One of the first things we noticed upon arriving in Maui was how chill the folks are who live there. They drive slower than the speed limit. They walk their dogs while driving a golf cart. Hitchhikers are common finds along the roadside. Surf boards may be {and are} attached to mopeds. STOP signs read ‘STOP and smell the roses.’ FALLING ROCKS signs read ‘FALLING in love ROCKS.’ And the animals are fearless. Driving down the road, you see a white cat taking a nap right in the middle. He looks up to notice you and then falls back asleep as if you don’t need to get through. Okay. Hello dirt shoulder, I guess you shall be our road for today.

So here are a few pictures of our trip. I’m no Daniel Usenko, so these pictures don’t rock. But at least you all will know what I’ve been up to…

Our little house was a round two-story structure in Haiku, surrounded by banana trees and tropical flowers. It  had two bedrooms downstairs and a kitchen & living room upstairs. A bit on the old side with a leaky roof, decked out in spider webs, and covered in grasshoppers and geckos at nighttime…it had its own charm. I mean, who can say they lived in a round house with its largest window being the one on the roof? The wrap-around two-story deck was also a plus.

The first thing we did was hit the beach. It was late in the day by the time we unpacked our bags and piled into our white compact vehicles again. But the beach is still just as beautiful in the evening. It was breezy, but still oh so warm.

The first full day was spent at Big Beach. About an hour’s drive away from where our little house was, we reached the beach pretty early in the day. So nice indeed. We don’t have beaches like that back at home so it was throughly enjoyed. When my honey and I went to Honolulu for our honeymoon nearly two years ago, we went during the high season and had to fight for room on the Waikiki beach. We didn’t rent a car so that was the only beach accessible to us within walking distance. So Big Beach was a great big welcome because whatever spot you wanted, it was yours. So much space! We didn’t take very many pictures because there was too much fun to be had with our boogie boards and sun bathing.

We also brought along a little book with us to help us navigate:

After the beach, my love and I separated from the family and took along one of my sisters for a drive down to Lahaina. It turned out to be our favorite city to visit in Maui. On our way back home, we witnessed a comet hitting one of the mountains.

Actually, someone just spilled their coffee smoothie on our window.

The day after was spent driving the famous road to Hana. I had read about this road once in book a long time ago and had wanted to see it for myself for so long. So we piled back into our cars and went on our way. I underestimated just how crazy the road really is. So many curves and hair-pin turns, by the end I was nauseous. The trip there was just fine because we pulled over at a lot of places, but the ride back home was what got me. Let’s just say I never want to spend another 2.5 hours driving the Hana Highway straight. Stops are a requirement. The town of Hana was ultra small with only three places to choose from for food. We chose the one right on their bay. Ordered some burgers and were charged too much; asked why and we were told that the price changed that day and the menu just wasn’t updated. Okaaaayyy….

But the views were oh so lovely. Especially the hike through the bamboo forests. We were told that if the wind is right, the bamboo hits against each other and creates this loud hollow sound. Unfortunately, we were unable to hear it since the wind wasn’t too strong the day we chose to go. But we throughly enjoyed it nonetheless.

The black sand beach was amazing. I was even more amazed by what little info I learned about them. Black sand’s origin is lava rock. These  types of beaches only last several hundred years before the ocean washes them white. The lava rock supply eventually gets eaten up and the white coral sand starts mixing in with the black sand, eventually turning the beach white for all time.

The two days after Hana, we took our sore muscles back to the beach. This time, we left the parents to fend for themselves and headed to Kaanapali Beach. So relaxing… We got to see our first official Hawaiian sunset.

More pictures to come on Thursday!