Tuesday Travels - Hawaii part 2

We spent the next 2 nights at a Bed & Breakfast in what is called 'upcountry' in the town of Makawau (mak-a-wow). The b&b was a plantation home built in 1924 and has been beautifully restored. We stayed in the Rose room which had it's own private entrance to the lanai. From the lanai, you can see this huge Norfolk Pine tree in the back yard. Such a cozy little spot. Mom and I almost slept out there the first night. 

 The Norfolk Pine tree

 To put it in perspective...

 Here's the view of it from the driveway. Look how gorgeously tall it is. 

Now don't cha just wanna go hug a tree?

 the beautiful backyard

Ok, before I share the activities from the next few days, I have a little story. In preparation for the trip, I decided to make my own travel guide book instead of buying one. I made a long list of varying kinds of activities among other things. There were activities I was wanting to do (and hoping mom would be up for) and others I wanted mom to know she had the option to try. There were a couple activities that as I researched and added them to the list, I thought to myself, "she'll probably just read it and discount it as not a possibility". But just in case, I did my homework and added them anyway. See, mom has a few fears. One being the fear of heights. As a kid, I was the one that had to climb the ladder to paint the wood trim along the roof line because my mom and sister were wusses. Yeah, that's what I said. Wusses.

So as mom and I board the plane to Maui, I hand her the guide book. I promptly fall asleep. When I wake up, the first thing she say is, "I think I want to go zip lining." My response being, "really?" =)

Day 3: We got up at 3:20am to ascend to the 10,000 foot summit of Haleakala National Park to watch the sunrise. Now, I was prepared for the cold, but some how I missed the warning about how darn windy it is up there. Windy. I mean, hold on to yo-self or you might blow away, windy. We reached the summit at about 5:04. The parking lot was already full. We hurried to the viewing spot, but we were already too late to see the stars. There was a thin streak of light forming at the horizon. Sunrise was at 5:45. There was an inside viewing deck but there were already so many people in there. Plus I wanted to have the whole experience. I guess you could say I did. My fingers went numb. =) My nose was running all over the place. But we saw it. It was pretty.

We didn't stick around long after the sun rose, because (besides being frozen) we were going to try and make it to the 8am check in to go zip lining. Mom and I agreed that the best option was the 3 line canopy tour. Unfortunately, it only ran once a day at 8:30 am. It worked out great. We stopped at the b&b right as she was starting to put out the breakfast. We grabbed a few things to take with us and ate on the way. Luckily, 2 other people had signed up to do the 3 line that morning so they let us join at the last minute. The other 2 zip lining were a couple of ornery women and the guides were super fun and friendly. It was a fun group. Oh yeah, and it rained. Some how that made it even better.

The orneriest one actually chickened out twice. She was lined up to go first and couldn't do it. So her friend went. She tried again and backed down. I was nervous that she would scare mom out of going too. But she didn't. Mom got up there, and you never would have even guessed she was afraid of heights.

doing her sit test

doing the star fish 

I went after mom.

The panicked chick, ended up going after all. She had the guide release her because she couldn't mentally get passed the jumping part.
The second and third zip lines were progressively longer. Mom didn't even hesitate.

 

cannon ball!

Yay! So Fun! I totally recommend these guys if you find yourself on Maui. Travis and Clide were are guides and Crystal was our 'driver'. They were all a hoot.

By 10:30am, we had had a pretty full day already, so I took myself a nice little nap. Later we prepared for the next days adventure... the road to Hana. We made sure to fuel up and grab a few more groceries. We explored Paia. It's been described as a hippie town. There were quite a few art galleries and the grocery store was heaven. It's called Mana Foods. Love this place. I felt so at home there. Barefoot. No Shoes. Go on in. =)

Day 4: We were up early again so we helped ourselves to breakfast and hit the road... to Hana, that is. Every where I read, it said to take your time and stop often. Though, it also warned not to leave valuables in the car, not even the trunk. Well, there were a few attractions viewable from the road. Some you could actually find parking for, but most were a little trickier. People actually parked right in front of one way bridges to get out and take pictures of waterfalls. Ok, I was tempted to follow suit, but I wasn't about to get a ticket or piss off a local who decided to 'push' me out of the way. Needless to say, it was a fairly short drive.

 

There was really only one place we just HAD to stop and check out. Coconut Glens. For all natural, organic, vegan ice cream. We tried original (coconut) and banana rum raisin. The original was yummy!... didn't care much for the other, but mom liked it. We shared stories with a couple free spirits who reminded me of the beautiful people I met at camp 2 years ago. It made me happy to be embraced by them especially because I got to share that with my mom.

 

 

In Hana, we stayed at a vacation rental. We dropped our bags off before check-in and went to Koki beach for lunch. It was really pretty and had the squishiest sand. The waves were intense. A few guys were surfing. (I actually thought it was Hamoa beach until just now when I was trying to figure out the name of the other beach that we went to next.)

 

Now what in the world is this? A pterodactyl?

 Aw, I finally got my climb on!

We drove a little further and came to another beach, a little more secluded. That, come to find out, was Hamoa Beach. The waves were really strong there too. A dready local dude made friends with us and even invited us to dinner. I was excited to hang with some locals, but mom wasn't so sure...so we bid them farewell. He did show off (as requested) and did a handstand on his board while surfing. I sadly missed the shot. =(

Mom and I had dinner back at our place and I taught her to play gin. It didn't take her long to catch on. A couple days later, she was kicking my butt.

to be continued...

Tuesday Travels - Hawaii

Ok, do you know how hard it was not to talk about my upcoming trip to Hawaii?! It was so worth it, though, because my mom was truly surprised.

We spent a nice long week in Maui, exploring and staying in different parts of the island. I did quite a bit of research and puzzle pieced the lodging and activities together. Here's a little map I created with advice from fellow bloggers. The numbered stars are the places we stayed in order.

*click to enlarge

We arrived on the island around 5pm. After getting the car rental and driving from the airport (it's labeled "groceries" at the top) and driving to the northwest side, we just barely made it in time to try and watch the sun set on the beach. Try being the operative word, due to mother nature hiding it behind a wall of clouds.  Our hotel ended up being quite a bit further north than I expected. Their address said Lahaina, but they were actually just south of Kapalua. Although that added quite a bit of extra driving between activities, the beach that was just outside our door ended up being one of my favorites. 

Day 1 (also May 1): The first morning we woke up in Hawaii, was my mom's birthday. We took our time getting around and decided to go explore Lahaina. I'm not a big shopper, but I was on the lookout for a couple of gifts. I also ended up buying myself a pair of earthy wooden chopsticks that I was hoping to christen on our trip. When hunger struck, there was no sushi in sight, however we did find a tiny out of the way Thai restaurant that did not disappoint. I'm glad to hear that mom has decided she likes curry. We split spring rolls and a yellow curry dish. They also make their Thai tea from scratch so I ordered a glass to share. The owner brought us the traditional one, plus a lime (instead of milk) version on the house. My favorite part of the town was the banyan tree park. I felt so jealous of the kids climbing on it, but I was a good girl and obeyed the 'no climbing' signs.

We stopped at a random beach on the way back to the hotel. I received lots of fore warning about leaving your belongings on the beach while you get in the water, so I stayed with our stuff and sun bathed a bit. Mom enjoyed her time getting wet. 

 

When we got back to the hotel, I had this urge to go jump in the ocean real quick before we had to start getting ready for our big night. Mom was up for it so we took only the room key and headed to our sweet little bay. While we were wading, we saw turtles!! Not sure if there were multiple turtles or the same guy came popping his head up. He was only 2-3 yards away from us. So cool!! Oh, and then the funniest moment of the whole trip happened. It was time to head back to the room. I walked out of the water and onto the beach and turn around to see mom unable to make it. Yeah. That's what I said. She started to walk out and (as she describes it) her foot sank into the sand, causing her to go down on her knees. Just then, the wave rebounds of the shore and back into the ocean, knocking her back onto her butt. Then another wave came up from behind her and washed her forward, but not forward enough for her to be beached. Because here comes another rebound. We started laughing so hard. She was just getting tossed back and forth. I tried to help her stand up, but was no use. About 30 seconds after it wasn't funny anymore, a man offered to help. Oh yeah, did I mention there was an audience. So the man and I help her up and just as she steps onto the sand, everyone started applauding. Funny and a little embarrassing. Mom is such a good sport. 

Off to the luau, we went. Mom looked so pretty. May 1st is not only May Day, it's also Lei Day in Hawaii. They gave us really flower leis and a flower to put behind our ear. You put it behind your left ear if you are taken and the right ear if you are available. We got our first mai tais before we even reached the table. The staff was so friendly. Our waiter kept calling us his family. Well, our family consisted of 6 other people who we shared the table with. I love this kind of setting where you get to socialize with complete random strangers. It just so happens there was another mother daughter couple at the table AND it was the daughter birthday that day too! After the show, the waiter lit candles and we sang them both happy birthday.

Day 2, was a little less eventful. We went to the farmers market to stock up on veges and shared a coconut.

Mom got snorkel gear and tried that out while I had some down time with my beach towel. Then we loaded up the car and headed to our next adventure...stopping at a beach OF COURSE, along the way.

to be continued...

Happy Mother's Day!

the Sunday Special - tropical fruit

What better way to experience a new place than to taste the fruits of its land.

From Hawaii:
Mangosteen
Lychee
and 2 others I'm trying to find the names of.
 
Mangosteens are delicious but there is very little fruit inside them. I only bought one since they were fairly expensive, but totally would haven't eaten more. The purple rind supposedly has a lot of health benefits, so I sliced it up and brought it back with me to juice.
Lychee are good. Similar to the rambutan. They're small, but I don't like eating more than 3 at a time.
The cactus-y fruit with a green seedy inside was ok. I'm guessing the seeds are edible, but mom and I were spitting them out. Due to there small size and mixed in with the fruit, it was hard to separate them in your mouth. A little too much work for me.
The last one that looks like a potato on the outside, well, it must have not been ripe. I waited until the very last day to try it (you aren't allowed to leave Hawaii with produce), but it was not long enough. I took the tiniest bite and immediately got the worst cotton mouth of my life and spat it out. It reminded me of eating a very very green banana, though crisp like a pear. It's probably delicious when ripe. Hopefully someday I'll get a second chance to find out.

Of course we also enjoyed fresh pineapple, coconut, mango, papaya, strawberries, apple bananas, and likely a few others I've missed.

Farm days and Froggies

It's been a pretty busy week. After a nice long vacation with my mom, we woke up in Maui on Monday, flew back to Cali, and spent the night in Sacramento. My cousin was a gracious host and fabulous cook.

Early Tuesday morning, I took mom to the airport. We both somehow missed the turn and didn't realize it until we were many miles past it. Although she arrived only 30 minutes before take off, still had to check in, got in the wrong airline's line, and literally had to run to the gate, she made it in time and actually had others board after her. I made it back to Tahoe that morning in time for breakfast and a much savored shower before catching a movie with friends and then a private-ish wine (beer, cocktails, and food) tasting party. Usually at those kinds of events you get a little taste, but some booths were handing out full glasses. Luckily it was a pina colada and boy was it tasty! After getting up at 4:30 and not being a big drinker, I was asleep by 7 something.

Wednesday night was the monthly Art League meeting. We usually just have a demonstration or lecture after the meeting, but this time we got to play. I made a little frog (with pan pastels) in honor of my nephew. It was his birthday and he choose frogs as his party theme this year.

Thursday I worked at the Art Center and today I volunteered at the Farm Days festival in Carson City. It was fun gettin' dirty with the kids. They each got to take home a lettuce starter. And now I'm getting so hungry smelling bread baking. I created a vegan sunflower seed recipe that I'll share if its worthy. But boy does it smell worthy. mmmm

Tuesday Travels - SURPRISE!!

Not only is it Tuesday and I AM traveling, but today is also my mom's birthday. I have been planning a surprise trip for her for 3 years. She hasn't done much traveling in her life and often tells me she lives vicariously through me. (One of the reasons I started this blog to begin with.) Well, I decided it was about time she got to experience some first hand.

A couple months ago, my sister and I told my mom that we were flying her out here to Tahoe to spend a week with me for her birthday. (My sister was originally suppose to come too and make it a fun girl trip, but her doctor said it would not be a good idea since she'd be 7 months along by that point.)

I have been so excited; I could hardly contain myself.

So she flew into SAC yesterday. I met her at the airport and broke the news to her that she wasn't going to get to see Tahoe after all. Big bummer, right. Yeah, she's going to have to get right back on the plane and fly outta here.


Because she's spending her birthday in HAWAII instead!!!