Good to go

We went to get our car registered today and while it is a bit of a dance, it went pretty well.

To begin with, you need to get no-fault car insurance.  Once you get that, then you need to get your car safety checked.  This is done by garages and gas stations throughout the islands.  And once you get it checked, you have to go to the DMV to get it registered.  But wait, after you get it registered, you then need to go back to where you got it checked so they can put the safety sticker on.  

We got to the garage at 7:45 this morning to get in the queue - it is first come, first serve - and there was already a line.  They didn't even start until...well, we really don't know what time they started (it's not unusual for time to be used more as a reference rather than an absolute here.  It's part of the charm of island life).  So there we were, pulling in amongst a jumble of already waiting cars.  They don't ask for a name (not that uncommon here as it turns out), or offer anything in the form of evidence as to our place in line other than 'Aunty' telling everyone what number, or place they were.  We were lucky number 7.

It was raining and as with most places on the islands, there is very little in the way of indoor waiting rooms so we all hunkered under the overhang outside, milling about and jockeying cars as our numbers were called.  We struck up a great conversation with a young lady who took note of our Washington plates.  She lived in Capitol Hill for few years while she went to school at Seattle U, so we talked about Seattle weather, parking (or the lack thereof) there, and of course, the Seahawks. : )

We were there for over an hour but time went fast as we chatted, watched the rain, and cringed at the constant and not-so-graceful car ballet being performed as drivers vied for positions in the puddle-riddled parking lot.  Once we got all checked out it was off the the DMV!

As we pulled into the lot and snagged the last parking space that was available (not a good sign), we noticed a long line of people waiting on the covered walkway.  The good times were over.  We just knew we were doomed to an afternoon of DMV-esque despair.  Well, it turned out we needed to go to another building that actually had an indoor waiting room.  So far, so good, but when we walked in we were met with at least an hour plus wait.  OK, we can do this.

Well, between the cooking shows on TV, the cries of a very young and very vocal child expressing her discontent in having to wait for her parents, and the filling out of registration cards we didn't even know we needed to fill out, the time went surprisingly fast.  But what was really cool was that the clerks were engaging in conversation with people...and smiling...at a DMV (for reals folks)!  Everyone was really chill and polite about the whole waiting thing and that was nice.  

Our return trip to the garage to get our safety sticker affixed was the final step needed and it was very quick and easy.  And so with everything said and done, we are now, as they say, good to go!  

Take care and enjoy,
- Mahalo