r/maui • u/Prior-Anybody-3116 • 16d ago
living here Advice for a new resident?
Hi everyone! I just accepted a job in Maui and I’m moving there late October/early November. I’m a recently out trans woman coming from the mainland, having never been to Hawaii. I want to respect the locals and learn about the culture, and I want to give back to the community while I’m here. Do yall have any general advice for me?
Also, are there any volunteering opportunities I can help with for wildfire/storm clean up?
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u/Next_Team3305 16d ago
literally nobody cares ur mahu- just be respectful. Don’t honk your horn, be respectful of your elders, clean up your trash, buy from hawaiian locals and visit farmer markets, make friends with locals and remember always you are a guest. You’re more likely to be judged for being white ( if you are ) than gay/trans.
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u/AlpineTwist 15d ago
Don't just blindly 'buy from Hawai'ian locals' at all. Plenty people here will dropship or even straight-up buy from China, rebrand slightly, then re-sell as 'made in Hawaii'. You should never feel bad for not purchasing local what you could get somewhere else for cheaper. We're all literally trying to survive.
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u/Oliver_Holzfilled Maui 16d ago
Oh, so just everything people do in their hometown on the mainland.
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u/dinkinflickas 15d ago
It happens but there are people still who actually make their own product.. yes even on mainland.
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u/wrathofthewhatever2 16d ago
Well…..I think they should honk their horn if someone is going below the speed limit in the left lane or is going the same speed side by side with the car next to them in the right lane and won’t move up or back off to let anyone behind them pass for miles….horn is needed then! Or if they slow down to merge turning right up to Haleakala hwy from Hana highway, it’s not a merge, you have your own lane! No need to slow down! Lay on that horn if you see any of these! Help the community! (I’m joking but not really)
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15d ago
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u/wrathofthewhatever2 15d ago
Propels sure as hell honk here are you serious? I’ve probably seen more angry drivers here than on the mainland
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u/sillysunrise888 16d ago edited 16d ago
It’s really important to learn the real history of Hawaii, if you care about being respectful to the culture and its people. One good book to start with is called Hawaii’s Story by Hawaii’s Queen Liliuokalani
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u/Prior-Anybody-3116 16d ago
Thanks for the book rec! I’ll see if I can find it at my library/online
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u/sillysunrise888 16d ago
It’s kind of a challenging read, it at least was for me. If you find it difficult also, then my recommendation would be YouTube: Bailey Sarian - How the US stole Hawaii
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u/Lilikoihelper6789 16d ago
Malama Kula is a good organization if you would like help with storm and fire cleanup. They continue to do fire mitigation and cleanup work from the 2023 fires in Kula and have also helped with storm cleanup after the Kona Low and Lala. Good luck with your new job and your move!
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u/JBrewd Maui 16d ago
"Mahu" is pretty well accepted here, wouldn't sweat that too much. Main thing just be nice, try to make some local friends so you can see real Hawaii, and expect that it is going to take long to make friends with anyone who isn't fresh off the boat...even other transplants become very hesitant to make good friends with "new" people because the population of people coming/going mainland is nuts. I don't even bother unless the person has been here a couple years at least unless they seem super cool. It's not a diss at all, everyone is just tired of befriending someone and then they leave when their lease is up.
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u/ElectricNightElf 15d ago edited 14d ago
Maui Rapid Response is an awesome organization. They are grassroots, community-led, amazing group of people. They have been helping with the island's unhoused population and fire survivors. Maui Humane Society is a wonderful organization and always needs help.
Aloha Maui Pride is a great org to connect with and they have LGBTQ brunch every month. Have you seen the documentary about Kumu Hina? She's on Oahu but comes to Maui to speak sometimes. She's really cool.
Drive slower here and don't cut people off. People drive too fast on the mainland and it can take some time to wind down. Here, people will let you go ahead of them and you should learn to do the same. The Aloha spirit means to have respect for others, and to help where you can. If you are kind and respectful and not entitled you will fit in better. You will have to slow down in general here.
Someone else said it here and I will say it too- it can take a while to make friends here. Lots of newcomers leave within a few years of moving here so locals want to see if you're sticking around. So it might be a little lonely at first. Your idea to volunteer is a good one. You can also try some meetup groups depending on what you're into. Good luck! Hope your move goes well.
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u/Vamparael Maui 16d ago
Don’t judge people’s agnostic instincts about you at the beginning, many people don’t want to make any effort to befriend someone moving here because many people end up leaving between in one year or two, it’s nothing against you or people being snobby, people want to know you will stay first.
Also: You will need to learn where to live, every town is different and you may need to go through a trial and error process to find out. Hana and Haiku is extremely rainy for some people and both towns are very different in their demographic, the west side and Hanna are very far from everything, Lahaina is extremely desert and hot and share zip code with Kaanapali, Napili, etc but each area has his own weather, the more to the north the more rainy and cloudy. Kahului and Wailuku are more like a city here, Paia is hippie town, Makawao cowboy town, Kula is the mountain… etc etc…..
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u/Prior-Anybody-3116 16d ago
Sweet I’ll do some research tonight on towns
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u/wrathofthewhatever2 16d ago
Adding on to the previous comment, Maui probably is one of the only spots on earth where you can pick you preferred weather by town. Kihei and Lahaina super hot but almost always sunny. Wailuku gets grey but a little cooler. Paia and east get more rain, and upcountry gets some rain but is a lot cooler when everywhere else is way too hot, also I think Hailiimaile might have the most rainbows anywhere in the world, I really think that might be the case and I’ve started keeping track last year
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u/808Lychee 15d ago
Try to find something close to where you will be working. Once you get away from a main area, the roads become two lane. One wreck or incident can cause a decent backup.
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u/AlpineTwist 15d ago
wtf is 'Hanna'?
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u/adavadas Token Haole 15d ago
You know what the intent was and it was obviously a typo. You can be better than that.
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u/AlpineTwist 14d ago
It's not 'obviously a typo' since plenty of people who don't care enough actually do pronounce it 'Hanna'... Being better than that is caring enough to draft the place names correctly.
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u/Vamparael Maui 15d ago
LOL, I have fat fingers and shaky hands but mostly I’m stupid… haha
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u/AlpineTwist 15d ago
I mean, for all intents and purposes, we should probably be using correct naming conventions since they're place names NOT in English as well - also, it affects the way the words are pronounced:
- Haʻikū
- Kāʻanapali
- Lāhainā
- Paʻia
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u/Vamparael Maui 14d ago
I read Hawaiian words in Spanish and they all sound WAY more similar to olelo Hawaii
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u/Sea_Echidna_790 15d ago
Ka Hale a Ke Ola always needs tutors to help the keiki in shelter there. Stuff like that is a great way to really make a difference for people here and actually get to interact with Pasifika people. A Cup of Cold Water gets you right on the ground serving the most marginalized. It's technically Episcopal but super queer/LGBT+ friendly and there's nothing religious about service delivery or need to have affiliation to volunteer. I'm sure there are others I'm just blanking rn that would help you hit the ground running with actually contributing and learning what that means here.
Check out the Maui Nui Botanical Garden as a newbie friendly place to take classes that teach cultural stuff. Usually very friendly people in the classes. They also have great volunteers and volunteer opportunities there.
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u/PrincessOpihi 16d ago
Trans is pretty accepted here, just be you and be kind and you’ll do fine. You get what you give.
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u/Health-Care-Vixen 13d ago
Welcome. Gender affirming care is available through Kaiser (I believe they have a specialist who does telehealth visits out of Oahu) and if you have non-Kaiser insurance, go straight to Malama I Ke Ola (the Community Clinic of Maui) where there are providers who know what they are doing.
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u/Prior-Anybody-3116 13d ago
I was planning on going to the planned parenthood down there with my health insurance from work. Would I go to Malama I Ke Ola instead?
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u/NurseGracieRN 15d ago
Mahu is part of Hawaiian/South Pacific culture. As you probably know indigenous/non euro communities respected and honored their dual identity people. Although I did see trans and hermaphrodite statues in Rome so many ancient euro cultures have a history of respecting their Mahu's too. You will find Aloha here but people don't warm up to strangers. It took awhile to make friends because making friends with people who leave makes heart break. So glad I made friends with neighbors who watch my cats when I pick up travel gigs into Oahu to stay with family. And they invite me over to family holiday gatherings upcountry when I can't spend holidays in Oahu or SF with my family due to work. Be neighborly; it was important that my family knew I had found a Tita as a tiny and vulnerable single female (who can put a fat boy in restraints and deliver a B52 shot faster than you can blink 3 times). I am a nurse so I do a lot of volunteering in ways that would be hard for a non nurse to participate but one place I love volunteering is the Maui Humane Society. I work weird hours so I can live where it's cheaper and commute, but traffic can be bad on Maui so consider this when choosing where you live given commute hour can be insanely slow. I don't know how regular 8 to 5 people do it. I grew up in Ohau where I learned to drive and then my family moved to the Bay Area where I drove, and I personally think Maui traffic is just as bad during commute hours as those two busy metro areas, but I guess I am spoiled driving when most people sleep. Please don't honk unless really necessary. And throw a Shaka if someone lets you merge. Be kind and respectful and practice Pono. One interesting Hawaiian trans person I've met is Kumu Hinaleimoana Wong. As a nurse I try to understand human diversity within the cultures I care for and I follow her online as I find her words enlightening. I wish you well. My move here was hard for many reasons but now as much as I miss family and wish I had a nice man to share life with (I seem to only date Locum MDs and Per Diem travel nurses who warn me they are leaving in a couple months). I think this is home.
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u/Inphiltration Maui 16d ago
My advice is to get another job. Unless you are one of the lucky few, the cost of living here is outrageous. It's a financial trap. It's not worth it.
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u/LMaui 16d ago
you should try the site https://nextdoor.com and see the desperate need for affordable housing. If your job pays way above average you will have a unhappy time here, it is expensive... the gas along is $5.79 and up, food and other necessities are the same, very expensive... if you have the means you will do fine but I wouldn't recommend it.
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u/Maui_Mine4847 15d ago
Have you arranged a place to live and checked out the cost of living?
Maui is an outward migration location for those reasons.
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u/hopalopia Maui 16d ago
Welcome! As far as volunteer opportunities:
Active stuff:
- You can always join the Aloha Rock Gym on one of their beach cleanups. It's a great way to meet people and make friends while doing some good for the community at the same time.
- The Hawaii Land Trust (HILT) requests volunteers for the Nu'u Refuge to outplant invasive species. And if you like to camp, doing this volunteer opportunity gets you access to their exclusive camping space that only other volunteers can use.
Animal stuff:
- The Maui Humane Society is always looking for more volunteers to help with feeding animals and cleaning kennels. They also do programs for taking dogs on walks or to the beach so they can get some outdoor time and socialization.
- The Maui Cat Cafe partners with local shelters to get kittens and cats socialized and ready for adoption. You can volunteer with them to run the front desk, help out with the animals in the back, and help visitors to the cat cafe.
Local community stuff:
- The Maui Rescue Mission provides mobile support for our homeless communities, providing things like information on resources available to them, laundry services, and bathrooms for them to take hot showers. They always need people to help keep things clean between guests and check people in.
Also, the LGBTQ+ community here does a bunch of stuff that happens in June, so if you want to get involved in the community for events and stuff, check back in then! c: