Rainbows and Luau’s
Finally we were off! No question now, our trip had now truly begun. Our first flight of the trip was uneventful (the kids slept most of the way) and we arrived in Maui tired but excited to finally be in Hawaii. We had chosen to stay on Maui’s windy north shore in the tiny community of Haiku in order to get away from the tourist crowds and to be near the surfing and windsurfing mecca of Ho’okipa Beach. We found our little cottage, Whispering Bamboo, on the internet and it sounded perfect. It was on a 2 ½ acre family estate overlooking the ocean with a saltwater swimming pool and was within our budget. It didn’t disappoint – after navigating the winding roads in the dark, we arrived at almost midnight to find our charming little cottage waiting with the doors and windows open and hibiscus scented breezes blowing through the curtains. We had a little dining area on the patio overlooking the ocean where we ate breakfast and supper daily. Thanks to Maui’s microclimates, it usually rained several times a day for about fifteen minutes, usually accompanied by a spectacular rainbow (sometimes even a double rainbow). We were often visited by geckos, the occasional cockroach and an insomniac rooster, but otherwise felt like we had found our own little corner of paradise. When we asked our hostess, Anjale, for a key to the cottage, she just shrugged and said, “Oh I don’t give out keys – people just lose them. It’s completely safe here – just don’t leave your laptop lying around.”
We spent our first few days exploring the island by car and getting the lay of the land. We took a family surf lesson on the beach at Kihei and we all managed to stand up within the first hour. The kids loved it and Alexa did the best of all four of us, even making it all the way to the beach a few times. Simon was more of a show off and was more concerned with style than form – usually falling off as he made hang ten signs and hooted at the other surfers. After two hours we were all exhausted and had spaghetti arms from all the paddling, but we were surfers!
We also visited touristy Lahaina and wandered around the tourist district. We were fascinated by the famous Banyan Tree which occupies an entire city block (apparently it was planted in the mid-1800’s). I really wanted to see a luau and experience some Hawaiian culture, food and dancing. Our host, Ken, had warned us to stay away from the cheesy, second-rate luau’s offered by most of the hotels and recommended the Old Lahaina Luau as the best on the island. We balked, though, when we discovered that it would cost over $300 for the entire family and decided to reconsider our options. While wandering around Lahaina, we kept seeing “Tourist Info” booths with luau prices posted in the $25 range and decided to stop and ask. The agent assured us that we could attend an excellent luau for only $25 each and the kids would go free. “What’s the catch?” I asked, “Do we have to sit through a timeshare presentation or something?” Bingo! For 90 minutes of our time we could get a great deal on a luau. “No thanks,” I replied, “I’m not selling my soul for a luau.” As we started to walk away, he slipped into used car salesman mode and called out to us “What if it was free?” In the end, we walked away with a free luau and a deep discount on an all-day snorkel trip to Molokini Island. We had to fudge a few answers about being verifiable homeowners and having full-time employment, but we looked the part, so no one asked questions.
When we arrived the next morning for our “tour,” we discovered that the resort they were selling was actually in Las Vegas (??). Our salesman reminded me of a cross between Al Bundy and Troy McClure (of “The Simpsons” fame). He was so stereotypical it was funny, with his slicked back hair, big capped teeth and loud Hawaiian shirt. He took us to a large room with about fifty other people getting the same spiel and it was like the Tower of Babel, you could barely hear yourself think. He attempted to make smalltalk for a few minutes and Claude and I just smiled politely and gave monosyllabic replies in response to his questions. Once he launched into his shtick, he promised to have us out in under 90 minutes if we didn’t have a lot of questions. After 30 minutes, he must have realized we were a lost cause because we just kept smiling and nodding like a couple of polite zombies. Finally he stopped and said, “Do you have any questions, so far?” To which I replied, “No, I just don’t think this type of vacation opportunity appeals to us.” He then excused himself for a few minutes and then returned, thanked us for our time and showed us the door. In the parking lot, Claude and I just looked at each other and laughed and said “That’s it? What’s the catch?” I guess that’s the trick, if the wife’s not into it, they know it’s hopeless.
That night, when we arrived at the hotel (which shall remain nameless) for the luau, Claude announced to the parking attendant that we were there for the “lahu.” The attendant burst out laughing and said, “That’s a new one!” Alexa and SImon giggled for days over that one. Unfortunately, Ken was right about the luau. The food was pretty good and the kids loved the dancing, but the show was pretty cheesy and I thought Claude was going to stick a fork in his eye after the first half hour. Luckily, the booze was included and he managed to quite enjoy himself by the end of the show. When they played a traditional drum dance near the end, he joined in by drumming on the table with gusto – the kids thought it was hysterical and I almost crawled under the table. Oh well, that’s what I get for insisting on going to a luau. Needless to say, I drove home that night.
To view some of our photos from Maui, visit our web album
Tags: Hawaii, Maui, Surfing, Travel
tambour
Leave a Reply