Matt and I are back and slowly settling back in.

One of the things we did while we were there was to visit his brother and sister-in-law's new shop. Peering over the counter to see what his brother was doing as he assembles one of the hot items of his business, I asked "You're writing on them?"

"Yeah, they [meaning tourists] like it when it says 'Maui' on it."

Other than the jewelry his wife makes, they buy their items wholesale from Indonesia. There are stickers on them saying "made in Indonesia" and they have a sign up saying where in Indonesia and how some of the woven items were made. They are by no means being deceptive in trying to pull off items as being "made in Hawaii," they are just aware that some people just want something that looks "exotic" that says the name of the place they visted. But I don't think those people imagine "Maui" being written on the day before in fine tip permanent marker in the back of the store.

Since we went in the middle of the week, we missed out on the craft fairs and swap meet mania that I usually force Matt to participate with me when we usually go at this time of year. Plus we both caught the flu and spent a great deal of time sleeping or just plain groggy. I don't think I made a good impression on some of his more distant relatives that I met for the first time at his parent's house. I recall saying "What?" a lot. Partly because I was in a medicated haze and partly because I'm not sure if they were speaking English or Indonesian half of the time.

One of Matt's nieces is two and she's speaks a mix of Korean (from her mom's side), Indonesian (from her dad's side), and English (from everyone else). She does not switch between languages, instead she mixes different words from different languages together and becomes frustrated when no one other than her parents (who speak all three) can understand what she wants. I was a bit fascinated with her watching her speak differently to different people. Speaking only in English to defy her mother, but slipping back into Korean when she ran about the living room.

Despite being sick, I enjoyed the trip mostly because his family was and always have been so welcoming and nice. On the car ride back from the airport, I asked Matt if they (his parents and siblings) liked me or not. He responded by asking me what I thought. I can't say for sure, but I think and hope that they do.