F E A T U R E S

Bad Trips
By Don George, Editor

Visit Friendly Uzbekistan!
Duck the gunfire, bribe the officials, drink the Cipro
By Doug Fine

Big Island Blacktop
Chasing the heart of Hawaii
By Shirley Streshinsky
- Books on Hawaii
- Getting there

D E P A R T M E N T S

Romancing the Road
First Tango in Paris
A romantic tale
By Jenn Shreve
- Books on Paris
- Getting there

Passages:
"Questions of Heaven"
Buddhist with a backpack
By Gretel Ehrlich

Table Talk
- Knowing the Japanese

Salon Taste
Adventures in eating

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Your virtual travel agency

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E A R L I E R

Tuesday April 22

A night from hell in Los Angeles
By Don George, Editor
Giving good gnocchi
By Linda Watanabe
McFerrin
Meeting Moses on Mount Sinai
By Deb Fellner
Passages:
"The River at the Center of the World"
By Simon Winchester
Postmark: Lamu
By Don Meredith
Readers' Tips
and Tales

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                      |   G E T T I N G   T H E R E   |

w h e r e   t o   p u l l   o v e r

BY SHIRLEY STRESHINSKY | driving in Hawaii is divine, but since you have to stop sometime, it might as well be for a good reason. Here are some of mine:

I have been known to race for the Kohala Coast for a sundown mai-tai on the terrace of the Mauna Kea Beach Hotel. I'm hoping to be there on May 24, when the resort is reprising the "Ho'olaule'a" it put on at last year's big re-opening celebration. Scores of Hawaii's legendary master teachers -- of hula, Hawaiian music, weaving, chanting, lei-making, language and healing arts -- will be on the beachfront lawn to give demonstrations. A ticket for both morning and afternoon sessions is $25 (with proceeds going to a grass-roots organization that is promoting the teaching of Hawaiian language in the islands' schools). For $60 you can go to the luau that evening. If it's anything like last year's (and it promises to be), the master teachers, called "kumas," will be enticed onto the stage to perform, and the evening will be magic.

On Memorial Day weekend, May 23-25, the annual Big Island Bounty Festival, with a bevy of Hawaii's best chefs, will be at Sheraton's showcase Orchid Resort (the former Ritz Carlton-Mauna Lani). A Beach Boy's Bash, held on the 23rd, costs $75 and includes a moonlight canoe ride, if you wish. Sigh. Double sigh for a lomi-lomi massage in a tent next to the ocean at the Orchid's "Spa Without Walls." Next to the Orchid is the Puako Petroglyph Archeological park; it's an easy hike, with a great payoff at the end -- petroglyphs galore.

This year, Aug. 9 will be "Turtle Independence Day" at the Mauna Lani Resort, when the endangered green sea turtles, nurtured by the resort, will be returned to the ocean. Usually this happens on July 4, but this year the resort will be closed from May 9 to July 31 for a redo. For information, phone (808) 885-6622.

Sept. 19-28 is a good time to be going to the Big Island to take part in the annual Aloha Festival events meant to preserve Hawaiian traditions -- music, dance and history. As the time draws closer, call (800) 852-7690 for details.

While cruising across the Big Island in a car is sure to be an experience, so is landing in a plane. The island's main airport, just nine miles north of Kailua-Kona, is built on a bed of lava. You can catch a direct flight to Kailua-Kona from the mainland or fly into Honolulu and take a 20-minute connecting flight for about $65 each way. This airport does not service any international flights; go through Honolulu if you're traveling from another country.

There is a small-scale bus system on the Big Island, but it mostly caters to local commuters. Ride a bike or take one of the boat trips winding their way up and down the Kona Coast to get a picturesque view of the landscape.

But driving -- any car, not just a red convertible -- is the best way to see this island. And the Hawaii Visitor's Bureau has produced a nifty map called "Hawaii's Big Island Driving Tour." It includes mileage, driving time and plenty of places to stop.
April 29, 1997

For more information, contact:

The Hawaii Visitor's Bureau,
Big Island Chapter
250 Keawe St.
Hilo, HI 96720
(808) 961-5797

And don't forget our Table Talk area -- another great source of detailed advice!