Go Big (Island): A More Laid Back Week

Aloha.

We seldom (if ever) say aloha out loud, except ironically. We're not locals, and so we don't feel it's appropriate. Nor do we say mahalo (thank you.) Nor do we do the stereotypical "hang loose" hand sign, which is, in fact, entirely common around here.

Our view driving down from the farm into Honomu

Driving into Honomu

We (at least, Tamarah and myself) have already lived in Hawaii for a month, which is crazy. I know that I've mentioned this before, but time in Hilo has a rather indefinite feel; things happen at their own pace in their own time, and days and weeks don't feel nearly as confined. Also, as two girls from Colorado and one girl from Alaska, we have definitely noticed a lack of season change. Every day is basically the same. I know that back home now the Aspens are changing to their vibrant yellow, and everything is becoming cool and cozy. Here it is rainy and humid and sunny and hot. I used to think that the weather changed dramatically in Colorado, but let me assure you, that however quickly thunderstorms come and go in The Rockies, it is nothing compared to how it changes on

this island. TORRENTIAL downpour comes followed by full sunlight in less than five seconds. It sometimes makes working in the garden a rather anticipatory venture.

Rachel working on Lil Red

Anyways, from where we left off last post, things have remained fairly mellow. No new adventures, in the grand sense. Erica finished off her visit here with less than a bang, unfortunately (because it started off so well! Waterfalls! Beaches! World class athletes!) This is due to our good ole Nissan going and pooping out on us again. It is near impossible to be able to do things without a car; we once more had to rely on the kindness of Sanji and strangers while hitchhiking to go anywhere or get anything done. Luckily Lil Red (as we now affectionately call her) decides to break down in a way that's entirely affordable to fix. This time, it was our rear passenger-side control arm, which somehow had neatly snapped in two, and was just kinda dragging around and making Lil Red shake something fierce.

Rachel attaching our new control arm into the Sentra

We went into the local O'Reilly's Auto Parts and were assisted by a very patient man who tried to help us find the part we were looking for without a description, a name, or really any idea of where the part fit into the car or what it's purpose was. This proved to be unfruitful. We later returned to O'Reilly's with a photo and found out the name of the part. We also found out that the part could only be ordered from the dealer in Japan. So we then briefly considered just welding it, only to realize that that was maybe not the most practical means, and instead decided to check junk yards. We ultimately found the part at Ryan's Towing and it was luckily very affordable. Rachel was the mechanic on this enterprise (with some assistance from Sanji and our neighbor Eric.) She was a beast and effectively wrestled with some deep penetrating oil on the car's nuts until the piece just came right out. She also got it back on, all by herself.

Essentially the scene during all of the car reparations

Other than that whole car escapade, we've been working. Tamarah nabbed herself a job as a waitress at Cronie's Bar and Grill right in downtown Hilo. Both Rachel and I are still unemployed, so we spent our days largely working in the garden. The garden consists of 8 beds, all of which (except for the second) were entirely in need of some new vegetable and flower life. Under Sanji's supervision we've planted flats of lil baby veggies to go into the garden, as well as planting some seeds straight into our freshly weeded beds. We're planting a lot of things, but I'll list the things I remember right now: daikon radish, spinach, broccoli, cabbage, chives, parsley, cucumbers, marigolds, sunflowers, and some strange Japanese green none of us had ever seen before or can ever remember the name of. Erica helped us out on the garden a lot when she was here, which was very kind of her.

Rachel working in the garden

One of the many fine chickens puttering about

We also enjoy scavenging around the farm and eating fresh fruit that we find (it's literally everywhere.) I think I'll do a more comprehensive post later about all of the fruit and other edibles growing on the farm, but here's a little sampler list: avocados, bananas, passion fruit, tangerines, guava, basil, ginger, figs, and lemons. There are also semi-feral chickens who definitely lay their eggs somewhere...we just don't know where. We've found their cache only twice. We've been trying to get them into this existing chicken coop to lay, but have thus far been unsuccessful.

We really are lucky. I'd say blessed, if I believed in God, but essentially that is what we are.

These are red ant bites, on me flesh. Gnar.

That is not to say that there aren't downsides to living on the island. It's not always paradise; it'd be boring if it was (who wants perfection, really?) Things are damp here. Really damp. All the time. Nothing dries. We realized we definitely need to use a laundromat to do our clothes, but the laundromat has a mega sketchy feel that I'm not always vibing (but they have driers, so I boldly press on.) People actually steal things here all the time. It's an actual problem (especially in regards to cars.) As a wee sheltered lass who's lived in the Roaring Fork Valley and then Boulder, and that's it, I'm unused to actually having to keep an eye on my belongings in a serious and focused way. Finally, there are SO MANY BUGS (but thank goodness no snakes.) We have a little treat hopefully planned for a later post to go into more detail on the creepy crawlies we're subjected to all the time, but let's just say that we've become very well acquainted with the likes of cockroaches, slugs, ants, and giant spiders.

On Erica's last day in Hilo we went downtown. Tamarah was at work, so Rachel, Erica, and I explored a few of the buildings, namely the Mokupapapa Discovery Center, which was really neat. We learned all about the oceans around the islands and sat down to watch Disney Nature's Oceans, which was very interesting. We also discovered Locavore, a store that only sells local produce and products, which was likewise super neat. We also went to Hilo Public Library, which is a place where we spend A LOT of our time. It has the best free internet. It is, we all agree, the busiest library that we've ever seen. The parking lot is always full. It's always a struggle to find a table. It's where I am currently writing this post. Maybe it's something about living in a sleepy rainy town, but people are definitely drawn to this place. When Tamarah got off work we decided to check out Two Ladies Kitchen, where we bought DOPE mochi. So so so good. We ate way too much of it.

Courtyard in the middle of Hilo's Public Library

As a testament to the kindness of the people here, Erica found a ride to the airport when a random kind stranger saw us walking in hardcore rain after leaving Two Ladies, and asked if we needed a ride somewhere. Right after that serendipitous occurrence, the three of us decided to counteract the excess of sugar slopping around in our stomachs from our mochi over-indulgence with some Middle Eastern food. We stopped into The Oasis Cafe, right down the street from Two Ladies, and met another very kind person, Ilana, the owner of the establishment. She made us some yummy food, and asked for our story. She offered Tamarah a little side job, which she promptly took, and offered all of us a trade of working in her garden in exchange for lunch, whenever we're in Hilo. Something that Ilana said that stuck out to me is that Pele (the Hawaiian goddess of volcanos and fire, who is very important on the Big Island with all of its still-active volcanos) either accepts you or spits you out. I *tentatively* think that she accepted the three of us. She brought us to Sanji and all of the other kind people we've met. It's kind of her to not spit out us three naive haole.

Pagoda bridge in the park next to Coconut Island, on top of destroyed Waiakea

Tree marking past sea levels during tsunamis

Rachel and I have also visited this cool place called Coconut Island (when Tam was at work.) It's out in the bay in front of Hilo. There's this large park right next to it, which we learned was once a town called Waiakea that was destroyed by tsunamis. There's a perfect view of downtown and Mauna Kea from Coconut Island. There are also trees that mark the water levels during each of the main tsunamis that have impacted Hilo. It was as educational as it was beautiful.

Now that Lil Red's back in working order, we'll hopefully be puttering around the island once more soon, exploring this enchanting place.

Some notes from this past week:

• Ginger toothpaste actually grows on you after a month of using it. It's quite refreshing.
• All of the streetlights (and shop lights, parking lot lights, etc.) on the island are orange and point directly at the ground. Rachel taught us that this is because of the observatories on Mauna Kea--the island is dedicated to not making light pollution, so that the observatories can, in fact, have the best view of the stars in the world.
• Something else that Rachel taught us is that the Hawaiian language only has 12 letters, which is apparent when living here. Those letters are, in case you're interested, these: a, e, i, o, u, m, n, p, h, k, l, and w. 
• On another note, I'd say that 90% of the license plates here start with either a "z" or an "h." (i.e. ZZW 056 or HPH 678.) I don't know why this is and am consistently distracted by it.
• The UH Hilo mascots are The Vulcans!!!!!!!! I find that very exciting (because I really dig Star Trek, for those who don't know.)
• There are way more opportunities for senior discounts here than in any other place I've been.
• We are quite often struck by the sort of weird realization that we are, actually, still in the United States. The culture is so different, they still speak Hawaiian a lot, and we often feel like minorities, being haole. It feels like we're in a different country consistently. Natives still just assume we're tourists straight off the cruise for the most part, which is fair but frustrating. 
• I for whatever reason have a serious handicap when it comes to shooting videos on Tamarah's iPhone. I consistently put my thumb over the microphone. If anyone ever watches any videos from our time here and is like "Why can't I hear what's going on?" it's because of me.
• The street signs are all really long Hawaiian words and predominantly start with a "K" or an "H." It took us quite a while to get a hang of it, and still struggle sometimes. There's just so many vowels used in the Hawaiian language!



A view of downtown Hilo, as seen on Coconut Island

• On that note, Kamehameha (as in the Hawaiian king,) is properly pronounced "Ka-meha-meha" and not "Kame-hame-HA" as I was taught by Dragon Ball Z.