Aloha! I’m Kana from Japan. I graduated from an American community college in Japan and transferred to UH Hilo two years ago. Now I’m a senior Psychology major. There are many things to do both on-campus and off-campus. Let me start by telling you a little about things to do on-campus. We have an amazing outdoor adventure program on-campus. Every weekend there are trips somewhere on the island. I went to many beaches such as A-bay, Kua bay, Hapuna beach and so many other beaches. All beaches are so beautiful and great spots to snorkel. There are other trips to go to Mauna Kea summit. You may be able to sea snow in Hawai’i. And a submarine trip–that was awesome. I saw many beautiful fishes. There are other activities such as canoeing, sailing, paddleboard and kayaking. One of the great points about adventure programs is that most of the trips are free and leaves from campus.

Let’s talk about the Student Life Center. We have a gym and they are usually open 6:30 am to 9:00 pm weekdays and they are also open weekends with different hours, so you can work out everyday. At the gym, various kinds of fitness classes are offered such as yoga, spin, hip hop dance, hula dance, total fitness and abs and core. They are all fun and the good thing about the fitness classes is that they are totally free. We also have an Olympic size swimming pool, a half size basketball court and a beach volleyball court. For outdoor activities, you’re able to rent kayak, scuba tank, paddle board and so forth. Of course we have locker rooms and shower rooms. UH Hilo offers certification programs. We have different kinds of programs such as scuba diving, training to drive school vans, first aid and CPR.

Outside of class, there are always things happening. For example, we have movie nights, some dance performances, live music, lectures by guest speakers and world class shows and concerts at the school theater. Many events are happening on campus everyday. There are many athletic home games such as baseball, softball, basketball and women’s volleyball.

UH Hilo has lots of different student clubs. Join one! There are sports clubs, religious clubs, clubs for different majors and countries, service clubs and dance clubs. No matter what you are interested, you will probably find a club whose members have similar interests as you.

UH Hilo also has many major events on campus every year. One of the biggest events is International Nights which is an annual cultural event. Many cultural groups perform, dance, sing, play on the stage. Another event is Earth Day which is an annual world wide event. This event is aimed at demonstrating support for environmental protection. There is a lot of music and dance performance. We also have the annual Ho’olaulea. This is a famous program–a big musical festival featuring many local bands and musicians. You will enjoy their live music. Off-campus there are movie theaters and a large shopping mall. Downtown Hilo also has lots of shops and restaurants. Here we have local Hawaiian, Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, Italian, all kinds of restaurants. There is lots of things to do. Take advantage of everything that Hilo has to offer!