I was about to write my mom an email about yesterday's adventure and thought, why not just turn it into a blog? It wasn't super crazy or anything, but definitely a solid day of adventuring.
While the boys went down to the beach for the regular Friday night potluck, I stayed home planning my trip. I have to say, and this may come as no surprise, that I enjoyed my evening immensely. Reading my travel book, drinking tea, looking at maps, drinking more tea, researching the bus....ahhhhh, the sweet joy of adventure prep.
The plan was to make it to the opposite side of the island to Hilo, one of the oldest and largest cities in the state. There are 2 possibilities for getting there without a car: the bus or hitchhiking. Well, I didn't feel like dealing with the hassle and uncertainty of hitchhiking, especially since I wasn't sure if I was going solo, so I chose the bus. Unfortunately though, the bus system here is quite laughable. There is just one bus per day, it's not very clear where it stops, and oh joy, it comes at 5:55 am! Insanity!!! (See picture of my hand-written bus schedule. I don't have a printer, plus I get off on this type of detailed work.) On the plus side, however, it's free!
Another plus, Tim decides to come with. Relieved and excited, I set my alarm for 4:30 am. Getting up before 5 is unnatural and just plain wrong, I just have to say. Got up, ate, packed our bags, and left here at 5. It was pitch black, so I carried a flashlight as we walked along the highway for almost 2 miles to Honaunau Elementary School, the supposed bus stop (I say supposed because I called the transit line, and the woman who answered wasn't sure and told me to ask around (ha), then put me on hold and asked someone else who said it was at this school). At moments, the
walk was miserable (our lack of sleep kicking in), and at other moments magnificent (the incredible harmony of frog, insect, bird sounds electrifying the night). We got to the bus stop a bit early and waited. (That's Tim in the picture, sitting at the side of the road, probably wondering how he got sucked into this.) We had never ridden the bus or actually even seen one, so this was a suspenseful moment. Sure enough, around 5:55 it drove by. We waved frantically, but it kept going. Shit. All that for nothing, you got to be kidding me, I thought. Well, the bus driver must have had a delayed reaction, cause he eventually stopped a ways ahead of us. Totally relieved, we caught up and hopped on:) Yea! The adventure continues!
Once on, we were both pretty focused on sleeping, and since it was still dark, it was the perfect opportunity. The bus driver couldn't just leave his damn foot on the accelerator though, so it was a bit of a jerky ride. I got in a bit of shut eye though and was then ready to take in some island views (here we are on the bus, somewhat more alert).
The bus windows were all smudgy, so I don't have any great shots, but I'll include a couple just so you can get an idea. The most amazing thing about travelling the island is watching the landscapes and ecosystems change before your eyes, from desert to gr
assland to
forest...dry, wet, and everything in between. Incredible.
We got to Waimea, at the north tip of our route at about 8:00, where we were told we got a 30 minute break AND were welcomed by a Starbucks! I have to admit, I was actually excited about that. Kona shmona, I'm tired of all the pretension. Plus, I had my Starbucks card with me, so I got a coffee and Tim got a latte (thanks Mom). Got back on the bus for another hour and a half and then arrived in Hilo. Wow. Huge difference from Kona. An actual town, a more authentic local vibe, and....the best Farmer's Market
ever!!! See pics (look at Tim, enjoying my obnoxious touristiness). Loads and loads of enticing goodies and beautiful flowers. Had some rambutans (hairy thing pictured). Deelish!
I wandered through the market a couple times, entranced and overwhelmed, and soon became very hungry.
So we walked around a bit, checking out town, looking at food options, and ended up in a tiny joint where we saw some local-looking people and menu of traditional Hawaiian food. I got a loco moco, which is a ground beef patty and egg over rice, smothered in gravy. I didn't take a picture, so I'm stealing one off the internet so you can see what it looks like (that's legal, right?). It was really yummy, but left
me feeling quite full and nast
y.
So we walked around, ventured off the beaten path, and found some sweet little pockets of natural beauty. It's amazing how many secret spots there are around the island. I'm always wondering why more people haven't caught on to them. We walked along the Wailuku River, spotted some mini-waterfarlls, found a little pathway down to the water, where, eventually, we got in for a swim (well, Tim swam and I just waded, but that still counts for something). Here's a sampling of the stuff we saw.
We contemplated staying the night at a hostel, but to save money (they aren't dirt cheap like in Costa Rica) and avoid the challenge of hitching back Sunday (bus doesn't run), we decided to head back on the one and only return bus at 1:30. The time in Hilo was short but sweet and I will definitel
y be back soon. The bus returned on the same route, sto
pping again at the same shopping center in Waimea. We had a different driver who was kind of an ass. I was lagging a bit to get off the bus cause I had been sleeping, and he yelled at me :( Anyhoo, he said to be back in 20-25 minutes. We hung out at Starbucks again and headed back to the bus 20 minutes later, but the bus was nowhere to be found. Sad face again :( I was still kind of groggy from my nap and just could not grasp what had happened. It actually left with out us! Unbelievable!
Somehow, Tim wasn't really too bummed out, and I just followed his lead as we set out for our first hitching attempt of the day. Made it to the main road and hoped for the best. In record time, a truck pulled over and we were welcomed by a couple heading into Kona. They were incredibly nice and friendly. Ooh, here's a freakish coincidence: they lived in Carlsbad for a while, about half a mile from where I grew up. We were headed to a friend's house in a slightly different direction from where they were headed, so they dropped us off at the road to Holualoa. Before we got out, the driver gave us his business card and told us to call them if we ever want to join them for a ski/snowboard trip to Mauna Kea (which I am dying to do). Too nice, too nice.
Well, we were still about 4 miles from our destination, so it was time to stick out our thumbs again. Again, in lightning speed, a truck pulled over for us! This time we were relegated to the back of the truck, and, since there was very little room, we actually sat on a couple plastic chairs! Good thing it was a short ride, cause that was a wee bit dangerous.
In less than 10 minutes, we were at our destination, a friend's house who was having a get together for some huge UFC fight on Pay-per-view. Not exactly my cup of tea, and I wasn't exactly invited, but it was easier if Tim and I just stuck together. I ended up being the only girl t
here, so that kind of blew, but I actually kind of enjoyed the fights. There were maybe 5 fights, culminating with the main event fight with a Hawaiian contender named BJ Penn (who unfortunately lost). I got freakishly engrossed in the second fight, cause one of the fighters, Karo Parisyan, was Armenian! That was exciting. I bet $1 against one of the guys, and won. Woohoo!!! :) Hung out there for a while after all the fights and then got a ride home from one of the guys. Man was I happy to be home. Took a nice hot shower, made some tea, and watched some Aussie Open. What an incredible match! Too bad I missed most of it, cause I passed out on the futon after the first set. Ahhh, it sure felt good to sleep.
So that was my first big adventure in Hawai'i and, hopefully, just the first of many. Mahalo for reading :)
n the studio with sophie
