Category Archives: Vacation

Luaus in Hawaii

Posted on by
imu

stock photo

Luau’s are everywhere in Hawaii

Luaus are to Hawaii as barbecue is to the South. I’ve been to Luaus on Oahu, The big Island and Maui. I’ve lost count of the number I’ve attended. They all have certain elements. You’ll have Kalua Pig. Its usually the center prices of the celebration. A whole pig is cooked in an underground oven called an imu. You’ll also get to taste poi, a paste made from the taro plant. Some of the other traditional foods are Lomilomi salmon, chicken and long rice. You’ll probably be served Haupia, a coconut milk based treat that’s been popular since the 1940’s for dessert.

The Luau Shows

Princess Dance

There’s a lot of pomp and tradition to the Luau shows. Some start with a procession of Hawaiian Royalty others begin with the opening of the imu. Many just begin as a stage show. No matter what the  format, all of the shows tell a story of the Islands. Different types of native dance and song are showcased. Most have a fire dancers which is always a crowd pleaser.

The Feast at Lele

I was told this Luau was different from any I’d been to before and it shouldn’t be missed. It was a sales pitch and I fell for it but  I was getting a nice discount so why not. Usually tickets are $110/head. I paid $49.00. At most luaus you are seated at long family style tables and go through a buffet line for food. Not so at the Feast of Lele. You’ll have your own table and server.

Our Band

The Band played popular ballads but they all sounded like Hawaiian music. As they started another familiar song I commented ” Here’s another traditional Hawaiian  favorite for your listening pleasure.” My tablemates thought that was quite funny.

Feast of lele dancersJourney across Polynesia

The Feast of Lele differs from other Luaus because you don’t go through a buffet line. You’ll enjoy a 5 course meal themed  by island  and delivered to your table by your server. The entertainment features the dances of the island to match your meal, Hawaii, Aotearoa – New Zealand, Tahiti, Samoa and dessert.

 

Let me tell you how I really feel

I fully agree that everyone should attend at least one Luau but by now my luau experiences were approaching double digits.  I love Hawaii but I am not a fan of Hawaiian food. Give me a good steak anytime.  I like the shows but after seeing as many as I’ve seen I don’t need another one. Even the fire dancer has lost it’s exotic feel. Disney includes a fire dancer in it’s Festival of the Lion King.

Fire Dance

Iao Valley

Posted on by | 2 Comments

Maui flowersA Lush Valley in the Middle of Maui

Time to find Iao Valley. I’ve had it on my bucket list for at least 3 visits. Each time the roads were under repair. The valley is located in the center of Maui. It’s one of the wettest sections of Maui. Its a real bonafide rainforest. The concierge told me she hadn’t been there lately but that the roads are open. I was looking forward to some tropical beauty after my negative experience the day before. I only have 2 more days of my vacation and tomorrow I have a whale watch booked.

Getting to Iao Valleywalkway bridge

It turns out it was really easy to locate the valley. It’s actually a State Park. The area is sacred to native Hawaiian’s as well as having great historical significance. The park consists of 4000 acres and is 10 miles long. I was on the main road on the Island, RT 30. It wasn’t long before I saw a sign pointing to the left. Immediately after the left the road split. To get to the park you keep right. The road dips down through a little neighborhood before it starts a twisting upward climb. Now homes are left behind. You go through a falling rock zone and then there you are. There’s a ranger kiosk where you pay a $5.00 entrance fee. Parking was scarce when I was there. It had been cloudy and rainy so with a clear day everyone turned out.

What to expectexhibit area

The trails are paved and easy walking. The climb to view the landmark Iao Needle is made up of paved steps for easy climbing. You enter the park over a little bridge. You can head on up toward the needle or take a side path down to an exhibition area that models the way the Valley used to look. Unless you are a serious hiker there isn’t a lot to do here but it is pretty. I think the history of the area is the most interesting thing about the valley. I’ll share more of that next time.

Iao Needle

 

Just Another Day in Paradise

Posted on by

I  Made it to Paradise

Stock Photo- Landing at LAX

As the plane began it’s decent into Maui’s Kahului airport the pilot announced Welcome to Paradise! I made it, again. If the plane ride ( 11-12 hours) is hell then yes, Maui is Paradise. I don’t mind the plane ride. I sleep, eat, drink water and subsist on the little bags of pretzels the airlines provide. My body is not fond of the trip but I’ll cope. Even with all of the napping I was tired and achy when we landed. Of course it was raining when I picked up my rental car. It’s always raining when I make that first drive in the dark to my resort. At least I’m more familiar with the drive now that I’ve been here a few times.

All Checked-in in record time

stock photo

I arrived at my resort (Kaanapali Shores) right at 8 pm Hawaiian time.  I didn’t get lost once. My sister can tell you how much trouble we had locating it the first time because it is dark in Hawaii. And if you don’t know where you’re going it’s easy to miss. Thankfully I have a good memory and cruised right in. I was supposed to have a 1 bedroom ocean view but I think they may have been out of those. They gave me a free upgrade to a two bedroom ocean view. I can sleep in a different bed every night.  (Ha Ha)

Dinner Options

I was in my condo by 8:30 pm. Time to think about a real meal. I had upgraded the first half of the flight (Boston to LAX) to first class and that came with a breakfast. (I could get used to those comfy first class seats!) Airline food isn’t 4 star but that breakfast wasn’t bad. Still that was along time ago and in addition to being tired I was hungry. My options were to walk to the little restaurant on the premises and ruin some poor server’s night because the restaurant closes at 9. I’d probably be walking in at 8:45. No I’d let the staff wrap up and go home. Next choice was driving somewhere, probably Lahaina,  to another restaurant. That didn’t appeal to me. I could drive across the street to the TIMES. It’s a 24 hour grocery store. Buy something and bring it back to cook.   I wasn’t really excited about that either. As I was considering just skipping dinner I saw a pizza delivery truck pull up.

Pizza in Hawaii

stock photo

Pizza delivery in Hawaii is just like it is at home. I called Pizza Hut. But just like the last time we ordered pizza in Hawaii (on Oahu) it would be easy to get sticker shock. The pizza, a large mushroom and pepperoni was only $12.99. That’s comparable to a pizza in Boston but then I added a 2 liter bottle of diet coke. With delivery charges and taxes it was now at $22.00! Of course I had to tip the driver so it ended up being a $26.00 pizza meal. Not complaining just sharing. I’ll get 3-4 meals out of that pizza anyway.

Anchorage and Home

Posted on by | 2 Comments

The last stop in Anchorage

The last stop for us in Alaska is Anchorage. We’ll be catching up with our luggage at the Captain Cook Hotel. We have one night there and then on the plane for home. It’s been a pretty busy 11 days. I think the most tiring part for me was switching accommodations every night or two. I was feeling good while we were cruising. Now I admit I’m feeling weary. I’m ready to go home. 

Bus to Anchorage

We were finally getting the spring weather. As we were waiting for our bus from The Mt. McKinley Princess Lodge to Anchorage it was warm and t-shirt comfortable in the sun. Midway through the bus ride we stopped at a little truck stop. That’s where I met “Pierre”, my Alaskan Moose-man. He joined us for the remainder of out trip. As the bus pulled into Anchorage the bus driver shifted into tour guide mode, He even took us around the block twice offering tips and advice about the remainder of out stay. 

Pierre

Meet Pierre

room at the hotelWelcome to Captain Cook Hotel

Our room was on the 15th floor so we had a view of downtown Anchorage. Our luggage was already in our room. We’ll be flying out in the afternoon so we planned a quick visit to the Anchorage Zoo. There are lots of things to see in Anchorage https://aroundustyroads.com/2013/07/06/anchorage/  but we didn’t want to get distracted and miss out flight.

Anchorage Zoo

POLAR BEAR

squirrwlWe caught a shuttle at the Anchorage  Visitor Center to the zoo. The heat was definitely affecting some of the animals even if we were enjoying the spring warmth. We watched a polar bear that was stretched out in his enclosure. We were scolded by a squirrel. Some of the other exhibits were black bears and grizzlies The black bears were roaming their enclosure but the grizzlies were hunkered down in the shade. We also saw bald eagles, owls, red fox, wolves, caribou, Dall Sheep and deer. Although there were tigers the emphasis was on native wildlife. Too soon  it was time for the bus to the airport.

Rating the land part of the adventure.

It’s tempting to give the land portion a 5 star rating because we saw so much. But I dropped it back to 3 stars. The big “ding” that hurt the rating was the train ride. The other reason for the lower rating was the National Park Tour. The 1/2 day tour was ok but the full day would have been better. And finally, changing lodging so often was tiring. I know they wanted us to see a lot but I think it might have been more fun to have a chance to stay a little longer in one place.

Yes, 3 stars for the tour part of the cruise tour.

 

 

 

 

Dog Sledding in the Great Land

Posted on by

This trip has gone to the dogs!

The afternoon excursion was a chance to go dog sledding. To our surprise there wasn’t any snow when we got to the kennels. There was snow everywhere else. I wondered how we were going to go dog sledding without snow. When we arrived the first thing I saw were the puppies, those wonderful wiggling bundles of fur. They weren’t tiny either. Before I knew it I had 25 lbs of happy, squirming puppy in my arms. I found myself laughing as I tried to keep my face away from the enthusiastic doggy kisses.

 

Our Sled Awaits

As we played with the dogs a huge  monster of a vehicle was pulled into view. It had a sturdy metal frame, rubber tires and 3 bench seats that had  been rescued from some old junk cars. It even had a roof and a front windshield of scratched Plexiglas. I was convinced it would be too heavy for these poor dogs to pull. But the mushers were busy hitching a pack of excited dogs to the front.

It must roll easier than it looks

Some really happy dogs

We loaded into this wheeled thing adding all of our human weigh but when the musher yelled mush, these dogs put their shoulders into the harness and we were off. This was really fun and the dogs were having fun too. The course was pretty short but if the dogs had their way we’d have gone around again. Stopping was harder than getting us started. https://aroundustyroads.com/2013/06/30/puppies-and-mush/

All About the Iditarod

After our puppy fix and the dog sled experience, we entered a shelter where a veteran musher told us about the art of dog sledding. He told us stories of running the Iditarod and relying on his dogs to get him safely to each checkpoint. He considers his dog team partners not master and animal. It was a very interesting presentation. I really enjoyed this excursion and would definitely recommend it to any and all animal lovers. So much fun playing with these dogs!

Come on! Let’s go!