At Home without a Hometown

 Aloha all,

“How is Lahaina after the fire?” is a frequent question from my Uber passengers or from far away friends. Not an easy question. I’d say Lahaina is: devastated, different, hopeful, messy, strong, confused, missing its heart, but still beautiful. It’s complicated. But Maui is still home, even without an actual hometown. 

Memorial for the fire victims in Lahaina

Going into the burn zone in Lahaina was a somber confirmation that this all had not just been a bad dream. The town is basically gone. Many houses literally burned down to the ground. Nine months after the fire, about half of the lots have been cleared. The decision process how Lahaina should be rebuilt is painfully slow and convoluted. My best guess is that it will take at least a decade before Lahaina will be a town again and that it will look very different from what it once was. 

All that remains from the beloved Front Street house
are a few pillars, a pile of ash... and a lot of fond memories!

It was good to come home and hug our friends. But there has not been a day in West Maui since we returned when the fire and its aftermath has not come up at some point. Everybody and everything in West Maui is affected one way or the other. The outpouring of support has been astounding: From within the community, from far away places and from the federal government. The help from the government ranges from crucial support to inefficient waste. The reactions of the people range from humble gratitude to entitled selfishness. Just like during the pandemic, I am glad I am not in charge of making the rules, because there is no way to please everyone. No program makes sense in every possible scenario and it seems like almost every single person's situation is different from the next.

The first month after we returned home was full of farewell parties. Several of our friends moved away. As much as we love Maui, I can understand why. Sometimes it might be better to dare a fresh start than holding on to something that might never come back. So yes, we have lost friends here on the island, but another way to look at it is that we now have more friends we can visit on the mainland!

One of (too) many farewell parties

Sandra got a new job at the Maui Brewing Company, which she loves. While Sandra was looking for a job, we came across a job listing that said “You have to be generally happy and eager to meet people.” That sounded like me and since my little vacation rental business is basically defunct since the fire, I took on a part time job as a pool boy. The job was fine, but it did not substantially increase my "general happiness". 

Sandra's new office on Kaanapali Beach

Not a bad office either, but I think my career
as a pool boy is over.

We enjoyed our time here, but are also very excited to embark on our next big trip again soon. But before we do, I’d like to recap some of our favorite things we did this past winter:

We spent four rejuvenating days in Hana. For the first time we were able to get one of the cabins at Waianapanapa Sate Park. What a treat to spend some quality time with friends on that lush, colorful and peaceful coast;. We revisited some old favorite places and made some new discoveries. Hana feels almost unchanged since the first time we went there over 27 years ago. As much as Maui has changed otherwise, it’s comforting to know that Hana will probably look very similar 27 years from now.

Hana, ca. 1996-2024

Bern discovered this cave close to Waianapanapa

Happy cabin campers!

Thanks to the competition between Hawaiian and Southwest Airlines, the inter island flights got so cheap that we were basically forced to fly to Kauai. Of course the hotel and restaurant prices make it easy to spend the money you save on the flights. Just like Hana, Kauai has hardly changed since 1996. For better or for worse, they have not developed as much as Maui. I think it is now the prettiest, but also the most expensive Hawaiian island. Sandra and I kayaked on the Wailua River, where we had the usually crowded and touristy Fern Grotto all to ourselves. 

Kayak trip on the Wailua River on Kauai

With RJ and Barbara we explored the always fabulous Waimea Canyon, the Kilauea Lighthouse bird sanctuary and the new and exciting Makauwahi Cave in Poipu. Of course the cave itself is not that new, but it has only been accessible to the public for a few years and we just found out about it. It’s Hawaii largest limestone cave and is considered the most abundant fossil site, which is rare in our geologically very young islands. They found fossils of several previously unknown and extinct species in this cave.

Kilauea Lighthouse

Spouting Horn in Poipu

Waimea Canyon

Our first time at the Makauwahi Cave

We also “had to” take a trip to Oahu to renew Sandra’s German passport at the very cute German consulate. Surprisingly, the consulate is in someone’s garage. But it is on Wilhelmina Rise, which seems very appropriate for a German consulate. The passport renewal was just the excuse, the main purpose of the trip was to play pickle ball with our Oahu friends. It was also fun to stay at the Island Colony, the same building where we lived for our very first year in Hawai’i. 

The pickle ball mania has spread to Oahu

We did a volunteer hike into the Pu’u Kukui Watershed in the West Maui Mountains. It was more a leisurely hike than hard volunteer work, but we did collect some seeds to replant native trees. It’s pretty up there, even though we got nowhere near the actual Pu’u Kukui summit. 

Ute on the Pu'u Kukui Watershed hike

Shamefully, we did not go scuba diving a single time this winter, but we did see a tiger shark for the first time (safely from a boat, not in the water). And I also got to see a whale under water for the very first time!

Bern and I continued our Viticulture competition. The game requires just enough strategy to make you feel smart when you win and there’s enough of a luck component to blame bad luck when you loose. Kind of like when we play disc golf…

Viticulture
Bern & my favorite way to waste a day

Having friends visiting is always a good excuse to explore your own island. While Terry & Jeanne were visiting, we enjoyed a lovely afternoon strolling through Makawao and attended the Lei Day festivities at the Bailey's House. And of course we explored Catan, another one of our favorite islands.

May Day is Lei Day in Hawaii

Exploring the other island

For the first time Sandra (and even Bern!) were able to join me for part of the time on my annual Colorado trip. It probably helped that with Bunt and Ann now living in Colorado, there were two more reasons to go. We even had an official Tuesday Night there! I got to ski with the Kulichs at Monarch and Cooper and even two days with Jeff at Snowy Range in Wyoming. The last day of skiing this year was with Cody at Loveland which was my very first time skiing in about a foot of fresh powder. I’m not good at it, but I am good at enjoying it. 

Visiting Bunt, Ann & April in Colorado

Aloha Colorado! Tuesday Night - Mountain Edition

We love Loveland!

Our traditional Tuesday Night gatherings live on here on Maui. Of course, it’s not the same without April greeting you at the door, without Bunt mixing drinks, without Ann’s table decorations and without the sunsets on the seawall. But we had some sort of festivity most Tuesdays. We take turns hosting. It’s never the same as on Front Street, but it’s always good to spend time with friends.

A hui hou, Maui!

Chris & Sandra

The End of the Road - The Best Things in Life are Friends

Aloha all,

this might be the last blog post for the year. I have a hard enough time putting in words how much fun roadtripping with Sandra is. It would be even harder to describe the mixed emotions after our return to Maui. It’s good to hug our friends again, but the extend of the tragedy and new reality in West Maui is still sinking in.

Sunset reflecting on Joy
as we reflect on another six month trip

Our last week of this year’s trip was dominated not by the sites we saw, but the people we met. We met friends we never knew and reconnected with old friends who don’t know us at all. We made our new instant friends only because we like beer and the old friends are rock legends I had not seen in 37 years. Yes, this written purposefully mysterious to make you read the last blog post of this trip. 

In Wichita with the Keeper of my Heart next to me
and the "Keeper of the Plains" in the background

The week started pleasantly, but with no big surprises: A nice lakeside campground, the National Tallgrass Prairie, an art museum with a fun little piano concert and a scooter ride along the Arkansas River in Wichita. But then we became hungry and thirsty, so we went to the next brewery and things quickly changed. 

Instant friends after a serendipitous meeting
of a West Maui neighbor in Wichita

One of the other guests was wearing a Maui t-shirt and of course I couldn’t keep my mouth shut. Next thing we know we are talking story with our new friend Renee, who lives just down the road from us on Maui and her mainland ohana, who are all long time frequent Maui visitors. Before we knew it, Joy was parked in their driveway, we sat around a campfire and enjoyed dinner together. There were even games, my kind of people!

Driveway campfire with our newest friends

New friends, great food & fun games

One of our old “friends” who doesn’t know us is Frank Lloyd Wright. We actually don’t really like him (apparently he was a bit of a dick), but we LOVE touring his buildings! The Allen House in Wichita and the Price Tower in Bartlesville were no exceptions. Frank Lloyd Wright’s buildings are always timeless, aways beautiful and always leak. We have been to at least two dozen of his buildings now and have yet to find one that does not leak. But they are always full of fascinating details and interesting stories. 

Frank Lloyd Wright's
Price Tower in Bartlesville

The FLW tour in Bartlesville included the community center, which is not actual one of his buildings, but inspired by his legacy. It’s such an impressive theater that we put Bartlesville on the list of places to consider moving to when the volcano blows.

Architecturally, the "Little House on the Prairie" is not as impressive as the Frank Lloyd Wright buildings. In fact, it looked like any other cheaply reconstructed 19th century log cabin. But it was still interesting to learn where Laura Ingalls Wilder got her inspiration from. And the cabin did not seem to leak.

She almost made me want to read
'The Little House on the Prairie'

We did three things in Tulsa, Oklahoma. One was fun, one depressing and one inspiring: The Oklahoma Thunder played a pre-season NBA game in Tulsa. The game was very enjoyable, but I can’t wait until our nephew Hannes plays in the NBA so we know which team to root for.

Detroit Pistons vs. Oklahoma Thunder
at Tulsa's Bok Center

The second thing we did in Tulsa was “Greenwood Rising”, which is the museum that tells the story of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre. I think this is one of the most important stories in American history, but often overlooked (and sometimes purposely ignored). During Jim Crow Era, where black people and business were discriminated against in most of the country, Greenwood Avenue was a business district where black entrepreneurs were able to thrive. And they were so successful that it was referred to as “Black Wall Street”. Unfortunately, the racism, fear and prejudice was so strong at that time that it only took a totally unrelated and probably made up incidence for a white mob to massacre black residence and burn down most of Black Wall Street. 

Black Wall Street in Tulsa
site of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre

The fatalities and the property damage from the massacre were comparable to that of the recent Lahaina fire. But instead of the overall very generous help here, the only offer the displaced residents got was a half price bus ticket if they were willing to leave town. And the Tulsa mayor even blamed them for inciting the massacre. I know we have come a long way, but it is scary that it took until 2020 that the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre became mandatory in the curriculum of all Oklahoma schools. It’s not like Sandra and I try to ignore American history, but were somewhat blissfully unaware of the extend of this event until recently. I highly encourage you to read about it or better visit “Greenwood Rising” when you are in Tulsa.

That same evening we went to see Billy Ocean. I had no idea how many die hard Billy Ocean fans are still out there, 40 years after he released his biggest hits (“Caribbean Queen”, “When the Going Gets Tough”,…). His concert was such a love fest; the perfect way to restore faith in humanity after learning about the massacre. 

Billy Ocean in Concert - Love was in the air

We decided on Oklahoma City as a winter home for Joy this year. I’ve said it before and will say it again, I think OKC is one of the most underrated cities in America. It seems to have all the amenities of a big city, without the usual side effect of traffic, noise, stress and crazy prices. 

Bricktown district
in Oklahoma City

We enjoyed a fun night at a dueling piano bar, a cocktail on the top of Devon Tower, a boat ride through Bricktown, a stroll through Scissor Tail Park and along the river and a movie. We highly recommend “The Killers of the Harvest Moon”, the new Martin Scorsese movie with Robert De Niro and Leonardo DiCaprio about the targeted killing of members of the Osage tribe. That’s another dark chapter of history. You might want to plan on seeing Billy Ocean after you watch that movie.

Oklahoma City skyline,
easy on the eyes, easy on the nerves

It’s always a little sad to put Joy in storage. We know how much she enjoys roaming the open roads. But we had one more highlight to look forward to while cleaning, packing and winterizing: Our little detour to see Queen in Nashville. No, we did not fly 700 miles just to see a concert, we also toured a historical home, had a drink on a rooftop bar and had some great BBQ!

Belmont Mansion in Nashville,
our last historical home tour for a while

Teenager don’t always make the best decisions. I was no exception. But I am glad that when I was 16, I decided to go all the way up to Cologne to see Queen, not knowing that it was three weeks before Freddie Mercury performed his last concert and five years before he passed away. 37 years later, I’m glad we got to see Queen as a truly royal ending to this trip.

Queen and Adam Lambert concert in Nashville

Obviously, a Queen concert without Freddie is not the same, but with Adam Lambert, they might have found the guy most suited to try fill his shoes. He doesn’t try to be Freddie, but Freddie was definitely there in spirit. The show must go on (and it was bombastic).  

Friendly, familiar face at LAX, we met Ron
even before we made it to Maui

Now we are back on Maui. Our hometown is gone, so is probably my little business. But our friends are still here, the ocean is still here, Maui is still here and we are grateful for that. It will be a long, slow, messy recovery for Lahaina, but it is still home.

A hui hou, Joy!

Chris & Sandra

Treasures of the Heartland with Walt, Harry, Ike & Lori

Aloha all,

what do Walt Disney, Harry Truman, David Hawley, Lori Moore and Dwight Eisenhower all have in common? In case you don’t know them all: Walt is my former boss, Harry and Ike are presidents, David is an AC technician & treasure hunter and Lori is Lori. What they have in common is that all of them enriched our last week on the road. So much so that I already feel compelled writing another blog post; before most of you had a chance to even look at the pictures of the last one. So let me tell you about these hometown heroes:

Even as a former ‘cast member’ of Walt Disney World, I wasn’t aware that Disney was from Missouri. But I can tell you, anyone who lives in or even just comes through Marceline, MO knows that this is Walt’s hometown. They converted their train station into the very informative “Walt Disney Hometown Museum” and named half of all places in and around town after him. If you have ever been to any of the Disney theme parks, you have walked down an idealized version of the Main Street in Marceline. Walt had such fond memories of his hometown that he wanted every guest at Disneyland to have the same happy, friendly experience. But while it’s easy to see the inspiration, the “Original Main Street USA” (as they call it in Marceline) is no theme park: Modern cars ruin any attempt to take a decent picture, several buildings are in disrepair, there is no music, no mice or ducks walking around and the lunch at the diner cost us about as much as a soda would cost at Disneyland.

At Walt Disney's Hometown Museum
in Marceline, MO

The Disney’s farmhouse, where Walt grew up, is outside of town. Someone still lives there, but Disney pilgrims like us can visit the reconstructed barn in the back, where Walt started his very first attempts at entertainment with shows for family and neighbors. His legendary “Dreaming Tree” has since died, but they were able to plant a sapling from the same tree, now known as “The Son of a Dreaming Tree”. We met a local showing his visiting friends the barn that he helped reconstruct. We talked to them for about an hour about all kinds of things, but most intriguing was their account of the Steamboat Arabia Museum, so we had to go there when we got to Kansas City. 

The “Treasures of the Steamboat Arabia Museum” tells two stories: The first story is that of the steamboat that sank in the Missouri river in 1856. All passengers were rescued, but all cargo was lost and so quickly covered in mud that is was soon forgotten by most. The second story is that of 5 regular guys who set out in the 1980’s to find the very same steamboat. None of them had ever done anything remotely like this. They knew the Missouri river had shifted since 1856, but when they started criss crossing the nearby fields with a magnetometer, they were surprised to find it half a mile from the river! They received good news and bad news from their first drilling samples. They confirmed that this was indeed the Arabia, but it was 45 feet underground and even worse, 30 feet below the groundwater table. They had to install 20 pumps to pump out water 24/7 while digging, spending 100’s of thousands of dollars, not knowing what they would actually find.

Just a few of the shoes they recovered
from the Steamboat Arabia

But when they reached the wreck, they say it was like Christmas every day: They opened one box after another, with no idea what they were going to find next. It just kept coming. When they were done, they had the largest collection of pre-Civil War goods in the world. Instead of selling it, they decided to keep the collection together and open a museum. We were in awe looking at the things they discovered. The Arabia had the orders from 14 different stores out west on board. Basically the 1856 equivalent of a Walmart store….a time capsule of merchandise, perfectly preserved under 45 feet of mud. Boxes full of still edible pickled fruits and vegetables, even bottles full of liquor and champagne. Where else in the world would you have hundreds of unused shoes from 167 years ago? Clothing, housewares, tools, even cans with a label “Fresh Oysters”, which I doubt is still accurate.

Amazing how well 45 feet of Missouri mud
will preserve stuff, isn't it?

There was a very nice guy at the museum who seemed very knowledgeable about every aspect of the history, the collection and the discovery. At some point, he mentioned that he was David Hawley, the guy who started the whole thing. I thought that was about as cool as if we had met Walt Disney at his hometown museum. What a cool adventure. I was glad that we were able to thank him personally for sharing it with the world rather than selling it off to the highest bidder. 

AC technician turned Treasure Hunter David Hawley

Instead of 1856 oysters, we ate some Kansas City BBQ with our friend Lori from the good old Royal Lahaina days and her boyfriend Rich. I even met another expat Hawaiian in the restrooms. They join us for a little while at our table, so it turned into a little, bitter sweet Hawaii Reunion.

Kansas City BBQ with a side of Aloha
Mahalo, Lori & Rich!

We also spent a day at the World War I Museum in Kansas City. I think I learned more from the excellent introductory film than I remember from all of my high school history classes. I probably paid more attention, too. Now we finally feel like we have at least a vague idea what that was all about. 

View from the WW I Museum to Kansas City

To cheer us up after reading all day about the war, we wanted to take one of our beloved historical tours at the Corinthian Mansion. Unbeknownst to us, there was also a fun concert by piano virtuoso and local celebrity Bram Wijnands scheduled at the mansion, which we got to attend for free as a bonus to our tour.

Corinthian Mansion (and concert hall)

We have been fans of Harry S Truman and members of his Presidential Library in Independence, MO since our first visit 5 years ago. They have just finished a complete update of the exhibits, so of course we went back for another visit. Especially as a German, there are so many reasons to be thankful for Truman. He was responsible for the generous Marshal Plan to rebuild Europe after the war and the Berlin Airlift. I just learned on this trip that when he served in WW1, he actually fought 40 miles from my hometown in Germany. For better or for worse, he is also the first guy who decided to use the atomic bomb. They had a special exhibit with pictures of trees in Hiroshima and Nagasaki that survived the blasts. Of course that made me think of our hometown Lahaina and our Banyan Tree, which is also fighting back after the fire. A somber, but hopeful reminder that life goes on, even after the worst disasters.

Harry Truman Presidential Library

As members we get e-mails from the Truman Library every week, telling us about events happening there. Now we were finally able to attend one of their “Cocktails and Politics” events. This one was organized by American Public Square, which seems to be a wonderful organization, trying to improve the tone and quality of the public discourse. You know, kind of like the Anti-Facebook. Yay, civility! The featured guests was the current governor of Indiana Eric Holcomb. Now I am pretty sure that I disagree with him on many issues, but boy do we agree with him on the need for civility and bipartisanship. Oh, and we met some really nice people over wine and pupus at the event.

"Cocktails & Politics" with Governor Holcomb

Dwight D Eisenhower grew up in a modest home on what used to be the ‘wrong side of the tracks’ in the small town of Abilene, Kansas. First we toured his boyhood home where the Eisenhowers lived with six sons. The house still stands there, exactly as it was when his mom passed away in 1946, but is now surrounded by his Presidential Library and Museum. We just happened to arrive there on Ike’s 133rd birthday. Eisenhower was so respected after leading the Allied troops to victory in Europe that both parties wanted him as their candidate. Supposedly, President Truman even offered to run as Eisenhower’s Vice President in 1948, had Ike accepted the Democratic nomination. But instead, Eisenhower ran as a Republican in 1952 and won easily. It probably helped that he advocated a middle way. I wish there would be someone this respected and this ‘middle of the road’ running today, ideally slightly younger than 133…

Boyhood Home of Dwight D Eisenhower

Today, we took a day off on a nice campground by a lake. We used that time to change up our plans for the remaining days. On our way to Maui next week, we will fly via Nashville to see Queen. They were my favorite band growing up. I haven’t seen them in 37 years and Sandra never saw them, so it’s about time. And then, on Oct 26th, we will come home, that’s about time, too!

A hui hou,

Chris & Sandra