July 22nd

Drove to Lahaina on the western coast of Maui and did some shopping along the waterfront. Believe it or not, Michael bought 2 Hawaiian shirts! From there we went to the Whaler's Museum, which told what life was like for the men who went out to sea to catch whales in the mid 1800's. They were at sea for 3-5 years, and living conditions were pretty bad. Sometimes they waited months before spotting a whale, and then had to work very hard to bring it in to the ship. When oil was discovered in the ground, whale oil was no longer preferred, and the industry eventually died. We found the whole story quite interesting.

We had just enough time before our Luau to drive up to the northern tip of the island. The land is quite rugged and pretty, but beyond the tip we were warned that the road becomes scary and treacherous, so headed back to Lahaina. The luau here is known to be the most authentic and sells out weeks ahead of time. Michael booked the tickets before our trip, as we never would have been able to go otherwise. It's in a beautiful spot right on the ocean, so we were able to watch the sun go down during dinner. The meal was buffet style, and included a pig that was cooked in a pit covered with leaves and sand. We were able to watch them lift it out of the pit before dinner. Also saw demonstrations of wood carvings, jewelry, animals made from palm fronds and a humorous narrative about traditional Hawaiian life. The meal was amazing, and we were told not to eat until we were full, but rather to eat until we were tired! Upon arriving we were presented with a beautiful lei made of real flowers, and offered a drink. The bar was open, and they had a good selection of drinks. The meal was amazing, and I made myself try bits of things I wasn't sure I'd like (including poi, which I didn't care for.) After the meal there was a show mostly made up of traditional dancing, music and chants. There was also dancing from Tahiti, as these people were the first settlers in Hawaii. It was very interesting to watch, as the dancers changed frequently, and they talked about some of the history that went along with it. As for costumes, they all had head adornments, and skirts made from leaves and cloth. The women appeared to have bras made of cocoanut shells (ouch!) Sometimes they danced with shakers or some type of straw bound together which they clapped with. Young fellows wearing sarongs and no shirts waited on our table and were quite amusing. During dinner we listened to music from a band made up of a stand up bass, steel guitar and regular guitar (no ukes!) Altogether it was a very enjoyable event.