maui

i just got back from hawaii.

it was insanely beautiful and a well deserved (and necessary) break for me. i am of course barely tan (which looks absurd after spending 8 days at a beach house) as my paler than pale complexion forces me to use sunscreen with an spf of like 50 for the first few days. and then when i finally lower the spf i generally just burn my ass and if i'm lucky it fades into a brief barely visible tan. anyway, i posted a few pictures, the two up right now are views from the incredible beach house we stayed in. i actually spent most of my time there, but did tear myself away from the view and sounds of the ocean long enough to go to a great luau, do the "road to hana thing" (a beautiful adventure) and take in a sunset cruise. it was a great time. and over far too quickly. the next time i go though i will either be flying first class or moving to LA before taking the trip as the flight from NYC is BRUTAL. look for the airline rant in a later blog. i'm hoping i can resist writing about it, but the horror is still pretty fresh in my mind so we'll see how that goes...

one thing i have to say is that i am sad to learn that i cannot just enjoy myself sometimes. there i was in this incredible paradise and i could not separate myself from the whole notion that this is an amazing culture and land that has been completely raped by the tourism industry. if i was a local i would spit on tourists every chance i got for fucking everything up. they crowd up the beaches and all the nature trails, all with their whinning and bitching and idiotic questions; the cost of everything is sky high (gas is a whopping $3.80 a gallon); and the need to make money off of the tourists has required that the hawaiian people make a disneyland out of their culture and traditions. As much as I enjoyed the luau and learned quite a bit I could not ignore the fact what they were "performing" for us was really dumbed down and made "tourist friendly". i was wishing i could get the real scoop. this of course did not stop me from buying a million little souvenirs, mostly for others, and mostly it turns out, made in china or india. sometimes japan.

all that said, anyone who goes is lucky to get the opportunity. it's a beautiful place and the people are surprisingly beautiful in mind and soul considering the above (although there is obviously some deep resentment as you cannot ever be considered a local - even if you are born there - if you are white. you will always be a "haole". i find this to be incredibly small minded, but considering all i've said above i guess i can't blame them for the feelings of resentment. if i had to deal with idiot tourists in my town (island!) 24 hours a day my soul would be even blacker than it is already.