ASHLEIGH DARRACH: REPORTING FROM HAWAII
HAWAII, USA: The Humber Hawks women's volleyball team will travel to Hawaii during the holiday break to participate in a number of workouts and exhibition games against many of the top college teams in the country.
Ashleigh Darrach, a third year Libero from Newcastle, will present a blog starting with liftoff from the Pearson airport on December twenty-seventh. Join her daily, as she brings results, images and more!
Jan 7/8 - Last Day/ A trip in review...
Hello... the greeting is different because as I write this final blog, I am trying to get comfortable in the cold that is Toronto. We're back in Canada.
Yesterday morning we hiked up Diamond head as a group, it took us about 30 minutes each way to reach the top of the mountain, and what a view. It was beautiful.
We spent most of the afternoon yesterday on the beach, and packing up our things before we caught the flight out of Hawaii at midnight. I can't believe it's already over.
We boarded the plane and had a long sleep, and when I wokeup I was reflecting on the time that I'd spent in paradise.
I am so thankful to have taken the trip of a lifetime with my best friends - truly I am so lucky. We spent so much time together, I got to know everyone so well, and formed memories that none of us will ever forget. All of this was made possible due to our common goal, which is a national championship in the sport that we love.
We got to play against the top teams in the country, face our fears, see American history, snorkel, surf, shop and all of it was done with our Hawk family.
I don't know anyone else that is as lucky as we are.
On behalf of our team, we would like to thank Humber and athletics so much for allowing us to take this trip, and helping us along the way. It was truly the most amazing experience of our lives.
We hit the gym again on Monday to start working towards our goal of being national champions, and I can't wait to get started.
Thanks for reading (Mahalo),
Ashleigh
Jan 6 - One of the best days of my life
Aloha!
Sorry for the late post, yesterday was crazy!
Yesterday was also the highlight of my time so far here in Hawaii, and one of the best days of my life. The girls did various activities as there was nothing planned as a team, but i'll share with you my day.
So, my alarm went off at 5:20 am... something that normally would make me a little grouchy, however... I knew that I was about to embark on one of the most amazing experiences of my life - Shark Cage Diving. This has been something I have wanted to do since before I can remember and yesterday I made it a reality.
Me and 6 other girls rented a van and drove out to the North shore where we met the crew and hopped on board the boat, called the Kai Ou.
The crew drove us 3 miles off shore and dropped us in open water, in a cage surrounded by Galapagos sharks... about 7 of them.
We were face to face with these sharks inside the cage for about 20 minutes, and all I can say is wow. What a rush that was.
The other girls who didn't join us on the shark adventure were at Hanauma Bay, a nature preserve with the best snorkelling on the island. I went and joined them after lunch, and that was also an amazing experience. We snorkelled for hours and relaxed in the sun until nearly dinner time.
Check out both the shark adventure, and the snorkelling here...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OXa3qzWFsnI -- Shark
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f-sk0169oyI -- Snorkel
At dinner, I went to a shrimp tent, and others went to taco places, famous cheeseburger restaurants and more. Everyone had great things to say about the food.
It was such an amazing experience as a whole, and everyone had a great day in Hawaii.
We are truly so lucky to be here.
We are hiking Diamond Head mountain today, and enjoying one last day at the beach before we leave beautiful Hawaii.
Until Later...
Ashleigh
Jan 5 - Pearl Harbor
Aloha!
Today was a very important day of the trip for not just me, but all of the members of the Humber family that came to Hawaii.
We took a trip out to Pearl Harbor to learn some history on the island.
The only word I can describe Pearl Harbor as is... eerie. After watching a 20 minute informational video and seeing the attacks on the ships first-hand, and heading out on a boat directly after to stand above where over 900 men lay in the enclosed boat was the strangest feeling I think I've ever felt.
We took the boat out to a memorial located above the USS Arizona, a boat that took the life of more than 1100 men on the day of the attacks. We walked above where the boat remains, untouched.
The most hit-home moment for me was seeing the oil still present on the top of the ocean leaking from the boat. After nearly 75 years, the boat still leaks 2 quarts per day.
Some say the oil is the tears of those who have fallen, and I connected with that.
We also went on board the submarine, Bowfin, and got to see what it was like on the inside.
After the harbor, we continued home where many of us did different things for the afternoon. I headed back to the beach to grab some sun before the sunset hit, and others went to the zoo locate directly across from the beach.
Tomorrow I will be doing something that I have been so excited to do since arriving on the island... and that is to cage dive with wild sharks. I have to go to bed now, because we're leaving before 6 am to head out to the North Shore to do this.
Until tomorrow,
Ashleigh
PS...
Pearl Harbor pics posted
Jan 4 - Last day of play / Beach day
Aloha!
The main focus for today was our final day of volleyball.
We wokeup and headed to the gym to warm up for our 9:45 start against FX, a team from Quebec. After a very slow start, and after dropping the first three sets, we finally got into a rhythm, we finally began to work together and won the next two sets.
The match showed us lots of things that we need to be successful at in order to excel at the next level.
After the game, we returned home and headed to the beach for a few hours. Some of us stayed for sunset, and others broke for dinner, but it was some much needed relaxation time to reflect on the day.
Tomorrow we will be leaving the hotel at 6:30 in the morning (yikes!) and heading to Pearl Harbor. I am very excited to see this in person.
I am getting to bed now, given the early call time.
Until tomorrow,
Ashleigh
Jan 3 - Excursion day!
Aloha!
What a day we had today... this has by far been the coolest day since we've arrived on the island.
We woke up this morning and met in the lobby for 8 am where we headed on a tour bus that took us to the North shore. Our tour guide showed us everything from where parts of the Hunger games was filmed to old sacrificial mountains on our drive.
We first arrived at part of Diamond Head that overlooked the water. What a view. Next, we stopped at Sunset beach. We thought the waves were big here until we continued on to the pipeline. All I can say about the waves at the pipeline is WOW.
We learned that the waves are measured from the back, and the height is divided in half to calculate the height of the front. Some waves get up to 60 feet from the back.
We watched as surfers went through the 'tube' and our tour guide said it's one of the best feelings you will ever feel.
We continued after that to a shrimp truck, where we had the choice of garlic, spicy or coconut shrimp, or various chickens. The food was amazing! I had the garlic shrimp and although it was messy, it was worth it.
After lunch we continued to a reef where we could snorkel and see local turtles and fish... and we had lots of success. I came so close to so many turtles.
Check out a quick video here:
That was an amazing experience.
After we wrapped up our snorkelling adventure, we headed to the Dole Pineapple Plantation to try the pineapple sorbet. It was delicious! I ordered the 'Waffle Bowl' and I ate the entire thing... leaving me on a sugar high, but hey... you're only there once.
After we finished up our massive desserts, we packed up and thanked our tour guides and headed back to the hotel. Most of us caught a quick much-needed nap on the way.
Tonight was a quiet evening, I went down to the beach for a few minutes at sunset just to sit and admire it.
Tomorrow we play our final game of the trip against a Quebec team that we played in our first days here. The afternoon is off tomorrow, so I will catch back up tomorrow night on the exciting events that the day held for us.
Until tomorrow,
Ashleigh
PS...
There's a lot of pictures up!
Jan 2 - Market Place and Manoa Falls!
Aloha!
As per usual, today was another amazing day in paradise.
We woke up and hit the beach for some water aerobics with the team. We got into some competitive relays and fun in the sun at 9 am to start our day.
Shortly after we got back we piled into the vans and headed to a market/bizarre located outside a big football stadium about 15 minutes from the hotel.
This marketplace had everything from hand-carved tikis to strawberry guava jam... and we indulged in just about everything. The girls bought various things from glow in the dark glass figures to elephants crafted completely from sea shells. I even got a henna tattoo at the market.
After we left there, we headed past the Manoa school where we played volleyball, and continued to a secluded forest onto a hiking trail.
It took about 15 minutes to get up the trail and when we finally reached the top, we saw the beautiful 1,000 ft waterfall.
We swam in the fresh water at the bottom and enjoyed the true beauty of the waterfall before we struggled down hill on the way back.
We suffered broken flip flops and a few falls, but surprisingly, I remained on my feet the whole way down despite my clumsy nature.
We came back and headed home to catch up on some much needed sleep before our group excursion tomorrow.
We will meet at the lobby for 8 am and head out to the top of the Diamond Head mountain and we will do everything from cliff jumping, to snorkelling with turtles and maybe even parasailing.
I'm beyond excited.
Until tomorrow,
Ashleigh
PS.
See more photos below!!
Jan 1 - Beach Day!
Aloha!
Today was the first whole day off from volleyball, and where else was a better place to spend it than at the beach?!
We woke up and headed down to soak up some sun around 1030 this morning. It was a very hot day... probably the hottest we've had yet. Before we left it was already 28 degrees.
We parked our beach towels and hit the waves. I was in the water all day long, it was too nice not to be.
Our coach rented a boogie board and through many failed attempts, hardly any one got to do any boogie-ing. They're much harder than you'd think.
Between dips in the ocean, we were sprawled out working on our tans, some of us napping to catch up on some much needed sleep from all the volleyball and the eventful night we had.
I started to feel a little crispy around 2 o clock this afternoon, and it wasn't until after that I had noticed I was burnt... VERY burnt. From swimming so much today I had taken on so much sun...and the tan lines are ridiculous.
Tomorrow we're waking up to do some water aerobics with our strength and conditioning coach and heading to a bizarre/market in the afternoon as well as a 1,000 ft waterfall. I'm very excited to see that.
It's time to try and get some sleep with this burn... i'll need all the time in the world to get comfortable.
Until tomorrow,
Ashleigh.
Dec 31 - ALOHA 2O16!
Aloha!
Today was a great day... we had time for business and pleasure as we wrapped up the last of our games until we play again on the fourth.
Yesterday was a great day. We started off a little slow in the morning, our first game was not our best... but they got progressively better as the day went on.
We dropped our first two matches against VIU and FX and won the third match against LG in the afternoon.
After we came back to the hotel, we gathered for burgers and hot dogs down by the poolside, as we celebrated Canadian new year and facetimed loved ones.
After that, we let loose a little and rang in the new year ourselves.
We danced in our room... which is now a TOTAL mess, and headed to the beach for midnight to watch the amazing display of fireworks.
Needless to say, New years eve with my best friends in one of the most beautiful places on earth is truly a once in a liftetime experience.
Hello 2016.
Until tomorrow,
Ashleigh
Dec 30 - Another day of play!
Aloha!
Today was another great day in paradise.
An early morning at the gym allowed us to practice, and much like yesterday we played more best 2/3 games.
We will play tomorrow against the same two Quebec teams and the team from British Columbia in matches that could count towards our rankings.
After dinner we went back down and walked by the water and checked out the night scene by the local shops. It was a much needed relaxed evening gearing up into our most important day of play.
Tomorrow is the last day of business before we get a few days off... it is also New Years Eve.
We don't have any plans set in stone yet to ring in the new year, but i'm sure that we will find something near our hotel that we could go to.
I have to get to bed now, we are leaving here tomorrow at 8 am to head to the gym for our last day before the new year.
Until tomorrow,
Ashleigh
Dec 29 - Hawaii Day 2
Aloha!
Today was a great day, the sun was shining and it was a beautiful 28 degrees.
I woke up early this morning and ventured out to the local shops by the beach to see the more commercial aspect of Honolulu.
The stores run on island time as many of them didn't open until nearly 10 am, which was when we left for practice. So a few teammates and I headed to the beach instead.
https://youtu.be/J3oLc-9Jvug <--- CHECK OUT THE BEACH HERE :)
The waves were MASSIVE this morning, and there were so many surfers already in the water before 9 am.
We headed to the gym where we practiced from 1030 to noon and had lunch after.
The afternoon was best 2/3 against two Quebec teams and one team from British Columbia.
After we played we gathered back at the condos for dinner and headed down to a festival at the beach. No one knew what to expect.
There were three musicians playing the ukulele and there were a man and woman dancing. There were a few songs before they asked all newbies to Hawaii to get onstage.
Our entire volleyball team jumped up among others and learned a dance... needless to say we need practice at more than just volleyball.
After the dancing wrapped up, a few of us were walking back and saw a man with parrots... so obviously we stopped for a picture as well.
Island time means early bed times for us, it's almost 930 now, and we are gassed.
Tomorrow i'll be waking up early to grab a quick swim before we leave for practice at 830.
Until then,
Ashleigh.
PS**
More pics below.
Dec 28 - WE ARE IN HAWAII!
Aloha!
After a very long day of travelling yesterday, we have finally arrived in beautiful Honolulu!
We battled a brief delay at take off, broken rental vans and lack of sleep upon arrival, and we got to the hotel at midnight (hawaii time) - but hey... that's all part of the experience.
It is amazing here, we are just a two minute walk from the beach where many of us woke up early and ventured to this morning. The water is so blue and the sun is always out. We even saw several rainbows!
There is always something to see out the windows on the way to the gym, because the entire island is surrounded by beautiful mountains.
We practiced this morning to shake off the rust from the Christmas break, and played split-squad style games in the afternoon against various top teams in Canada. The gym is HOT.
After we finished playing we changed into our swim suits and headed back to the beach. The sun sets here around 6 as well, and we tried to soak up as much as we could before dinner.
It is a constant warm temperature even at night here, so it is so nice to be able to sit on the hotel balcony with my roommates and reflect on the fact that we're actually here. It's so surreal.
Tomorrow we'll head back to the gym to practice and play again, much like the rest of this week up until New Years Eve.
There are various shops that the girls are excited to check out, and we practice later in the morning tomorrow so there is lots of time for exploration before practice.
Until Tomorrow...
Ashleigh
PS...
Check for pictures below.
Dec 27- We're Leaving Eh!
Good Morning!
I'm writing this from my house as I triple check my suitcase for everything that I could possibly need to head out to Hawaii... I am SO EXCITED.
I'll be leaving within the next hour and heading to the airport where I will meet up with my teammates and our flight will take us to beautiful paradise.
As I ate my breakfast this morning, we sat at a cool 3 degrees here in Canada and well, Hawaii was at 23 – that's my kind of weather.
Our plans for the day are to get on the plane and get settled into our condos near Waikiki beach as the roommates will battle over who's in which bed.
Shortly after our arrival (approximately 2 am Toronto time.. 9 pm in Hawaii) we will be getting to bed because we hit the courts and start to practice very early the next morning.
Bring on the flight, fun and sun!!
Until tomorrow,
Ashleigh.
Dec 26- Just One Day Away...
Aloha!... Almost.
So, tomorrow is the day that we fly out to the beautiful island of Hawaii!
Having never been to the island before I am beyond excited for the trip of a lifetime with my best friends.
I've been checking the weather non stop for the past few days and it's looking like 28 degrees and sunny across the board, so... we couldn't ask for better weather upon our arrival.
After having busy a Christmas the girls have been slowly packing their things (we're girls... very last minute) and boxing day shopping for those deals on suits and shades!
The plane leaves Toronto tomorrow in the early afternoon and we'll arrive in Hawaii tomorrow night after our long 10 hour flight.
My day today has consisted of packing, and thinking about escaping this cold and hitting the courts with my team to play some great volleyball.
It's been only a few days since I last saw them, but the girls will be reunited tomorrow excited as ever for the trip.
Until tomorrow,
Ashleigh!
