Saturday, September 20, 2003

Kona Boys. Avocado sandwiches from the tree. No dolphins. Paddled halfway across the Bay, then wimped out and had my gondola-driver Kona Boy (Dean) do all the work. Stuck head over the side to watch the fish on the way back, then lay back—the kayak is perfectly ergonomic for a skin-and-bones back. Loved the feeling, bobbing along, eyes closed, being splashed by cool water, supported and surrounded by red plastic boat. My gondola-driver drove fast.

Lots of fish at Kealakekua. Water so clear—you can see so many details. Saw lots of new types of fish (no eels, no lions, no octopus) and a long-spined uni with super long spines--each one about 2 ft. long! Saw tons of fins-both-ways, including special really pretty ones with cool coloured patterns instead of solid black. And I could see the subtle black patterns on the faces of the regular black ones. Lots humus and grey humus (leis) and grey-and-orange chomping fish [barred filefish]. I like those. I could see their teeth and hear them chomping algae off the coral. Water was so calm, it was easy to float and hover wherever I wanted to; didn't have to struggle against the sea. Royal Thai Cafe is jumping tonight! They're running around like chickens. Got a huge huge extra-huge bowl of the best soup of all time. Must stop writing and EAT it.

[Written on Saturday the 20th at 7:20 PM at the Royal Thai Cafe]

Kona Mountain Cafe has the nicest people ever and the best drinks ever. Went back, natch. Got some free beans, too!

[Written on Saturday the 20th at 10:31 AM]

We have a red hijack strapped to our roof!

[Written on Saturday the 20th at 10:18 AM]

Posted at 12:59 PM by Laura W. Petix.

Friday, September 19, 2003

Ba-Le croissants dipped in Ba-Le soup/noodles = very ono!

Wow! Look at that big straw! Cool and weird! I like it! Espresso flav black pearl drink. Yum. These noodles are so good. Coconut tapioca = mm. Everything here is ultra-good.

[Written on Friday the 19th at 7:18 PM at Ba-Le]

HA!!! I got stung a banded urchin! It made me smile like crazy.

I like the Ho`okena. Lava lava lava to walk on, flushes, black tide pools that require searching to find the life. Paid off—found a pair of beautiful cymbal bubble shell slugs (ID thanks to my great book), orange-and-green-&-white pattern under a thin transparent shell. Made friends with a collector urchin (Dean thought it was going to eat my hand), then found two long-spined blue-black urchins and two small long-spined banded urchins!! So exciting—usually they're only in snorkel-deep water. Didn't have my gloves so I had to touch them with my bare hands. Stuck my fingers among the spines, and they wiggled them around, feeling me. Petted both blue-black and one of the banded, then found the second banded and he stung me! It felt like a bee sting; I pulled my hand away really fast, excited and happy. Read in my book afterwards that they are venomous.

The spot is under the nail on my right hand ring-finger; it just looks like a blueblack sliver. I wonder if my finger will turn colours! Doesn't hurt now.

[Written on Friday the 19th at 5:02 PM]

Wow. Wow. Kona Mountain Cafe dark roast is officially the best. Mmmmmm. Good chai (Dean says), too. Official 1,000% good word of mouth happening now in this blog: the really nice (but silly!) Hawaiian girl at the cash register refused to let Dean go out to the Jeep to get his wallet (he forgot it and didn't have enough cash in his pocket) and said we had to "bargain down." We said no no no but she insisted and only charged us the amount Dean had in his pocket, so my coffee was free. I picked that place to screech over to because it had a zillion signs written in Japanese. Good pick. Nicest seller and best coffee ever! Closes at 3:00. If you're ever in Kona, go there!

[Written on Friday the 19th at 2:59 PM]

S.K. Fruit Stand report, part 2:
Hawaiian oranges, big (two kinds) = Super sweet and juicy, no seeds.
Pear avocado = Very thin skin, tasty.

[Written on Friday the 19th at 1:21 PM]

Burning hot; socks are essential. Fish with wings. Lizardfish. I like riding the surges, like surfing underwater. Wheezy. Striped cold & hot. Big turtles—almost 5 ft. Pair of orange-ringed-eye triggers (?) [edit: after checking my book, I'm pretty sure they were barred filefish], one bigger, one smaller friend. Turned sideways to chomp. Really cute. Turtle and humu pals (humu trying to protect turtle). Really great flounder (big). Lots of humus. Could see really well because the water was so clear.

Lots of nice banded urchins; strawberry coloured thin-spined small urchin. Fish with pretty lines around his eyes picking up rocks in his mouth. Huge gang of yellow fish surrounded me. Li Hing Mui shave ice is the best. A surfer guy tried to give me his art.

[Written on Friday the 19th at 12:59 PM, about the Fishaholic]

Posted at 12:59 PM by Laura W. Petix.

Thursday, September 18, 2003

I used up all the batteries. But, I think I made a grand discovery! That plant-that-isn't-a-plant is the mouth of a fancy sea cuke!!

I am the Urchin Queen. And, Wawaloli is the echinoderm capital of the world! [Edit, Friday night: Found out "loli" is the Hawaiian word for sea cucumber! How appropriate!] Played with: collector urchin, red urchin, yellow urchin (red underneath), sea cuke, helmet urchin (really hard to find a pryable one!), and dismantled a dead-but-fully-intact red pencil urchin. (Counted 80 spines total!) After I twisted off all the spines, I even smashed the body between two lava rocks to see the innards.

Wawaloli is the best place to bring your keiki if you just want to mmm. "You can just let your keiki loose, and she'll be all 'tained for hours."

[Written on Thursday at 4:14 PM at Wawaloli Beach]

Wawaloli is the BEST! I made friends with a collector urchin and got to see his tube feet! They are the coolest thing ever, ever, ever. Hundreds of them, like a starfish has but much thinner and longer (about 2 inches at full extension), mauve, with a tiny suction cup at the end. He reached and wiggled and clung and crawled all over my hands for ages. It felt so cool. I just sat there on a lava rock holding him, letting him reach and feel, for a long time. (He only reaches out when under the water.) On his back is a beautiful purple asterisk cross. I found two collectors--he was the second. Made my way back to Dean under his tree (hard to go fast, on the slippery uneven lava rocks), to show him. That one had a mean mouth that reached out like lips. He didn't do the supercool tentacle thing. Found the friendly one when I was putting him back. Made Dean come over to see the friend, and he made friends with a baby sea cuke, about 5 inches long. It slimed all around, crawling, like a big slug, and hung onto its rock by its tiny feelers that are very similar to the urchin's. His were smaller and clear, and only on the button. We saw his mouth, too, moving around.

Then, thanks to listening to my new book, I found... STARFISH!!!!!! Not only that, but they are brittle stars (I've never seen starfish in Hawaii and I've never seen brittle stars ever) and they are the coolest and weirdest thing of all time!! [Edit: I told Dean "I'm going to find a starfish now" and he didn't believe me; I picked up a rock and immediately squealed, "Starfish!!!!" He thought I was just faking it.] I picked up a tiny baby one (2 inches) and then a Big one (each leg at least 4 inches). They are different than regular starfish, with a central disk in the middle, and five wiggly insectlike insanely flexible fast legs, covered with stiff black feelers (the stars themselves are black too). And it's obvious why they are called brittle stars--pieces of their legs break off incredibly easily, and then the separated pieces scrabble around just as fast as the rest of it! I had both in my hands at the same time, plus a broken piece, all running around like crazy, legs everywhere!! I want to collect a big bucket of them and dump them on Dean!! It would be SO fun and EVIL!!

[Written on Thursday at 2:30 PM at Wawaloli Beach]

Nat. Energy Labs tide pool and there's only one keiki here: me!

[Written on Thursday at 11:55 AM at Wawaloli Beach]

!!!! Finally saw the corkscrew-shaped palm!

And, got Ito En tea drink at the KTA. They have 4 flavs: green, oolong, and golden oolong. Got green & golden.

[Written on Thursday at 10:21 AM]

Posted at 12:59 PM by Laura W. Petix.

Wednesday, September 17, 2003

Maybe I should've brought the travel Tiger. Feels like midnight.

[Written on Wednesday at 8:24 PM]

Wow. I didn't know a shrimp could taste that much better than a normal shrimp. This soup is incredible. Best soup of all time. Want to eat it every day.

If only this place had atmosphere to match its food, it could be one of the best restaurants ever.

[Written on Wednesday at 6:58 PM at the Royal Thai Cafe]

Borders has a great selection of Hawaii books & Hawaii music. Evilly showed Dean a huge strip of Bobs (new redone releases). Bought a really good Hawaii sea creatures book (nonfish) w/detailed info and pictures of all kinds of urchins, starfish, etc. They had this really cool fat book called All Stings Considered (didn't get it) about every kind of injury you can get on Hawaii sea creatures (including by eating them), and how to treat them. Sort of like my mailer, except very detailed and medical with graphic photos.

[Written on Wednesday at 5:00 PM]

Home of the macaroons.

[Written on Wednesday at 4:20 PM]

Wow! That's a tree!

[Written on Wednesday at 3:59 PM on Ali'i Drive]

Walked around the grounds and played with a zillion cool trees while Dean was feeting. The eucalyptuses are so soft. They have hanging-down fuzzy bottle-brushes on them. I parted the spiky leaves of a big (4 ft.) smead, and discovered the beautiful flower-like center. Fuzzy dryer lint all tucked in the spiky pineapple trunk. Huge tree w/tall (5 inch) sticking up roots. Couldn't get close to any Cook Pines. Got Tako (octopus) chips at Longs this morning--wonderful w/cottage cheese! The only thing that (temporarily) cures my shoulder is snorkeling.

[Written on Wednesday at 1:30 PM]

Breadfruit, ripe = soft and creamy, like a big bowl of bread puddin.
Guava, small = sweet, has seeds that you swallow; ate skin too. (Dean likes inside; I like the skin.)
Guava, big = skin is bitter, texture of inside firmer; not as sweet.
Hawaiian orange, little one, bright orange = tastes like a really good clem.
Starfruit = much sweeter than the home kind; really good.

Dean's fav = breadfruit.
My fav = star.

[Written on Wednesday at 12:01 PM]

Da'Kine Coffee Bean dark roast, Bay View Farm. ONO.

1,500 feet.

[Written on Wednesday at 11:23 AM]

South Kona Fruit Stand is the greatest!! Took lots of photos. Mass quantities of weird fruit, now in our possession. Have to pick a Kona stand to stop at on the way back.

[Written on Wednesday at 11:08 AM]

Posted at 12:59 PM by Laura W. Petix.

Tuesday, September 16, 2003

Back to the red pencils. Saw a broken-up medium red pencil urchin on the bottom of the ocean, pretty deep. The broken test, with spines still intact. Dean dove down w/his weight belt and picked it up for me! So so so cool. I examined every detail, and even got Dean to pull off one of my gloves so I could touch it with my bare fingers. Touching red pencils stains your fingers, but it doesn't soak in. The spines were attached by white lobster-flesh-ish soft tissue; I felt it with my fingers, and detached a small spine to keep (pulled the flesh off). The test had big bumps, not delicate ones like my uni shell. So AMAZING. Urchins. Also spotted a small eel, raaring out from under a rock. Medium-dark orangeish brown with black spots. I'm good at finding hidden eels. I stashed the red pencil spine inside my glove to transport it back. [Edit: Weird--almost all the red drained out of my uni spine!]

[Written on Tuesday at 8:19 PM]

All right, Oodles definitely redeemed itself.

[Written on Tuesday at 7:29 PM at Oodles]

I think they use really strange but good caramel syrup here. [Edit: I asked the waitress, and the secret is that it's made from scratch!]

[Written on Tuesday at 6:25 PM at Oodles]

I took a million pictures of Dean doing a Ghost of Iz in the freshwater pool.

[Written on Tuesday at 5:16 PM]

It's windy here today, and the surf is rough. (That same nude Hawaiian guy just walked by! Not nude this time. [Edit: Dean says he was nude at first, but then put on his Hawaiian skirt thing.]) Coated with salt and sand. I love love love the ironwood needles, especially in the grove you walk through, where the whole floor is blanketed thick with them.

Red pencil urchins! I found one in a lava tide pool before we went snorkeling, and explored him with my oral arm. He crawled on my hand with his spines, and stained my fingers red.

Ironwood cones are evil!!

[Written on Tuesday at 4:12 PM at Makalawena]

I found a cool creatch! Dean didn't believe it's a creatch. He said, "That is a creatch??" It looks like seaweed but it's alive, because it closed up when I touched it w/my finger, and felt clingy like an anemone. It's black & looks sort of like the seaweed I had for supper last night. There are two. But I got all drenched.

[Written on Tuesday at 3:53 PM at Makalawena]

10:47 Herb start time
11:06 Herb finish!

That was the easiest herb ever! Only two other vehicles here. Dean's a herb expert now.

[Written on Tuesday at 11:07 AM]

5 AM again. [Edit: Listened to DIAD as I was going to sleep but only heard about 3 songs.]

[Written on Tuesday morning]

Posted at 12:59 PM by Laura W. Petix.

Monday, September 15, 2003

Definitely the best Walmart. Tree house. Fins-both-ways swim near the top.

[Written on Monday at 9:19 PM]

Forgot: BIG pipe (4 ft.!) & blue unis!! New fav. Forgot about the yellow lights.

[Written on Monday at 8:25 PM]

I forgot--we saw cardboard palms (cycads) at the Four Sneezins. In pots, though.

[Written on Monday at 8:14 PM]

I got a black napkin, and Dean didn't. Kona coffee in one hand, pen in the other. So many things to write; won't remember. The slack key guitarist smiled at me twice as we were walking around on the beach; then he started to play the slack key guitar song. I ran around on the beach where I like to watch the black waves crash, and felt the breeze brush my dress against my bare legs.

I ate my slabs of raw yellowtail like a tongue. Ahi poke. The lady at the Royal Kona Museum & Coffee Mill kept talking to Dean and ignoring me (even facing the other direction) even though I was the one asking her questions, nodding, etc., and Dean was just standing there not caring a whit what she said about Kona coffee. They had samples of a zillion different kinds of Kona coffee, and I tried Royal Kona, Royal Kona peaberry, and Lion (multiple times, to figure out which I liked best). (The others were flavs or decaf.) Royal Kona non-peaberry was my fav, even though peaberry's supposedly the best. I like it darker and more intense.

Snorkeled next to the Honaunau. The best spot. Too much to write. Saw four eels, lots of big puffers [edit: they have green eyes], turtles (I took my glove off and touched one--it was slimy), fins-both-ways, so so so many kinds of fish. I liked this new kind I don't remember seeing before--feminine and mauve. Almost immediately we got in, we saw a humu. Honaunau is the humu capital of the world. There were lots of other kinds of triggerfish, too. Mass quantities of triggers in general (compared to anywhere else, at least). I saw a big parrotfish chomping on and spitting out some seaweed over and over and got to spy on his teeth.

The best kind of fish to watch swim are eels. The way they move is so beautiful, undulating along. Soon after we got in, I spotted the first one, head raaring out from under a rock. Light-coloured and small, about the size of the one we photographed up close in shallow water. Then Dean pointed out a big light gray one, eeling along. We swam out to a deep area, and on our way back he pointed out an even bigger one, grey but with dark spots, about 4 ft. long, & tall. I watched him swim and hide under a rock ledge. [I asked the waiter what kind of Kona coffee they serve at the Pahu I`a!! Kona Lake.] As we were getting near to back, I spotted the fourth, light yellow with distinctive black spots. At first I just saw part of his body from between some rocks, and didn't even know what it was--just the cool spotted pattern.

After Honaunau we drove to Kua and played in the sandy white water. There was a nude Hawaiian guy swimming, in and out, down the beach (classic Hawaiian guy physique), but otherwise we had Kua to ourselves. I swam with my top down around my waist, and rode on Dean & dived off his hands, and he picked me up and threw me in lots. Swimming without a snorkel hurts my nose and throat because I always get guzhed.

Big white waves, so white against the black. Pahu I`a is the perfect restaurant.

[Written on Monday at 6:25 PM on the lanai at the Pahu I`a]

We both secretly woke up at 5 AM, but I went back to sleep/mmmd because it was still dark out. Insanely tired last night; went to bed about 9 o'clock (3 AM home time). There's sun here. Right now we're at The Coffee Shack having breakfast! Views of the whole Kealakekua valley, coffee trees, all kinds of palms, plumeria, so many things I don't know. Wish I could name them all. Down in the valley, right off the edge of the deck where the tables are, is a huge (at least 60 ft. tall) avocado tree, heavy with avocados! All the leaves and fruit are up really high, level with the roof.

I got French toast made out of Lu`au bread (has coconut & mac nut in it) bananas, mac nuts & coconut w/a slice of ultra-good local orange & a big piece of puh-paya. And a giant mug of Kona coffee. All the dishware has different Hawaiian stuff on it--sea turtles, hibiscus, double-hulled canoes, etc. There's a beautiful black cat wandering around. Honaunau next. I asked the waitress, and they have to wait for the avocados to fall, then collect them on the thick lawn. They're way too high up to pick.

[Written on Monday at ~9:09:09 AM]

Posted at 12:59 PM by Laura W. Petix.

Sunday, September 14, 2003

We're here, here, here. I've been smiling nonstop since I stepped off the plane. Warm breeze, smell of flowers, all kinds of palms--white trunks, bulgy trunks, feather fronds, things hanging down. Trees with flowers in them. Sweet-voiced calm kind driver to the rental car building. Sitting on the blacktop writing this, soaking up heat. About 10:30 PM back home; seems incongruously light. Postcards are about 1/4 the price of L.A. postcards. I said to Dean, "I like it here," and he replied, "So do I."

[Written on Sunday at 4:23 PM, Hawaii time]

Got a tall dry caramel m., but they didn't know what "dry" meant, so I had to explain. Should this airport be called SLAX?? It was pretty good, though. (Cost $3.70!!) Dean loved the Mexican food stand next to SBUX. We both think they have the best avocados here. (I got a non-sourdough product w/avocado from the sourdough store.)

[Written on Sunday at 12:55 PM, LAT]

I see Starbucks cups!

[Written on Sunday at 11:29 AM, LAT]

Everyone in L.A. has a swimming pool. I saw them out the window. And, some REALLY tall and skinny straight-as-a-rod palm trees. Everything's all brown here.

[Written on Sunday at 10:59 AM, L.A. time]

At least I got a tiny packet of Plane Snack and a LaCroix. We're going to arrive in L.A. 45 minutes early!

[Written on Sunday at 1:07 PM]

What a tease! Steve gets that incredibly delicious smelling thing and all I get is a CHICKEN sandwich!! I'm not eating it, natch.

[Written on Sunday at 12:58 PM]

Such weird weird reddish textures, staircases, deep steep edges, monoliths of stone. Middle of nowhere. Mars. Occupying myself like Mary, ripping things out.

[Written on Sunday at 12:46 PM]

Beautiful gleaming polished white frozen water down in the Rocky Mountains, beside free water, sparkling with ripples. Thin rivers snake like threads of silver. This incredibly delicious smell is torturing me, but I think it's something they only offer to Steve. The mountains look so sharp. I wouldn't want to trip and fall on them.

[Written on Sunday at 12:24 PM]

Dentist noise. Massively.

[Written on Sunday at 8:45 AM]

No cool AGD screens this time but at least we don't have those terrible neck-killing tall seats. My Peet's was too hot, but good anyway. Dean got a juice and evilly made me taste it, assuring me it was not orange juice. But it was grapefruit. YUCK!!! Fortunately it's all cancelled by the Peet's. Still haven't seen Steve. I told Dean that since he hates Steve, if he sees him waiting in line at Peet's, he should accidentally-on-purpose bump into him and spill cappuccino all over his white suit. He'll be at the L.A. airport for sure.

[Written on Sunday at 8:21 AM, on the plane, waiting for takeoff]

Dean's getting my Peet's! I told him to get a medium dry cappuccino, same as last time. (And reminded him not to get a chai.) Gate 8, two inches from the Garth. They don't have any postcards at Garth's, though--I already checked. My Brock-n-Brocks always cause trouble. Next time I'll try taking them off and putting them in the box. I love these curvy, streamlined silver seats.

[Written on Sunday at 7:23 AM]

United! We're here.

[Written on Sunday at 6:50 AM]

The London Planetrees' trunks are all dark with rain.

[Written on Sunday at 6:39 AM]

Everything looks blue.

[Written on Sunday at 6:16 AM]

No moon; it's all overcast and misty. (As I wrote that, it switched to rain (how appropriate) pattering like grains of sand against the window.) Dean showed me the dogwood tree lit up when he turned the front light on, magical with mist, so green, tropical. The brain is so alert and clear, and my shoulder doesn't even hurt too much. I was wide awake before my alarm even rang. Our Reily's name is Greg; he seems conscientious and boring.

[Written on Sunday at 5:12 AM]

I did it! I got up before 4 AM!

[Written on Sunday at 3:59 AM]

Posted at 12:59 PM by Laura W. Petix.