Burgers of Hana

Day 10
Hana
74 F

Charles again broke the promise of “you can sleep in tomorrow, Pete”.



I know better when he says these things, of course; I've known him for long enough. But as I am ever the optimist, always I hope for that little extra bit of sleep. But no, like Lucy with the football, Charles yanked away what little trust I had in him.

For silly, stupid things like this, I mean. I would of course trust Charles with my life in important manners. But I never trust him with certain things, about which he will habitually distort the truth. Typically, Charles cannot be relied upon to provide true or accurate information on the following topics:

- What time we will be getting up in the morning
- What time a flight leaves
- When we need to be somewhere
- How far or difficult a given hike is
- where the nearest bathroom is
- How long we've been doing a particular thing

This last one might not be so much Charles warping reality intentionally, as it is his true ( though incorrect ) perception of how much time has passed. I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt, here. : ) Be warned.

Today was a leisure day, taking 7 hours to drive around to the Hana side of Maui, and see the sights. This particular drive takes you through pretty much every type of climate and habitat the Hawaiian islands have to offer; from lush rainforest to bleak, windswept dusty Afghanistan-like mountainside. The drive is almost totally around the coast, which is pretty cool.

Hana is the small city on the far side of the mountain and from Kahului ( the country seat of Maui ) as you can get. It is lush and is almost overrun with cow pasture. All the better for the bustling Hana hamburger trade. We were quite hungry by the time we rolled into Hana, and the smell of burgers was in the air. Charles and I are both carnivores, so this was a thing of joy. My apologies to my friends and readers who are not.

So, we parked, and went in search of the source of our aromatic bliss.
We found that source, at one of the resorts in Hana. Asking price for their hamburger: $19

I shit you not, as they say in the Midwest.

I was of course tempted to pay, wanting to know exactly -what- a $19 burger tastes like... but cooler heads prevailed and we boogied over to a walk-up window elsewhere, selling burgers.

This one only cost me $6, though I could not get bacon. For that special treat, I'd have to sit in the restaurant, i was informed. Which of course was served by the same exact kitchen and cooks, and would have cost me dollars more. True to form, I could not resist pointing this out to the nice lady at the counter... but let's sum things up here by saying that conversation was "unproductive".

Charles didn't want bacon on his burger... but neither did he want anything else, so he ordered it plain. “We can't do that,” the stern buger lady told Charles, fresh from a verbal altercation with me. “You'll have to pick off what you don't want.”

Welcome to Hana, home of the $19 burger.

Have it our way. No, really.

So, after that, we were on our way through even denser rainforest and crappier roads, emerging on Maui's rocky, bleak ( some would say hauntingly beautiful in it's barrenness ) side. This part of the ride seemed to take longer, as I had to shishi and then unko. : /

After getting back and showering, it was off to another wonderful dinner at Marco's. More wine, more excellent food.

After dinner, we saw Memoirs of a Geisha, a movie I don't recommend if you're feeling at all down on yourself, life, the plight of women, or love. As long as you're happy with all of those things, and otherwise free of sadness, depression and despair... you'll like the movie just fine.

If not, you might have the desire to take your own life with a nearby sword, or a frisbee. Seriously, a good movie... but a definite downer. Back then to the condo, for another bit of wine and guitar.

My time on Maui for this visit was at an end, but I would be taking many things with me. Some things would cause my body to peel and ache, or put me in the ER. Others would make me stare a bit out the window and smile, slightly, to myself. We left Maui the next morning.

Up early, of course, despite promises of being able to sleep in.

Maui pics, in case you missed them before.

Where the laid back Kauaians are

Day 5
Lihue
low 80s

Each island in the chain has a unique personality; Kauai is more laid back and more “local' then the other islands, and the west side of Kauai seems to be more laid back and local then the rest of the island. I spent my morning in the west side town of Waimea, gateway to Waimea Canyon, which mark Twain called the Grand Canyon of the Pacific.

I drove into Waimea, parking and walking along the storefronts. The place is much less developed and a bit less looked after then the rest of Kauai, giving it a feeling similar to what I picked up on in Mexico when I was there; the laid back attitude permeated most facets of life, including maintenance of the infrastructure. White and soft pastels are common colors for the buildings, but most everythign had a reddish tinge of Volcanic dust, from the soil. Dirt on the Hawaiian islands isn't black, it's reddish with various composites from volcanic activity, and it will permanently stain anything it gets ground into. Waimea is a bit more covered in the dust then a lot of places, on Kauai. Also, there's more pidgin spoken here, and it's more evident in listening to people talk; the accents are thicker.

But the people are extremely friendly, and looking to make a visitor feel comfortable. The place where I settled for a bit was the epitome of this feeling... an art gallery/coffeeshop/free wifi hotspot named Aloha in Paradise. This little nook featured the work of local and state-wise artists depicting various themes- historical, modern and natural. Also there was a variety of jewelery, sculpture and crafts.

No ice tea, so I had to settle in with some sort of latte mocha thingy. I sipped it very slowly, as I am not really a coffee person. I did a bit of work and chatted a bit, only pausing to offer my laptop to an Indian girl who came in, thinking it might be an internet cafe. She was -really- shocked when I told her I didn't need any money for the use of my laptop for five minutes, to check mail.

Exciting, eh? : )

Anyway, after that Charles, Doris, Tia and I regrouped and headed up into the mountians on the west side, to see Waimea Canyon and go to the Kokee lookout point, where you can look out over the Na Pali coast from the cliffs onto the ocean from he northwest side. The view was spectacular. If you remember in the movie Jurassic Park, the part where the helicopter carry the characters first approaches the island, it comes up on huge cliffs straight into the ocean... that's Na Pali.

We did a hike along what's called the Ditch Trail, only two miles in but in the mountains and under rather hazardous conditions; obscured trails near the edges of sheer drops, that kind of thing. Through the jungle and mountain forest we wound our way, until coming to the end of the trail at the point of one of the jutting cliffs running along the side of a mountain, extending into Waimea Canyon. It was like having a balcony seat to a truly amazing view. All around us, space... dropping off thousands of feet in most directions and then eventually rolling up into steep cliffside, waterfalls and cool pools gathered, spilling over down mountainsides.

After getting back and resting in a serious way for about a half an hour ( mostly on my account... I'm not a great mountain hiker : ) we drove down the mountain, back to Waimea. This takes about a half an hour in itself, and is tough on the breaks. You can sign up for a sort of tour that will drive you up to the lodge in Kokee, give you a bike and let you ride down the side of the mountain in the breeze... I've done that before, but this time I was happy to drive and relax on the way down.

It was a slow day after that, winding down and watching movies until it was time for bed. Tomorrow is Christmas Eve.

Hike to the sun, and her

Day 9
Halakala, Maui
54 F

I had told Charles on previous visits that I was not terribly interested in doing what I called “Special Forces hikes”.

Of course, those who know me know I enjoy hiking, and have wanted to get into geocaching for a while now... but also I am not in prime shape at the moment. So the hikes I do enjoy tend to be of the Wisconsin over-flat-terrain variety.

Despite all of the above facts, we did a Special Forces hike today. : )

The hike in question was at the top of one of the two twin mountain peaks on Maui, Haleakala. The drive up to the peak was amazing, climbing and climbing along twisting roads straight out of a BMW commercial, until we were about 10k feet up, definitely above the clouds. We were able to look down on Maui from the point of view of the gods, and even see the Big Island. Very cool.

An amazing part of all of this was the clothing of our little group. It was Charles and I, along with Vanessa and Kathy. Searay was working, so could not join us. The three locals were dressed up in layers, I kid you not. Vanessa in particular had snowpants, a parka, as well as a fleece layer... the works. They were all -quite- cold on the way up, and at the start of the hike.

I was in shorts and a t shirt, still quite acclimated to Madison and Chicago.

The hike was down into the crater's barren, desert -ike terrain formed by the extinct volcano Haleakala. As I had neglected to pack proper shoes of any kind, we had to stop off at WalMart where I picked up state of the art footgear. For $11.95. Ozark Trail brand, made no doubt by high skilled 13 year olds in Malaysia, receiving amazing compensation for the practice of their craft.

Anyway, the trail down was easy. I was all chatter, talking about school and interests and whatever else. I was in Pete Form. At the end ( where we stopped, more precisely ) Vanessa and Kathy hiked even a bit more the Charles and I, going around the ring of a cinder cone while Charles and I simply stood and took on the view, admiring the women for their go-get-em spirit and showing them our hairy asses in a moon.

: )

The hike up was... a bit different then the hike down.

At no point was I ever under any illusion that it was going to be easy, but I didn't expect it to be quite as hard as it was. The hike down was four miles down a fairly steep grade.

The hike back, as it happens, was about four miles-up- a fairly steep grade. A little less then your average stairway, but along a path aptly named “Sliding Sands”. Also, mind you, we were at about 10k, where there are considerably fewer oxygen molecules bouncing around in the air.

Charles, Kathy and Vanessa were all former triatheletes... in admirable shape, for their ages : )~

I, however, am not a triathelete. Not at the moment, anyway.

So, instead of relying on my fitness and body to get me back up, I had to rely on my mental stamina. I'm glad I have plenty of this; it came in handy.

I pushed myself pretty hard, and in that way the hike was a good one. Everyone else in the group was very cool about my being slower. They went on ahead so I could focus and continue at my own pace up the mountain.

After finishing, I had the sense that I'd really accomplished something. I had Pushed myself harder then I had in a while.

On a side-note: my body is kind of silly, in some ways. I -hate- running... I used to be fine -at- it, when I was in the military, but not -with- it. It seems to me that whatever tools one needs to get past that wall in your head when you run, I seem to lack.

I can do it, but I definitely don't dig it.

Other high-impact, high intensity stuff affects me the same way. Contrast this to other things... hiking, biking, paddling. I can do those things all day long, without prep. I don't need to stretch, and my body won't ache a bit the next day. My theory is that these activities, the more long-term low impact ones, rely on a different kind of mental stamina, one I have in ready and mountainous ( no pun intended ) supply.

Still, as I get older, I'd like to get better at the high-impact things. Take up running?

Hmmmmmm.

Anyway, the cruise down the mountain was leisurely and enjoyable, all of us trading more stories about ourselves. We dropped Vanessa off, then hit a Mexican place called Pinatas in Kahului before heading back.

At the condo, it was an easy evening, filled with wine and guitar playing and singing. A very cool way to round out the day.

I had plenty on my mind, that evening. : )

Mele kalikimaka

Day 7 – Christmas Day
Lihue
81 F

Merry Christmas : )

A short entry today... it was an early morning, of course. Tia the Tornado was up early, and Charles and Doris were kind enough to let me sleep as long as I could... but I was still up at about 7am. We all exchanged presents, Charles violating the agreement for “no presents” much as Giselle ( the pseudonym I use in the blog for my ex-wife ) used to, now and again. Oh well.

Among the presents I got were a JambaCard for my new favorite place to spend disposal income under $10 a shot... Jamba Juice.

Sorry, Andy. : )

Andy ( on my Friends list as Digger ) -hates- Jamba Juice, and their silly, smug ad campaign.

Anyway. After that we went to the Marriot here in Lihue, on Narwiliwili bay ( where we spotted the whales and dolphins, if you'll recall ) for a bit of relaxation. Christmas Day at the beach resort.

One of the cooler things about being a haole in Hawaii is that you can pretty much walk onto the grounds and enjoy the facilities of any of the beautiful 5 star resorts here without anyone lifting an eyebrow... the low-level racism sometimes works in your ( the haole's ) favor.

That doesn't make it a good thing, and I still resent all the times people asking me in the stores “So... where are you staying?” automatically assuming that since I'm a haole I'm also a tourist. Blah.

Some time in the hot tub. Some time playing volleyball on the beach. Merry Christmas.

It's not very traditional, at least in the way I've been raised. And there's definitely something to be said for traveling over the river and through the woods, to grandmother's house via sleigh at Christmas time. But all in all, I think I prefer quiet, reflective time at the Marriot.

But then again, mostly holidays are about the people you spend them with, I guess. I knew it would be tough not seeing my mom, my brother, and the family and friends this year... but it's also the first holiday season I've had to spend without a significant other since... I was 16.

So I think maybe offsetting the being away from family with being in Hawaii helped a bit, there. I have a very cool and deep association now for it, the idea and thought of the holidays... one that doesn't have anything to do with being by “myself”.

Aaaaaaand before anyone jumps on me... I know I'm not really by myself. I have a wide social circle, filled with people who care very much about me. And I'm extremely lucky and blessed for this.

I guess I'm just talking about that person that when you go to bed, after a long day of preparing and setting up for family and friends, you hold close. Maybe you don't talk at all, but just the idea of their being there is more comforting then words can easily describe.

Merry Christmas, everyone. Mele Kalikimaka.

Christmas Eve

Day 6 ( Christmas Eve )
Lihue
80-ish degrees

Apparently, it's not only -my- tradition to leave Christmas shopping til the very last minute. It seems that it is an ancient custom passed down through many generations of native Polynesians as well, so that the modern Kauai shopper also waits to do -all- their shopping on Christmas eve.

I wonder if they had canoe parking problems, at the local coconut and mac nut orchards, way back when.

That would be yet another tradition they would have passed down, then. Traffic was as bad as anything I've seen on the mainland, around the malls... and that's saying something. Traffic here is usually a joke, even when the locals maintain it's “total gridlock, bra”.

The malls in Hawaii are typically outside malls, like long strip malls placed facing each other, with lots of plant life around. There's no reason to pay for the overhead of air conditioning and humidity control and all the other headaches that come with an enclosed space when you don't need them, because the weather is perfect for most of the time. The local malls follow this model. There's a huge mall on Oahu in Honolulu called Ala Moana, and despite it's size it's also a very intriguing blend of inside and outside architecture. A cool place just to walk around, and see what can be done with a space when you remove the necessity for enclosure.

Anyway, the malls and other stores were busy, but we got our shopping done. We spent the early part of the afternoon relaxing.

Later in the afternoon, we headed to the resort city of Poipu, to the Marriot resort ( yea, another one ) located there. Charles' friend KB was staying there with some family, so technically we were guests ( or at least associated with guests ) while were were squatting there.

Canoing, whale-spotting, and then hot tubbing were on the itinerary for the day. I also got a chance to do a bit of work, believe it or not, as I spent some time around the pool.

For dinner, we had the traditional Christmas Eve fare of pizza, just like grandma used to make. Brickoven Pizza provided us with galic bread, sausage pizza and beer. Mmmmm.

Well, kinda Mmmm. As you might be aware of, the only time I've ever really had beer was the night after Boot Camp. I had 4, and they all tasted like whiz. That was also the first time I'd ever had a drop of alcohol ( I had turned 21 in Boot Camp ). All the beer I've sampled before or since has tasted like differing vintages of piss.

Mmmmm.

After getting home, I had the very cool treat of having people at my mom's house in Chicago for Christmas Eve call me and pass the phone around. It's a tradition in my family to invite friends of the family over to have a ( very ) early breakfast, served around midnight. We then exchange presents, and in general have a very cool time.

Phil was one of the people who was at my mom's place.

He's never missed one as long as we've been doing it and he was in town. The thing about this is that I haven't talked with Phil in about 8 months. This is definitely a topic worthy of a separate blog entry; we had a falling out of sorts, and I was happy that he was there even though I wasn't. In a moment very true to his nature, he gave me quite the tongue lashing over the phone when it was passed to him; nothing less then I deserved of course, but still.

Anyway, after talking with everyone, we stayed up for a bit more, then retired for the evening. I knew it was going to be an early day tomorrow... it being Christmas and all.