This Year I Had a Vacation Too!

When I have family and friends come to visit, I usually try to maintain a diluted stream of work during their stay. This year, a few weeks ago, when my dad and sister came to visit, I put aside all the trappings of work and took a vacation too! (But I should mention as I am always looking at the world for sources of inspiration, I am always working) =\ ...

I know it's cliche but it was great to explore my own back yard, and the best part was they rented a Jeep Wrangler - so I was a passenger and was along for the ride.

So here's a scrapbook depicting most of what we did during those 10 days.

Day 1:

Breakfast at the local grindz Jack's Inn

 A whole Opakapaka caught that morning... 

and charcoal grilled with a Sweet and Spicy sauce for dinner that evening. Oh so ONO!

Day 2:

 Huli Huli Chicken - hundreds of them grilled at once on mechanized spits

 Happy Hour pupus

A trio of Maui Cattle Co.burgers (from the bottom) beef, elk and boar.

Day 3:

 Old Glory waving in the late afternoon trade winds.

Maui Veterans Cemetery the day before Memorial Day: The Boy- and Girl Scout troops decorated the grave with flags and handmade leis.

 In honor of those who had served.

Makawao Cemetery 

Day 4:

Dad outside of the IAO Theater in Wailuku, an historic landmark known to be haunted

Dad posing with his ghostly koa warrior

 Maui Ocean Center

Day 5:

The Road to Hana 

the complete loop: the long way in and the short (54 Bridges) way home

From Haiku: East, North, West and then South

 Sculptures of hula dancers at the Tedeschi Winery carved from living trees (that were actually rotting from the inside out). They are still attached to the stumps in the ground.

Wind-driven turbines - the blades turn at 200 MPH at their tips

 Palapala Ho'omau Church - the resting place of Charles Lindburg

Day 6:

Sunset on Haleakala Crater

 The endangered Haleakala silversword.

Day 7, 8 and 9:

A weekend in Lahaina - the Pioneer Inn

On the way: Leoda's Kitchen and Pie Shop

 Freshly brewed ice tea and the some of the best french fries on the island - and as we all know: fries are just a vehicle for eating ketchup!

A very decadent home-made birthday layer cake: 

Lilikoi (passionfruit) pound cake and Lilikoi-Chocolate Ganache Buttercream; 

Maui Winery bubbly

Sis's birthday - you look fantastic, sweetie!

One of Dana's must haves in Lahaina: Local Boy shave ice - flavors unknown but it had Roselani vanilla ice cream on the bottom, not marshmallows but mochi and li hing mui (dried plum powder) sprinkled on top.

Hopped unfettered right up onto the blanket at the beach

This sat on the sand the entire time we were at Black Rock beach - this is so inspiring creatively because I could spin many different stories on this image alone

Dad posing outside before we grazed on the best buffet on the island: the KBH Sunday Champagne Brunch - dad's pre-Father's Day gift from us.

My lovely family: yes, I am related to them... =\

Day 10:

(Clockwise from top left) Grilled Okinawan (purple) Sweet Potatoes; Grilled Mango-Balsamic Chicken Paillards with fresh mango and black lava seat; Grilled Vegetables with Sweet Soy Mayo Dressing, black sesame seeds, Gingered Honey Carrots, Oven-dried Tofu, Poi 

Note: Mom stayed home taking care of the dogs, Kassi and Kona, basking in the solitude of the absence of my two visitors.

It was bittersweet seeing them depart but we already have future visits planned; I back East for the holidays, and Dana here for Whale Fest in February.

Next post:

What's furry, cuddly and really mammoth? Stay tuned to find out...