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West Maui
 West
Maui may be the area most changed by the decades. In the fifties,
Lahaina was still a sleepy town of family owned stores serving the
population and a far cry from the bustling seaport that once served
as the capitol of the Kingdom of Hawaii. Previously connected to the
rest of Maui by a winding pali trail that hugged the cliffside, the
West side was isolated until a new highway was built and the tunnel
dug through one of the more challenging promontories in the late
1950’s. The West side boasts some of the finest beaches on Maui.
Old
timers still call the West side Lahaina even though it is marked by
identifiable communities of Kaanapali, Honokawai, Kahana, Napili and
Kapalua. The districts of Olowalu, Puukolii and Honolua are mere
places on the map, vestiges of the plantation camps that were
established there at the end of the 19th century. Luxury hotels have
been built and new suburban neighborhoods in varying degrees of
luxury have been established with condominiums or single family
residences and estate like properties on the ocean offered as well.
Lahaina town has become a street of shops catering to visitors and
shopping centers in Kaanapali and Kapalua offer visitors high end
mainland chains to satisfy their craving for the familiar.
The
development of shopping centers of stores that cater to the
residents tell a lot about the makeup of the West side citizens. A
large Safeway and Longs serves the needs of the central core of the
town with boutique shops and the only bookstore on Maui catering to
the newly transplanted West side resident residing there sometimes
as a second home. The continued need for a medical center in West
Maui is confirmed when the highway to Lahaina is closed because of
an automobile accident or impassable because of smoke from a runaway
fire in the surrounding scrub lands.
 Perhaps
it is because of its isolation that the West side is the creative
pot of Maui merchandising. Fueled not only by the visitors who stay
in the luxury hotels on the West side but by the new residents who
chose its sunny mild climate and exclusive aura to live in,
businesses on the West side cater to the adventurous and aficionados
among us. From food to fantasy, beachwear to books, you can find it
on the West side and it’s some pretty cool stuff.
There
is some workforce housing on the West side in the newly developed
and older condominiums in Lahaina and moderate housing developed in
Kelawea Mauka but for the most part properties on the West side are
expensive. Occasionally there are homes on the market that were
built in the late ‘40’s and early ‘50’s on large lots just above
Lahaina town. Many of the residents for whom these homes were built
still live in them but some are divesting themselves of their
properties.
Times
have changed on the West side and you can walk down the street
during mango season without tripping over any fallen mangoes as was
the case in the olden days. But relish those Lahaina mangoes…they
are the best in the state, maybe the world! The hot dry climate
creates the luscious sweetness and aroma that only a Lahaina mango
can give you. The old fashioned way of eating a mango is to cut a
large firm ripe Hayden mango in half to the seed, grasp both ends
and turn each half in the opposite direction. One side of the mango
will easily disconnect from the side with the seed still in it. Take
the side without the seed, fill it with a scoop of ice cream and
devour each spoonful. Or eat it plain with a spoon, scooping out the
luscious fruit and savor each bite. What do you do with the other
side, why you eat that too of course, leaning over the grass and
slurping each precious bite, then scooping the flesh surrounding the
gnawed seed with a spoon. Be sure to wash your hands and mouth
thoroughly afterwards. The skin and sap are very caustic and you are
bound to get a very bad rash if you don’t. If you’re really
allergic, you should avoid the skin and sap and have someone peel it
and slice it for you. Any way you slice it, a mango is absolutely
delicious or as we locals say, some ono.
Carol Ball
Inc. dba
Carol Ball and
Associates
RB 11347
Maui Mall
70 E Kaahumanu Ave Ste A6
Kahului, HI 96732-2176
(808) 871-8807 • fax (808) 871-2462 •
info@carolball.com
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