Maui (aka Paradise)

Joe and I were able to spend 7 wonderful days in Wailea, Maui, last week. A BIG BIG thank you to grandma and grandpa for volunteering to watch the kids for us! We appreciated it every day that we were there!

We had never been to Hawaii. However, after talking with friends we had very high expectations of everything. And we were not disappointed! After 12 hours of travel, we arrived at our hotel, the Fairmont Kea Loni, and were greeted with this wonderful view from our hotel balcony.

Another lovely view from our balcony of the 3 pools at the hotel. Beauty everywhere we looked.

The hotel open air foyer. Pretty enough to take a picture!

Ahhhh, beach time. Despite the gray skies on our first full day, it was a gorgeous, warm day.

The Wailea Coastal Nature Trail wandered along the beach from our hotel and had some great scenic views.

A small "blowhole" along the Nature Trail.

Me on the beach outside the hotel. We had a good time exploring the small tide pools amongst the rocks.

Another view from the hotel beach.

On our first day we ventured to the Maui Ocean Center in Ma'Alaea (yeah, we had a good time trying to pronounce the names, too). Here I am touching a starfish.

On our second day we traveled to Lahaina. After eating a typical Hawaiian "plate lunch" (a meat, 2 scoops of rice, 1 scoop of macaroni salad - yes, they love their carbs) at Aloha Mixed Plate restaurant, we walked along the lovely Front Street. Here I am at the massive Banyan Tree. This tree, planted in 1873, was as large as a city block, and was a perfect spot to sit and eat our fresh cut Maui Gold Pineapple.

This was another "must see" in the guide book. When I read about the Hauola Stone that was believed to have mystical healing powers and was a spot that Hawaiian women would climb down to in order to birth their babies, I guess I was expecting a bit more than this. It is the rock in the middle that looks a tiny bit like a chair. And yes this is the correct rock since there were 2 signs pointing it out.

After a day of sightseeing and shopping in Lahaina (great local artists!), we arrived at the Old Lahaina Luau. Here we are posing with a tiki carving, and later there was a wonderful sunset from this beach.

Aside from the main attraction of the hula dancing, second most popular event was the unveiling of the pig. Here are two men preparing to unearth the pig.

And here is the final result. May not look pretty, but it (the Kalua Pua'a) was extremely tasty!

Joe and I opted to dine on the lauhala mats instead of a table and chairs. And because of this we were treated to the best seats in the house (front row for the stage)!

Here is Joe sampling the poi for the first time. The poi is mashed taro root, and looks a bit like purple yogurt. It is a like it or hate it food, and I definitely was the latter. However, the rest of the food at the Luau was excellent - especially the Kalua Pua'a, Laulau, He'e Poke, Island Style Chicken, Lomilomi Salmon, and Pohole Salad. Be sure to attend a luau one day to find out what all of those entrees are!

The dancing lasted for about one hour, and was a lovely story of the creation and inhabitation of Hawaii.

On our third day we traveled to Pa'ia for our most unusual, un-Joe and Kate-like day ever. First we ventured to the Ho'okipa Beach to watch the 20' swells and the surfers, windsurfers, and kite boarders. These pictures do not do the waves justice - the roar of them was unbelievable!

It was more than a little windy on the overlook cliff!

We decided to be a bit reckless and cross the barriers to climb down closer to the ocean. OK, we did this in addition to just about everyone else there. It was gorgeous to walk among the rocks watching the waves break along the shore.

Walking along Ho'okipa Beach. While there were multiple life guards on duty, it is not known to be a swimming beach - you are either surfing the waves or watching.

After watching the waves for awhile, we then decided to venture to Twin Falls. This is the first stop on The Road to Hana. We did not go beyond the Falls, although we have heard that the Road is quite the adventure. Here is Joe next to Falls #1 eating pineapple that was cut fresh in front of us. His idea of heaven - perfectly ripe pineapple enjoyed next to a beautiful waterfall.

Me in front of Falls #1. The walk to the first waterfall was a nice stroll. The next two waterfalls were a fun adventure to get to!

We made it to Falls #2. We opted to not swim in the pools while here, although it was encouraged by the locals.

Joe walking to Falls #3. This was a narrow stone wall, the first of many!

And yet another method to reach the third Falls. All we could think was thank goodness the kids were not with us!

We have no idea what these were along the paths - maybe some old dam system. However, Joe loved them as they reminded him of what you might find in his favorite TV show, Lost (which is, of course, filmed in Hawaii).

Here I am on top of Falls #3.

Joe on top of Falls #3, again enjoying his pineapple. Does anyone sense a theme here? The locals (by which I mean people who live along this trail - these Falls are actually on private properties that the landowners allow tourists to hike on) encourage people to jump off of this waterfall into the pool below. Joe really wanted to do this, but I had to ask him not to!

After climbing on rocks at the Beach, walking along stone ledges and rock climbing to reach 3 waterfalls, and eating fresh cut pineapple, we then had to prepare ourselves for our dinner plans that night. So, of course the obvious solution was to find a (very dirty) public restroom in a community campground along the beach and change clothes. Then drive to the restaurant and tell the valet parking to wait 5 minutes so I can finish putting on make up. However, it was all worth it when we pulled up to Mama's Fish House.

Our one regret of Maui is that we did not schedule a dinner reservation for 2 nights at Mama's Fish House. By far the highlight of our trip (food wise at least). Gorgeous restaurant, private beach, gorgeous views, and very low key atmosphere (despite the presence of valet - a necessity with their tiny little parking lot and many cars attempting to park in it). The menu lists not only the fresh catch of the day, but also the fisherman who caught the fish. If anyone is traveling to Maui, we would highly highly recommend this restaurant - even with kids in tow. The deserts were so beautiful (the Polynesian Black Pearl) that we had to take a picture!

Now here is where I would say that on our fourth day in Maui we traveled to Haleakala Crater to drive to the summit of the volcano. However, we decided that we had done enough driving around Maui and just wanted to relax. I relaxed by getting a henna tattoo done! Our remaining days were spent on the beach, the pool bar, getting a couples massage on the beach, shopping, and eating more delicious fish! What better way to enjoy Maui?

While we were very sad to leave paradise, it was wonderful to return home to the kids! We have vowed to return to Hawaii one day, that time with the kids so they can enjoy the islands as well. In the meantime, the kids will have to pretend to be in Hawaii with their Hawaiian shirts, ukulele (or "who-ka-lay-lee" as Ethan pronounces it), and hula skirt ensemble.