Island Time

 Thursday, Nov. 8th - We are tired from staying out so late. Yup. We were up until 10pm.

The condo is almost out of food but we don’t care. We don’t plan to have the problem we’ve had in past years.

At 5pm we headed out to the Fairmont Kea Lani. We did not plan to dine at the restaurant that had been my favorite for many years... which shall remain nameless.










Instead, we headed to the recently refurbished Ko.








Ko had one of thThe best Chi Chis I’ve had on this side of the island. We chose off the Prix Fixe menu. Oishi Sushi, Lumpia, and Portuguese Bean Soup as appetizers. Entrees included “Paniolo” Bone-In Rib-Eye Steak, Pancit Noodles, and Island Fried Rice. Dessert: Chantilly Cake and Plantation Pineapple Cake.








We rolled home, with many doggie bags, and sat out on the lanai to cool off before heading to bed.

Here comes the wind . . . Trade Winds

Monday, Nov. 5th - Ray heard the call of the cinnamon rolls early this morning. He and Jane stood in line at Cinnamon Roll Fair for a good twenty minutes for freshly baked rolls. I have to warn the readers of this blog that one can inhale their tempting aroma throughout the parking lot and, sometimes, down a block or two in every direction of So. Kihei Road.


“The Herd,” the people from upstairs, is off at the crack of 9am to march their way up and down the coastline of Wailea. It’s no light-hearted undertaking and I am ashamed to say I did not join them. I’d really have to get into shape to join them. Someday . . . maybe.

Jane and Ray head back out to the shore. This time it’s Turtle Town near Makena Landing Beach Park.  Alas they only saw two turtles. They returned to Ulua Beach since the first trip had been so successful, but the water was choppy and vis was poor.

Since the water was choppy . . . that meant the Trade Winds had returned. I cannot wait until tomorrow to see the clear sky and the many blues of the ocean.






Dinner tonight: Humuhumukunukuapua’a located at the Grand Wailea Resort. 

I have been wanting to dine here for the last few years. Making reservations using Open Table makes life for us much easier. They do not participate, which is why it has taken us so long to get there.

Humuhumu was a very cool place. The restaurant was under thatched huts and surrounded by water filled with ocean fish. Inside there was a lagoon where diners could choose their own Hawaiian spiny lobster companion for dinner.


We chose selections off the Prix Fixe menu. Yes, yes . . . I would dine here again.

Road to Hana

November 13, 2011


It's time for the annual trip . . . because it's there.

The reason for the trip is not the road or Hana itself. It's the journey . . . seeing the waterfalls along the way

The road is not long but it snakes around

a bamboo forest occupies much of the interior . . . there could be one wild panda party!

There are many one lane, very old bridges built in the early 1900s.

The waterfalls can be spectacular!

At the end of the trip, not when you reach Hana, but when you return home you can say . . .

Our adventurers collapsed on the couch and lost themselves in the NFL football game.

Dinner was at the newly opened Monkeypod Kitchen- they are located in the Wailea Gateway Center, at the corner of Pi;ilani Hwy and Wailea Ike Drive. Their address: 10 Gateway Place, Unit B-201, Kihei, Maui HI

Our waiter reminded us of . . .

He took our drink orders: a lava flow and a Mai Tai. The Mai Tai had what they called Liliko'i (passion fruit) foam, it looked like the scum off the ocean.

You just stir it in and it's hardly noticeable.

Three of us had Mahi Mahi fish and chips. Instead of tartar sauce they had malt ale sauce. Yum.

Yes, Dirtboy had to have seconds.

Hubby had the Mahi Mahi fish tacos.

We sampled their pies for dessert. They make: Banana cream, Coconut cream, Chocolate cream, and Kula Strawberry cream (shown here.)

You'd better like a little pie with your cream cause there's a lot of it, not the Redi-Whip kind either.

Saturday

November 12th:

It's College Football today . . .

Here is one of our guys watching football. . .

Here's the other one.

We have leftovers for lunch and we make a sizable decrease the number of our boxes

You didn't think we ate all that food every night, did you?

Dinner this evening is at the Four Seasons Resort

At sunset there's the customary blowing of the conch and a guy who runs around in a loincloth to light the torches

This is the final day of Restaurant Week and we dine at DUO

They have an impressive all-you-can-eat Raw Seafood Bar. Crab, shrimp, prawns, poke, and several types of oysters are piled high along this magnificent display.

Seating is indoors, outdoors, we sat someplace in the middle.

The DUO Prix-Fixe menu:

Choice of: DUO Double Chop Salad (Blue Cheese, Spicy Pecans, Pineapple, Bacon bits, Papaya Seed Dressing) or Caramelized Maui Onion Soup with three cheese crust

Entree: Braised Beef Short Rib, Sir Fried Vegetables, Potato Puree or Pan Seared Catch of the Day Sautéed Kale, Fingerling Potato, Mushroom Hash, Red Thai Curry Sauce

Choice of: Island Trifle, layers of Coconut & Guava Custards, sponge cake & Pineapple flambéed in rum or Waialua Estate Crème Brulee with grapefruit sorbet

The service was the best we've had on the island and the food was delicious.

As a bonus we received this piled-high, apple-flavored cotton candy to our table. It was unexpected and fun!

We stayed up until 8pm!

P.S. Maria don't forget about our 1pm scheduled nap!

Day of Few Words

November 10, 2011:

Read.

Nap.

Read.

Dinner.

The once Maui Wowie Salad is now disappointing.

... sigh...

Uninspired.

This was also the worst service I've ever had in Maui. This is so very sad. Nick's Fishmarket was once my very favorite place to eat.