philosophy

so i had to bus in to kapolei this afternoon to buy my housemate a bicycle tire tube. i may be indirectly responsible for his flat tire. but my thoughts begin on the bus ride home. i've wedged myself next to one of those old men who don't like to share seats. so i end up half leaning off the edge of my seat with a backpack on my lap. and i'm stumbling through the library's copy of "The Portable Nietzsche". Some gold, "What, then, is truth? A mobile army of metaphors, metonyms, and anthropomorphisms - in short, a sum of human relations, which have been enhanced, transposed, and embellished poetically and rhetorically, and which after long use seem firm, canonical, and obligatory to a people: truths are illusions about which one has forgotten..." he continues. but i stop reading to watch the elderly couple seated in front of me. she leans away disgusted and he keeps glancing at short shorts in the aisle. every bus ride is an adventure and an education.

108 Hours in Maui

http://travel.nytimes.com/2009/01/04/travel/04hours.html?8dpc

"True Travel is not the destination but the journey." My heart backs the idea but my mind, an emotional Brutus, is suggesting this as justification for bungling vacationers. Et tu? A few hours in Maui and I began picking away at the details that would stick with me. the way everything slows down as soon as you step off the plane. the way tourists drive the maui economy. the way a double rainbow arcs down the cliffs beyond hana and disappears. And for ms. fujii at the new york times, the way to travel without a true destination in mind.

Tuesday

5:00am

1) Bound for Maui

Luke and I have to leave makaha if we want to catch our flight. it takes longer to ride the bus from my house to the airport than it does to fly from oahu to maui (30 min.)

8:30am

2) Kahalui Airport

Well we're in Maui. But we don't have a place to stay or a means of getting around. First stop are the rental car booths just outside. The airport seems kind of empty. A few employees meander around. I think we may be beyond help from the airport information centers. enterprise, avis, alamo, sold out. one place has cars that they want to rent me (under 25 years of age) for some exuberant sum which i refuse to pay. ok. it seems there are some buses here. public transportation? perfect. where should we go? Jump on the bus. Alright sure we'll go there. Stop at the K. Mall transit center. i start calling around to hostels and craigslist ads i wrote down before we left. The North Shore Hostel in Wailuku ($25 a night dorm style) looks like our best bet. They have two beds open for tonight!

High Noon

3) Kihei Star Market

Learning to maneuver maui public transportation. looking for a beach and snorkeling. blue skies and sunshine. i think hawaii is beautiful because of color. cruising in 25 passenger mini bus past burnt red dirt moistened green waves blue breeze skies and yellow angel fish sunshine.

9pm

4) England

Luke and I miss the stop on our way back from Lahaina. we spot two guys from our hostel on the bus. they missed the stop too. they are from wakefield, just outside of Leeds. on their world tour. headed to australia and south africa.

Wednesday

7am

5) searching

i'm walking the streets of wailuku. the morning is still brisk. i tear the auto rental pages from a phone book and get a coffee at McDonald's. ($1.85?)

8am

6) desperation

luke and i are frantically dialing every number we have. public transport on maui is limited.

11:30am

7) Rent a Jeep

we end up at a gas station somewhere in kahalui and call the guy to come pick us up. drive up, pull away rusting fence. he isnt' very talkative. sign here and here. old sleepy guard dogs. gas tank empty. passenger side door doesn't open without the key. no roof cover? didn't even think to question. behind the wheel.

High Noon

8) Road to Hana

drive until the sun sets. put on raincoats when the downpour begins. loops and curves and hairpins. locals laugh and speed by. Need to stop at Wai'anapanapa State Park. Meet Johnathan, hitchhiker from oregon, black sand beaches and sprouting coconut. warm passion fruit banana bread from roadside stand. excellent. bamboo forests and waterfalls. the map shows a scratch of a road ahead.

7pm

9) Rainbows

Circle island. desolate and beautiful sunset drive. arching rainbows in the rear view mirror. cliffs edge the road dropping to a rushing blue sea and black rock. cows. beautiful.

11pm

10) fall asleep in the jeep somewhere south of Kihei. wake and watch the honu play. visit Makena beach early for crystal clear waters and near isolation.

Thursday - Saturday...

11) Rain

walk makai from the north shore hostel to Tasty Crust Diner 'world famous pancakes' (big breakfast for two: $18). They are good. reading 'sputnik sweetheart' on the top bunk. german tourists laughing on the balcony. watch "Slum Dog Millionaire" and enjoy.

12) Iao Valley

3 miles Makua from the north shore hostel. start hiking. the rental car was returned long ago. rain forest. the needle. bridges. not as impressive as i thought it might be. a good hike back. Rosa's Cantina in wailuku (great food and prices). snorkeling north of Lahaina on resort beaches. enjoy the reef and the crowds.

13) Paia

How did i describe it? hippies embracing capitalism. you know those chill little towns. where you need money to buy but anyone can look. tourists and good vibes. sometimes it works. makes you wonder where these people all come from. how they end up collecting here, loose change piles up with pretzel crumbs and the vcr remote beneath the couch cushions, lost pockets of the globe. catching rays. drinking tea at the Green Banana Cafe. waiting for the rain to pass. (advertised, organic eco internet cafe) they have nice tables outside. waiting for the bus, waiting for our flight, our last day in maui.

holidays

Aloha and Mele Kalikimaka,

Wishing you a Merry Christmas from Hawaii. I won’t be able to spend the holidays with friends and family in PA this year. So, I’m writing to let you all know what I’ve been up to. And also to let you know that, though I miss home, I’ll survive this breezy 70 degree December.
In August I left Philadelphia on a plane bound for LA. With a plane ticket and the promise of an AmeriCorps VISTA position on Oahu I was ready for my week of training. VISTA is the leg of AmeriCorps devoted particularly to work in areas of poverty. Think of this as something like the domestic PeaceCorps. Through a year of service, my official goal here is to build sustainable relationships, resources and programs designed to battle the root causes of poverty. Under the Corporation for National and Community Service, I was challenged with the task of creating a literacy tutoring program for K-3 students at Nanakuli Elementary School on the Leeward coast of Oahu. The program relies on volunteer involvement which means one of my main goals is volunteer recruitment, management and retention. So far so good. Teaching kids to read proficiently at a young age significantly improves their chances of successfully continuing their education. Ultimately, putting up a significant roadblock for a poverty which is passed from one generation to the next.
In my short time here I’m afraid I have learned more than anyone I’ve helped. Through some inspiring mentors I’ve learned there are no problems only challenges. Every day is both a challenge and a chance to learn something new. I’ve learned that a community is a very intricate web of personal relationships. In Nanakuli a majority of these are family ties. Everyone I meet is somehow related to someone I already know. I’ve learned that snorkeling is much more difficult than it looks, but still a great time. I’ve learned where the honu (sea turtles) come up to rest on a hidden beach. Surf season and whale watching in Hawaii is during the winter months. Volunteers can be difficult to come by, but can also be a fantastic resource. Food stamps are great if you live alone, hold a steady job, and ride the bus. Watching movies about Hawaii in Hawaii makes me laugh. Even if you’re in the middle of the Pacific Ocean far from home, sometimes a family is wonderful enough to invite you to Thanksgiving dinner. Plate lunch in Hawaii is rice, macaroni salad, and meat. Guide books suggesting not traveling up the leeward coast cause visitors to miss some of the best beaches on the island. The aloha spirit is more reality than myth. The kids make it all worth it.
So while I work through the challenges of an outsider in a very localized community, I have been fortunate to be accepted into that community in many ways. This of course makes my job a little easier. A smile and a ‘howzit bruddah?’ goes a long way. I’ll be happy to move on in eight months if I know I’ve made some kind of difference, if only a few new friends.


Happy Holidays,


Ryan