I had been leeching off the internet for a while leading up to this trip, scouring for blogs and trip reports and pictures and wanting more! Whenever I'm going somewhere I always want a sneak preview of what it looks like (it must be related to my wanting to know how a movie ends before I go) but I thought I'd put something on the interwebs in return.
We rented a house on the north shore in the town of Paia, an adorable town with false-front-facades on the buildings on main street (so western!!), bounded by sugar cane fields on one side that offered pastel sunrises and on the other side by the ocean, with delicious restaurants and snack places, and a delightfully crunchy vibe that let you feel like you fit in or at the least no one cares enough to judge. It couldn't have turned out better! We were shooting for the opposite of a resort and we definitely got it.
Hey there Rose Quartz and Serenity! Paia does Pantone.
Sporting Club of the Pacific was a teeny juice shop just up the street from where we were staying. I was up and raring to go at 5 am, so by the time they opened it was post-lunch snack but we tried to go every day they were open.
We happened to be there when passionfruit was in season, thank god, and now looking back I can't believe I'd leave such a thing to chance! Since we had lucked out, I got passionfruit everywhere I could find it - the farmer's market, multiple roadside stands on the way to Hana, on the ground in a banana grove and Yee's Orchard even had multiple varieties for a taste off. Dan's sensitivity to me yelling "OHMIGOD PULL OVER" was severely tempered because it was usually just a fruit sighting.
We got to feel a lot cooler than usual while hanging out at beaches because we had a surfer with us. We're legit now!! Thanks Kyle! In Dan's pursuit of the best snorkeling, we checked out beaches all over the island (Poolenalena! Honolua! Ho'okipa! Hamoa!). This led to some confusion in the mornings when we tried to decide which beach to go to ("errmm the H one?") but luckily "yes" is the right answer regardless.
To end Part 1, some of my favorite film shots from around Paia. Road to Hana and more coming up!
