After the meal there was a a show of dance and song portraying the history of the Hawaiian people.

… more luau

]]> http://www.web-bandit.com/lee/2010/05/05/lahaina-luau/feed/ 2 http://www.web-bandit.com/lee/2010/05/05/botanical-gardens/ http://www.web-bandit.com/lee/2010/05/05/botanical-gardens/#comments Wed, 05 May 2010 20:13:14 +0000 Lee http://www.web-bandit.com/lee/?p=883 Sherry and Herb wanted to go shopping today.  Of course, that didn’t interest me very much, but I tagged along with them because I told them I knew how to get to Lahaina.  I thought a couple of hours of souvenir shopping, and then we could do something else.  But the conversation on the way soon led to the impression this was going to be an all day event.

Uh oh.  Time to move into alternate plan persuasion mode.

I convinced them to take a drive towards the western end of the island, and maybe head up to Haleakala National Park.  We bought a road map and turned around with just a little griping from Sherry.

Our first stop was the Kula Botanical Gardens.

… more of the gardens

A beautiful location for exchanging wedding vows.  I think it was called “Secret Cove.”  And indeed it was secret.  Somehow, the car leading the parade to Secret Cove got lost, and we ended up at a golf course.

Secret Cove has a tiny little beach, and at one point in time there was three wedding ceremonies happening at the same time.  I didn’t get too many photos, because I didn’t want to get in the way of the professional photographer, or distract from the ceremony.  But you can see some photos on the next page.

We arrived at the docks at Lahania around 6:30 and once everyone was fitted with fins and snorkel gear – all given special names by the Captain of the boat and her crew – we headed out to sea.  My mask and snorkel was called Mahi-Mahi.  Mahi-mahi is Hawaiian for dolphin fish.

I had bought a small digital camera that was waterproof the day before just for the trip.  Yeah – I know – I really needed another camera.  But I didn’t think saltwater would be good for my SLR, considering how my cell phone reacted to dampness.

The plan was to stop at three places around the island to snorkel.  At the first location we were all given snorkel lessons before we jumped into the water.  The coral was amazing even from the boat. and several sea turtles could be seen under the water or surfacing now and then for air.

I had left the strap for the little camera in Audie’s truck in my big camera bag, but I found a big rubber band to attach to the camera and loop around my wrist.  I wasn’t going to let a little problem like that cause me any grief.

I loved it!  Unfortunately, when I stuck my head above the water I could see almost everyone was back on board the boat.  I remember something came to mind like “candy-asses” but I went along with the majority.

…the beach stop

The park is in the valley formed from a collapsed volcano (a caldera) Iao means “cloud supreme” from the bank of clouds that are usually hanging over the valley. Throughout the park, there are signs saying that flash floods occur regularly because of the frequent and heavy rains.

North was the lucky spot on the compass. The Kahekili Highway goes all around the coast on the north end of the island. I had heard it was very scenic. Me and the Pentax headed out.

A scenic lookout

I stopped at a lookout point along the way.  There were several cars stopped so I figured there must be something worth seeing here.  It was a small bay (or maybe a cove, I don’t know the difference) and you could see the coral even from the three or four hundred feet above where I was.  Snorkelers were scattered throughout the bay, as well as some people just out for a swim.

a rain forest on next page

Hawaii time is always twice as long as anywhere else. This morning, that was a good thing.

My shower was broken. It tried to squirt water. But it just couldn’t. Two little drops would leak out and then it would hiss at me and another bit of water would trickle out. And then it quit trying altogether.

Apparently, I was having a bath this morning. I turned the water on for the tub and there was no hot water. It was luke warm – barely luke warm to be precise. The little temp control on the faucet was locked at 105 degrees. I decided against forcing it past that temperature and crawled into a quick, cold bath. Some might say that would be refreshing. I’m not in that group.

An hour later (Hawaii time, remember) my ride returned and we were off. We took a quick detour on the way to Audie’s condo where I took these photos.

As expected, my few hours in the sun erupted into a sunburn. It’ s not painful, except for the top of my feet, but I know I’m gonna lose some skin in a few days.  But I ain’t gonna let that bother me.

According to Google Earth, it’s only a couple of kilometres (or about 160000 inches) to the Palms at Wailea from my hotel.  I checked the map so I knew where I was going and off I went for a walk.  Chelsea and Jonathan were supposed to be here already, and if they were at home I was hoping for a short visit.  Audie and Lois and family were going to arrive sometime today too.

I got to the Palms a lot sooner than I expected.  I arrived at an intersection I wasn’t really expecting, and my first thought was “Now where the hell am I?”  I looked for a street sign (as if that was going to help) and there it was!  The Palms at Wailea.  Just across the street.

I called Jonathan’s cell, and demanded a beer.  More importantly, I wanted to know how to find them.  A few minutes later I was sitting on their deck.

Audie and Lois were already in town.  They had gone to the airport to pick up more people, and would be back later.  I finished my beer, and as nice as the grounds at the Palms were, I wanted to move on.  I’m not much for hanging around hotels or wasting time at a pool when there’s an ocean a few blocks away.

I got directions to the beach (I could see I needed a car soon) and headed out.

I asked the guy at the front how far to a beach, and he said he would give me ride in the shuttle.  I asked if I could walk there, and he told me it was about a fifteen minute walk. 

Actually, it’s a fifteen minute walk if you run all the way.  But I didn’t know that then.  I got directions and me and my lily white legs headed out.  I figured I would be able to find some sun screen at the beach since I hadn’t bothered to pack any.  I could tell the sun was intense, and there wasn’t a hope in hell I wouldn’t burn.

It was a fairly steep hill all the way down to the ocean, and I knew the trip back was going to be a lot longer than the promised 15 minutes.  It was only about 11:00 am, and already very hot and humid.

Polo Beach Park

I completed the fifteen minute walk in record time – about a half hour – and found myself at Polo Beach.  Stunning.  I can’t describe it.  Some photos are best…

I stood entranced for about 5 minutes, and threw my camera bag on top of a big lava rock and waded into the water.  People who live by the sea probably don’t appreciate the beauty as much as prairie people do. I watched every wave come in with fascination and awe.

… more of the beach on next page