Man, all this talk of Maui and nobody suggested staying in Hana, which I think is the best part of the island by far. The resort is expensive and not super ritzy but you can't beat that location. That's the "real" Hawaii as far as I'm concerned. Wailea is great for it's perfect weather and the Monkey Pod has great drinks but that part of the island is fabricated. I got bored of Lahiaina the quickest. It sort of reminded me of Myrtle Beach or something with all the tourist stuff and T-shirts. The art galleries were cool but one night there was enough for me.

Nice one. My wife and I went up and hiked in the cold rain with very little visibility. It was pretty damn surreal.

LOL. Bad part of town

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I met a good deal of locals when I was there and they were pretty cool to me. I think a lot of tourists are kind of invasive and brutish so I always try to be really respectful and observant, don't step on any toes and that usually works. They really do hate the slow drivers though cause they've seen it all a million times and they're just trying to get to the doctor, grocery store, movies, or whathaveyou. If you pull over so they can pass they really appreciate that. When I think about it, some of my best experiences in "foreign" places were in situations where locals are perceived to be "hostile" to tourists. Buying people a drink goes a long way to letting them know you're not an asshole!