MOKULELE AIRLINES
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| Where to go? |
We said our good-byes to our hosts Kristin and Bill and their dogs Blue and Snausages (Friday) and drove over to the Waialua Sugar Mill Farmer’s Market to sniff through some produce. The sugar mill, once very productive for the Dole Company, closed in 1996 and now the area serves as a home for the Waialua Estate coffee and several other shops. Janet bought some coconut flavored peanut butter for her girls at one of the produce stands.
It was then one last slow ride through the little hippie/surfer Haleiwa Town and just one more slow crossing of the enchanting Anahulu Stream Bridge, its white rainbow-curved lines soft and just so very Hawaiian before heading towards the jammed roadways of Honolulu. For me, the Anahulu Bridge appears when I dream of Hawaii. I sighed and headed east towards the capital.
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| Anahulu Bridge, Haleiwa |
Traffic on H1 was backed up, but we were eventually able to find our way to a destination recommended by our hosts; the Mariana Sailing Club and Original Tiki Bar. We were told it was worth going out of the way to reach and we were warned not to be dissuaded by the industrial park location. La Mariana was appropriately worn and lovingly tacky; looking like the décor had not been updated since it opened in 1957, including Wayne the bartender. Sporting a greying pompadour and a porn star moustache and a twinkle in his eye Wayne looked like if he ever stepped out from the protective bubble of the Mariana Tiki Bar he would turn to dust. He made the best, strongest Mai-Tai we have had so far in Hawaii. (And the cheapest). Timeless, Tiki Bar knick-knacks covered every available space in the joint. It was a slow afternoon at Mariana. We sat at the bar, dodging pufferfish lamps overhead, and Wayne served us Mahi sandwiches and chatted us up with sports talk and asked us about our travels in Hawaii. When it was time to leave for our flight we shook hands and said good-bye. I looked over my shoulder at Wayne and he was still smiling warmly and bidding us Aloha before he faded away.
Truthfully though, if you want to see a bit of old Hawaii, visit Wayne at La Mariana. Reasonable prices, great drinks and wonderful decor.
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