The Hawaiian holiday

The mention of Hawaii would always make me a little wishful. When I sniffed an opportunity this time, I clung to it right away. Prices be damned. I didn’t exactly say that to Mint, but he knew how I felt. It seemed like the perfect destination. For the longest time, I’ve wanted a holiday that does not involve a packed itinerary. I wanted to just sit back and do nothing. Hawaii, with its beautiful beaches and killer weather was ideal. We went to Maui, and it was sheer bliss.

We landed on the island on a bright, sunny afternoon. I gleefully abandoned the jacket I was wearing the moment we stepped out of the airport. What joy it is to be dressed in nothing but a thin, cotton tee when it’s almost December! It’s liberating.

The hotel we were staying in opened into the beach. That was another criteria I had. I wasn’t satisfied with the idea of our hotel being close to the beach, I wanted the hotel to be *on* the beach. Prices be damned, again. It made perfect sense. It gave us the opportunity to run back to our room whenever we pleased. It let us walk to the beach with a towel hung on our shoulders. It even let us take unplanned walks on the beach under the star lit sky at night. No hassle of driving around. Just get out of your room and you are there. You hear the sound of the waves as you sleep at night.

On our first day there, Mint and I had some fun splashing around on the beach. I am usually too scared to venture too far into the water. If you know me personally, you know about the horrifying experience I once had in Thailand. But we held hands, and he took me along into the water, telling me he would keep me safe. I also spent some time sleeping on the sand, spread out on a beach towel. It was heavenly.

The weather was gorgeous and I can’t say this enough. Warm, balmy days and pleasant evenings can make your spirit soar. To add to the charm, there was soft music floating in the air in the evenings, courtesy the guy who would sit by the poolside, strumming on his guitar as he sang. It rained on one of the days we were there. We couldn’t hit the beach, neither could we step out. So we hung out in our room, walked around the resort and finally sat by the pool side with a colourful cocktail and some beer battered onion rings. The strange part was me getting hit by a single drink. Really. One drink was all it would take for me to start feeling tipsy. And each time I would think I should stop, I would hear Mint say “Le re. Kuch nahi hoga”. (Just have it. Nothing will happen). He is the one who spoils me and then goes about telling the world that I am the one who spoilt him. Hmph.

We went to Haleakala National Park and we were actually on top of the clouds. I had gone in a flimsy cotton skirt, but thankfully had my jeans in the car. I ended up changing into my denims soon. I don’t remember the elevation, but we were high up there in a world above the clouds. One of the pamphlets I read said the park has such a high elevation, if you go up to the summit and look, you can actually see the curvature of our planet. We did huff and puff our way to the summit, which included the Halekala crater area. It was the first time I saw a volcanic region. However, the air up there was thin. I was gasping for breath and had a sudden headache. We didn’t spend too much time there after that due to my altitude sickness, which was also starting to make me feel nauseous. I threw up in the car on our drive back. Mint says it was the sight of me throwing up that made the cows turn around and walk away. Never mind.

Can you see us standing above the clouds in these pictures?

And of course, we went for a Luau party, which had all the traditional Hawaiian dances, fire eaters, music and unlimited food and alcohol to go with it. It was great, but like Mint said, India has so much of folk talent too. A lot more than all of this put together. We do not monetize it the way they do.

And then there was the food. We bought two big bags of chips and packs of Oreos which we stocked in the car. Driving always comes with munching. For our meals, we ended up going to the same place a lot of times. It is called Aloha mixed plate. I highly recommend it. They have great cocktails and amazing desserts. Their garlic fries are the best I’ve had. I love food. I love eating. I do not understand how people diet and deprive themselves of such pleasures. Food is the best.

Anyway, next we went into a Lava tube. Isn’t that exciting? Imagine us walking into volcanic lava that erupted years ago, solidified and formed cave like structures. It seemed like a long, rocky tunnel. It was pitch dark inside. I held on to my flash light, hoping it doesn’t slip out of my hand and roll away in the darkness. We read the signs posted that explained the formation of the lava tube, studied the structure and texture of the rocks. It was so informational and exciting at the same time. If only I had seen all this as a child, I would have understood all that my textbooks said a lot better.

We had such a lovely, lovely time. Hawaiian folks seem to be in a good mood perennially. They greet you with the warmest “Aloha!”. In fact, they don’t say it. They sing it. They are always smiling and go out of their way to help you. And they are a chatty lot. I remember the first day we arrived, we were just driving up to the reception of our hotel when a man asked us if we were there on our honeymoon. No, we said. He told he asked because we looked madly in love. It made us laugh. Madly in love? How? Mint was at the wheel, looking at the road ahead. I was looking out of the window. We weren’t even looking at each other, let alone cuddling. How did we look “madly in love” to him? Mint said he must be saying it to every couple he sees. It’s funny.

It was a grand vacation. I loved Hawaii. My favourite was the black sand beach. Imagine shining, dark black sand. It was beautiful. We drove around the island, ate good food and desserts, drank great cocktails, took pictures, lounged on the beach, drove to scenic waterfalls, slept a lot, shopped and had a fabulous time. I came back with sand in my hair and the sea in my eyes.