Aloha from Maui, Oahu, and Kauai!

Joke #4: What does the ocean say to the shore?!

Peggy, Mike, and I had the most wonderful trip to Hawaii! It was my first trip to Hawaii and I had a total blast. The real adventure began the night before when I had to pack for the 11 day excursion, as packing is always an adventure for me. I managed to fit everything I needed for the vacation into one checked bag and a carry on but had no idea whether my bag was within the weight requirement. It is always something with me and the airlines! :)

The morning we left was so exciting! It was October 1st and the excitement of leaving for Hawaii was enough, but when I went to the magazine stand in Seatac Airport I spotted the new edition of the Seattle Metropolitan magazine. On page 3 of this particular issue was the Brotherton Cadillac advertisement with the photo we took the day I got “A brand new car!!!” I immediately bought an issue and it is now safely in my mother’s scrapbooking box, along with about 14 other copies :)

That day we flew into Maui and after a short drive from the airport we arrived at the most beautiful hotel right on the beach. It was so incredibly beautiful and I loved being in my room with my door open so I could fall asleep to the sound of the waves crashing on the beach. I woke up bright and early the next morning ready for my first full day in paradise! Well, it was early according to Hawaii Time; it was late morning Washington time! Regardless, I woke up to a gorgeous day and went for a long walk down the beach in a sundress and bare feet at 7 in the morning getting a tan. Ahhhh only in Hawaii!

While we were on the island of Maui we had the opportunity to go to the Maui County Fair and watch the very first Miss Aloha Maui crowned. Captain Mike was one of the marvelous judges at that pageant and the night before we went out to dinner with rest of the panel, Miss Hawaii herself, Raeceen, and the Miss Hawaii judge’s chair, Larry. We went out to a sushi restaurant where I tried everything put in front of me that Larry and Raeceen ordered. It wasn’t all bad and I thought that I might actually like sushi until an awful experience just a few days later. So very long story short, Devanni does NOT like sushi! :)

Immediately after the Aloha Maui pageant we took off for the airport to catch our flight to our next destination, Waikiki on Oahu! This of course meant, re-packing and lugging our suitcases. You would think that by now I would be getting better at this but unfortunately this was not the case. Each trip to the airport was definitely an adventure and I believe it was a less than an enjoyable one for poor Mike who had the unfortunate task of helping me cart my heavy luggage around. Thank you Mike for all of your help and being so patient with me on your vacation!!

Okay, back to the trip. We arrived in Oahu early in the afternoon and had just a short time to drop our clothes off at our hotel in Waikiki before we had to leave for the West Oahu pageant. *Interesting Fact* - This was the local pageant that Raeceen, the current Miss Hawaii, came from!! It was a beautiful pageant with lots of contestants and we watched three girls that night be crowned. It was a super fun day full of fabulous pageant festivities but also very long and exhausting. I was ready to sleep for 24 hours. Of course, I wouldn’t waste 24 hours sleeping in a paradise like Hawaii! I woke up early again and explored my first ABC store, which, were on every corner of Waikiki. They had everything you could possibly need on a vacation except stamps to mail your postcards home! That is when it comes in handy to have a prepared director like Peggy to help you out :)

On Monday was the day of the contestant lottery. We seated ourselves in the local Starbucks and waited for Washington to come up! It didn’t take long at all and I was able to select the exact number and place that I wanted to be! I will interview Monday afternoon, talent Tuesday, on-stage question on Wednesday, and evening gown and swimsuit on Thursday evening. I can hardly wait for the competition to arrive :)

For the next three days, Mike, Peggy, and I simply enjoyed being tourists. We layed out on the beach, spent time by the pool, snorkeled in Hanauma Bay, and paid a visit to the Pearl Harbor memorial. We also got to celebrate Mike’s birthday on the island of Oahu! There is SOOOOO much to do on this island you could live here forever and still not see everything! I thought about testing this theory but I thought that I would finish my year as Miss Washington and Miss America first :)

I have to draw special attention to my very favorite night that we spent in Waikiki. Thanks to Larry’s kind heart, generosity, and connections, we were able to attend a dinner show at the hotel Marriot and watch former Miss Hawaii Pele dance in the show. It was absolutely incredible and like nothing I had ever seen before. And it was even more special that we had an “in” to meet and take pictures with all of the dancers after the performance. Well, my referencing our “in” may have been a little over the top … really anyone who hung around afterward got a photo with the performers but it made me feel special and important! Hehehe

A few days later we, or I, had another packing nightmare and headed off to the island of Kauai. I had been warned about the chickens on this beautiful garden island but I did not expect to see what I saw when I just stepped out of the airport. There were chickens and roosters EVERYWHERE! They were as abundant as squirrels in the parks in Washington; just everywhere you looked there were chickens running around. It was very entertaining and fun for curious me to look at until the night came, and 2 am, and 6 am. The time clock in those birds must have been extremely thrown off from the hurricane that brought them there because those darn things croaked and cockle-doodle-dood at all hours of the morning! It’s funny to think back on now but in the moment I was not thinking happy thoughts about those birds :)

We stayed at the most beautiful resort in the entire world during our time on Kauai called the Waimea Plantation Cottages. I could have gotten lost in that place forever and been perfectly content. It was beyond beautiful and relaxing and I wished that I had more time to enjoy it! We were quite busy during our time on this part of the island helping out with the first ever Miss Island Mokihana pageant. Peggy was a judge and I co-emceed the program with Miss Hawaii.

Avery, the executive director for the program did an incredible job putting the show together and I had the best time! He also taught me how to sew a lei which was also a special memory from our quick visit. He made certain in dividing up the script that Raeceen got all of the difficult Hawaiian words to pronounce but I still got stuck with a few that I practiced diligently and proudly nailed the night of the show :) It was so much fun to be a part and yet another highlight from my year!

The next day we sadly packed our bags for the last time and left for the airplane that was going to take us home to Washington. It was a fantastic getaway and the perfect way to rest and rejuvenate before jumping in to Miss America preparations! Thank you Mike and Peggy for the incredible experience and Larry, Raeceen, and Avery for being such wonderful hosts during our stay!! I hope to return soon :)

And the answer to the very hilarious and wonderfully cheesy joke that you all have been anxiously awaiting is …………….. “Not much, it just waves!!!!”

Hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha

With lots and lots of love and laughter,
Devanni Partridge
Miss Washington 2009