Hawaii

Maui: Honeymooners’ Paradise

What can one say about Hawaii’s idyllic island of Maui that hasn’t been said before? How does one try to capture in words the incredible beauty and the softness of the air in this tropical paradise? Suffice it to say that Maui is the most popular destination of honeymooners.

Llew and I rented a car and drove south towards the famous Maui Ocean Center, a brand-new aquarium which is considered one of the world’s finest. The marine lover in Llew was fully delighted by everything that the aquarium had to offer. Most fascinatingly conceived and constructed, the visitor enters the aquarium, then keeps walking downwards, lower and lower into the sea, arriving finally at the coral reefs at the ocean’s bottom. At each level, one sees the tropical fish and coral life that are distinctive to that level, so that when one is finally at“rock bottom”, one is in a tube or tunnel with water surrounding one on all sides and sharks and sting rays sliding evilly past. We were able to identify so many of the tropical fish that we have seen only in aquariums so far. To actually see them in their natural habitat was quite astounding to us. We took a lot of pictures, but none of them can quite do justice to the variety and the colors of the underwater life we were fortunate enough to see. We also saw Hawaii’s famous green sea turtles, a shark’s favorite food for the quality and taste of its meat. By this stage, we had realized that this vacation was different from any of the ones we had taken in the past as Nature was our main focus this time.The outcome of our acquarium visit was that we learned that Hawai’s state fish in Hawai’ian is called the Hunu-hunu-nuku-nuku-apu-aua. Try saying that ten times really fast!

Rochelle poses by the USA’s oldest banyan tree in Lahaina

We then inched up the gorgeous west coast of Maui to the old historic town of Lahaina, once famous as a whaling center. We checked into our luxurious Bed and Breakfast called The Guest House, then set out to eat lunch at a local eatery called the Aloha Mixed Plate, famous for its “plate lunches”, a Hawaiian specialty consisting of “two scoops rice” and macaroni salad together with a Japanese influenced entrée such as chicken katsu, teriyaki beef or fried ahi (tuna). After a delectable meal, we drove to the center of town to explore Lahaina by foot and take in the 130 year old banyan tree that is over two acres wide, the old Whalers Inn, the Court House, the Chinese Temple, the Waterfront, etc. Lahaina has a great deal of old-world charm and character and we were struck by its quaint beauty. Crowds of people thronged the main streets while others relaxed at the beach and took the day slowly. Later that evening, we made our way to the Old Lahaina Luau, considered the best luau in Hawaii and one for which I had to make reservations months in advance as we arrived there on the evening of July Fourth!

Our arrival was signaled by the draping of fresh purple orchid leis around our necks and the taking of our picture with our hostess for the evening. We did take a peak at the famous whole Kahlua pig that is roasted underground in an imu or buried oven. We had a nice group at our table and over maitais and pina coladas, we sampled a massive buffet of Hawaiian food such as lomi lomi salmon, chicken lau lau, chicken long rice, kalua pig, poi (taro pounded into an insipid paste), sweet potatoes, macadamia nut encrusted mahi mahi, Polynesian steak, a variety of salads and desserts that included haupia (coconut pudding), chocolate cups with passion fruit mousse filling, macadamia nut pies, etc. While we sampled this variety of desserts, the cultural variety program began with the lights dimming and dancers reproducing for us the history of the Hawaiian Islands through hula, Hawaiian steel guitars, etc. It was a flurry of color and sound as costumes and setting contributed to make it memorable.

The next day, we drove to Pai’ia to start the incredible and very famous “Heavenly Drive to Hana”, over a road that snaked fifty miles one way and fifty miles back past the stunning blue of the ocean, over thickly canopied rain forest, over 615 tiny bridges (yes, they did count them) and over imposing cliffs before we arrived at journey’s end at O’he Gulch or the site of the Seven Sacred Pools where we waded over slippery rocks, ate a superb picnic lunch that we had previously purchased at Pai’ia and then began the drive back.

Fr. Damien’s island of Molokoi seen from Maui (left) and Rochelle at O’he Gulch, Mulch

En route, we stopped at Hasegawa’s General Store, a Hana landmark which year-round celebrity residents like Kris Kristofferson and Richard Pryor are supposed to frequent (alas, we did not spot any!) and took a long and soothing swim at Koki Beach near the village of Hamoa. In the late evening, after enjoying another round of excellent shave ice at Pai’ia, we flew back to Honolulu, reluctant to leave the islands and hesitant to get back to the stress of our normal lives after one of the loveliest vacations we have ever enjoyed.

Llew and I loved Hawaii enough to want to retire there someday. It offers perfect weather conditions, year-round; has flora and foliage that reminded us very much of India; is multi-racial and multi-cultural; has a vast amount of native culture and traditional history; has beaches and mountains, valleys and farms; boasts unbelievable tropical marine life; is unpolluted, sparsely populated and boasts the calm ‘aloha’ (read: chalta hai) lifestyle that South Asians who live in the USA crave. What was not to love?

Bon Voyage!