Pre-Disaster Maui

Trip date: May 2023

Just 3 months after I returned from my latest trip to Maui, Lahaina (and surrounding areas) burned to the ground. It was shocking to realize that some of the places I had just discovered might be gone forever. 

I had taken advantage of (another!) 5-night Westin/Marriott timeshare presentation deal at the Ka'anapali Ocean Resort. This was my 4th time at the resort and I was looking forward to working from Maui for the week. I really love this beautiful property; the beach is fab, the weather would be warm and sunny, and they gave me a great discount on a rental car so I upgraded to a convertible!

I booked my flight on Alaska in Premium Class and a few weeks before my flight TripIt Pro alerted me to a drop in the fare. I called Alaska and saved $230! That more than paid for my $49 annual subscription!

It's a beautiful 45 minute drive from the airport, and since I knew that my room at the resort was a 1 bedroom with living room and kitchen, I made a stop at the nearby Foodland for groceries. Foodland has some of the best poke around! As well as musubi, local chips, ready made salads, etc. I love shopping here and I really like having some of my own stuff in my fridge.

When I pulled up to the resort the valet directed me to the other tower to the north of where I have always stayed in the past. To me, the North Tower was not near as nice as the South Tower and when I walked into my room I was super disappointed. It was an ADA room so the closet wasn't high enough to hang my clothes and the bathroom was super dumpy. The room was also as far from the beach as you could get and I could hear road traffic from my lanai. 

I spoke to a few different managers and finally got them to agree to move me the next day. I celebrated down by the central firepit with a double HH mai tai and some live music. It had been a long day so I decided to just have a couple of fish tacos at the hotel's outdoor casual restaurant (along with a few more mai tais!)

The next day I was moved to a MUCH nicer room, still in the north tower, but closer to the pool and the lobby. All week I pretty much kept to the same schedule; work on the lanai in the mornings and then a walk along the ocean on the boardwalk trail.

In the afternoon I'd rent a Casabella (a two-seater lounger with a hood you can raise or lower) at the pool (½ price after 12:30), swim, lunch and HH on the resort grounds and then have dinner offsite. 

One night I took the hotel shuttle to The Cannery mall and then walked across the road to the new location of Star Noodle. Always a favorite, but now with an oceanside location on Front Street. I had delicious garlic noodles, smashed cucumber salad, and a couple of cocktails. 

At this time, it's unclear if the restaurant will be able to reopen. It's so sad to know that the buildings here were completely burned. 

Another night I walked down the boardwalk to Duke's for dinner at the bar. It's touristy and overpriced but I love having a Duke's mai tai along with some fresh catch baked with butter and herbs. And it is so close to the Westin!

Another evening I took an Uber to Papa'aina Restaurant in the Pioneer Inn in Lahaina. I had reservations just after sunset so I got there a bit early to take in the scenery.

Unfortunately when I went to enter the restaurant, it was closed. No note, no explanation. I double checked my email confirmation and I had the right day and time. It was frustrating! 

This historic hotel's building was completely destroyed in the fires, it had been in operation since 1901 and was the oldest hotel on the island. There are no plans for rebuilding or reopening which is such a loss for Lahaina. 

I ended up calling another Uber and going to Honu which some hotel guests had told me about earlier in the week. 

Since I didn't have a reservation I ate at the bar where there seemed to be quite a few regulars also. I had a fantastic take on poke and also some wonderful grilled octopus. 

Honu is hoping to reopen summer 2024, if you are there and they are open, I highly recommend eating here!

And of course I had to attend a timeshare presentation, since that was the reason for the great deal. It was only 90 minutes, and I wouldn't say it was a hard-sell, but the salesperson was very rude when I was honest and said I wasn't going to be buying. And even though they offered me ANOTHER deal to pre purchase, based on the horrible first room I was given I declined. 

Maui is still rebuilding after the massive destruction the fires caused. Here's hoping that these places, and all the others along the quaint streets of Lahaina, are able to rebuild, rehire, and re-welcome their customers soon. 

Sending much love to the beautiful island.

All Maui photos here.

Other posts from this trip:
Volcano Lessons on Hawai'i

48 Hours in Waikoloa

Saranac Lake, New York Winter Fun

Trip date: February 2023 

After a couple of days in Saratoga Springs, I hitched a ride with my friend John to Saranac Lake, which is where his company Rascal + Thorn would be putting on the dinner that I came to the area for.  It was a gorgeous, snowy, 2-hour drive through the Adirondack Mountains. 

We arrived at the Hotel Saranac and upon check-in they told me they had upgraded me to a bigger corner room. I would be working for the next couple of days so it was nice to have a proper desk and a great view of the town. And since the hotel is in the Hilton portfolio my status got me $15 credit per day to use how I liked. 

The hotel has a very good all-day restaurant so some of the event group met there for lunch. Afterwards John took me on a drive around the area and to Lake Placid. What a gorgeous area, especially for snow sports enthusiasts! And I got to see the famous hockey rink where the Miracle on Ice happened in 1980!

Back in Saranac we walked down to the frozen lake to check out the construction of the Ice Palace. Each February, since 1897, Saranac Lake puts on a big Winter Carnival. It's one of the oldest in the country and there are lots of activities like parades, concerts, curling, dances, etc but the pièce de résistance is the Ice Palace that volunteers construct using blocks harvested from the lake. 

They even had a small museum set up with photos from prior years. Some of the palaces were massive! I love small town stuff like this so I thought it all was very cool! 

That evening John invited everyone out to dinner at Red Fox which is a super old-school American Italian restaurant. Big martinis, shrimp cocktail, prime rib, veal parmigiana, and a lot of fun!  

Back at the hotel a few of us stopped into the Great Hall, the hotel's cocktail bar, where we found some really great prices on whiskey pours.

Besides its historical Winter Carnival, Saranac Lake is also known for it incredibly cold winter temperatures. In fact, it is regularly the coldest place in the Continental US. And when I woke up on Friday morning, that is exactly what was happening! It was -19F and -43 with wind chill. Holy shit!

I bundled up and braved the cold to make my way to Origins Coffee for a breakfast biscuit and latte. I was pretty much the only person outside! 

My shopping trip around town got cut short after about 10 minutes of being outside as it was truly the coldest cold I had ever felt (and I've been north of the Arctic Circle IN WINTER!). I headed back to my cozy room and worked until it was a respectable time for happy hour. A hot toddy was absolutely needed that evening!

On the advise of John, I had dinner one evening at the Fiddlehead Bistro, which luckily was just a couple of blocks away. I sat up at the bar and had a great meal including some lovely local cheeses at the end. 

It was -23F when I walked home! Actual temp, not with wind chill!

I took advantage of the hotel's spa the next morning and booked in for a relaxing massage and some time in front of their fireplace with hot tea. After warming up, I braved the cold again and walked down to the lake to see how the Ice Palace was coming along.

Unfortunately, even though it was currently crazy cold, the lake hadn't frozen early enough to harvest the amount of blocks needed for a large Palace, so the structure was pretty small. But still very cool!

Besides the Winter Carnival, Saranac Lake is also known as being the first place in America to open a tuberculosis sanatorium. Edward Trudeau opened the Saranac Laboratory in 1884, it's now a museum right in the center of town and right next to his old house.

Until 1946, when an antibiotic cure was found, the Saranac Lake Laboratory was the leader in research and administering treatment of fresh air and complete bed rest- the only known way to cure tuberculosis- to patients who came from all over. Dr. Trudeau treated many important people, including Robert Louis Stevenson. 

Around town you can still see homes with large porches called "cure porches", this is where people would sit and take in fresh air to stay healthy or recover from TB. 

It's a small and very interesting museum if you get a chance to go. And during the Winter Carnival there is a "pay-what-you-want" admission. Also the Trudeau name may be familiar to you as his grandson Garry Trudeau is the cartoonist and creator of Doonesbury.

Back at the hotel, I got ready for the reason for the trip; The Rascal + Thorn dinner! 

The evening started with passed canapes of foie gras mousse in pani puri cups, caviar on sourdough crackers, and spiced lamb skewers. They were all absolutely fantastic! Hosts, John and Charles introduced the dinner team of Chef Erik Anderson , Chef Alex Lempka (from Hamlet & Ghost), and Will Wyatt (owner of Mister Paradise and Pretty Ricky bars in NYC).

We all found our way to our seats where a lovely cocktail awaited the first course. We would have 4 courses and dessert, each one paired with a cocktail made by Will.

The entire evening was just fantastic! There was a soft scrambled maple egg in its shell, some stunning raw steelhead trout with egg yolk and trout roe, roasted squab with shiso and caviar, perfectly cooked Mack Brook beef with potato cake, and burnt sugar and rosemary pudding for dessert. 

These folks really out did themselves! And the Winter Carnival had a big fireworks display that we all got to watch from the warm dining room during the dinner!

The next morning I said goodbye to everyone and took a "local taxi" to Adirondack Airport. That means I got some names of locals with trucks from the hotel concierge and paid one to drive me. Small towns are very funny!

At the Cape Air check-in counter I had to provide my weight, as well as they weighed my bag and carry on. Turns out I was flying on a TINY 8 person prop plane to JFK! For those of you who don't know me personally, I'm actually an extremely nervous flyer so this sounded terrifying!

Add to that the airport couldn't serve alcohol until 10am (because it was Sunday), and my flight left at 10:30. I basically shotgunned a mimosa at 10:03am! 

I still don't really know how all that luggage fit; they were putting things in the nose, the wings, etc! We weren't allowed to have anything in the cabin except for what you could hold in your hand (like a book or your phone). 

We were seated so that the weight distribution was even and one couple was very upset that they couldn't sit next to each other. I mean we are in a minivan with wings and he was right behind her! 

Luckily the weather was good so the 2 hour flight was pretty calm. It was crazy flying that low over the Adirondacks and into JFK though! I was very tense the entire time and was super happy when we landed!

Since I had a 4 hour layover in JFK, I went to spend some time in the TWA Hotel where for $25 you can lounge in their rooftop pool which is heated to 95F and overlooks the runway!

I had planned this, so I had my suit in my carry-on and a staff person locked my suitcase up in a closet for me. I had to change in the restaurant bathroom which wasn't great though. I kind of expected them to have a little locker room or similar. But it was super relaxing to take a soak and watch the planes. 

The rooftop restaurant is like a ski chalet in the winter so I stopped in after for some lunch, but it was really basic food and wine. All served on disposable and very overpriced. Not sure if it is always like this or if this was a holdover from Covid. The space is super cute though.

And walking back out through the hotel to the main concourse was super fun with all the old TWA memorabilia, 70-style bar, and retail shops. There is even an old TWA plane that is now a cocktail bar but it wasn't open yet when I needed to leave.

I made my way to my terminal and checked out the newly opened Alaska Air Lounge real quick before boarding my flight from JFK to Seattle. I had used points for a First Class, always nice on a 6 ½ flight! This one even served little cans of Straightaway cocktails and containers of Salt & Straw ice cream for dessert! 

It had been such a great trip! So fun seeing friends and great meeting all the chefs. Upstate New York is truly gorgeous... AND COLD!

All Saranac Lake photos here. 

Previous post from this trip: 24 Hours in Saratoga Springs

Mendocino Virtual Office

Trip date: October 2022

The last time I went to Mendocino with my friend Aaron, it was during a pandemic, I had to drive 818 miles, and we ate outside on the deck at Michelin-starred Harbor House.

This time I flew down to Santa Rosa, had a house rental with friends Aaron and Albert, and ate inside at the Harbor House... twice!

I started off in the Alaska Lounge, which is so great for breakfast and a mimosa before flying out of SeaTac. I had checked my bag because I was bringing some cocktail makings so I didn't even realize until I was onboard that this wasn't the small prop plane I was used to for the flight to STS. This time I was on on new Max 737-800 and was even upgraded to Premium! 

STS airport is going through some major renovations and at the time I was there baggage claim was outside under a tent! Aaron and Albert met me to wait for my bag to come off a small truck and then we headed to Unti Vineyard for a tasting.

I've been a big fan of Unti for years but I hadn't visited in a long time. They have a lovely new-to-me tasting room; no more sipping in the warehouse! We grabbed a picnic table outside, as the guys had picked up sandwiches from Loveski Deli for our lunch, and had a delicious time eating, drinking, and catching up.  

It was a 2-hour drive from Sonoma to our Airbnb in tiny town of Manchester. But most of it is through gorgeous redwoods! Once the redwoods end, the road twists and turns along the stunning Mendocino County coastline. It's truly such a beautiful drive!

We had a big 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom house, right on the cliffs overlooking the sea, with a full length deck and a hot tub. The house had a real 70s vibe (think paneling and bronze fixtures) but the views made up for the lack of modern decor. 

Dinner that night was in the small town of Arena at Izakaya Gama, which is owned by some friend's of Aarons. Albert's and Aaron's friends from LA, Amy and Lena, met us and we basically ordered the entire menu. The food here is fantastic! If you are in the area, I'd say it is a do-not-miss. Trout sashimi, chawanmushi with the sweetest uni, karaage, and this amazing strawberry "shaved ice" dessert were highlights for me. But really, everything was awesome!

Back out the house we tried out the hot tub and took in the incredible sky full of stars. It had been a great first day!

The next morning was Monday and as this was a working trip we were all on our laptops for a while. Just before lunch, Aaron, Amy, Lena, and I went for a great walk on Irish Beach. It's a beautiful stretch of sand and no one else was there, except for a sea lion!

We all then had lunch at Harbor House! Except for Aaron and me it was everyone's first time and it was so fun to see their reactions to the beautiful location. 

It was a very good 4+ course lunch with my favorite dish being the black cod with fermented cucumber. It was so simple looking but the flavors were just perfect, relying on the quality of the fish which was exceptional. 

After lunch we had our garden infusion (tea) on the deck and went for a nice walk around the grounds and down to the beach. It was a super fun and beautiful lunch!

That evening I made us all cocktails for happy hour which we had outside on our deck. Aaron grilled up sausages for dinner and we had a big salad to go with. And the cherry on top was the most dramatic sunset! Such a fun day with everyone!

Amy and Lena were leaving the next day so I got up early (for me), took Aaron's car (with permission of course) and met them for a morning beach hike. This time we went to check out Bowling Ball Beach which I had seen lots of photos of. Unfortunately I hadn't read that you can only see these rocks at low tide. And it wasn't!

We climbed down the hill and had a nice walk on Schooner Gulch State Beach instead. I wouldn't go out of my way to walk here, as it's pretty short, but it was great to see the girls again before they took off. 

Before I headed back to my office, aka the Airbnb, I stopped at the Point Arena Lighthouse. There's a small entry fee and luckily they took tap-to-pay as I only had my phone on me!

While waiting for my tour to start I went through the very interesting museum. I learned that this lighthouse was powered by a first order Fresnel Lens; the largest of its kind at over six feet in diameter and more than six tons in weight. It's not used anymore but it's still there to see.

The museum has lots of info on shipwrecks in the area as well as destruction caused by earthquakes. If you aren't doing the tour you can still go through the museum and gift shop.

It's 145 steps up to the top of the lighthouse; the tallest on the west coast. The views from up here are gorgeous and the gentleman who was working at the top pointed out the site of the last shipwreck as well as the erosion of the ground that the lighthouse is on. 

The rest of the week went pretty much the same; morning coffee in the hottub followed by work and then afternoon hikes and outings. We cooked at home in the evenings and enjoyed the views.

One afternoon Albert, Aaron, and I did a short hike out to Manchester Beach. The trail starts at the campground there and leads straight out on a dirt trail that turns into a sand trail. It was late in the day when we went and we were the only ones there! Stunning!

One afternoon we headed to the town of Mendocino; my first time! It was about a 45 minute drive up the gorgeous coast. 

We started with delicious smash burgers in the garden of The Brickery This is such a pretty spot! I hear good things about their dinner options too. Highly recommend a stop here.

We wandered around town a bit and then did a short hike on the Headlands. It was such a gorgeous day and the views were awesome!

We made it a loop by walking back through town and past the "Angela Lansbury" house. Just as we were heading back to the car thick fog started rolling in. Within an hour there was zero visibility! 

Before heading home we drove out to visit our friend and talented potter, Cliff Glover. We had a lovely visit over some tea in his garden and then did a bit of shopping!  

The next day we woke up to complete, white-out foggy conditions so after our morning work we visited Sanny Ceramics and met Jason who is another very talented potter. No one's wallet was safe!!

We stopped at the Elk Store for sandwiches and while eating outside in the chilly foggy weather we decided to head inland and go for a hike in the redwoods at Big Hendy Grove in Anderson Valley. This ended up being a wonderful plan as there was no fog and it was sunny and warm!

Hiking amongst towering trees is one of my very favorite things. The smell of the forest, the way the tops sway, the silent majesty... I absolutely love it! 

Afterwards, we stopped in for a wine tasting at Navarro Winery which has been producing wine since 1974. It was a lovely setting and there was no tasting fee!

Finally, the reason for the trip! Dinner at Michelin 2-star Harbor House! Unfortunately the fog was still laying low on the coast completely hiding the lovely view. Fortunately dinner was so very good that we almost forgot about it. We were seated in the gorgeous wood paneled dining room, right in front of the fireplace. Absolutely perfect for the cool evening.

The tasting menu was 9 or so courses and Aaron and I did the alcohol pairings (wine, beer, saki) while Albert did the non-alcoholic pairing (juice and tea). 

Service and dishes here are both wonderful. Most courses were assembled tableside which was a great touch, and we saw some Cliff Glover pottery in use!

It had been a fantastic week on the coast, even if we couldn't see it for the last two days, and this was a great way to end it. 

The next morning we packed up the car and checked out. As Albert was putting out the garbage he found a (live) racoon in the bin! YIKES! We left the lid open and called the property owners to make sure they would send someone over to release it!

The guys were driving me back to the airport before heading to LA. We stopped in Healdsburg and did a little shopping around before having lunch at Little Saint. The setting is super cute (it's in the old Shed space) but I wasn't overly excited for lunch as the resto is vegan. 

But I have to say everything was very good! 

After we shared some ice cream from Noble Folk and then I did a quick wine tasting at Lioco. 

And then the lovely week was over; time to say goodbye to Aaron, Albert, and CA. While I was doing a bit of work at the airport I was notified that I had been upgraded to First Class! A perfect ending.

All photos from this trip here.