la vie en rose

How's it?

We heard that more than we heard "Aloha" in Hawaii, particularly from people who didn't know if we were tourists or not (because tourists expect "Aloha" and "Mahalo.")

So, we're back! J is a lot tanner (he looks like a local), I am a little (but actually more than I thought I would be), and the fruit to be had was papaya (super ono). Golden sand stuck everywhere, but not the black sand (different texture). It was, as J put it, "Warm, humid, awesome."

I plan on doing a new post for each day that we were there, just to string it out. I'll start with first impressions:

It is no secret that I like old stuff and things with a bit of history to them. I like to think of the stories that go with an object - like what the girl did while wearing that dress or all that places that car has been. I have a vivid imagination, no doubt. So I when I thought about Hawaii before the trip, it was framed in my mind with things ranging from From Here to Eternity to Blue Hawaii to Lost. I was expecting the towns to look like they did 50 years ago, with wild jungles, soft sandy beaches, and clear blue water. I wanted it to be a little rough around the edges. Hawaii did not disappoint. So many places (especially outside of Waikiki) were a little bit shabby and rusty, with old storefront windows still intact. There were buildings painted pink and blue and green. I loved that their history is so well documented, with monuments and statues and old architecture everywhere, and that it was all tinged with a bit of melancholy. I loved the tropical breezes and the warm ocean water. Me standing out and J fitting in. The steep, tsunami-lashed valleys carved out behind the ocean and knowing that the lava flow I was standing on had buried a town. The sadness at Pearl Harbor. Shave ice. Ahi poke. Lilikoi malasadas. Meeting J's family.

Everything has a story.