A Traffic Inferno

Yesterday afternoon, there was a 25 acre brushfire near the Kahului Heliport that snarled traffic around Kahului, Paia, and blocked access to Upcountry and Paia for hours.  Originally reported around 1:25P, I got stuck in the traffic trying to get home (Haiku) from Kihei at 3PM.  The only way to get to Paia was via the back road behind Costco, which incidentally wasn't closed and led traffic right by the fire. Fortunately, the road was upwind of the fire.

At the time, Hansen road and Hana highway between Dairy Road and Haleakala Highway intersection were closed.

 Here are the smoldering remnants of the fire.

Due to the nearby location of the fire to the airport, we got to see the fancy airport fire rescue trucks in action.

Me stuck in traffic trying to get to Paia.

Crazy mess - intersection of Hana Highway and Dairy Road

Officer directing traffic at above intersection

The Earth Keeps Rotating

I've been on Maui for 6 years now, and I don't think I'll tire of sunrises or sunsets like these. Please note, the images have not been digitally enhanced in post-production.



Sunrise from Kahului (facing northeast)

Sunset from Haiku (facing north)

The Young And The Old

Up until this point, I have always shot photos in color.  I looked through quite a few portfolios and books of several photographers and organizations such as Annie Leibovitz, Magnum, Henri Cartier-Bresson, and National Geographic to gain some inspiration and hopefully, to learn something.  I'm not even in the same league as the afore-mentioned, but one thing I took away after studying the photos was a large portion of the images were in black and white, or monochrome.  After downloading my own b&w images to my Mac, I realized monochrome photos possess a different appeal.  B&W seems less distracting than color and forces the eyes to pay serious attention to lights and darks, not just "things" to fill up the frame.

Today, not only did I shoot in b&w, but I focused on the two ends of the human population - the young and the old.  The two age extremes are comparatively easier to shoot than those humans in the middle, who to me seem quite a bit more self-conscious, judgmental, and reactionary - especially when there is a camera around.

These were taken at the Maui Mall in Kahului:

Then again, as I pulled over on the side of the road this afternoon on the way home from work to snap this photo, I realized color definitely has its place too:

For comparison, here's a black and white shot:

College On Maui

Ever wonder what it's like to go to college on Maui?  Yes, there is an institution of higher education on Maui.  It is the University of Hawaii, Maui College.  Like the University of California, there are UH colleges on many of the islands, with the main campus on Oahu - University of Hawaii at Manoa.  I too was curious about college on Maui, so I ventured on campus to observe and report.  Now I've been out of college for almost a decade, but jeez, lots of things haven't changed.  Let's take a journey.

Well, when I first started walking around campus, I was shocked to find it relatively empty. Nary a soul in sight in all directions.  They must all be in class I said to myself.   I did see this student walk by the universal student events kiosk.  We all remember these right?  "Friday night - Alpha Masta Beta House - Toga Party.  Get wasted and pray to the porcelain gods until dawn."

Here's the emergency - in case you're (most likely a girl) wandering home from the library and you find some dude trailing you or who knows what - pole with the flashing blue light.  Oh, the images are filling my once cavernously empty headspace with memories of days gone by, way by...

Ah yes, the campus bookstore.  Do they still charge an arm and a leg for books?  I remember we had the option to buy used books cheaper.

Now, when I look at this photo, all I'm staring at is that little white apple with a bite taken out of it.  Remind me to befriend a local UH Maui student so I can get them to buy me the new Adobe Creative Suite CS5 dirt cheap...



Continuing on, I finally found some action in front of the student cafeteria.  I should have known.  If you are a college student, and I wanted to get your attention, I need to position myself in between you and your voracious appetite.  In front of the cafeteria, there was a kind of hybrid health/career fair going on.

 Clearly, these little munchkins aren't college kids, but they're enjoying some kind of sock puppet anti-drug show.  Good to get this message across young, because Maui has a SERIOUS Meth/Ice problem.

I don't really remember why I took this photo, except for the fact that yoga has something to do with health.  Yeah, that's it, yoga's healthy, very healthy...

Here's the career part.  Want to join the Maui fire department?  All I caught from this conversation was that the students were curious what level of math is required for the MFD, and the fireman stated algebra is needed to calculate water volumes.

This nursing student sat me down and as reciprocation for catching her off guard and snapping this photo, she took my blood sugar level.  Yes, she actually bled me.  When she asked if I had eaten anything earlier, I thought about it and quipped I ate a chocolate croissant.  I expected my blood sugar to be at diabetic levels, but my level was luckily a normal 85.  Whew.  I didn't want to get the lecture from her.

I walked into the cafeteria and I instantly went back to 1997.  Oh man.  I don't need say much more.  I'm sure all of you have your own cafeterias tucked away in memory lane.

On my way back to my vehicle, I ran into these students painting a truck in the auto-body program garage.

For more info on UH Maui, please visit UH Maui College.

Graffiti Art

In the middle of Kahului lies a series of snaking drainage ditches and waterways.  These paintings caught my eye.  Not visible from the street, I wonder what the tags signify...

Tasaka Guri Guri

Tasaka what?  Tasaka GURI GURI, that's what.  Falling somewhere between sherbert and ice cream, guri guri is an authentic, refreshing, local  treat that has been made in batches on premises for years.  Not really gelato and not really sorbet, you must taste it to experience what I'm trying to describe.





Stroll on in to this Maui landmark and order yourself "two scoops, mixed up,"which means one scoop of strawberry and one scoop of pineapple guri guri for $1.10 (the only flavors btw).  Totally no-frills, the delicious and affordable concoction is dished up in a small paper cup with a wooden ice cream mini-paddle.   People flock here.  Located in a corner location at the Maui Mall in Kahului, this place serves a seemingly steady stream of fans.

Tasaka Guri Guri reminds me of an old-fashioned ice cream parlor or candy store.  Items are placed around the storefront in an organized, yet random manner, and edible goodies abound around every corner.  Look over here and stare at multi-colored gumballs piled inside a vending machine or look over there and wonder at an assortment of savory chips.  See those 3 different bags of Hawaiian-made chips on the right side of the pic?

Bill Clinton has been here.

Come in a relive a slice of your youth.  Even if your not from Hawaii, you'll know what I'm talking about when you step inside.  I sure did.  Good times my friends.

Welcome to Maui, Cruisers!

So you arrive at Kahului Harbor off of a Norwegian Cruise Lines ship.  In this case, you are on the Pride of America.  As you disembark and take in the environment, you are surrounded by the Kahului shipyards and docks.   If you have never been to Maui before, you might get a certain perspective on things which may differ compared to what the guidebooks or the cruise ship spoon feeds you.  Unless you arrive via cruise ship and actually walk from the dock to Kahului town, I doubt you will ever see this stuff.

Some of the pics represent cool industry in good sunlight and some are just reality.


Here's the view of Pride of America from the end of Puunene Ave next to Cary and Eddie's Hideaway restaurant.

Pan the camera a little more to the right and you see a homeless camp.

Walk around a bit and experience some industrial grunge chic.  If anyone knows the purpose of these tanks, you get 10 points.

More industry

Getting this shot was surreal.  The flame caught my eye and I had to investigate.  On the other side of the fence just off camera to the left, a guy dressed in a dark blue jumpsuit and sunglasses eyed me until I drove away.