Even though I really couldn't chose my favorite moment in Hawaii, I would have to say that the jungle hike was one of my favorite days. Brian decided to opt out of the hike because it was described as pretty treacherous and his ankle had been bothering him. I'm really glad he did because I probably would have been freaking out, worrying about him falling off a cliff. After driving around all morning trying to find the entrance of the trail, Brian dropped us off and we began the descent. It was pretty surreal because we started on a street, clambered down a steep slope made of garbage while clinging to a rope, then we were in the middle of the jungle. It really was like stepping into another room. Or another world, oohhhh.
It was really incredible and no length of description would do it justice. It was kind of a mix of Avatar and The Jungle Book (pretty eloquent description, I know). The trees and vines were massive and the air suddenly smelled fresh, with a tinge of ginger. There was actually wild ginger growing all over. It was a dense jungle with a trace of a trail and a river that ran from the top of the mountain down through the forest. Although we wanted to hike the entire mountain, we didn't have time - it would have taken about 5 hours and we had St. Patty's celebrations to get back to. We set our sights on the first of three waterfalls and set off.
The trail was hard to find and was marked occasio
nally with trail tape. We crossed back and forth across the river multiple times trying the find it. The river was tempting but after Dan told me that ferile pigs live and defecate in the river at the top of the mountain, the water didn't look quite as drinkable.I'm not sure if we ever found a proper trail. We followed an old rusty pipeline up the mountain and hoped for the best. As we got higher, the trail began to become nonexistent. We were waking on a 12 inch edge of muddy trail, lea
ning in towards the mountain so we wouldn't fall. A fall would have been brutal - through trees and brush to a rocky bottom. I didn't have time to fall that day. Definitely had a few heart attack moments when my feet slipped in the mud. Luckily we all made it one piece. 
It was one of those exhilarating moments when you're really happy you made it but you're not quite sure how.We heard the waterfall long before we saw it but when we did finally see the falls, I realized it was definitely worth it. It was a beautiful waterfall that cut through the brush of the forest, cascading down the rocks.
I've dubbed Terry, Mowgli, because he's such a jungle creature and I feel like he looks like the kid from the jungle book. Mowgli jumped right into the falls for a hard core shower. I was ok with just looking. Making our way back was a bit faster because we didn't have to search for the trail as long. We pulled our way out of the beautiful jungle world back into Hawaiian reality. We were covered in mud and sweat and walked most of the way back. It was time to get the St. Patty's festivities going.
We had a few car bombs before heading out to a pub. For those of
you who don't know, car bombs are a combination of all things Irish (minus the leprechaun). A shot made of mostly Jameson whiskey and a bit of Bailey's Irish Cream is dropped into a half glass of Guinness. When you drink it, it tastes kind of like a chocolate milk shake. Kinda. Regardless, it's really an appropriate St. Patty's day thing to do.Our cousin, Patrick, also lives in Honolulu but we hadn't had a chance to meet up all week (he was working on his master's thesis). We finally were able to meet up with Patrick on St. Patrick's day. Ha, that worked out. It was great to see him, even just briefly.
St. Patty's day was our last night in Hawaii. Sadly, the next day we restuffed our suitcases, said goodbye to Danny and his tropical paradise and were off - finally - to our final destination...
