Ambria's Adventures

My second trip to Bangkok, Thailand, occurred when some travel friends decided to plan our New Year's party there to bring in 2020 (before anyone knew what a disaster the year would be). We, as a group, love to celebrate the new year in different locations around the world. Sadly, this was the first time our group split up and went to various places. My first trip to Bangkok was a few months earlier, so I was less excited about the location, but I looked forward to seeing my friends.   After 3 layovers and several hours, I landed at BKK airport close to 1am on December 30th. Luckily, 2 fellow traveling friends had stayed awake, and the plan was for me to crash with them until I could check in to my hotel room. Despite the long hours of traveling, I didn't go to sleep right away. Three of us sat and tried to catch up on the years that had passed since we last saw each other in person, Istanbul for one friend, and the other was one I had never met in real life up to that time. A...

One of the best ways for my friends and me to pre-game in Waikiki was by taking a quick, semi-scenic trip off the beach on a fun and friendly booze cruise. There are a few options, but the one I always ended up taking was the Na Hoku II (http://nahokuiiandmanukai.com/wp/) behind the Sheraton Hotel in Waikiki. You can call and make reservations for your group or take your chances and hang out near the area around the times they ship out (late morning, afternoon, and early evening). The prices change a bit according to the time of day. It was $35 per person when I last went on this trip, but the price may have gone up since then.  The best part about taking this short cruise is that you can sit and relax with your friends while having as many drinks as you can (all drink costs are covered with the entry fee). There are a variety of mixed drinks, along with Coors Light and PBR beers, and some non-alcoholic beverages available. And don't worry! There are bathrooms below deck....

In an attempt to be more active and not miss out on "Hawaii", some friends from school and I decided to make a bucket list group to plan events so we could cross off items on our list together. This only lasted about a month or so because people in the group realized they did not like each other very much (what an optimist I was to think a group of funny, wise women could remain friends). Nonetheless, I planned our first event, which was Stand Up Paddleboarding.  The girls and I decided to meet for lunch at Hiking Hawaii Cafe ( hikinghawaii808.com ). This was a relatively healthy place known for its smoothies and wraps (unfortunately, the last time I checked, the cafe had closed). After we were all accounted for and sufficiently fed, we left to enjoy the fun part of our day. We cross the street to Quality Surfboards Hawaii (www.qualitysurfboardshawaii.com) to rent the boards. It was only $30 for the day, but the store even offered $25 student discount (upon request). Th...

Because I'm just starting to blog about my bucket list, a lot of the things I've done have already taken place, and some I've done multiple times. I'm unsure how to best disseminate the stories (chronologically?) or if each item on its list needs its own post. I'm going to wing it and hope it works out.   Let's start with the last item that was able to be crossed off the list: The   Sandbar (or "Sand Bar") The sandbar is located in Kaneohe Bay on the northeast side of Oahu. There are several ways to get there and several points of access. At this point in time, I've been to the sandbar on three occasions and got there using three different methods. 1. Sailboat While in school, I was lucky enough to meet an awesome, adventurous girl who had an equally awesome and adventurous boyfriend who was in the Navy. He and some friends pooled their resources and bought a sailboat. For my friend's birthday, a group of us gathered on the boat to head ...