Sometimes we all need a break. Novel writers are no exception. As an artist, I seem to be more sensitive to the world around me, and right now we are living through some truly bizarre times. So much so that it was affecting my ability to write. Then one day I said the heck with it. I hadn’t had a real vacation in ten years, and I needed a change of scenery.
I’ve been following the Maui wildfire story on YouTube. The video hosts all talked about how much their economy depends on tourism. They also said only a few small portions of the island had burned. The rest of Maui was still open for business, and to please come and visit. So, I found a nice resort in a town called Wailea, where I enjoyed the beach and even went to a luau. After all, no trip to Hawaii is complete without a luau. Along with writing, I’m also passionate about photography, so I brought along a brand new camera. After spending three days on Maui, I went to the Big Island.
The Big Island is very interesting. Half the island is rain forest, the other half is desert. I stayed in Kona, which is on the desert side. The drive from the airport to my hotel reminded me a lot of Arizona. I’m originally from Phoenix, and it looked very similar to a section of road between Phoenix to Flagstaff, although we don’t have lava patches in Arizona.
The hotel where I stayed was just as pretty as the one in Maui. The black rock beaches were beautiful. Seeing them had been on my bucket list for years. Once again I shot some amazing photos. I also took a helicopter tour. Amazing doesn’t even begin to describe it. We dropped down into an extinct volcano crater. Talk about something you don’t see every day. The ivy covered cliffs went down hundreds of feet. I should have taken some photos, but I was too much in awe of what I was seeing.
From there we went to a beautiful, secluded meadow, only accessible by helicopter. Once again, I shot some amazing photos. Sadly, I had to leave that night, but I definitely want to go back again. Some of you may be wondering if I’ll set a future contemporary romance novel in Hawaii. Hey, you never know. In the meantime please enjoy the photos. Also please note that I sign my photography as Gayle Martin, and that all the photos are copyrighted.
Marina Martindale
PS I’m still trying to identify the mystery tree on Maui. We think it may be a Divi Divi tree. However, Divi Divi trees are native to Aruba, not Maui. Will update this post if we find out it’s a different tree.
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