by the numbers

I can't remember when it was in the past 24 hours, but I had the realization that not only did I not have to blog about the past week of vacation for several more entries, it would be better not to. So many times in the past I've taken on such a task, it really becomes a chore. Three weeks later, I'm digging back into the holiday that was, and if it's that awful for me, how must it be for the three people who read this. Mercy. I'm all about mercy. Well, tonight I am.

So let's move on with a wrap up entry on the Hawai'i vacation. Conrad and I have had a relaxing (if breezy) dinner of ribs out on the balcony, and we're each feeling our way through a certain melancholia. Ah well. We - like you - can always go visit the vacation photo sets (yay!) as often as we like.

So let me do a quick by the numbers entry, and barring any unusual reminiscing, move on with this blog, keeping it closer to the day that was.

0. Number of photos taken on the last two days of vacation.
1. Number of times I've been to Hawai'i this year, contrary to popular belief.
2. Islands visited: Lana'i and O'ahu.
3. New Aloha shirt acquisitions.
4. Nights on each island.
5. Books read while on vacation: Under the Ivy; Eat, Memory; Still Life; Hardcourt Confidential; A Fatal Grace. I made it a good 125 or so pages into The Disappearing Spoon as well. Thanks, TK, for the recommendations!

Other random or repeating numbers pop up in my mind (7 trips to Hawai'i now, by my count; 2 mai tai a day limit (violated once, I think); 2 dips in the ocean and 1 in a hotel pool; 9 hours in the air from Chicago to Honolulu).

In the end, it was great. I saw sights new to me (anything on Lana'i, the 'Iolani Palace in Honolulu) and familiar things (Book Ends in Kailua, Side Street Inn for dinner in Honolulu). And I wish I were there now, still vacationing, lost in a book with a glass of lightly chilled red by me and Conrad, reading, nearby.

[insert sigh]

One day.... One day....

mai tais: ratings

I have learned from Conrad (or, to borrow from Whitney, I learned from the best). I think I have. I have come to know what a good mai tai is.

United Airlines, this was fine for in flight. Faint praise, damnation, all I can muster.

Four Seasons at Manele Bay poolside bar, this was bland and sweet and, well, just not good. We'd try a different drink next time.

Halekulani Hotel in Honolulu, bless you. This is my gold standard, and I was content to worship at your temple these past few days.

I think my liver would now appreciate a few days of water only...

relaxation

I have a feeling that I will come off here as shilling for the Four Seasons chain. Ah well, I enthuse about that which I've loved greatly, and right now the island of Lana'i and, specifically, the Four Seasons Lodge at Koele are what I'm thinking of.

Ahhhhhh... to be back.

We spent four nights on Lana'i. Only four. Oh, we heard murmurings from certain quarters that the island was too small, too sleepy, that we'd be bored. Feh. We had books. What more did we need?

The Lodge. We needed the Lodge. And boy did we get it. We walked in and fell in love. Got checked in and upgraded to a nicer room.


Walked in to the room and asked each other when we could come back again. Oh my.

What made it better wasn't the cooler temperatures of the upcountry or the friendly spirit infusing everyone there (the staff all seemed really happy about their jobs, really proud to work there)(also parenthetically, when we told people in Lana'i City that we were at the Lodge, they'd nod approvingly - we had a similar reaction from people in Honolulu). It was that we seemed and felt as though we were the only people at the Lodge. We'd caught it in between seasons, or so we had the notion, and the result was that we had ample spaces to enjoy alone.

Two things mark that out clearly. On our last day there, Conrad and I went horseback riding, and followed that with lunch ordered from the bar. We sat on the verandah outside the bar, a cocktail each, some pupus.
Read. Dozed off. Yep, out in a common area, early afternoon. Dozed off. Woke up and went and took a nap in the room.

The other thing was on our shuttle to the airport. Four of us on the shuttle, the other two a friendly couple from Portland. It turns out they'd been there 9 nights, so every night we'd been there. And yet we hadn't seen them once. Hidden? Down at Manele? We don't know.

I'll post other things about the Lodge, its grounds, and more in times ahead, but for now, as I sit at LAX in a Red Carpet Club, I think how nice it would be to have a few more Louise Penny mysteries (darn you TK!) and time back on Lana'i. One day. 2011, perhaps?



I cannot end this without mention of our fellow Smelt, Michael, who secured for us a discounted rate. What is better than a super-relaxing vacation? One that we paid less for than we might otherwise. Thank you Michael!

leaving Lana'i

Dear Lana'i (and Lodge at Koele),

We will be back. Though we head to Honolulu today (and we will have a very good time there), we will be back. Back to enjoy the tranquility of your little village,

the cool climes of the uplands, the comforts of this gorgeous lodge, the relaxation.


2012, perhaps? Look for us one day down the road.

Take care, never change (well, maybe a little but only a little),
Peter (and Conrad)

sunglasses, please

It's the beach portion of the vacation, I'm shirtless, it happens.



Just please, don't say I didn't warn you to put on sunglasses. The glare can be fierce, I know.

chestnuts needed, marshmallows in a pinch

Almost 2 AM in Chicago as I write this but not quite 9:00 here on Lana'i. I'm tired. I'll post this sometime in the AM (Hawai'i time) and get my well-fed self to bed. A good evening of sitting on the lanai with three types of poke from the local poke place plus a delicious bottle of Heron's Flight 2005 Sangiovese. Well worth carting from the mainland over!

Conrad and I just took a short stroll on the grounds and in the main lodge, and two very un-Hawaiian (well, stereotype Hawaiian things struck us):

1. it's cool out. As in temperature. I have on jeans and a long-sleeve t-shirt over another t-shirt, and I wouldn't mind a sweater or my favourite Gap hoodie.
2. the fireplaces in the main lodge are oh-so-inviting.





We sat by one of the large fireplaces (there are two) and luxuriated in the warmth. I suppose it's not very green of me to admit that I really like the wood smoke smell we can catch sometimes outside. Ah well. At this elevation, high above the coast (1700 feet up), we're relishing the cooler temperatures, and if that means the incongruous (for Hawai'i, we think) notion of a big fireplace, so be it. This is still the most gorgeous hotel we've ever stayed in and a superb idea for a getaway.

where in the world are Peter and Conrad?

I can't even apologize for sporadic blogging anymore since that's become the norm rather than the exception. As TK has written to me about unrelated things: deal with it.

In any case, we have a great excuse right now: vacation. Yes, friends (all three of you reading this), we are out of town and enjoying another locale. Hawai'i, the 50th state. Only in this case, we're in a curiously very Hawaiian and yet un-Hawaiian destination.

Lana'i.



Small island, not many people. Two big resorts (Four Seasons - wow) dominate the island. There is beach. The place used to be rampant with pineapple.

And yet our upcountry lodge makes us feel as though we're vacationing in Colorado or somewhere vaguely Rockies-ish. Not much to do here, and we love it. Oh yes, we're already thinking of how/when we can return.

More detail in days ahead, assuredly. I'm trying hard NOT to spend my entire vacation online. But still, I can't resist chiming in once in a while. And when I'm silent this week, well, just be assured that all is very very well indeed!