When giving directions on the island, it’s often more convenient, rather than using north, south, east, and west, to refer to moving toward the sea (“makai”) or away from the sea (“mauka”). After all, the sea is never very far and it’s usually pretty apparent which direction it’s in.
We’re on the slope of a steep volcano, so going mauka means you’re gaining altitude fast. As a consequence, when we’re in town (which is near the ocean) it’s usually about seven Fahrenheit degrees warmer than it is at home. Luna is a dog who likes to go, so we take her to town where she usually garners a lot of attention from folks. She loves it, but she doesn’t like being warmer under all her Alaskan Malamute fur. She wants to go mauka to cool off. So since moving here, she’s become a Hawai’ian Maukamute.
—2p