On the road to Hana, stop at Keanae!

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On the road to Hana, stop at Keanae!

On the road to Hana, take a swing down to the little (kinda sorta) ‘town’ of Keanae. It lies on a volcanic spit that jets out to the ocean where you’ll find, a historic church made from lava rock and coral, waves crashing spectacularly against those ancient black flows, and the best mango bread you’ll ever have. (no, it is not GlutenFree, but now I am determined to make one just like it GF)

We stopped at this quaint sign, which was someones house and sported a small goat eating leaves, to buy a loaf of Mango bread. It was handed to us by a young boy of maybe 13, warm still in a brown paper bag and the mark of oil attesting to its’ moistness.

Oh la la! It was delish torn off in hunks eaten warm, but even better the next morning, toasted, served along with papaya and fresh squeezed lime juice.

Whether or not you stop for the mango bread, the vista was well worth the time taken for the side trip.

Molokini. Just Do It.

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I have a friend who lives on Maui, and she told us what our ‘must do’s’ were and what beach to snorkel on. 

A ‘must do’ is the Four Winds 2 Catamaran out to Molokini. Be sure to do the morning ride, that is the one that takes you out to Molokini. (The afternoon trip goes somewhere else, because the Trade Winds kick up and it gets too rough out in the crater) You see, Molokini is an old blown out volcano that is partially submerged under the water. It’s crater makes for ideal snorkeling and the trip out there is breathtakingly beautiful. If you go in late December thru late February, you are guaranteed to see a whale or two. We saw quite a few, including a mother and her calf along with her ‘escort’ (A male who hangs out with them providing protection for baby and hoping for an opportunity to ‘score’ with mom), and a couple of junior whale breaches. We stopped at ‘Turtle Town’ on the way back, where turtles stop to get their shells cleaned of by the fish. 

I need to tell you why this is the tour group to go with, and that starts with a flashback to another trip of mine. 

When I was a senior in college, my mother and I went on a mother-daughter trip through France together. We started in the South of France and ended up in Paris where my father met up with us and we took one of those barge trips through the champagne country. (If you are keeping a bucket list, this should be on it!) The group was a large one, so they split us on to two barges, about 8-10 of us went on this little tiny barge that was tethered on the outter side of the massive barge. Climbing over the bigger barge, I’ll confess we started to feel a bit downhearted that we got the little boat. Then we met our crew. They LOVED their little barge, and I mean…LOVED it. They kept it sparkling clean, were happy, friendly, and proud of their ‘home’. (The crew lives on the boats) The best part for us? We had a French Cordon Bleu chef who shopped at all the local ports and made 5 star meals every night. The other barge had a British chef, and well, this was well before the chefs like Jamie Oliver appeared on the scene. Needless to say, fairly quickly we learned not to mention how happy we were on our little boat, because the passengers on the bigger barge were most definitely not wanting to hear about how wonderful our experience was by comparison. 

I guess the point I’m coming to is that your experience is not always what you think it might be at first blush. Never pre-judge, have a great attitude and listen to what the locals say about what to do. The catamaran we came to was big enough but not overly impressive. It also looked crowded and I was a little concerned about feeling cramped. I need not have worried, there was plenty of room we discovered, and the ship was spotless and well run. The crew is amazing and the captain, while running a safe and tight ship, was enjoyable, funny, personable, and extremely knowledgable. He talked without rambling. He regaled us with great stories, lots of information and things to see or watch for. For me, it sounded like this was his first time out explaining things, not his thousanth. These people LOVED what they did, you could tell. 

For those who are gluten free, or have dietary issues, just talk to the steward when you board, or be sure to mention it to the agent who books it for you if you are going through an agent. We used the Expedia agent at our condo complex to book, but I completely forgot to mention gluten free. That would have been helpful for breakfast, since it was bagels and fruit. We ALWAYS pack some emergency snacks, where ever we go, so my daughter munched on glutino bagel chips and drank POG. (pineapple, orange, guava) I talked to one of the hands immediately upon boarding, asking what might be available for her to eat. They were making kalua pork (see my ‘Kalua Pork’ post) and he said he would set aside some pork before they added BBQ sauce. They also had marinated grilled chicken burgers (every day they rotate who creates the marinade, ask and I bet they would accommodate no soy, that day it was a soy marinade), hot dogs and hamburgers, along with veggie burgers. I didn’t know if the veggie burgers had any wheat, so we stuck with the pork for my daughter. Maui chips (YUMMMMMMY) are served along with veggies. 

Couple of tips that might help you enjoy it as much as we did: 

1.Take a dramamine if you are not totally seaworthy. My husband and daughters did, and still got a little sea sick, they should have taken 2 pills, not just one. (my youngest has inner ear damage which makes it worse) Always watch the horizon if you tend to get sea sick, don’t text or spend all your time looking through the viewfinder on your camera! I have sea legs (inherited from both my parents, who were navy men through and through) and so didn’t have a problem. Some will, so be proactive. 

2. Keep your eyes open. I was the one who spotted all the whales, but I grew up on the west coast and know what to look for. If you are there during whale season, there is nothing more thrilling than see a whale blow, or better yet, breach! 

3. Pack a suit fit for snorkeling. This is not a fashion show. You are going to snorkel in Molokini, so wear a suit that is practical and comfortable. There is no room for sunbathing, and you will want to cover up after snorkeling, because going back was going in to the wind. (for us at least)

4. Rent the wetsuit. Yes, it’s $5 extra but you will thank me. The water isn’t ‘cold’, but it’s not as warm as the beaches. Having that wetsuit top will insulate you just enough that you will be cozy comfy and able to stay out as long as you wish. 

5. SNUMA. If you don’t have an inner ear problem (like my daughter who was going to go with me) then for goodness sake do it. It’s like snorkeling, but better! No pool certification, looking at nasty lost bandaids, but a quick 20 min lesson and then you are in the water. I did this when I was younger and in the islands with my family, but this go round I chose to forgo because my daughter could not go (the only one who was brave enough to do it with me) with her recently damaged her inner ear. They have an on-board underwater photographer who will take your photo. They were awesome, I recommend getting his CD. 

No, I’m not a sales agent for this tour. I just really, REALLY enjoyed myself. I made friends with the crew members, who were sweet and remembered my name right off the bat. I met a charming young college freshman, who was transferring from UofW (washington) to WSU, my fathers alma mater. We chatted for most of the way back to dock. At the dock, my husband tipped the crew, who then rings the bell. They earned it. They kept us safe, took great care of us, and made the trip feel like we were traveling with family, not just a tourist. 

Molokini. When you do it, do it with the crew of the Four Winds 2.

Gluten Free Traveling: part 1 Honolulu, Hawaii

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We arrived in Honolulu late at night, so all we thought of was bed. We stayed at a hotel just east of the airport, west of Waikiki called the Ala Moana, which we discovered was a gigantic mall. The hotel was within the complex of it. That morning we headed down to the casual restaurant with in it, and was able to cobble together a breakfast for my daughter from the buffet they had. It was fairly GF friendly, sausage, bacon, scrambled eggs, and blessedly…..rice. I’ve never seen just plain steamed rice on a buffet, let alone a breakfast buffet, but there it was. You see, we all take toast, bagels, muffins, granola for granted. Protein is excellent, but when traveling and walking and touring, a bit of carbs can help keep you going. (yes, I know there are those who disagree, I am all about moderation)

Then it was off to pearl harbor, which we had allowed the time and day to see. It is a must for anything traveling through the islands. The history there is critical for those younger than I to hear and see, and appreciate the blessings of peace they have been living in. As I’ve said, I’m from the West Coast and while not old, also not of a young age. I remember distinctly in my young years having a cautious eye for the Japanese, and not having that total freedom of fear that maybe my husband has growing up in the middle of the country. You see, as a west coast native, we had been attacked. Maybe not on the mainland proper, but in our parents eyes, we had been attacked non-the-less. My father grew up having to have the drapes drawn at night, very few lights lit….because of the danger of the japanese patrol boats off the coast of the Peugeot Sound seeing the lights and fixing a target. It was a different time, and blessedly, ,my children did not grow up ducking under desks and having to live with thick blankets on the windows. 

Pearl Harbor is a challenge for those who are GF, but I would HIGHLY recommend the tour of the Battleship Missouri (“Mighty Mo”) and while over there, hit the Aeronautics museum. There are extremely cool planes to see, and the video they show is something every American should be watching in school. While there, visit the little cafe they have. If it is your first stop in the islands, it will familiarize you with Kalua Pork. (see previous post)  Kalua Pork is safe for those who are Gluten Intolerant. I’ve never seen it made with anything wheat or with soy. (double check, always double check) 

You can pick up a nice wad of Kalua pork (sans the bun) and a beverage. The hot dogs are all beef also. (check when you go) They also had a nice chicken salad with a caesar dressing that was also wheat free. I didn’t find anything else even suitable to eat for my daughter while there. A trick is to pack a few things from the mainland. We had fruit snacks, Glutino yogurt pretzels and bagel chips we brought with. Those are fine for airport security and great to pack in your purse while traveling. We have come to just not expect that there will be food or snacks available, so we always pack something no matter what. 

We only had until 4pm on Oahu, and so back to the hotel we raced after seeing the Mighty Mo, the aeronautics museum, and the Arizona. (I won’t complain about the lack of respect and poor behavior I experienced at the Arizona and generally at Pearl Harbor, but afterwards I no longer have a lot of hope for America’s soul after seeing some atrocious behavior there) We needed to grab a bite to eat before we got on the local puddle hopper to Maui, but where? We were cranky, tired, hot, and plainly worn out from a long flight, short night and the time change. While I have traveled, my family has not. Needless to say, some grumbling ensued. 

Hubby and oldest offspring had decided fish, japanese preferably. At the hotel where our luggage was being stored, they recommended a place, but finding it was troublesome at best. After wading through a wedding party of asians that I swear was strolling down the halls of the complex at 300+ strong, we stumbled upon an asian place that I INSISTED we check out. (At this point I was becoming tired and a bit cranky, so forgive me) 

What a gem! YuZu was its name: http://yuzuhawaii.com/menu  It featured organic gluten free soy in most it dishes and my daughter scarfed up teriyaki sticks, california rolls and other delights. For me, the Yuzu Mojito was KILLER TO DIE FOR! If you are in Honolulu, and are looking for a place to nosh on yummy asian bites, without having to worry about gluten laden soy, this is the place for you. I am including the link (I don’t yet know how to hyper link, sorry, I’m a work in progress) so hopefully it works and you can click and check out the menu. Go visit it. Places like this need to be supported, so that families like mine can find places to eat while traveling! If you are looking for a ‘travel’ review….the bathroom was spotless, the decor minimal but lovely, and it was clean. The tempura avocado is a must try as well as the aforementioned mojito. 

That wraps up our very brief time in Honolulu and how we managed with a GF traveler. 

(part 2, Maui, soon to come)