one I was the best of all of us! Maybe I've found my one true calling...

I thought I'd make a bit of a Hawaiian lookbook, filled to the brim with tropical prints. The photos aren't very consistent in lighting, framing or focus but that's what you get for using an iPhone instead of a real camera I guess. I love this missguided two piece and it was perfect for Hawaii, or any other summer holiday because it's not something you can wear any other time of the year, making it doubly special. I love the bright colours and the length of the skirt, although the deep-V of the bralet was a tiny bit too deep so I had to keep adjusting it every 5 seconds. I think it was around £25 for the set, although it's something I bought just before I went so I can't remember exactly. My la moda sandals didn't quite work so I just wore my flip-flops (or 'thongs' as Americans would say) which I've had for about 6 years but I refuse to throw them away or replace them because they're so comfy. I finished the outfit with a red lip, for which I used L'Oreal Color riche in 461 Scarlett crème.

When in Hawaii... Of corse I had to try a Mai Tai! It doesn't top my favourites chart (up there are sex on the beach, strawberry daiquiri and Pornstar martini) but it was very nice and very fitting for my holiday. It doesn't come close to the revolution cocktails I had the other day though, they're the best out there!

Slightly better lighting on these photos because we went out earlier to watch the Polynesian show. You've seen this before but I had to show you again anyway because I love it so much; in fact it was probably my favourite outfit of the holiday, or atleast of this part of it. This playsuit was £24.99 and is the perfect tropical print; especially with me being in Honolulu and everything. The fit is really nice and it disguises itself as a dress quite well. I just love the crossover style of the front and the low back, and I wore it with my la moda sandals (£24) and pink lipstick (No7 in Classic rose).

 

I wore this tropical print (can you see the pattern?) two-piece for a planned day of shopping in Honolulu. It was from missguided and I love the pom-pom edging - its just so cute. Loads of other bloggers bought the cami version in yellow but I prefer the pink seeing as I have quite a lot of yellow in my wardrobe (although come to think of it I have a lot of everything in my wardrobe!). I added my worn-out flip flops again and this cute ted baker beach bag that one of my best friends bought me for my birthday. I finished by putting my hair up (very unlike me but it was really hot) and adding huge sunglasses and then left to go shopping. Or atleast that's what I planned. When I left my hotel, I was told that the whole street was closed for the filming of a cop TV show; Hawaii Five-0. So I had to walk 3 blocks the wrong way, then cross the street, loop back round the other way and then walk back up the 5 blocks to the shops. Even then I had to keep crossing the road because they had shut various different bits. Only in America...

It's a tradition of mine to always wear white on the last night of my holiday because it's the best way to show off a good tan (although by this point I looked more mucky than tanned, my mum even kept asking me if my hands were dirty). I love the simplicity of this missguided dress which was £24.99 (I've only just realised that everything I wore in Hawaii was missguided, what can I say they obviously do Hawaiian vibes well), and the neckline is gorgeous. I kept it an all-white affair by adding my la moda sandals. Can we all have a minutes silence for my beautiful shoes which I had to leave behind because as you can see in the photos, they refused to do up after they got trashed at the foam party in Magaluf. I planned to re-buy them but they don't stock them anymore! I suppose we are going into autumn, maybe it's time to let go. I went with a Marilyn Monroe-esque look by adding my L'Oreal red lipstick again.

I've had the 3-weeks-of-a-lifetime and it's been so amazing! I'm actually so sad it's all over now but don't worry, I plan to live in the states one day so I'll be back!