Our last day in Maui began, as usual, with the free breakfast poolside. We both decided to try the croque-monsieur, which basically was a toasted ham and cheese sandwich with a sprinkling of paprika. It was pretty good.

Sue informed Donna that we would be leaving early in the morning. She asked if it was possible for us to get a breakfast to go. Donna said that she would not be working on Friday, but she could get us something today, and we could keep it in the room's mini-fridge. Sue asked if she could make sandwiches like the ones that we just had, and Donna said that she could. She brought them to us a few minutes later.

During breakfast I sat next to a fountain that consisted of three pots. I did not ask what the intended purpose of this structure was, but the actual effect was to hasten my climb up to room #15 to dispose of the coffee and juice that I had just consumed.

Our plan for this day was to drive south to the area known as Ma'alaea, the site of both the Maui Ocean Center and the Keālia Coastal Boardwalk inside the wildlife conservation area there. On the way we again passed the windmills on the southeast corner of the West Maui Mountains. The wind was definitely quite strong, but only a couple of the propellers seemed to be moving at all.

We easily found the aquarium. The parking lot seemed to be rather full, but we found a spot that was not greatly distant from the entrance.

There were two lines, one for people to buy tickets and one for people who had already purchased them online. The latter line was shorter and faster. By the time that we got close to the front of our line, the other line had vanished, and the clerk called us over. Senior tickets cost $26.95. For $3 extra I also rented a hand-held audio device that explained each exhibit. Sue said that she did not want one.

The preferred way to visit the the complex was to start with the Surge Zone and then proceed in a counter-clockwise fashion to the Turtle Lagoon, Tide Pool, and the large building that held the other exhibits. We were still trying to figure this out when we saw a sign directing us to start with the Surge Zone and the Living Reef.

We got as far as the shallow area of the Living Reef. A huge window on a massive aquarium containing an authentic reef provided a very clear view. It was filled with a plethora of strange-looking and colorful fish swimming playfully around. The sight was mesmerizing. We soon learned that this reef was twenty-years old.

At almost the moment that we arrived there, a young lady with a microphone began a fascinating informal presentation about the exhibit and the reefs in the ocean. The one at the aquarium was obviously in much better condition than the one that we had viewed from the Reef Dancer. The first fish that she identified was the unicorn fish. We learned that individual fish may or may not have the nasal protuberance. The very last fish that she identified was the state fish of Hawai'i, the humuhumunukunukuapua'a, also known as the reef triggerfish.

In between we learned a great deal about the incredibly varied nature of the reef and its inhabitants. The reef itself was clearly a living thing, but it could not be categorized as animal, vegetable, or mineral. The fish and other creatures procreated in every way imaginable and in some that defied belief. Some of them could even change sex, seemingly at will.

The audience was approximately 30 percent children. The presenter did a very good job of keeping the youngsters involved without dumbing down the material. She also cut it off just as the audience was about to get restless. I enjoyed this a lot, but Sue seemed to rate the glass-bottom boat higher.

The lady announced that there would also be an interactive demonstration in the other building in about twenty minutes. She added that it would involve a diver in the shark tank, which might involve feeding of the fish. Sue and I spent a few more minutes looking at a few more reef exhibits. We then made our way to the other building. We arrived just as the presentation there began.

This one was a little more formal. The window was even larger than the one at the shallow reef. The presenter was off to the left. Inside the tank was a diver who was somehow able to communicate over the intercom. A small grandstand was situated in front of the window. Unfortunately, by the time that we arrived the seats were all taken.[1] Still, we could see easily enough.

The lady with the microphone asked a few questions to the diver. He reported that occasionally one of the fish attacks and consumes one of the other fish. He also said that they rotate the fish into the aquarium and release them back into the ocean. There are no cetaceans (dolphins, porpoises, and whales) in the aquarium because of a state law making it illegal to catch and display them. The presenter said that the aquarium not only conformed to but agreed with and actively promoted this law.

The diver said that so far there had never been any serious incidents that involved himself or his colleagues. They took every safety precaution that they could think of, including keeping their fingers hidden. To some fish fingers evidently looked like snacks.

Near the end someone dropped food into the tank. Some fish swam over to get lunch, but a surprising amount of the feed fell to the bottom. The presenter was not surprised by this. She said that some fish ate on a different schedule, and some were bottom-feeders.

After the presentation we both left the big building. I returned to the Living Reef building. Sue wanted to stay out in the fresh air, and so we agreed to meet by the Turtle Lagoon a little later.

The Living Reef was organized by depth. It began with the creatures who lived in shallows and ended with those that thrive at much lower levels. I enjoyed most the ones that I could photograph: the eels, the octopus, and the jellyfish. At the top of the list were the eels that buried their tail ends in the sand and stood vertically like blades of grass.

After I exited the exhibit, I looked around for Sue. We ambled over to the Turtle Lagoon together. The turtles were definitely active, but the glare made photography almost impossible. We then spent a few minutes together looking at the harbor and the activities in the ocean. The weather was nice but very windy.

These were not blades of grass; they were eels.

The octopus was difficult to photograph.

I think that this was a lobster.

The jellyfish tank was pitch-black.

My best shot of a turtle.

We saw this boat from the aquarium.

I wanted to see (and hear about) the remaining exhibits in the other building, but Sue was content to wander around outside. The other building contained exhibits of both historical and biological importance. Since we move at radically different paces, we have to split up some times.

I took some photos of a genuine petroglyph. There was also a passageway that went through the large tank that contained the sharks. Huge fish were swimming to the right, the left, and above. I took some photos of a barracuda and a sting ray.

By the time that I left the building I was getting hungry. I stopped in at the world's most inefficient eatery, the Reef Cafe. Only one person was working in the entire place. I was third in line when I arrived. I only wanted a bag of chips and a Diet Coke, but it took me twenty minutes to get it.

I found an empty table. I set down my stuff, and one of my napkins took flight toward the Turtle Lagoon. There was no way that I could catch it. I called Sue to tell her that I was at the Reef Cafe. She said that she would join me there.

I consulted the guidebook about the area that we were in, Ma'alaea. I learned that it had been disqualified as the site for an airport because the winds were so strong. I also read a little about our scheduled stops at Keālia Pond National Wildlife Refuge and Mama's Fish House, Sue's choice for the last supper of the vacation.

Sue arrived and sat with me for a few minutes. For the second time on the trip I helped myself to a refill on a beverage that I was not entitled to. I had no intention of standing in that line again, and there was no chance that anyone would notice. The young man in charge was being run ragged by demanding tourists. The line at that point held fifteen or twenty people.

As we approached the exit the audio guide started making threatening noises. I retreated a few paces and deposited it in a box that I had not previously noticed.

I drove up the road a mile or two and steered the Rogue into the parking lot for the boardwalk that ran between the beach and the highway The Keālia Pond, which was on the other side of the highway, was not accessible from the boardwalk, but the beach was. Sue wanted to get her feet wet in the ocean, and so we walked out on the beach. It was almost deserted. Sue walked slowly out on the sand.

To my shock a black creature emerged from the ocean and walked up on the beach. It was a diver in a wetsuit who had apparently been spearfishing. He stumbled up on the beach and began to disassemble his paraphernalia. He was still dealing with it when we returned to the boardwalk.

There were birds to be seen in the pond from the boardwalk, which was elevated enough to provide a decent vantage point. As usual, I had no idea what I was looking at, but I snapped some photos.

We only stayed there for a half hour or so. We drove across “the neck” and then through Pa'ia to Mama's, which was on the east side of town. We had dined at Mama's in 1997, and it was just as I remembered it, but more so. Sue had somehow fabricated an image in her mind of a rustic shack that served incredibly tasty seafood that had been rushed from the boat to the pan to the plate. What we found was a hoity-toity establishment with a great view of the ocean marred only by the steady stream of tourists congregating between the dining area and the beach.

A cruise ship near Kapuluhi.

Mama's parking lot featured valet parking. We handed off the Rogue and checked in at the nearby reception area. The lady there directed us to a second receptionist on the other side of the restaurant. We had assumed that we would not need reservations at 3:00 in the afternoon. We were right, but, despite the fact that it was one of the least popular times of the year, the restaurant was quite crowded even at that hour.

We both felt uncomfortable in this place. We were at least a little underdressed, and we were not prepared for the pretentiousness. It was not as expensive as Gerard's, but it was probably the next most expensive restaurant on Maui, outside of the resorts that catered to the “if you have to ask ...” crowd. Sue really enjoyed her chowder and crab cakes. I had one of the fish meals; I did not record what it was. Mine tasted as good as any fish that I have sampled, but it still would not make my list of the best 100 (or even 500) meals that I have tasted.[2]

We spent some time outside of the restaurant ruining the view for the remaining diners. I spotted a large turtle up on the beach and took some long-range photos of it. I also photographed the coastline and the surf.

No one was stationed at the first reception desk when we exited. I took a photo of the empty rostrum.

Sue enjoyed her appetizers. I caught her at a bad moment.

This was the view from our table.

We were only a few miles from Jaws.

We paid the attendant to get the Rogue for us. By this time the drive back to the hotel had become very familiar.

A couple of canoes decorated the lawn.

In the distance I noticed a family inspecting a turtle resting on the beach.

Here is what they saw.

Sue wanted to walk into Lahaina to see the daughter of a friend of hers. The young lady, whose name was Haylee, was working in a small kiosk that offered henna tattoos and hair braiding, a thriving and competitive business in Lahaina. They exchanged pleasantries for a few minutes while I strolled around town to snap photos of the places that Sue had entered in her quest for live music the previous evening.

Sue introduced me to her new friend and showed me a pendant that Haylee had given her. Haylee had crafted it herself from a stone that she had found on the beach. Then we both walked back to the hotel.

In the room we snacked on some items from Sue's larder. I fixed myself a scotch on the rocks and then another while I packed. I planned on carrying my leather jacket in my arms, which meant that there would be room for quite a bit of Sue's excess stuff. We had hopes of avoiding the charge for excess weight on the return trip.

I walked over to the registration desk and settled our bill with the clerk. She offered to email me a receipt. It was in my Inbox when I arrived back at the room.

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