Vincent is in Colusa, California, parked in a secure area, with no brakes and most of our belongings.
Ryan and I are in a red Hyundai Accent dubbed "Abbe Naro," with our tent and our dirty clothes in the back, as well as anything we thought we might need in Hawaii. We are shuttling as fast as we can northward so we can meet our flight to Honolulu in Seattle. We have also ordered brake calipers from Seattle, so we have to pick those up along the way. There is an air of frantic desperation in the car, and it's not easy to figure out to whom it belongs.
After Redwoods, it was a short trip to Oregon. We decided to stay on 101 and drive the coastline so we could see things like this:
We stopped at someone's local seafood shack and enjoyed seafood tacos the size of our heads.
And, of course, we did that thing where we park under a tree and sleep for the night. This time, we found a deserted horse camp and slept next to the corral. In the morning, I was awoken by a bird whose chirp was the exact sound and intensity of a playground monitor's whistle. The weather was damp and rainy, so we deconstructed the tent in the rain and got ourselves completely soaked in the process.
Onward. Always onward.
In the Oregon/Washington coastal area, there are these tiny pop-up coffee shacks all over the place, and it was from one of these places that I had possibly the best fresh-baked three cheese and chive scone I've ever tasted. Ryan enjoyed banana chocolate chip, which was rife with the chips and frosted with a generous swath of banana frosting.
While we didn't exactly have time to spare, we made time to stop along the coast when the view got lovely, so we could capture at least a handful of moments to reflect upon later.
We made one, singular, solitary stop in Oregon: Cascade Brewing. Cascade is known for their sours, and while I don't really care for sours, I do care very much for honey beers- especially local honey beers.
Then ZOOM, off again. In rapid succession, we drove to Seattle, picked up the calipers for Vincent, found the hotel, made short work of our laundry, packed for Hawaii, found parking for Abbe while we were gone, and somehow found time to order and eat a pizza.
The shuttle to our Hawaii flight left at 6am, so we were entirely bleary-eyed as we made our way through the airport. After spending so many weeks responsible for our own travel, having someone else do the driving felt a little strange - a surrender of control that my anxiety did not appreciate. That being said, the plane offered free movies and TV shows, so I was soon distracted for a solid six hours of flight over the Pacific.
I expected Hawaii to be otherworldly and unlike anything I had experienced before, but the differences occurred in unexpected ways. For example, the Hawaii airport has very few solid walls. The breezeways were open to the elements, and there was no door to the airport. I'm from Ohio. It gets cold, it gets rainy, and it gets swarms-of-bugsy. We like walls and doors and windows. In Hawaii, apparently none of these things are a problem.
We picked up our rental car and circled the Waikiki area, looking for our hotel. The reason we got such a fantastic deal was due to the hotel being under renovation. I'm pretty sure that in the coming year, the rates will skyrocket, because it was a Very Nice hotel room.
Parking in Waikiki is about as fun as parking in Chicago, so we did a lot of circling and cursing before we found a spot. By then, it was long, long past Cocktail O'Clock, and the handful of pretzels we'd enjoyed on the plane was long gone. It was also past our bedtime in Ohio time, and given that we'd been up since 5am Pacific Time, we had absolutely no idea when it was.
There's also the conundrum of the heavily touristed areas where EVERYONE has the best food, the best drinks and the best Happy Hour. We pretty much gave up on choice and stopped at the first place we found, which was Tiki's Grill and Bar.
In order, we had cocktails (Happy Hour Sex on the Beach and Blue Hawaiians), and food (local beef, pork, and fresh fish on taro buns).
While Ryan sussed out the best parking spot, I hauled our stuff to the hotel and waited for check-in time, at which point I sprawled out on the bed for an afternoon nap.
And then finally- FINALLY- when I felt entirely human, we walked the block to the beach, and dove in.
After a few hours of exploring Waikiki Beach- from the rocky reefs that wanted to tear open our feet, to the surfers diving off the pier to catch the best waves, to the walled-in floating area- we headed back to the hotel to de-sand and consider dinner. Again, we were surrounded by options, but the exhausted, jet-lagged traveler in us opted for take-out sushi. Ryan wandered up the block a bit and picked up sushi so fresh, it had been gasping for air earlier, and paired it with a local beer.
See, along the beach, they have these things called ABC Stores. I mean, every ten feet it feels like there's another ABC Store. They all sell the same basic things- sun lotion, towels, knick-knacks, cheap shirts, but also top shelf booze, local beer, POG, mac nuts, and sandwiches. A trip to Waikiki will very likely include several ABC trips.
The next morning, we cashed in a voucher for breakfast at Lulu's, down the street. Ryan indulged in a volcano of French toast stuffed with pineapple and mac nuts, and I went straight for the Loco Moco. A Loco Moco is a local favorite in Hawaii- sticky white rice, topped with spiced hamburger, sauteed onions, gravy, and two eggs. Both dishes were very yummy and filling.
I had done zero recon work before we came to Hawaii, because I really wanted to just let things be what they would. Now that I had my feet under me, I did some research on beaches we needed to visit, which led us to Kailua Beach for the day. It has tons of free parking, there are several hikes nearby, and Lanikai Brewery was just up the road. Bonus: the water is super calm, super clear, and the sand is silky soft.
We rotted here for several hours, until we got restless and decided to do a quick hike. I'm not 100% sure where we were for our hike, but we did a few miles that looked like this.
And it was hot. Man alive, it was humid and muggy and the sun was bearing down on us. Even Ryan, who is typically impervious to the heat, was sweating it out. We'd spent so long in the cooler temperatures of the Pacific Northwest, this was a shock to our systems. So, we utilized the rental car and cruised around, stopping to take pictures when we saw something pretty (which is everything- let's be real).
By then, the brewery was open, and we were well water-logged and heat-soaked. My first beer was called the Lei Over, and it basically combined all of the local flavors that make Hawaii extraordinary. The best part is that the brewery uses as many local and organic ingredients as possible, which makes each beer a unique tasting experience. I followed the Lei Over with a Lemongrass beer, and oh man, it was intense, too.
Ryan ended up picking up a couple barrel-aged bombers on our way out. As we drove back to the hotel, we started contemplating what we might want for dinner. Again, take-out seemed the best option.
While I surveyed my sunburn (yes, I wore several layers of SPF 50 sunblock for sensitive skin, thank you very much!), Ryan picked up a feast of very authentic Thai specialties, including a Massaman curry, and pineapple rice, and pad sieew. This was probably one of my favorite dinners on the island.
The next day, we decided to rot on Waikiki Beach in the morning so we could hit the Honolulu breweries in the afternoon. Since Waikiki and Maui Brewing were within walking distance, we cleaned up after our beach time, grabbed a quick slab of Spam and a can of coffee from the ABC store, and hit the road.
Let me share with you that the directions were slightly off, and the walk was more like 2 miles. But that's ok.
At Waikiki, I started out with an amber, which was very refreshing. We then enjoyed some mac nut hummus with veggies. And then a jalapeno amber Michelada. And then a barleywine. Ryan was doing flights. Things got wild.
Next thing I know, we're down the block and up four flights of stairs at Maui Brewing's Oahu location, talking to a bartender who used to live in Athens, Ohio, and drinking potent vials of Big Smoke brew. We ordered a garlic-mac nut pizza, but it never happened, and next thing I know, I'm calling my mother at midnight Ohio time, telling her she needs to move to Oahu. (Honestly, she probably does, but I probably didn't need to wake her up to tell her that.)
Somewhere along the way, we decided we needed clothing for the luau Ryan had chosen for the next night, so we stopped at a handful of stores. I ended up picking out a mauve muu-muu and a necklace I just couldn't live without. Ryan got a shirt printed with cars and surfboards.
And then, because we were missing Pride back at home, we stopped at a bar to drink Mai Tais and hang out. This was a poor choice on many levels, but a) at least they had food and b) it was right next to our hotel.
It was here that Ryan bought me a lei, and it was absolutely gorgeous. I wish it hadn't been too fragile to travel back to the mainland with us, but just look at these colors:
The next day, Ryan really wanted to hike Diamond Head, and I really wanted to suffer alone and in peace. He headed out for the trails, and I headed down to the beach for more rotting.
It was here that Ryan met me a few hours later. Apparently, a handful of hikers had to be helicopter rescued from the top of Diamond Head due to heat exhaustion, so let me break out my PSA about hiking once more:
HIKING IS NOT THE SAME AS WALKING AROUND YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.
It is a really good idea to pick up your device and Google search for a hike before you commit to it. If you're in a National Park, they will cheerfully hand you FREE literature that describes all of the hikes. Hikes are rated: Easy, Moderate, Strenuous, Very Strenuous, etc. You will learn the distance of each hike, and if there are obstacles. Diamond Head, for example, has 99 stairs and a narrow tunnel. I know this, and I wasn't even there. Hiking includes rough trails (as opposed to paved sidewalks), obstacles to climb over/through, water crossings, elevation gains, steep switchbacks up AND down, etc, etc, etc. Even Easy trails can cause serious injury if you don't have the correct footwear, clothing, or water. You will be out in the elements for the duration of your hike. It is not fast, it is not easy, and even a one mile hike can take over an hour. PLAN ACCORDINGLY.
End PSA.
After several hours of rotting on the beach, my hangover let up, which meant it was time to get ready for the luau that evening. Even though I knew it was a Super Duper Touristy Thing To Do, I was kind of looking forward to just sitting back and watching the dancing, feasting on kalua pig and cashing in drink tickets.
It did not disappoint. We chose The Cheif's Luau, which includes a bus ride to the site, activities such as headband weaving, coconut tasting, firestarting, etc, all you can drink POG punch, and a feast. Oh, what a feast. There was salad and taro rolls and chow mein, and kalua pork, and pineapple fish, and some kind of sweet chicken, and fresh pineapple, and lomi-lomi salmon, and poi, and the ubiquitous sticky rice... honestly, when I think back on Hawaii, what really stands out is the food. Fresh seafood everywhere. "Locally grown." "Fresh caught." "Island raised." Heck, even the cheese omelet I had probably contained a dozen eggs and a pound of cheese. The commitment to cuisine is real, and I fully salute that.
I didn't take any pictures or video of the show. I wanted to be "in the moment" and really absorb the action. It sounds kind of snotty, but the camera on my phone is a beast that fails me often and with no warning. If you had any idea what kind of effort it takes to get these pictures... well, here's an example of about 40% of the pictures I take:
Monday was our last day in Hawaii, with our flight leaving at 10.10p that night. Ryan awoke wanting to snorkel and do all the things that we hadn't done... but then we realized we really just wanted to rot on the beach one more time.
First, we had to finish our last island beer, because you can't take it home in your duffel bag.
Then, we had breakfast at a very lovely cafe that was able to make snot eggs the way I like them, tossed with smoked salmon and spinach. Oh man, it was delightful.
And then we did that thing where we drive around aimlessly, looking at all the beauty.
We ended up at a place called Sandy Beach. There were signs literally every few feet explaining that the tide was ROUGH. The waves are ROUGH. "When in doubt, don't go out."
Ryan and I have years of beach experience, so we decided to give it a whirl. When we first got in, it was great. Ryan realized he still had his sunglasses on, so while he ran to leave those with our towels, I waded in further... and that's when the waves really picked up.
At first, it wasn't that bad. Dive under, jump over, splash through, ok. Then, without warning, I looked up to see a wave starting to break several feet above my head. I had enough time to pray, swear, take a very deep breath, and go limp.
The wave was rough, but the tide was even, pushing me towards the shore with no undertow. My hips skidded and thumped against the sandy bottom of the ocean, and the water swirled heavily above my head. My feet almost flipped over my head, but I let go of control and everything straightened out. Once my shoulder hit the shoreline, I scrambled upwards. The tide made one last grab at the top of my bathing suit, and as I stood up with my bosom fully exposed, Ryan stepped in front of me to shield me from the beach-goers, saying simply, "Thank you for not drowning."
I elected to stand on the shore while Ryan gave the waves a try. His experience was similar- gentle jumping waves, a few crashers to dive through, and then WHAM! I lost sight of him for a few moments, and then the foam parted to reveal the back of his head bobbing near the shoreline. He fared better than I did, with no sandburns, but fully enveloped in sand.
As we dried off, the beach patrol gave a public intercom announcement regarding the high percentage of broken backs and necks at this particular beach, so we decided to press forward and visit Kailua again, where things were gentle and conducive to us surviving.
We had a wonderful afternoon on the beach. Several hours later, we cleaned up in the beach facility and headed to Kona Brewery for some afternoon libations and munchies before our flight.
One thing I want to mention about Hawaii is the art. It's everywhere. Obviously, every sight and sound is magical, being unique to the island experience, but there's art everywhere, as well. Street art. Parks. Gardens. Even at the airport- you can find the beauty of creation.
I was sad to leave Oahu behind. On one hand, I had zero regrets from spending my time enjoying the natural resources of the beach. On the other hand, I felt like the island held so many more adventures and so much more beauty to behold.
I guess that means we'll have to come back.
Our flight left Honolulu at 10.10p Hawaii time. We landed in Seattle at 7.00a Pacific time. We waited two hours for the shuttle to take us back to Abbe Naro, and then drove 11 hours to get back to Vincent. Since Vincent was parked at a hotel, we decided to stay at that hotel to do the brake work. I fell into bed and slept 12 hours straight, which is something I have very rarely done before... but I believe it was warranted.
So, once again, we are residents of Colusa, California while we work on Vincent. At the time of writing this, he is on three wheels and a jack, because modern calipers require different hard brake lines, and those are hard to remove from a 33 year old van, and... well, the older you get, the harder it becomes to do stuff. At least we know Vincent is safe, and we're back on the mainland, and we have Abbe Naro to get around in the meantime!
