What did I think of Hawai'i before I met Patty? Not much, really. I thought it was a cool place, with the ocean and palm trees and all that, but it just wasn't a place which had captured my imagination. Not many places had, really--not that I was destitute during those years, but I didn't exactly have money to burn. Blowing thousands of dollars vacationing in some exotic locale wasn't much of an option for me. If I did have a desire to travel in the "pre-Patty" years, it was probably to Mexico. My sister-in-law was a travel agent working for Androy Travel in those days, so I likely would have secured the cheapest deal through her.
So, there were very few thoughts of Maui during the 1970's and 1980's. Patty, on the other hand, had a reasonably good knowledge of the Aloha State for someone who had never been there!. Her parents had been there numerous times and had settled into going on extended trips there every winter, visiting the Big Island. We didn't talk about Hawai'i much before we were engaged, but Patty had told me something quite intriguing. She once said that she had always wanted to "get married on a beach, wearing a bikini". Interesting! But I thought at the time "Getting married on a Florida beach? Sort of boring!" But Hawai'i, on the other hand, eventually piqued my interest.
Despite the intrigue, I thought this was sort of a cute fantasy on Patty's part. Like, something which would never really happen. Would we get married in Duluth and then jet off to Hawai'i? Or get married and honeymoon there? She wasn't clear on this, so it was obvious to me that this was something not really well thought out or solidified in her mind, at least.
When the best time of year was to visit Hawai'i
Eventually the decision was narrowed down to sometime in February 1996. The job I was in at the time prevented our leaving the first week of any month, so we were looking at a probable departure on Monday, February 12.
The second primary question--how long would we be staying in Hawai'i and on which islands? A Northwest World Vacations book devoted to Hawai'i we obtained from Porttown Travel would help us make that decision. Eventually we decided to spend the first two nights on Waikiki and then fly off to Maui for the next nine nights. As for our hotel choice on Waikiki, we weren't picky as we would only be there for two nights. Cheap was preferred and we found it in the Outrigger Village hotel, just a block from the beach. We reviewed many hotels and condos on Maui and settled on the Lahaina Shores Beach Resort because a) at $135/night, it was cheap and b) it was a fully furnished condo with a full-sized refrigerator and stove along with a microwave, a coffee maker and a full set of dishes bowls and utensils.
We hoped we had made the right choice with these hotels. As it would turn out, we did!
Having decided the whens and the wheres, we went to Destination Travel in late 1995, put down the deposit, and started the countdown!
Getting There
It had been a cold January with 13 mornings being colder than -15, but the worst was reserved for the first four days of February, with low temps between -29 and -39. Holy shit! We obviously were very much looking forward to escaping the frigid tundra of northern Minnesota and finding relief in Hawai'i. What would we find once we arrived? Neither of us had a clue, having never traveled there before. I would also be flying for the first time in my life. What would that experience be like? Would I like it? Hate it?
I didn't sleep very well the night before our February 12 departure. How could I? The excitement over what was to be the most incredible adventure we had ever taken was about to begin. When it was over, we would have memories to last a lifetime. But first, we had to get there! Patty's folks picked us up at our apartment and drove us to the airport early in the morning. I had assumed they would be joining us for our nuptials because they had been making annual trips to the Aloha State for several years--they were taking this year off to "remodel the kitchen". I also believe that they were having difficulty "losing" their daughter to a marriage which they might not have been entirely supportive of. Whatever.
Stopping outside the airport terminal for one final cigarette--compared to how the weather had been in Duluth for several weeks, the morning was relatively warm, at 10 degrees. After breezing through security (security would nearly always be a breeze for the next 5 1/2 years until 9/11 changed everything about air travel), we waiting to board the plane for this first flight, headed for Minneapolis.
Watching (and feeling!) the plane takeoff from my window seat was an intense experience. The rate of accerleration really surprised me and seeing the ground as we took to the air was likewise so. Patty sort of giggled at me going "Hey honey, look at this, look at that!!" at the various sights during this very short first flight of under an hour. Soon we were on the ground in Minneapolis where a very short walk took us to the next plane, a DC-10, for our next flight to Seattle. Luckily, smoking was still allowed in certain sections of these airports so I managed a few quick smokes before boarding for our final flight, to Honolulu. But being on this plane for more than six hours and the resulting nicotine deprivation led me to some snippiness toward Patty as we flew over the Pacific Ocean.
Tired already! In Seattle
Land ho! After what seemed like an eternity over the ocean, the island of O'ahu came into view. It was announced over the loudspeaker that it was 71 degrees, just prior to sunset. Being cigarette deprived for nearly seven hours, we needed a smoke! But stepping off the plane, feeling that warm tropical air and smelling that incredible smell (I found out later it was plumeria) made us forget our addiction for a few minutes. Soon after quaffing a quick cigarette or two, we were on the shuttle bus and on our way to Waikiki.
Hello O'ahu!
By the time our shuttle had arrived at the Outrigger Village Hotel and we had checked in, it was nearly 8:30 p.m. Keeping in mind the four hour time difference, it was 12:30 a.m. back home and we had been up for 18 hours. We quickly dropped our bags off in our room and ran down to the beach, digging our toes into Hawaiian sand for the first time. What a change from just 14 hours ago, going from a snow-gribbed ten degree landscape to the sounds of the ocean, the smell of leis everywhere and that warm tropical breeze. We were in awe and more than eagerly anticipating what awaited us over the next nine days.
Finally at the Honolulu Airport!
The room was sufficient, on the 5th floor facing Beach Walk Avenue, with nice views of a lot of high rises to the northwest. There was a very narrow balcony attached to this room--if I was sitting and Patty wanted to get past me to the other chair, it was a tight squeeze! But we didn't care; we had wondered and wondered what the Waikiki area would be like and were now finding out.
Relaxing at the Outrigger Village
Sleep came quickly on the first night--awakening equally so. I was out of bed at 3 a.m. and out on the balcony, taking in the city lights of Waikiki. We were the first people downstairs at their open air restaurant for breakfast. I'd never dined at a place where birds walked freely on the tiled floor before! Very strange and neat.
After breakfast, we walked to the Outrigger Prince Kuhio hotel for the free orientation and listened to an hour of the presenter lady explaining why their activities were the best. We left as soon as we could.
Having only one full day on this island, we decided to purchase tickets for the Waikiki Trolley and do some exploring in the morning. This is a pretty cool activity to do if you want a glimpse of what Honolulu has to offer. We made stops at the State Capitol, Iolani Palace and Bishop Museum (among others). It took about an hour and a half and was money very well spent! After getting some sun at the pool in the afternoon, we dined at Perry's Smorgy. It was cheap and quite edible.
Two other observations regarding O'ahu:
1. A ton of people are here who don't consider English their primary language! I find it weird that we're actually still in the United States. At times it feels like a foreign land.
2. If someone walks past you and mutters "buy some bud?", they mean marijuana. It happens more than you'd think. Being nearly 14 years sober, of course I passed!
We thoroughly enjoyed our stay in Honolulu but were looking forward to what awaited us on Maui.
Off to Maui and the Main Reason We Were Here!
The Wiki-wiki shuttle spirited us off to the Honolulu Airport on Wednesday morning, and we left behind an island we knew we wanted to visit again someday and for longer than just two nights! We boarded the Mahalo Airlines plane, a little prop job (I called it a "rubber band plane", as in "You just wind it up, point it at Maui and let it go!"). An uneventful flight on this drizzly morning was a quick one and soon the island of Maui came into view.
What did I expect to find on Maui? I had no idea. After the cosmopolitan excitement of Honolulu, there was concern that we'd be bored. I had this perception that Maui was essentially a jungle with dense foliage everywhere and few people. That perception would prove to be quite wrong.
After getting off the plane and being shuttled to Alamo Rent A Car, we were off on our way driving a Hyundai Accent to the hotel we would be staying at for the next nine nights. There was some beautiful scenery on the way to Lahaina--mountains and the ocean being the primary sights. After just over a half hour, we were pulling into the driveway at Lahaina Shores Beach Resort.
There was a "mini-mall" of sorts next to the Lahaina Shores, with shops, an art gallery and a few restaurants. We had dinner at a cute little place called Gaby's Pizzaria. The pizza was okay, and the server, when asked about where to eat on our wedding night, recommended Pacific'o, which was in a great oceanfront location right in the Shops at 505. We considered it for a time, but eventually decided on Kimo's for that meal.
Back to the room, we took stock of everything which was provided. The room was comfortable and sitting out on the balcony as the sun set over the island of Lanai relaxed me as I hadn't been for quite some time. I do believe we made the right decision on which island to get married on!
After dinner, we set out on foot, checking out Front Street. There were tons of restaurants, shops and art galleries here! We ended up at a cute place called Hilo Hatties where I purchased a great looking bluish colored Hawaiian shirt, along with a pair of dress shorts. These would be worn to our wedding ceremony. Patty had brought a wedding dress along, so she was set. On the way back, we stopped at a Haugen Daz ice cream place several blocks from the hotel. The girl inside was wearing a parka! "Why a parka?" I inquired. "I'm cold!! It's under 70 here!!" she replied. When I told her that several hours ago we were standing outside our local airport on a 10 degree morning, her eyes got really big. Apparently some people didn't realize how cold it could get on the mainland! 
I had thought Patty's parents were going to surprise us by showing up for Friday's wedding ceremony on Po'olenalena Beach, but when Patty called her mom in the afternoon and she answered, we knew that wasn't to be. I was disappointed but Patty acted like it was no big deal. I knew better. We drove down to Poipu on Thursday to make sure we knew where the licensor's home was as we'd need to stop there to pick up the wedding license tomorrow. I was struck by the turquoise water of the ocean, at times very near the roadway.
We were again up fairly early on Wedding Day (Friday the 16th). It was a bit bittersweet given that one of the closest friends I'd ever had in A.A., John, had killed himself just nine years ago on this date. While I was catching some rays, Patty went and got her hair done.
Sunshine meditation!
After spending the afternoon chilling out in the room and trying to pretend we weren't nervous, we finally headed down the road to Kihei.
Me nervously smiling just before leaving
And Patty likewise!
After getting to Janet's house (she would be the planning/licensor/photographer/witness to this soiree! ![]()
) and securing the marriage license, we continued south past the fancy Wailea resorts and hotels to a beach where it seemed only locals hung out, Po'olenalena Beach.
We waited for Andrea (the minister) and Janet to show up. 5:10, nobody. 5:20, nobody. 5:30, nobody. By now we were getting more than slightly concerned because we knew sunset would be at around 6:30. What the hell was going on? We had started a conversation with a local who was also in the parking lot--he had moved here from Michigan years ago. As luck would have it, he had a cell phone so we called Royal Hawaiian Weddings. They paged us through to Janet and she said they were up at Wailea Beach on a hillside fronting the Four Seasons Resort and was only a few miles away. "C'mon up!" Janet said and we were so relieved to have reached her I didn't use what my comeback should have been; "No, YOU come down HERE!". But we drove up there, got my camcorder set up and got ready to rock our wedding
The camcorder was set up too far away to get good audio, so Andrea held a cassette recorder (with the Bible she was using on top!), Janet started snapping pics and the ceremony began. It only lasted 12 minutes or so and we were prounounced man and wife. After that, Janet posed us in various positions and places around the hillside, working our way down to the beach, for another 20-25 minutes.
The ceremony begins!
Unlike the nervous smiles earlier in the day, these are happy ones! (and a bit of relief)
Posing on the beach
The ceremony and aftermath complete, we hurried back to Lahaina and took off on foot for the walk along Front Street to Kimo's Restaurant. We had a very romantic meal here, seated at a corner table alongside the railing with views of the ocean. With tiki torches lit and the sound of the ocean waves on the shore below us, it was a perfect dinner with a wonderfully tasty meal.
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last updated november 1, 2021