Hawaiian Fun
Created | Updated Sep 23, 2004
Me vs Big Island - Or Vice-Versa
After the plane landed at the mesmerizing wonderland of Honolulu airport there was a little van waiting for the 'legless' Americans to get them to the Aloha airline. Because of the frequent comings and goings there were a few small planes from Aloha lined up for inter-island transportation. I asked a woman sitting opposite to me in the van if this was the proper car to get on. 'I don't know,' she answered, 'ask my husband.'
Oh Lord, I thought, this is one of those couples where one of them is completely dependant on the other like a child on a parent or a dog on its master. (It goes both ways: either the man is the 'caretaker' of a helpless wife, - or a helpless husband follows the leadership of his wife.)
Whatever the case the van rolled up to an Aloha airplane and, with no more questions asked, I was hoping to fly now to the Big Island. The weather was beautiful with sparkling sunshine and I anxiously looked down to see the Islands we were passing. I had just seen Molokai and Maui when we hit bad weather and any hope of sightseeing was obscured by clouds. This is not an unusual change in the weather from one minute to the next - you are in Hawaii!
We landed in pouring rain on the Big Island called HAWAII. It was a small airport and few passengers arrived with this plane. As I was coming down on the steps an old woman with long white hair grabbed me and KISSED on my lips! 'Oh, so nice to see you! Have not seen you a long time!' she screamed. I thought I should turn into a question mark to find out what was happening to me. My brain went numb. But she disappeared as quickly as she came.
Getting wet with no raingear, we walked into the luggage receiving area. The carousel was going around and around but there was no sign of the modest possessions which I had packed for this trip. Conversely, some luggage was going around and around but there was no passenger to pick it up.
Tired and hungry, I was wondering around the deserted, spooky place when I found a little 'café' and bought a muffin at double the normal price. I also noticed a passenger with some flight attendant trying to repair a ripped 'sack' which was his luggage. I complained to him that my luggage had not appeared but the man said: 'It will be on the next plane.'
At the other end of the hall was a little information booth where a young girl was making inquiries. I was still filled with the friendliness of San Diego - I had stayed there quite a long time and had met the friendliest people ever. I said 'Hello' to her and we started to talk. We exchanged the telephone numbers of the hotels where we were heading and she left with a taxi. Finally my luggage arrived - with the next flight.
There are not many taxis at Hilo airport, probably because there are so few visitors, and I managed to grab the last one. When I told the taxi driver where I wanted to go he started to yell: 'How can you go there? That is a terrible area full of drug addicts. It is simply not a safe place to stay and it is out of Hilo!'
It was getting dark and I really didn't want any more problems - I was already at rock-bottom. But he was like a living newspaper telling me all the horror stories about Hilo he could; 13% unemployment, no business here, the place is dead, why did I come here anyway, there is nothing here... he went on and on. I needed this information like a hole in my head. I was totally depleted physically and emotionally when I arrived at the hotel. I did not know what time it was, because there is a difference from the SD time, but it was dark and all I could think of doing was to fall into a bed and go to sleep.
Yeah, but where? The hotel was full! However, there was another building where I could have a room with everything in it! Wow! Finally!!! But wait - it was not an easy walk to the building in the pitch dark and the 'everything' did not include a TELEPHONE in the room.
In fact it was a spacious room - part of it was the kitchen with a separate room for sleeping. It really was not a hotel 'suite' as such but for those people who had no place to go. No doubt the safety was questionable as I could just make out some dubious people hanging around as I walked through the yard. Thankfully, due to the darkness, I could not see more.
I don't remember many more details of that night on the Big Island. In the bedroom was a window which I could not close... and with the welcome orientation from the taxi driver I thought that I may well be robbed or killed. I was so tired I just did not care and soon fell into an exhausted sleep.
