The wait is finally over and with it comes the final post for the traveling part of our blogging. Hurricane Daniel and Hurricane Emelia have come and gone, leaving the South side of the island as dry and needy as it was before the weather warnings. Even those of us that prefer the higher heat and full blaring sun have to agree that a bit of rain would feed the soul of the island’s south side.
Working with the DMV and Safety Inspection Locations on Maui was painless and quite unexpectedly, bordered on enjoyable. We met an amazing family that ran the South Maui Motors right off of Piilani Highway that went above and beyond to help us. 3 hours after our safety inspection, the turn indicator bulb blew. Seeing as how the car is very low to the ground, I didn’t think it was something I could do myself. We bought the bulb from Napa Auto Parts and took it back to South Maui Motors. They installed it for us, free of charge! Serious Aloha over here on Maui!
Note of caution to all considering a move from the mainland – your car insurance carrier may assure you that your car is covered in Hawaii; however, be aware that unless your insurance certificate specifically names the State of Hawaii as being insured as well, your insurance is no good here. On the plus side, car insurance is much lower on the island – I’m assuming because we can’t drive as far and if someone steals it, they can’t take it far. (But that’s just my guess)
Our container arrived and after little debate, we decided we could unload it ourselves – yes, just the two of us. We figured we could spread the task out over 3 days… but we’ve never been able to start something without immediately finishing it and this time was no different. Here’s the breakdown:
2.5 – Hours it takes to unload the 20’ cargo container
2 – Number of women unloading it
1.5 – Number of bottles of water consumed
1 – Number of furniture dollies used
.5 – Half the time we thought it would take
0 – Amount of assistance required
Yes, we’re proud of ourselves. *shrug* Just saying…
From here began a new way of life. Unlike the Mainland, here in Hawaii people work all hours of all days – there is no “Monday thru Friday” or “8 to 5” mentality. Folks enjoying a Maui Vacation are not on a time table – they desire and sometimes require assistance 24/7. As far as we’re concerned, this lifestyle is ideal for having hobbies, volunteering and homeschooling our daughter. We enjoy being available whenever we’re needed and the reward for that is the opportunity to experience the “aloha”. This is a small price for such a large reward.
On a typical day, there are 20+ nonstop flights into Maui from the Mainland alone (not counting those folks that have a stop-over in Honolulu or another island). Rough math tells us that’s about 150k Vacationers coming to Maui in any typical month.
Island life isn’t for everyone, and for that I may seem grateful, but that’s only because Maui is roughly 26 miles wide… Where would we put all those inhabitants???? We welcome you, all of you, and greatly enjoy seeing you. Please come visit us anytime!
