Get Out! (Lahaina: transplants, condo, hotel)

[Kokoleka1]

I guess the love/hate relationship can be found anywhere where you "depend" on a lot of foreigners... Happens in both of my worlds... The comment about Maui being crowded though cracked me up (that person sounds like he has never been to Aisa or a major city....). As for the ones who want to speak like (or alt least understand) the locals they should watch the Daily Pidgin by Andy Bumatai. He's on Youtube and FB. Even tought my husband who stay Oahu small kid time da kine pleny new stuff.

[JustForYOu]

I've actually seen it quite a few times on cars, but decided the other day to finally take a photo and post it here. Saw it one day in Wailea on a (local?) girl wearing a t-shirt that read something like "Aloha, welcome to Hawaii...now go home!"

I'm not really taking it to heart, but it is quite different from years ago I must admit. Is it supposed to be funny?

Originally Posted by Jungjohann

Someone saw ONE license plate, and someone ONCE saw something on a sign on highway 340, (I still don't know the numbers of the 'highways' over here, not on Maui, maybe in another 10 years), doesn't make it the norm. Just indicates some folks wanting to sensationalize a rarity over here. I'm not saying animosity towards newcomers is non-existent, but why bother, odds are they won't stay more than a year or two.

Do love how tourists will use the numbers for the roads though, Kalanianiole is a friggin tough one to say.

[JustForYOu]

Thanks for the tip. I looked him up; great videos!

For what it's worth this is the only place I've lived where the locals aren't enthused when you try and learn and/or use the local dialect. Of course it varies from person to person...some people come up to me and speak Pidgin. Even a simple "howzit" goes a long way to feel some sense of belonging

Originally Posted by Kokoleka1

I guess the love/hate relationship can be found anywhere where you "depend" on a lot of foreigners... Happens in both of my worlds... The comment about Maui being crowded though cracked me up (that person sounds like he has never been to Aisa or a major city....). As for the ones who want to speak like (or alt least understand) the locals they should watch the Daily Pidgin by Andy Bumatai. He's on Youtube and FB. Even tought my husband who stay Oahu small kid time da kine pleny new stuff.

[hotzcatz]

Originally Posted by bus man

No offense taken. Where I live, most (though not all) of the numbered roads are identified by their number, not their name. Knowing the exceptions is one of the ways that one can be identified as a resident, instead of as a visitor.

I've always understood that adding the definite article before the route number was a California thing. I've heard it there all the time, yet I've never heard it anywhere else. Thus, the main north-south interstate on the West Coast is "the 5," yet the main north-south interstate on the East Coast is "95" or "I-95" or "Interstate 95" or a variety of other unprintable words, but NEVER "the 95." Go figure.

As for Hawaii, now I know that I'll need to learn and use the names instead of the numbers if I want to be able to successfully communicate with the residents.

Oh, no worries, we use the 'the' occasionally around here. It's 'the road'. There's only one, so why even bother giving it a name other than 'the road'? "Go up to the road and turn towards Hilo" is valid directions. Telling them to turn, uh, I think it might be south, maybe? on route, uh, it has a number somewhere..... just go to the road and head towards Hilo. Much more easy.

[smarino]

This sort of thing happens everywhere. In Daytona Beach, the highway by the ocean and beaches was called Atlantic Ave, yet everyone referred to it as A1A (I think. Even after 4 years there I wasn't sure about this). We lived right off Nova Rd, and it was called State Road 5A, and Ridgewood Ave was called US-1. I didn't care for these new names and always used the old ones. People still knew what I meant, except the snowbirds, who seemed perpetually lost.

When we lived on the BI (or Big Island, he he), what used to throw people off who asked for directions was the mauka-makai thing, which was probably all you needed back in the days before cars and roads, but knowing the street names and whether or not you needed to turn right or left was a lot more helpful in the real world.

I sorta understand the locals not being fond of haole using pidgin. In the South, we would have been unhappy w/ a Yankee attempting to talk like us. However, we didn't like them much no matter what. It seldom came up though. They tended to watch their mouths, as we had a long reputation of being polite, but only up to the point where we killed you. In truth, we cared less for them than the locals care for the hoale, but again, we didn't see too much of them. In Hawaii, we're just around too much and in too many numbers, which is part of the problem. Now that I'm a lot older and a little wiser (but still don't like Yankees), maybe the best way to handle all this Us and Them business is to go by the many signs that I saw posted all over Memphis...."Be nice, or leave". That should apply to both sides.

[wyzamom]

Might be off track but made me think of this . . Of course this is before GPS was around.
Has anybody ever been to the mainland and done this themselves?
While I was visiting I trying to figure out driving directions to somewhere I asked . . "so where is the ocean?"
Everybody took a long look at me and laughed (jokes ensued) . . "Why on earth do you want to know where the ocean is?"
It made complete sense to me . . to know.

[MauiPartTimer]

I grew up in San Diego and there used to be a poular bumber sticker that said "Tourists go home (but leave your daughters)" I always thought that was pretty funny.


As far as whether people on Maui make others feel welcome, I've said it before and I'll say it again: We spend about 25-30% of our time on the island and I've never felt any outright hostility directed at me (white male) or my wife, who's black. We've made several friends on the island, from native Hawaiians to transplanted residents to part-timers like ourselves. We're friendly, treat people with respect and are easy-going. Perhaps if we went around looking for hostility, we'd find it, but that's not how we operate.


One other note, I've noticed that when crossing So. Kihei Road, it's the obvious rental cars that typically blow right through the crosswalk. Locals and residents are far more likely to stop and waive you across. Just sayin'.

[hotzcatz]

There are also those bumper stickers and t-shirts that are printed with 'if it's tourist season why can't we shoot them?' Those are not specific to Hawaii, though, just tourist locations in general. Probably because too many tourists forget to pack their manners and their brains when packing for vacation.

[SeaDreams]

Originally Posted by smarino

I sorta understand the locals not being fond of haole using pidgin. In the South, we would have been unhappy w/ a Yankee attempting to talk like us. However, we didn't like them much no matter what. It seldom came up though. They tended to watch their mouths, as we had a long reputation of being polite, but only up to the point where we killed you. In truth, we cared less for them than the locals care for the hoale, but again, we didn't see too much of them. In Hawaii, we're just around too much and in too many numbers, which is part of the problem. Now that I'm a lot older and a little wiser (but still don't like Yankees), maybe the best way to handle all this Us and Them business is to go by the many signs that I saw posted all over Memphis...."Be nice, or leave". That should apply to both sides.

Ah now smarino, I'm hurt! I always thought of myself as quite open minded, pretty kind AND polite, and willing and wanting to learn and experience things. And I'm definitely a Yankee according to Merriam-Webster... I haven't traveled to the Southern US but wouldn't try to talk like "them" when we do, but I have tried to at least learn a small amount of the language when travelling in a country whose main language is not English.


Full Definition of Yankee

1. 1 a : a native or inhabitant of New England

1 b : a native or inhabitant of the northern United States
2 : a native or inhabitant of the United States

[Bananajoe]

Originally Posted by JustForYOu

I don't know, but the attitude here is different than years ago and not in a good way. I see this type of thing a lot. Definitely not the spirit of ALOHA

My GF and I just got back from Maui and loved every bit of it. We hung out with the locals for nearly a month. Nicest and friendliest bunch of people I had ever met. I have been to Hawai'i a couple of dozen times now over the past few decades and never have had a problem with the locals there. Aloha