Aloha from Maui

Michelle and Craig’s thoughts:

Okay, so we are in New Zealand and we haven’t written the Maui, Hawaii trip yet. Our excuse is we’ve been exhausted every night in New Zealand after a wonderful day of adventure activities and driving.

Aloha!! Let’s see, within hours of arriving in Maui, I, Michelle, knew that I could live there. Being an American island, they all speak English, have western toilets, they have similar Canadian laws, drive on the same side of the roads, beautiful beaches and weather, laid back attitude with island music everywhere (Marley is big there!), and I can easily fit in because I look Hawaiian! They just have to change their health care system and I’m there!!

We went whale watching on our first day. We have never seen whales before in their natural environment, only at the aquariums, so this was very exciting for us! It was a wonderful two hour boat trip. We saw plenty of whales just enjoying the day. They were breaching and flapping away. Afterwards, we visited the Ocean centre. A great place to bring children (or big kids like us!).

That evening we went to the Old Lahaina Luau to see a traditional hula and have a traditional Hawaiian meal. The hula was beautiful and entertaining. A “must do” if you’re going to Hawaii. The food was scrumptious. It was a buffet and there was a variety of dishes from octopus to a grilled top sirloin steak. Very thankful the plates were huge! There was this interesting dish called Kalua Pua’a. It is pig roasted in their beachside underground oven “imu”. Just before the meal, everyone gathers around by the beach and their men dig the roasted pork out of the “imu”. Nice.

The next day was our road trip to Hana. The Hana town is not the highlight of the trip, but it’s the journey along the coastline to get to the town that makes it fascinating and gut wrenching at the same time. The scenery is breathtaking. Gorgeous valleys, waterfalls, parks, beaches and a variety of plant life- bamboo, palm, evergreens, etc. It was paradise! However, it is the winding and twisting roads with frequent one lanes at the edge of the cliffs that causes the nervous laughs along the way. It’s tandem driving where the driver stares a few feet in front of them to concentrate on staying on their twisting lane while the passenger tries to calmly tell them if there is on-coming traffic on the one lane. The last thing you want to do is back up when you’re at the edge! So exciting!!

Just past Hana we went to the Haleakala National park. There we did a two hour hike on the Pipwai trail in the Kipahulu area. We went through an amazing bamboo forest and at the end of the trail was a 400ft waterfall. When we walked along the path of the bamboo forest we couldn’t help but think about the beautiful movie, “House of Flying Daggers”. There is this spiritual feel in the forest and as the wind gently blows you hear the soft knocking of the bamboo as they tap each other. Beautiful.

We stayed at Joe’s Place in Hana. It’s the best budget motel in town with simple rooms. We took the only ensuite room. There is a communal kitchen and living room. Highly recommend to bring your own lunch before driving up to Hana because there are no eateries on the way. The last place to get food is at Paia. We also brought our own dinner because the restaurants in Hana are very expensive. A hamburger for $18 at the Hana Ranch Restaurant. However, just past Hana there is this place called Bruddha Hut BBQ. It definitely has the best bbq. It tastes how Mom A makes it! If your lucky, the owner entertains you on how to open a coconut. It closes when the food runs out; which is around 3:30-4pm. So get there early!!!

The next day we went to the Iao Valley. We took pictures of the Iao Needle, a natural rock pinnacle surrounded by the walls of the Pu‘u Kukui Crater. The place was very peaceful. We then went to the beaches:: Big Beach and Kama‘ole Beach. A great place to relax and enjoy the rest of the day. Before we went to our motel, we drove to southern tip of the island, a place called La Perouse Bay. The bay is located in Ahihi Kina’u National Area Reserve There we saw the lava lands. Pretty amazing.

The next day we went on a helicopter tour. It was our first time on a helicopter. It was so much fun! Beautiful views, especially the Haleakala crater. Then we drove along the coast of the north eastern section of the island. Another gorgeous drive and quaint stops along the way. The rest of the day and the following day, we just stayed on the beach. We thought it was time we just chilled for awhile.

Note, we stayed at the Maui Coast Hotel in the Kihei area. We would recommend this place to others; however, do not book directly with the hotel, you can get discounts on the web.
Also, thanks to Jim and Greta for their invaluable information!!

Love,
Michelle and Craig