Captain Tim asked, "Are you with our group?"
"I am," I said as I looked at my phone to catch my last emails before I got aboard the raft we would be taking to Lanai.
"How much does a boat like this cost?" Not that this was relevant to taking a snorkeling tour in Hawaii, which created a strange look from Captain Tim. I was truly interested in the business of snorkeling and other things here while I visit. I have been asking a number of questions related to the business aspects of tourism and excursions and other parts of the Hawaiian experience.
"$80,000 approximately", was the response from our Captain.
"Wow, not bad for a couple of long balloons and an outboard motor," I said in jest to let him know that I thought that was pretty high.
I then began to wonder how tourism sets the price for what we do here on Hawaii. I wondered how much I Captain made in tips and was paid as a result of the job that he did here. We are here but a short time and he has to live here year round. I heard him make cracks about the $8 per gallon charge for milk, and hearing about the free drinks and giveaway pupu (appetizers) at the bar in town and thought, here is a man that is truly scratching out a living doing what he is passionate about.
He took us out across the channel to our destination which was called "The Aquarium". Once I jumped into the crystal clear water I knew exactly why it was called that. I could see everything, and the coral structure and the brilliant fish colors were awesome. We swam and looked at puffer fish and many other varieties and then as I got out of the boat and said "WOW", I was handed a cool passion orange juice and was also given some breakfast. This is the life of the Captain, seeing the look on the face of those as I they exit the water after seeing Hawaii from underwater, and handing them some fresh fruit and breakfast. I would say that is a good salary there, but it doesn’t pay all the bills. I reflected that in my tip as I headed off and away from this Captain for what will probably be forever. Thanks Captain Tim and enjoy your job as only you can!
For more information on Ocean Rafting you can visit their site.
Photo via: Island Star Excursions
Tags: Hawaii Ocean Rafting, Snorkeling, Hawaii, HawaiiHTA, Hawaii Tourism
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