Diep and Sam

Thursday, June 4, 2009

Our last day in Maui...sigh...we were so sad to leave. We had a large breakfast at Milagro's in Paia. We walked by a real estate office and looked at some of the postings just for fun. I wished we were really serious because I would love to move there. When we got back to the car there was a ticket on our windshield. How could we get a ticket?? Turns out the rental car had an expired inspection tag. So luckily it was taken care of by them. Off to the airport we go and home sweet home we arrive.

Maui - Day 4

Our day started at 2:30am. We left the hotel at 3am to head to Haleakala Crater. It was a couple hours of white knuckle driving up a dark windy mountain road. Being 10,000 feet above elevation, it was freezing once we arrived. We stood in the cold waiting for the sun to peak over the clouds. It was breathtaking.

We went to get breakfast at a cafe in Kihei. Then drove through Kihei to Wailea to visit some beaches. We were on the hunt for some turtles. We ended up at Kapuala Beach, which I read was good for turtle sightings. So we got our snorkel gear on and dove in. Within 10-15 minutes I had seen my first turtle up close. It was a bit scary but absolutely amazing.

We got out of the water to go get Sam's fancy camera so he could take pictures of the turtles above the water. He got some amazing shots.

In the mist of all this turtle madness, Sam had mentioned that he hit a rock in the water and that something poked him. He had a scrape on his knee and what looked like a black splinter on his foot. I thought to myself that this can't be good. What did he step on? Was it poisonous? We asked some locals having a picnic if they had tweezers by chance. They looked at it and said it was probably wana. We had no idea what that was but they asked if he peed on it. Well of course not, we didn't know what it was. So we head to the drug store and ask the pharmacist. She also asked us if he peed on it yet...haha. Then she referred us to a walk in clinic. So we head over to the doctor's office and he soaks Sam's foot in vinegar and pulls out the spine with tweezers. He also needed to get a tenatus shot. The doctor can't get all of it out since the spine breaks into fragments when it enters the skin but the body should be able to get rid of it within a week or two. Turns out wana is Hawaiian sea urchin. Isn't that just fabulous?!

After that wonderful adventure, we spend some time laying out at the pool and head over to Front Street for some dinner.

We also visited the Banyan Tree on Front Street. It's a huge tree that's over 100 years old.

Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Maui - Day 3

Twin Falls Fruit Stand where we bought some fresh pineapple and a fruit smoothie with sugar cane juice.

It was a trek to get to those waterfalls but so worth it and the water was so refreshing. We regret not bringing out bathing suits.

He jumped off the cliff a few times. The waves were so big. We ran into him on our way to the parking lot and showed him the pictures we got of him. He actually used to live in Fountain Valley on Warner and Bushard (small world!) and is now a teacher in Maui.

Our afternoon was spent laying out at the beach and relaxing in the pool. We had dinner reservations at Sansei, a very popular Japanese restaurant in Kapalua.

After dinner we head back to the hotel just in time to catch the sunset. This has to be the most beautiful sunset I've ever seen.

Then we head to Front Street to walk around. We had to run down the hill to catch the hotel shuttle because it only comes around every hour. That was not fun! But we made it and got to taste the best shaved ice in the world. It was almost like gelato...very smooth, no chunks of ice. We got lychee, mango, coconut and tamarind flavors. I miss it already!

Maui - Day 2

Breakfast at Gazebo's...that was the line when they opened at 7:30

Went on our first helicopter ride. Saw the West Maui Mountains and beautiful waterfalls in neighbor island, Molokai.

Got a snack at The Flatbread Co. in Paia. Best flatbread ever! They use all natural ingredients and support the farms in the area. I told them they have to open a restaurant in Orange County :)

Dinner at Mama's Fish House...this was our table on the sand.

Sam's yummy fish. He ate it all...nothing left but bones (does that really surprise anyone though).

Maui - Day 1

We arrived in Maui on May 28th after a really long flight. It was hot, cloudy and muggy; not what we expected. First duty on hand - visit Costco. Then we checked in at the Sheraton Maui where we are upgraded to a deluxe ocean view :) Explored the resort, watched the Torch Lighting and Cliff Jumping Ceremony and visited Whaler's Village.