Where are you from?

A friend I used to work with saw a sunset picture I recently posted to Facebook and knowing we had been in Hawaii for some time asked if we had moved here. I guess it struck me as a little strange as people take winter trips from the midwest all of the time and I am guessing few are asked if they moved to Arizona or Florida. I did not think much more about the question.

The morning Cindy and I walked to Green Flash Coffee for our usual latte and the barista asked me if we lived here. Now, this was getting weird. I don't even wear Hawaiian shirts or flip flops. I said someone else had just asked me the same thing and why did she wonder. She said she knew I came in a lot and she knew I always ordered a latte. I said that no I did not live on the island but I had been here a couple of months and yes I did come in a lot. She said she charged Cindy and me the "locals" rate. I said thanks. I told Cindy I wanted to tell this story and get a picture with her, but Cindy thought she might get in trouble. 

There is a thing on the islands of charging visitors and locals different rates. The guide on a tour we took last year explained this and suggested we tell proprietors we were some Hawaiian name I could not pronounce. I thought it was a joke at the time because it would pretty obvious if I tried to make the claim that I would be unable to speak the word.

I made the effort to search for the word today and it is Kama'aina. It does not mean the same as a person of Hawaiian descent, but rather refers to a resident. Searching for this word I also learned that charging residents and nonresidents different amounts is regarded as controversial by many who argue it is a way to rip off the tourist. The typical logic seems to be that people from Iowa are not charged higher fees when they visit Minnesota, so why should it be different when they visit Hawaii. I can see a certain logic here, but I have always thought Iowans should probably be charged more elsewhere. Why does Iowa have more influence on our national election of the president anyway? Life isn't always fair.

The best counter-argument I saw noted that seniors were often given a price break at various businesses so you can obviously create a policy that favors a certain group of people and get away with it. I also read that one reason Hawaii started doing this was to attract back sons and daughters who attended college on the mainland.

One more thought - I bet Costco doesn't give the Kama'aina a break and it looks like most of them go there anyway.