Hawaii?? Anyone ever live there?

[charlotte49er]

WOW....That is one small Island then! Good news is I would spend a lot of time fishing!

There's like 7 islands, but one is off limits because the Navy used it for shell practice and it's loaded with unexploded bombs :eek: and another one is privately owned.

Hawaii is the biggest island. (That's why they call it "The Big Island".)

Japanese own all the golf courses, and everything has 2 languages. English and Japanese. Seriously, Japanese own more land than to Americans in the islands.

Great sea life. Gorgeous women! Tattoo parlors on every corner thanks to the Military.

Go for it! Enjoy!

Oh, if you have ever been to Southern Cal and you think that is casual, wait until you get to the islands!

[Davidson Deac II]

WOW....That is one small Island then! Good news is I would spend a lot of time fishing!

Its bigger than Charlotte. Probably about as big the area that includes Charlotte to Concord. Only problem is that over half the Island is sheer Moutains and unihabitable, so the people crowd into a few areas along the coast and the a flat area in the center north of the Island. And the traffic is horrible. Far worse than Charlotte during rush hour. And finding your way around can be a pain because every road name has like 15 vowels in it.

But walking around in the middle of winter wearing shorts and sandals is wonderful. :)

It is fairly easy to catch a short flight to the other Islands.

One thing I will warn you is that some of the locals don't much care for mainlanders. There is a term called Haole and it mainly applies to mainlanders from the US. And they normally don't mean in a positive way. It shouldn't be much of a problem for you, but if you have kids going to school there, they could get some harrassment.

Oh and Spam sucks. As does poi. But you can get some great Asian food there, and the seafood is pretty decent as well.

[KillerKat]

My dad lives there. If you want to as well, you have to make sure you're great at what you do so that you get paid well. If you aren't, expect at some point to be having to work Monday through Saturday. Thats what happened to my dad, even though he is great at what he does...they just weren't paying him enough..

Him and his wife ended up not enjoying living there anymore and hadn't enjoyed it since they first moved there in 2004. So they moved from Hawaii to Florida last year after living there for 6 years. But in May his former job couldn't find anyone better, so they offered him better pay and offered to pay all expenses moving back. Now he can go back to working monday through friday and enjoying living there again.

[ladypanther]

Sounds like a great opportunity. If I had the chance I would not turn it down.

Congrats to you. Let me know if there is a job there for me.

[jim stone]

I think I once smoked Maui Wowie. Don't look to buy any land there, I think it is illegal for non-Hawaiians to own. I would also suggest you read Michener's Hawaii before you decide. Do that and you will knows more about Hawaii than most Hawaiians.

[The Pieyed Piper]

somebody say maui wowie?

[thefuzz]

The water is cooler than you are used to, and there isn't nearly as much color under the surface that you would expect.

That said, I would probably go, but look long and hard into what type of housing you can afford when you are there, it's really expensive.

[Happy Panther]

I haven't been but have heard people rave about Hawaii but hate Honolulu itself.

Second hand information so who knows.

[Davidson Deac II]

Honolulu had some really great nightlife, but because of all the military there, the ratio of men to women wasn't very good for us guys. But the traffic is terrible, far worse that Charlotte. I think a younger person who likes to party would love Honolulu while us old fogies might not care for it to much. :)

Regarding cost of living, really small apartments will go for an outrageous sum. In 1994, I rented a house with three other people, and the total cost was about 2000 a month. But that was in Kailua which was on the windward (east) side of the Island, and I was dealing with a 40 minute commute to Pearl Harbor every morning. From what I understand, cost is about 3000 a month now. Gas is probably about a dollar more a gallon. Food bill will be about 25-45% higher than here in the mainland states. But you never have to use heat, and AC is only needed during midday. It rarely is required at night.

[Carolina Mike II]

There's like 7 islands, but one is off limits because the Navy used it for shell practice and it's loaded with unexploded bombs :eek: and another one is privately owned.

Hawaii is the biggest island. (That's why they call it "The Big Island".)

Japanese own all the golf courses, and everything has 2 languages. English and Japanese. Seriously, Japanese own more land than to Americans in the islands.

Great sea life. Gorgeous women! Tattoo parlors on every corner thanks to the Military.

Go for it! Enjoy!

Oh, if you have ever been to Southern Cal and you think that is casual, wait until you get to the islands!

I actually have lived in San Pedro before, but spent more time at Seal Beach and Huntington Beach (learned to surf). Thanks for the info!! :biggrin5:

[Carolina Mike II]

Honolulu had some really great nightlife, but because of all the military there, the ratio of men to women wasn't very good for us guys. But the traffic is terrible, far worse that Charlotte. I think a younger person who likes to party would love Honolulu while us old fogies might not care for it to much. :)

Regarding cost of living, really small apartments will go for an outrageous sum. In 1994, I rented a house with three other people, and the total cost was about 2000 a month. But that was in Kailua which was on the windward (east) side of the Island, and I was dealing with a 40 minute commute to Pearl Harbor every morning. From what I understand, cost is about 3000 a month now. Gas is probably about a dollar more a gallon. Food bill will be about 25-45% higher than here in the mainland states. But you never have to use heat, and AC is only needed during midday. It rarely is required at night.

Thanks for all the great information! It well truly help knowing this stuff before I just arrive.

[Cat]

Do it. Who gets that kind of opportunity? not many people.

Vacationed there for 2 weeks and its the only island i could live on because it has everything you'd want like in America but it's an island. Expensive though.

[Carolina Mike II]

I'd still have the Huddle to keep me updated on Carolina Panther News!!

[Davidson Deac II]

Thanks for all the great information! It well truly help knowing this stuff before I just arrive.

Np, and fwiw I did mostly enjoy my time there.