Rain, rain and more rain. Twelve inches to be exact. No sunlight, except the last day, but I'll get to that.
I am not going to complain about the week I spent in Maui, even though it rained every goddamned day, because I managed a mighty sunburn despite the constant cloud cover and I was still able to snorkel, swim with the sea turtles and take 1/2 of the road to Hana, the other half having been blocked by a landslide. Yes, a landslife.
There were hours without rain, during which we enjoyed the beaches, and even in the mist we played in the tidepools and pretended we were 10 year old biologists. However, the saving grace of the vacation was good company and good alcohol - and lots of it! Bailey's in our morning coffee, mai tai's in the afternoon, fruity rum drinks all day and wine with dinner. Life was grand.
Being the detail-oriented person my resume describes me as, I booked a flight for the day after we had to give up the condo. So, I caught an early flight to Honolulu, found a bus to Waikiki Beach, asked the busdriver for advice on places to stay, and found a hostel for $25! A room and a bathroom to share with 8 people is better than the beach, especially..., well, I'm jumping ahead of myself.
The sun has finally come out and I hit the beach in a cute skirt and am shocked, really schocked, to find the beach relatively empty. I've heard that this particular beach usually contains more skin than sand, but not today. Where is everyone? I wade into the surf, sandals in hand, and feel carefree and fun-loving and beautiful. But, what is that smell? Really. Bad.
I found a snazzy hotel on the beach where I purchased a $10 hamburger and a lovely mai tai and watched a free hula show. I enjoyed myself immensely. And then the MC said, "Thank you for joining us on our little island. Especially as the sewer has backed up into the ocean. We are so sorry that you are unable to enjoy our beaches...." Excuse me? Sewer? In the ocean? Where I was wading? "....and the sharks that have arrived because of it..." Sharks?!
I returned to the hostel where I scrubbed vigorously in the shower, although I'm not sure the bathroom was any cleaner than the ocean.
Paradise: Priceless
2 comments:
I read this and laughed so hard I had to close the window out and have a glass of wine before responding. I'm so sorry about the rain and the poo and the sharks. Trouble in paradise! You deserved a totally relaxing vacation, but you did get excellent bloggable material! Looking on the bright side?
HA! Can never get enough of the crap puns.
I have to admit, I thought about this blog entry on the VERY LONG flight home. A definite "bright side."
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