This past week Mike & I decided to take a little trip to Maui! We didn't feel like battling the Oahu crowd on the 4th of July. It is just pure craziness here!
Best decision ever. This small trip was so relaxing and it was just what we needed.
It only took about 20 minutes to fly over to Maui (consequently the same amount of time it would take to get downtown..) When we arrived we went to the rental car place and received the best news ever...
Our car was a Nissan Juke!! I have been a Juke lover since I worked at the dealership in 2011, and I will one day have this car!!
For breakfast we went to Caffe Kihei, a delightful little place that served the best Banana Macadamia Nut Pancakes. h.e.a.v.e.n.
After breakfast we headed over to the Maui Ocean Center. That place was amazing!
This little guy can't swim, but he has joints (little elbows) that he uses to walk around.
We saw tons of sharks! Gallapagos, hammerheads, and tiger sharks.
They let you pet the starfish. That was cool!
We saw baby honu! They only keep them there until they are 2 years old, and then they release them into the ocean.
This one was a personal favorite of mine.
honu crossing
There was a tube you walked through where you were pretty much surrounded by sea life! It really startled me when the sting ray was swimming right above our heads.
We took a drive around the island and I had to stop at this point because the water/view was so amazing.
For dinner we went to the famous Duke's restaurant in Lahaina. Meh. Not the best I've ever had but it was okay. Duke was a famous surfer so they had all sorts of surf memorabilia around the restaurant, and it was right on the beach so that was nice!
We headed over to the harbor to watch fireworks. I love the little boardwalk style town of Lahaina. While we waited we had Ululani's Shave Ice (best ever) and drank coke from glass bottles.
The next morning we drove the Road to Hana!! That has been on my bucket list since we moved to Hawaii. And if you ever visit Maui - it's a MUST SEE!
Mike letting the river of testosterone flowing through his body take control.
Saw this peacock showing off at the Garden of Eden Arboretum.
This picture captures some of the view and the windy-ness of the road. Absolutely breathtaking.
Black Sands Beach - just before you reach the small town of Hana.
One of the many waterfalls along the way.
Another Black Sands Beach... Mike is just soaking it all in here.
Absolutely uh-mazing.
That night we went for a yummy dinner at Hula Grill. It was also right on the beach in a fancy resort.
Saturday we went on a submarine tour.
This photo captures how picturesque Lahaina is... it's so beautiful.
This bad boy had a lot of sea life swarming around it!
Such a fun trip. We loved it because we went on Atlantis submarines around Oahu for our honeymoon... it was fun to revisit and see the marine life on Maui.
We decided to drive up Haleakala Volcano Crater and see the views from the highest point on the island!
This was Mike trying to avoid being in my panoramic shot. : )
Beautiful and lush at the bottom of the crater.
Totally dry at the top. Mike said it reminded him of Mars and that's totally an accurate description. It is always humbling to stand on something so vast and feel so insignificant... yet knowing that to God you are more meaningful than all these creations.
And then seeing a solitary little flower poking through these rocks, in the very harshest of conditions. These small moments are when I realize what life is all about.
On this day we went from 130 feet below the ocean floor to 10,023 about it!
After our crater adventure we stopped and got the BEST fish tacos around. They were bomb.
We had such a wonderful trip and really just relished each moment together on Maui.
I can't wait to explore the next Hawaiian island. So lucky we live in Hawaii!
