Queen Ka'ahumanu Center

After our mountain hike, Keith and I had worked up pretty effective appetites. So we drove "into town" (Kalahui) to have lunch and visit Maui's biggest shopping mall, a beautiful structure that blends outdoors and indoors in unexpected ways.

On our way down from Iao Valley, I spotted this welcoming sign for a truly Christian church.

The Queen Ka'ahumanu Center is a large mall by most standards. However, as is often the case on Maui, parking is extremely limited.

Immediately inside we found a real farmers' market.

Even though the place follows the typical floor plan of any shopping mall, it feels as if one were shopping outside, in the shade. And that's because we are; the "roof" is canvas raised well above the walls, so that air flows freely in the open areas.

Individual shops are air-conditioned, which helps them because the open areas can be quite warm midday.

Ka'ahumanu (March 17, 1768 – June 5, 1832) ("the feathered mantle") was queen consort and acted as regent of the Kingdom of Hawai'i as Kuhina Nui. She was the favorite wife of King Kamehameha I and also the most politically powerful, and continued to wield considerable power as co-ruler in the kingdom during reigns of his first two successors.

Keith wanted to buy a particular style of Hawaiian board shorts, and looked for them without success in a couple of stores. But, in the end, neither Keith nor I are shoppers; so even though we had hours to spare before our luau, we decide to head back to camp to relax until it was time to go.