Hawaii

Hawaii Pacific University (HPU)

-Closed- A welcoming and unimaginably gorgeous site, it is a shame that it was closed after it's peak of fame in 2010.

Paradise in Essence

CTY Hawaii in Kaneohe, O'ahu was perhaps the smallest site, boasting 55 or so students in its last year, 2010. It originally offered several courses, which dwindled to only include Volcanoes: Hawaii and Oceanography: The Hawaiian Pacific (Marine Biology). It hosted a mixture of CAA and CTY students. There was very little tradition, and the canon simply consisted of American Pie, Stairway, and Forever Young. Despite the lack of tradition, the location was more than enough to make the summer enjoyable. The biweekly trips to the Waikīkī beach and Honolulu were amazing, featuring a BBQ instead of normal dinner. Both courses had amazing field trips, with Oceanography taking boat trips around Oahu every other day or so and Volcanoes' mountain hiking and Big Island trip to Kilauea and Mauna Loa.

The HPU campus was host to wild animals on the daily including various tropical birds and the very rare wild boar. Flowers of all beauties and colors were a lovely sight, enjoyable no matter where you looked or walked. The beach was always in sight. Though the sun was not. Pineapple rain (term for rain in Hawaii) is just as common as sunshine during Hawaiian summers. Nearly every five minutes a sprinkle would come down. The weather was still warm and always enjoyable. Such a beautiful place to be, Hawaii was an unforgettable experience incomparable to all other CTY sites based on location alone.

Important/ Do Not Read: Teej Mali, aka Julie or The Crocodile of Happiness, an unforgettable RA and friend to all alumni of 10.1 & 10.2 has passed on the morning of July 24th, 2013. She was amazing.. insightful to all walks of life, tearfully hopeful, poetic and deep-hearted, loving to the fullest extent and she will be missed. If you knew her, you know she was easy to love. She was everyones best friend. It breaks my heart that she's gone in the worst way. We say goodbye to handfuls of friends each year at CTY, and even though it feels like goodbye forever, it never truly is, except for in Teej's case. So pass on her love and make the world a better place. It was her final wish was to bring Africa, America and Micronesia together. So shine on you crazy diamond, bye bye miss american pie.. We love you Teej.

Notes: Humuhumunukunukuapua'a, the Hawaiian state fish. Jump on it! Jump on it! The Crocodile of Happiness loves you.