Since everyone else had work and school, Susan offered to join us on a drive to Hana on the eastern side of Maui. We had never been out there, and I wanted to see what it was like on that part of the island. It is a long, windy road, so Zen-like patience is required. We split up the driving to make it easier, and it was really a beautiful place to drive. We stopped in for some banana bread at a stand halfway to Hana, and also took some pictures along the jagged volcanic coastline. I took over the driving from that point, and we passed through Hana and then on around to the southern side of the island. Originally I had expected that we would go to Hana and then come back the same way, but as it turned out it seemed like we would be able to completely drive around the Haleakela volcano and get back to the Underwood place in Makawao. So after calling Dave to see if he thought it was possible (“sure, go for it”) we drove on around. I was struck by the contrast between the north side of the volcano (lush, wet, heavy vegetation) and the south side (rocky, dry and barren). Our first stop past Hana was the Seven Sacred Pools state park – and it was beautiful. After having enjoyed jumping into pools the other day it wasn’t so important to try it again here, but it was nice to see them up close, and to see how they lead to the rough ocean nearby. We stood in the wind and I took pictures like crazy to try to capture the feel of the place. So beautiful.
Once we left the pools and continued on the road things got bumpy. The road changed from pavement to occasionally rough, and back again. Sometimes it became a dirt road, and then temporarily a paved road. It would have been hard to drive in rough weather, but luckily the day was beautiful, and we had no problems. The only problem was the sharp turns and lack of visibility on what was essentially a one lane road. Sometimes we had to turn the corners slowly and just hope there were no surprises coming the other way. After a long, slow drive on very bumpy roads we started to emerge on the other side. We could see volcanic rock everywhere, and the color of the blue sea was even brighter against the dry brown windswept grass everywhere. It was a long trip, but it was a great chance to spend more time with Susan talking about this and that, and really catch up. We hadn’t really had a chance for much conversation the last couple of trips, so I was glad to have the opportunity.
Finally, we finished the loop, and after stopping at a rather mediocre winery we ended up back in Makawao. Susan suggested some pupu and beer at the local Mexican restaurant. More Mexican food? Sounds great to me. We sipped beer and had nachos and had a good conversation. The breeze floating through the place really reminded me of the atmosphere in Mexico or Southern California – I wish they had places like this in Japan. We wrapped up the evening with leftover night – trying our best to kill off all the delicious leftovers that we had developed the last few days. We did pretty well, but I think despite our best efforts we still left some food in their fridge. We gave it a shot, though. Our last night at the Underwoods was one of the best – we watched “Little Shop of Horrors” (which was a bit of a culture shock for Kuniko), and afterwards we all went out and sat on the roof of the house to watch the stars. It was a great moment to sit together under the blanket and take in the cosmos together. We even got to see a shooting star up there – talk about good timing. Since this was our last night we said goodbye to Dave and the kids before we went to bed. It was so good to spend time with them, and hopefully we’ll have a chance to see them sooner rather than later.
