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I miss big cities and ethnic food. I miss REALLY good restaurants and REALLY good wine and a job that can pay for them. I miss New York... the amazing diversity of it. The constant buzz and energy.
But I love my view and my friends here. And you cannot beat the weather and the fruit or letting the surf lull you to sleep.
Aloha au i Hawai`i,
devany
www.myhawaiianhome.blogspot.com
www.eastbaypotters.blogspot.com
Posts: 2,314
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quote:
Originally posted by Devany
...and REALLY good wine...
Kamuela Liquors have a great selection of REALLY good wine, have you checked the back room there? (Al also will order your favorite wine for you if it's available in Hawaii. The new Kona Wine Market at Kona Commons has a much better selection under the new ownership too.
Aloha,
John S. Rabi, GM,PB,ABR,CRB,CM,FHS
808.327.3185
johnrabi@johnrabi.com
http://www.JohnRabi.com
Typically Tropical Properties
"The Next Level of Service!"
(This is what I think of the Kona Board of Realtors http://KonaBoardOfRealtors.info)
Posts: 315
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We did find some good cheap Mexican on our Feb visit. Emma's at Shipman Industrial Park. When you turn off to the park it is the first street on the left. It is also the Hilo Tortilla Factory. Very small, only 2 tables. Open for breakfast & lunch. Awesome specials. We ate lunch there for 5 solid days. Had they been open on weekends and had we found them sooner it would have been even more. Go for lunch & take home some tortillas & salsa for a dinner later in the week.
As for the olive oil & cheese info, I have used igourmet before. But there is nothing like asking your cheesemonger to let you sample before you buy. I don't know why I am concerned about olive oil. I do buy some in gourmet stores here (Whole Foods, Star Provisions etc) but the bulk of my oils come from a company called Pasolivo in Paso Robles, California. I get about 3 big shipments from them a year. Very good stuff. I have been to their farm & that was a fun experience.
Atlanta/Pahoa
Atlanta/Pahoa
Posts: 447
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I'll add to this "missing" list
3. Nice/Warm weather
4. Normal Beaches
edit: typo
quote:
Originally posted by kani-lehua
hmm. we moved from kailua, o'ahu. people might think that we can't relate to this topic. the list is short, but here it is:
missing: 1) good restaurant food 2) shopping at the mall.
not missing: 1) traffic 2) noise
"a great many people think they are thinking when they are merely rearranging their prejudices."
w. james
Posts: 6,214
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Joined: Feb 2006
Things I don't think I will ever miss:
Shoveling snow, really freezing cold wet winds (the Hawk of the Great Lakes...BRRRR), those dark grey cloudy days when the trees are bare, and you can only wait for anything green and light.
Things I thought I would miss:
the theater scene. the restaurants, the choices of being close to a major city.
Things I like here:
The University, the friendships, the funky downtown (without the typical tropical funky smell - thanks to the rain!) the pace of life, the small town atmosphere, and the theater scene - Hilo is one of the best values anywhere.... and there is almost always some show on the weekend, on this side, between the two theater societies, the Palace, KDEN, EHCC, the Palace, all of the other venues... and just to add a little more, for an extravagant night out, there is always the Kahilu Theater up in Waimea (usually over 2x the Hilo ticket price, but still a bargain) and the bigger bands that play over in Waikaloa (full price there...).
For those that may think the theater here is lame, many of the dance and art performances we saw in the top theaters in Chicago play here in Hilo! (and where else in the world can you go to a major symphony performance in a concert hall for free?)
Although there are none of the absolutely finest restaurants, gotta admit, we went to them so infrequently that I really do not miss 'em (and no having to dress up to please the wait staff here!)
And we have been blessed with great job and education opportunities, far better than on the mainland
Things I love here:
The weather, the flowers & things that grow like weeds, the rain that usually has a blue sky peeks somewhere, the ocean
If I were able to change this:
The throw-away attitude some who live here have (although it is everywhere, I feel it is more of an assault on this wonderfully isolated land)
Posts: 1,351
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LOL Devany - you remind me of Eva Gabor in "Green Acres!!" "...I just adore a penthouse view - darling I love you but gimme Park Avenue..."
Carrie
"The world is changed. I feel it in the water. I feel it in the earth. I smell it in the air. Much that once was is lost, for none now live who remember it." Galadriel - LOTR
Carrie Rojo
"Even the smallest person can change the course of the future..." Galadriel LOTR
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Aloha,
WOW, After reading all the reponses I'm really appreciating all the good things I have here in Atlanta, but I'm still ready to move...LOL.
Best, TonyB
Atlanta/Kapoho
Posts: 2,014
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QUOTE from TonyB: - "I'm really appreciating all the good things I have here in Atlanta, but I'm still ready to move...LOL."
I think you hit on the key Tony. Appreciate what you have where you are at the time you're there.
Just last night, we were really appreciating the brilliant starlit sky as we sipping a libation by the pool.
David
Ninole Resident
Ninole Resident
Posts: 1,139
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Joined: Feb 2008
cheers to you and sophie, david! no pool up here except a full to overflowing catchment tank. 
808: i don't miss the "normal" beaches on o'ahu--have never been much of a bunch bunny even though we lived a block from the beach. i've come to love this island with it's black sand, white sand, black & white sand and green sand beaches. i love the weather up here on the hill with all its rain and coolness. life is good on the biggest island.
"a great many people think they are thinking when they are merely rearranging their prejudices."
w. james
"a great many people think they are thinking when they are merely rearranging their prejudices."
w. james
Posts: 7
Threads: 0
Joined: Jun 2010
I don’t live in Puna, thank goodness, but I have probably spent more time there than some of the posters as my family migrated there a number of years ago. I am a Bay Area native and am very happy living here. I’ll start with the positives:
What I like about Hawaii
1. My family lives there
2. Ocean – nice and warm
3. The public swimming pools
What I don’t like
1. Fake Aloha – I can’t think of a more overused, outdated, and inapplicable word to describe the attitude/lifestyle in Hawaii. Worse yet, the Hawaii- born (not ethnic Hawaiians) are chronic offenders of the concept. Some of the rudest and most unfriendly people I have met were in Puna and Hilo. (Kona is friendlier). I feel safer in Oakland than in some parts of Puna. Some of the locals are vile and animalistic in their behavior and treatment towards each other let alone outsiders.
2. Food is bad – Puna’s finest dining establishments would face bankruptcy in the Bay Area. Humans spend a lot of time eating, so good restaurants should be an expectation in any community. There are some exceptions to the bad dining in Puna and Hilo, but I’ll drop a big fat “F” for dining options overall. The mainland chain restaurants some of you speak so negatively about on this forum are considered average dining locations (i.e. Olive Garden) in the Bay Area, but they would be greeted with giddy disbelief by the locals if just one were to open in Puna. BTW, you can get Kona Coffee anywhere on the mainland. It tastes the same and is sometimes cheaper.
3. High food prices – Yes they are at least 20%-30% higher. That $3 papaya doesn’t seem so expensive factoring in the cost for other foodstuffs.
4. Traffic – Some of you complained about mainland traffic – are you kidding! The commute to Hilo, unfortunately a daily necessity for most who live in Puna, is a complete nightmare. Yeah its bad in the Bay Area, but my goodness you wouldn’t think Bay Area-style traffic, would be a part of the “stress free and inner peace” lifestyle of Puna.
5. Heat – summers are miserable in Puna, December – April not so bad
6. Rain – It puts a real damper on the day, 12 inches a year is all I can take, 120 inches is downright depressing.
7. Beaches – or lack thereof, my feet get cut up every time on the lava rock, no real beaches. When I sink my feet in real sand at Kona side, it is such a relief.
8. No air conditioners – come on it’s freakin’ hot, get some cool breeze coming in. Ohhh, I forgot energy is double the price on the Big Island vs. the mainland.
9. Mold – it’s ruined if you left it outside for more than a day (or inside for that matter).
10. Little geographic variety – it all starts to look alike after you’ve been to Puna more than a few times. I know, I know, you have all these climates on the BI. Well
they all look alike too. The desert isn’t a true desert, only occurs b/c of the acid rain (scary). California offers so much variety, it’s the first thing I notice when I fly back.
11. Public transportation – Need I mention why it sucks in Puna, but hey its free, of course who would pay for it anyways. Bay Area public transportation has a ways to go, but my goodness it’s like a theme park next to Puna.
12. Limited cultural opportunities – lame museums, lame entertainment, lame music scene, lame art, etc. On one positive note, the zoo is not bad; though small.
13. “Hypiecrits” – These self-righteous idiots abound in Puna. Yeah they are here in the Bay Area too, but without the voracity for entitlement and nuisance as they are in Puna. They compromise the bulk of rampant homelessness in Puna, that gives SF a good name.
14. Bugs –Puna is a mosquito Mecca
15. Pollution – I’d rather do deep breathing yoga exercises in the middle of the busiest intersection of the Bay Area than spent one day in toxic vog.
16. Driving to Kona – Kona seems to have all the cool stuff.
Yeah, living on the mainland can be stressful. I find that a 10 minute drive up to the mountains to a serene location is all I need to “unwind.” You’re stuck on that Island. I’m stuck going there to visit family, but I get to leave. If you are planning to move to Puna and your under 40, Don’t! If your over 40 , still don’t, but heck you’d only be wasting half your life.
Sincerely,
Just giving it to your straight
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