So far, this summer has been all about relaxing after finishing a busy fun-filled freshman year. I spent the first two weeks of summer in Maui, Hawaii with my family which was an absolutely spectacular trip! The best part was being able to spend so much time with my family after being away at school for so long.

Napili Bay, where we stayed!

In Hawaii, I had plenty of time to tan, snorkel, and sight see!  The weather was absolutely stunning the entire trip, and the ocean was really calm which made snorkeling perfect.  There were tons of turtles and beautiful fish and coral.  Besides snorkeling, I also went surfing with my dad.  Lahaina harbor was a great place to surf for people of any skill level, and the water was a perfect temperature.

Honolua Bay is famous for its beautiful coral and bright fish

Diving with turtles!

 

My favorite part of the trip was parasailing with my mom.  We went on a tandem parasail trip and from a height of over 1200 feet we had a spectacular view of the entire island.  The experience was both exhilarating and relaxing; being up so high was exciting but it is also oddly peaceful being suspended above the sea.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After coming home from Hawaii, I have had some time to catch up with friends from home and see my friends from school that live in the area.  I’ve also had some spare time to cook, read for fun, hit the gym, watch some new TV shows (Revenge and Pretty Little Liars are the best!), and catch up on some movies!

Now that I’m nice and rejuvinated, I’m ready to get back to work! Yesterday, I started a continuation of my research job that I started last semester (which you can read about here).  It was great to get back up to USC and start a new project.  This summer, because I’ve already learned the basics, I have a lot more freedom in what I want to research and it has become a much more independent project, and I’m sure that I will have a blog about it later in the summer.

 

 

Lyssa Aruda-2015

Lyssa Aruda-2015

Chemical Engineering (Nanotechnology), Class of 2015, Learn more on her profile here!