 | A WRITER'S WIT |  Queen Lili'uokalani |
MY JOURNEY OF STATES is a series in which I relate my sixty-year quest to visit all fifty states in the U.S. In each post I tell of my relationship to that state, whether brief or long, highlighting personal events. I include the year of each state's entry into the union and related celebrations. I hope you enjoy my journey as much as I have. This is the twenty-ninth post of fifty.
Hawaii (1977, 1996)
I first visited Hawaii in 1977, my most momentous journey since I’d begun teaching in 1974, the ten-day vacation being the first I’d ever spent alone. I borrowed $750 from the credit union, and I figured I would do a lot of sightseeing and reading at the beach. On the third day, however, I met a number of young men at a bar, Hula’s, and we palled around for the remainder of the trip.
The second time, in 1996, Ken and I celebrated our twentieth year together by taking a cruise among the islands. The now defunct cruise line had purchased the SS Independence and SS Constitution. The Independence held about six hundred passengers, a crew of three hundred. It may have been the most carefree trip we’d ever taken in our lives. Once aboard the ship, you had few worries, few decisions to make. You could stay on board during all the stops, or you could take excursions. At the end of both trips, I felt as if I never wanted to go home. I imagine that many visitors and residents never want to leave, as well.
Hawaii became the fiftieth state in 1959, when I was eleven years old.
Hawaii became the fiftieth state in 1959, when I was eleven years old.
Historical Postcard
If you missed earlier My Journey of States posts, please click on a link:
1-Kansas 13. New Jersey 25. Michigan
2-Oklahoma 14. Delaware 26. Wisconsin
3-Texas 15. New York 27. Minnesota
4-Louisiana 16. Connecticut 28. Iowa
5-Missouri 17. Colorado
6-Illinois 18. Arkansas
7-Indiana 19. California
8-Ohio 20. Florida
9-Pennsylvania 21. Mississippi
10-West VA 22. New Mexico
11-Maryland 23. Tennessee
12. Virginia 24. Arizona
NEXT TIME: My Journey of States-30 Georgia
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