The Road to Hana

Hana, as many of you will think as you read this, is not in Japan. As I type this, I'm in an Internet cafe on the island of Maui! Yes, I'm on vacation here with my father and Roberta. Hawaii is nothing like I expected it to be. Perhaps I was imagining some place with big green fields or Polynesian outriggers everywhere - I don't know. For edification, there aren't really outriggers everywhere, but I have seen a few. As far as fields go, I've only seen a couple and they were each pastures for horses or cows (something else I didn't expect to find here either.) For some reason, I just can't seem to put my finger on it, but it's different. Perhaps I expected there to be snakes and dangerous animals everywhere. Turns out (as a marine biology student here told me) there are no snakes, bats, raccoons, squirrels, or really any other indigenous mammals to speak of. Although, mongoose run around in the jungle areas much like squirrels do in Rittenhouse park.

So, the other day (Sunday to be precise) I woke up at the hostel I stayed in Saturday night. Because of the time difference, I woke up early and made my morning routine as slow as possible. It's nice to wake up and watch the rain fall through the rays of sun! After acquiring some breakfast and packing my bag, I was about to head to the airport to pick up a rental car. While waiting for the shuttle to get going, I struck up a conversation with two lovely ladies. They were also waiting for the shuttle. We chatted for a little while and continued in the van. Turns out, they planned to drive the Road to Hana, a route famous for its waterfalls and scenic vistas. I had been thinking about doing the same thing. I asked why they were going to the airport. They replied that they were picking up a rental car. (me too, I thought!) So, I suggested that instead of following each other all the way to Hana, we should just ride together! They thought it over and told me to call them after they had a chance to think about it. Perhaps I looked too sketchy for them!!! So, after picking up my car, I realized that there was no way for me to call them with a Japanese cell phone. I just drove over to Thrifty where they were going to attempt renting something. When I got there, they were declined to rent because BOTH of them were under 21. Wow. I feel old. I though, "hop in kids, we're going for a ride." But, they were each mature and older than their physical years.

We drove to Hana and had a great day. Time is running out on my Internet Cafe 'puter, so I post the rest tomorrow!!! Check again in 24 hours.......

Michael
:-)