Serenity, adventure, lush green and dry brown. If you’ve seen the photos we posted a couple of weeks ago, you know what I’m talking about. Maui is full of contradictions; but that’s part of what makes it such an ideal vacation spot.

Friday April 20, 2007
We went to Hawaii for our first anniversary and it was a great present for each other. Each day was filled with something different and new places to explore. We started our trip on O’ahu because it’s cheaper to fly in there, and we thought we’d be able to see one of my aunts who lives there. But, as things turned out, she was on the mainland that week! But, we made the most of it and made Laie our first stop, (after picking up our car of course). Along the way we stopped at a couple of beaches to test out the sand–very soft!

We weren’t sure if we’d actually go into the Polynesian Cultural Center when we got there, but it looked like a lot of fun and we’re glad we did, because it was really fun and interesting learning about the islands of the South Pacific. Each “Island” has its own “village” and presentation with dancers, a description of life and a little history. in Tahiti we got tatoos and made fish from leaves. (There’s a picture of me holding them back at our hotel). When we finished up there, it was getting late, but we still wanted to see the North Shore, so we drove around the top of the island as the sun was setting–very beautiful. I think we left a little too late though, because we drove most of the way back to Waikiki in the dark…oops!
Since my aunt wasn’t in town, she very kindly set us up with a hotel in Waikiki–right on the beach! We had a spectaclular corner room that looked out onto the water. It reminded us of the room we had on our honeymoon!

Saturday April 21, 2007
In the morning we watched people head out to the water and begin the long paddle out into the surf. Our breakfast was outside under a giant tree that covered the whole patio. It seemed like it had a million branches all twisted together–and the tree wasn’t very tall. Breakfast was unbelievable. Mark got French toast with coconut and macadamia nuts—I wanted to eat it all!
We had an appointment at Pearl Harbor at noon, so we made our way over and took the tour of the Arizona Memorial. It is a truly touching place. At one part, a member of the navy on the tour with us in his white uniform asked if we’d take a picture of him there…and there were tears in his eyes. It was really moving to see the reverence he had for this place.
We also got to see the USS Bowfin. It’s a submarine that was actually used in the Navy. I learned I would be very claustrophobic on one of those, and they had no personal space–5 people slept in a 7×6 space. And those were the officers.

Then, it was off to the airport and on to Maui…we had rented a Jeep wrangler, but when we got to the rental car place, they only had one with its back window missing–not ok. So, we got a convertible Sebring instead. Which, I preferred because it would get better gas mileage, and you’re not allowed to drive off road anyway. We were staying in Ka’anapali, which is on the leeward side of the island. Very dry and brown. The other side is the 2nd wettest place on earth with more than 400 inches of rain a year…but that’s where the moisture stops.

We stayed at the Ka’anapali Beach Club and it is truly a resort. We were a little overwhelmed–I’m not used to staying at really nice places. Everyone was really nice and helpful. Our room was as big as our apartment–with a bathroom as big as the bedroom! We took a stroll down by the pool and the beach–which is about 10 feet from the hotel. Because of the time difference, we were wiped out at about 9:30!

Sunday April 22, 2007
Our Anniversary! It was a good day too….we got up early and had an orientation breakfast, then headed off to church, which was right down the road. When we got there, we found out that the locals were at Stake Conference on the other side of the island! But, about 50 vacationers had shown up, so we had our own testimony meeting. It was a really spiritual meeting, in the sense that I really felt this is what the church is all about. People on vacation in Hawaii have a lot of things to do, but so many of us had chosen to come to church–at 9 am–to worship and be where we should be on the Sabbath. It really touched me.

Later, we spent the day by the pool and I got burned on my shoulders–the front part, ouch! I tried to be so careful too! Oh well. That’s my skin for you. Then, we took a drive to another town about an hour away called Paia. It’s the hippy town on the north shore known for wind surfing. The streets are lined with boutiques–clothing, art, crafts, jewelry etc. But, the bad news was they closed at 6. Mark didn’t want to be late for dinner at 8 so he had us leave really early–and we had nothing to do for a couple of hours…so we explored the other little towns in Upcountry. We even put our top down and looked at the stars for a while.
Dinner was at Mama’s Fish House–a famous and expensive place. It’s right on the beach though and they decorate with torches and have open windows. The food was delicious too! I got the salmon and it was perfectly moist and flavorful. Mark’s Mahi and Ono were tender and mild too. They also give you the native staple, poi which is mostly a palate cleanser, not too good to eat on its own. For dessert we got this thing he’d seen on their commercial that is a pastery shaped like a shell filled with cake and mouse covered in chocolate resembling a black pearl. It was good, he loved it, but I’m not a fan of passionfruit juice, which was drizzled on the plate. I highly recommend it as a place to splurge.

Monday April 23, 2007
Surfing! We learned to catch some waves with Royal Hawaiian Surf Academy. It had been really windy the night before, so we weren’t sure if they would still have the class, but they did and we only had 4 of us! Our instructor Nicole was really cool and gave us a basic lesson in standing up, then got us into the water. Lahina is a good area because it’s not too deep but has good waves. Mark did really well. In the pictures he looks like a pro surfer! I on the other hand look terrible–but we both got up a few times. One time, I even got up on my own as I was paddling out to Nicole. That was cool! We think we might try when we get back to LA, but the water is cold, so it would be an investment in a board and wetsuits. We’ll see.

After surfing we hung around Lahina for a little while, picked up some snorkel gear and headed back to the hotel. We decided it would be good to check out the fish, so we did some snorkeling right by the hotel. Since it was so windy, the water was murky and there weren’t a ton of fish to be seen.

Tuesday April 24, 2007
We almost missed our helicopter ride! We were supposed to be there at 7:30, and thought it was a 30 minute drive. Well, we ended up not getting on the road until 7:10, and it’s a 45 minute drive! We made it JUST in time for the 8 am departure! The ride was almost undescribeable though. We were in a 6 passenger + pilot helicopter and even though it had doors, I kind of felt like I would fall out when we turned. It was rainy the night before, so there were plenty of waterfalls plunging off the thousand-foot-high cliffs. Our tour was over West Maui and Molokai’i. Molokai’i is the least inhabited and developed island. Only about 6,000 people live there and it only has one stop light–or stop sign, I’m not sure which. Our pilot kept up a commentary of the history and traditions of the people that made it more than just beautiful scenery. There was still some rain and a lot of wind, so it wasn’t a very smooth flight. Poor Mark started to feel really sick towards the end of the tour so we went back over the water to smooth it out. We think the family with us probably hated us by the end–make the flight late, miss some of the scenery–oh well! We had fun. And, the pictures are great!

We decided to make this our drive to Hana day because we were already on this side of the island. People tell you to wear your swim suit, lather in sunscreen and prepare to go swimming. Unfortunately, the weather didn’t want to cooperate enough to make that happen. It was warm, but not hot. All of the stopping places had people stopped already so there was no where to park. And, because of all the rain, waterfalls were really full and raging. But, the drive was lush, green and jungle-like. They aren’t kidding when they say it takes a long time to go 36 miles! There are 600 turns and more than 50 one-lane bridges. At many places, you can’t even see the road across the valley from you because there are too many trees. This post would be too long to tell you about all the places we stopped at along the way, so check out my other website, 3daytravel.com for a full description.

Let’s just say, it was a long day. We stopped many places and it took us several hours to get to Hana. Then we continued on to the Haleakala National Park station and tried to see what all the fuss was about the Sacred Pools, but it was a no swimming day because of flood-like conditions. BUMMER!

On the drive back, we didn’t stop and it took an hour to get back to the beginning of the Hana highway, and another 45 minutes to get back to our side of the island. It was long, but we had a good day.

Wednesday April 25, 2007
We spent the morning exploring Lahina. They have a giant Banyan tree in town that is one of the craziest things I’ve seen–It grows branches from a main trunk, then starts dropping down rope-like branches than eventually grow into the ground and create new trunks that support the other branches.

We took a submarine ride to the bottom of the ocean too. We got lucky enough to sit right next to the tour guide, so my off handed questions and comments were acknowleged. Like, when I asked what one of the fish were, he told everyone. And when we saw an eel he was telling everyone how beautiful/cool they are and at the same time not paying attention I just blurted out that they’re so ugly! He paused, then said, “or ugly, depending on how you look at it.” It was really cool though. We saw a huge school of striped snapper and some predatory fish trying to break them up. We had a great time.

Later, we did some snorkeling of our own and it was really a lot better than before. There were so many fish, and really pretty colors too. What you think of a tropical fish.

Thursday April 26, 2007
This was our presentation day, so we swam in the morning, snorkeled and got ready. The rest of the day was spent in with the guy. He liked to talk a lot. We had a lot of questions, but still, he gave way too much information. And, in the end, we got a really great deal that will help us be able to take vacations with our children to thousands of places around the world and see a lot of things. Our guy, Rick, even gave us a certificate for a free painting at an art gallery kind of across the street from the hotel. We went in there a few nights ago and liked the artist, but obviously weren’t going to buy anything. So, it was fun getting to pick something out. It’s our 2nd piece of artwork for our house…and I have no idea where it will go. But, it’s an image of a Maui beach just after sunset.

Friday April 27, 2007
We had nothing planned for the day—so we just explored and snorkeled and saw tidepools and visited the Maui Ocean Center, which is a big aquarium. Mark loves them. They have all the fish we’d been seeing as we snorkeled and a lof more. They also have historical displays about the island’s history. I’ll have to post more on my site.

It was also our Luau night though–and it was great! They are very nice and friendly. We had a newlywed couple and two retired couples at our table. They are all really nice. Before dinner they have people making and selling crafts, taking pictures and making drinks. When it was time to unearth the pig, we got a great view. In front of us was none other than actor Christian Slater. He was just there, enjoying the experience too. The food was FANTASTIC, and there was so much of it! We loved the entertainment too. It told the story of Hawaii’s history through dance. If you go to Maui, definitely check out the Old Lahina Luau.

Saturday April 28, 2007
We were so sad this was our last day! Luckily our flight wasn’t until 2, so we packed up and went to the Iao Valley to see the Iao Needle. It is a big rock/narrow hill that stands apart from the others. You can’t hike to it, but can see it well enough. There are also other trails and replicas of a house, fire pit and other things from ancient daily life.

The flight was uneventful and we were sad that we had to leave this place, but look forward to coming back!