The Rotterdam anchored off the natural port of Lahaina, which is protected by a small coral reef. We tendered into port through a narrow passage through the reef avoiding a flotilla of surfers.
Lahaina is the Pacific destination of the famous Vic-Maui (Victoria-Maui) sailing race, that starts from Vancouver Island every couple of years and ends here in the old whaling town of Lahaina. The Lahaina Yacht Club is squeezed between a number of sea-side restaurants, fronted by a 'logo-shop', where one may purchase Vic-Maui race t-shirts at triple the price of the same ones sold in Victoria. But - these ones have a longer journey under their belt.
Humpbacks and other species of whales were once abundant in these waters. In olden times, say whaling season of 1846, 400 whaling ships would stop here for provisions. Lahaina was rough, raucous and crude during those years, with dozens of bars and even more willing females accommodating hordes of invading sailors. The prison (still standing) built from pitted lava rocks housed the drunk and disorderly, and their offences ranged from public drunkenness, swearing to fornication. Sounds just like the Finish of a Vic-Maui race...
One of the whalers of olden tymes jumped ship here and disappeared into the Marquesas, but he eternalised his experiences in his most famous novel 'Moby Dick', our beloved Herman Melville.
I jumped onto the Maui Bus, the first attempt at public transport on the island. A fare of $1 took me across half the mountainous island of Maui, from the dry leeward side to the lush windward side. Then I spent another buck to ride to the opposite extent of public transport, Whaler's Village in Ka'anapali. Whaler's Village sounds very historical, but turned out to be a Shopping Mall abutting the beach. The beach itself was lined with modern resorts, restaurants, golf courses and every imaginable fun-service provider (para sailing, surfing, snorkeling, etc etc).
I took a stroll past the numerous shops to the beach and then spent another dollar on the Maui bus to return to Lahaina's main drag, a two mile long shore side street, lined with more shops, bars and restaurants. Most retained the old whaler era store fronts, which gave the town a frontier ambiance.
Should I ever return here, I would rent a car and drive around the shores of Maui, first one way, then the other. The island is so rugged, that shore side roads go through hundreds of switchbacks until the terrain becomes so unmanageable that the road just ends - no meeting of the ways here.
Maui is home to spectacular valleys, waterfalls and cliffs, which some of the passengers enjoyed from a helicopter - one of the shore excursions offered by the Ship.
I wanted to test the local brew. Firstly, because the temperatures were tropically hot and humid and secondly, to verify that beer tastes good all over the globe.
I entered a beach side restaurant, not the Cheeseburger in Paradise (filled with the young and restless ones), which offered the desired beverage. No drink prices on the menu... A surprising eight dollars later I had quenched my thirst with one small beer, liquid gold!
One of the natural wonders of the island is the Iao Needle, a unique formation of volcanic rock that was formed through years of repeated volcanic movement. It's spire rises from a spectacular valley floor, where in 1790 King Kamehameha staged a bloody battle to conquer Maui. His forces chased the Maui warriors into this valley, from which there was no escape.
The name of Kamehameha means 'the lonely one'. Apparently that was the young prince's nickname, when he was whisked away into hiding somewhere, to protect him from toxic relatives who wanted to usurp the Hawaiian throne and kept poisoning the pretenders. The name stuck, ergo not many people know King Kamehameha's true name.
