Aloha!
After almost a year and a half of planning this trip it's still a little surreal to me I'm actually writing about Maui. These are some of Justin's and my favorite moments from the week outside of the wedding day - I'll write a separate post on that :) Maui was everything we hoped that it would be a so much more... definitely a trip we will remember for the rest of our lives.
Mom's Surprise Helicopter Ride
Justin and I had a lot of fun thinking about a surprise for my mom in the months leading up to the trip, and decided on a helicopter ride. She didn't find out what we were doing until we were in the car on the way to the heliport. Turns out she was actually really excited and loved it!! It was the perfect way to see the whole island... we saw really cool valleys, the Haleakala crater, the waterfalls of the road to Hana, and so much more.
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| Success! |
The pilot recommended lunch at the Millhouse so we headed there after the flight.
Haleakala Sunrise Bike Trip
Two days before the wedding a group of us woke up at 1am to catch the sunrise at the summit of the Haleakala Volcano. The early wake-up was 100% worth it! Although still a little rough haha. We had a really awesome tour guide on the way up the volcano, and once the sun rose a group of park rangers sang a Hawaiian chant. It was really moving. If you're interested here's a
timelapse of the sunrise.
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| It's early!! |
After seeing the sunrise we were taken back down the summit a bit to
where the bikes were set up. You then follow all the switch backs down
the volcano all the way back to the shop, I think it was 25 miles and
pretty much all down hill. I had read mixed reviews on this tour but if
you're comfortable on a bike it is really awesome flying down the
mountain and soaking in the views :)
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| Looking North from Haleakala |
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| Making our way down! |
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Lanai Scuba Diving
Since we had 8 divers in our group it was essential to get some dives in! So the day before the wedding we all went out for a morning 2 tank boat dive across the channel to Lanai where a
school of spinner dolphins welcomed us! We were able to dive the Cathedrals which are really cool underwater lava formations that make up a cave like structure. There wasn't a ton of sea life but the structures and coral formations were really cool to see. It was actually the perfect pre-wedding activity... I was starting to feel a little stressed but diving always relaxes me and being out on the water is where I prefer to be!
Some of the professional pics:
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| Cathedrals | |
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| Giant Moray Eel |
The Old Lahaina Luau
In lieu of a traditional rehearsal dinner we opted for a Hawaiian luau to get the festivities started and it was so much fun! Upon entering the luau you're given a fresh flower lei and a mai tai :) We had two private tables close to the main stage overlooking the ocean. After a delicious buffet dinner the performance began which told a story of the history of Hawaii through hula dancing. It was a great night!!
At our tables:
Honolua Bay Snorkeling
After recovering a bit from the wedding day a group of us decided to go snorkeling at Honolua Bay in search of some sea turtles. We weren't too successful until a group of divers pointed out the coral is over on the right hand side of the bay. Once we got over there we saw a good amount of fish and we spotted the first sea turtle! All 8 of us followed it for a bit and I think the turtle was starting to feel claustrophobic haha. We ended up seeing 3 sea turtles total.
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| Honolua Bay |
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| Coming up for air! |
Happy Hours
One of our favorite past times... checking out
the happy hours and determining which restaurant has the best mai tai
(spoiler: it was Merriman's on the wedding night).
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| Duke's Happy Hour |
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| Duke's Mai Tai |
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| Pailolo Bar Happy Hour |
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| Banyan Tree in Lahaina |
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| Down the Hatch Mai Tai (#3 on the rankings) |
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| Monkeypod's Mai Tai (#2 on the rankings) |
Around Our Resort
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| Honua Kai Resort |
Grilling Out
There was a really awesome fish market walking distance from us so on two of the nights we decided to grill out. One night was fresh mahi mahi with grilled pineapples and the second we had huge ahi tuna steaks. Stephen was our awesome head chef and everything was delicious. It was fun actually using our outdoor grilling area and hanging out on our lanai. We would usually hit the hot tubs afterwards!
Kaanapali Beach
The beach extends for miles along the West Coast of Maui, divided by black rock. We were north of black rock and enjoyed hanging out on Kaanapali beach and walking along the boardwalk.
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| Ululani's Shave Ice... the best <3 |
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| #special |
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| Loved walks along the board walk! |
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| Our last Maui sunset for now... |
Mahalo Maui for everything... the island, the poke bowls, the mai tais, the sunsets, the awesome beaches, and especially for the time with our ohana. Aloha truly is a state of mind. Maui will always be a special place for Justin and I (he's already planning the anniversary trip!).
Meanwhile back in Aussie land... we are still on the Gold Coast for one more week before we head to Sydney on Friday! We've been relaxing and getting back to work a bit. I will be blogging about Australia but will do the Fiji post next :) Along with a wedding post sprinkled in.
Mahalo for following along, happy December everyone! We're still not used to Christmas being in the summer so trying to work on getting into the spirit here :)
Sarah
"Live in the sunshine, swim in the sea, drink the wild air"
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
