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Hello friends, or should I say ALOHA!!
I happily write you from the beautiful island of Oahu on the North Shore village of Waialua, finally! I’m staying with a beautiful hostess named Yohanna and her two boys working on a custom made wine cabinet and rack. I will tell more about this wonderful family as the days go by. I’m scheduled to depart on the 13th of April thus completing my 51 plus stops on this tour and then head back to Arizona to end my adventure. In the meantime I have plenty to do and write about here for the next two weeks and I plan to write a few posts and plenty of pictures to share with you. I will be busy working and on my down time I plan to enjoy all the sights, beaches, food and all the wonderful things that make these islands so unique.
As some of you know I’m familiar with this island having lived here for a couple of years back in 2013-15, and when I decided to take on this awesome journey back some sixteen months ago, I had planned and saved Hawaii as my last stop. There was never any question where I would complete the tour and once I hit the road last May I had Hawaii on my mind especially when I felt down, stressed or lonely. It is a magical place for many people who visit and for all who live here and pictures, videos and second hand stories don’t do it justice. There is plenty more to say about this place and now looking back at the last eleven months on the road and I will share as much as time allows after all I’m not officially done as of today, I still have a few projects to complete for my host and it will take some days to complete the working portion of my tour. Only then will I be able to say and feel like I accomplished my journey the best of my abilities!
I will say that as I planned this adventure as a working and travel tour, which it certainatley was, the human connections and encounters that I experienced far exceeded my wildest dreams. I knew I would meet people and make new friends along the way but what I didn’t expect and now so fondly cherish is the way people embraced me and my idea with such excitement and enthusiasm. They’re willingness to open their hearts and homes and in some cases pocket books just left me in awe so many stops along the way and in some cases nearly brought me to tears with humbleness and appreciation for their loving acts towards me. I’m so eager and excited to get back to Tucson to sit down and begin writing my book about this amazing year of my life and start telling you with great detail the names, faces and stories that pertain to each location and encounter with the dozens of folks who helped, encouraged and supported me, sometimes when I needed it the most, a perfect stranger in need and want, very far from home and in many cases desperate and exhausted. Yes work and my ability and desire to perform a multitude of jobs went as planned and moved me forward but without help from a great many people including those who helped me by just checking in and spurring me on with this website propelled me to this beautiful last stop. Long after I forget the gigs I did and the sights I saw when I’m old and retired, the memory of the new and old friends and family who made my adventure satisfying, unique and possible will forever bring a smile to my face!
That being said friends I have a request to ask you now that the tour is wrapping up. I can read and see the thousands of hits and messages on this site but I would love if you would be willing to sign in the guess page or post a comment with your name, where you live and how long you have been a follower. I hope to thank you personally and just record as many states as possible for book documentation and my own personal keepsake kind of thing.
Have a great day friends, I have to get to work now and will be checking in soon, Mahalo!
Juanjohn