PulpFaction

Moloka`i is an oasis in a state which is quickly becoming an over-hyped tourist trap.

Where Waikiki is high rises and traffic congestion, Molokai is slow paces and beauitful, untouched places. Where Maui is crime and not walking alone at night, Molokai is care-free hitch-hiking, mule rides and what might well be the world’s best coffee.

Visitors be warned, though.

Moloka`i is vehemently opposed to becoming like these other islands. You are cordially invited to visit, but if you talk about buying, you’ll get cold shoulders and evil eyes.

Be gentle with The Most Hawaiian island. Responsible tourism, please.

Yeah, it’s too cold but it smells bad, too. It seems some interesting things have come out of Michigan, including my fiance, but … I don’t know. I personally didn’t see or hear of anything that would tempt me back for anything other than quick trips to visit his family.

Going to Clarksdale is like going back in time; it’s finding yourself at those fabled crossroads and following the devil home.

It’s hard to see a place you love, a place you made plans for, to be utterly flattened like a goddamn garbage heap. It’s hard wondering if the people you passed in the grocery store, the old man standing in front of you at the coffee house, the little boy you baby sat…it’s hard wondering if they survived and it’s hard seeing the homes they made and loved ripped apart and finding their family photographs scratched in the sand on some deserted road.

It’s hard loving a place like Bay St. Louis.

It’s not over as long as the people come back. A lot of New Orleans lives in its old buildings and wrinkled trees, but New Orleans, at its heart, is all about the people that live there. If you can’t appreciate some corruption and filth and debauchery, you probably won’t appreciate this place. If you’ve never been here, don’t worry; It’ll be back, better than ever. The quarter survived pretty as you please, and since most that visit see little outside of that anyway, you won’t notice much change.

Good luck to those outside of NO; many along the gulf didn’t far as well, as unbelievable as that may sound.

For a state that’s produced several of our country’s more noteable writers, it’s a little surprising it doesn’t make more lists. It can be dull, too many pine trees and too much red clay, but there are pockets of incredible beauty and history. If nothing else, it’s worth driving out int he middle of nowhere at night and listening to the bullfrogs and crickets and looking at the stars.

The best part about Mississippi is the interesting cast of characters that live there, both past and present.

A lot of people that live here hate it. They cite crime, corrupt government, poverty, high unemployment, general filth, and other unsavories as reason. But it’s a good place in it’s own way. Great thrift stores and estate sales, excellent food, colorful characters, and one of the most unique and important locations in the US as far as music history goes.

Some of the best experiences of my entire life revolve around the Denali National Park area. From Glitter Gulch to the Stampede Trail, there’s a lot to do and experience and find if you know where to look. Definitely recommend getting off the beaten trail a bit, (watch out for bear/moose) but also take the bus ride into the park. It’s very, very worth it.

If you’re interested in working there one summer, I’d recommend that as well.