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Published: February 2nd 2011
AKA The Best Bet I've Ever Won
After winning a bet with Jeremy, I somehow turned the "prize" of a camping weekend into a week in Hawaii. Now, I can be very persuasive, but I think the truth is that we got a great deal on airfare through Alaska Airlines, plus were able to use a companion fare ticket so that both of us could fly round trip from Seattle for about $400 total. The other selling factor was that our good friends would be there as well, overlapping with our trip for a weekend, so we would get to see their favorite places too.
As it turned out, Alaska Airlines capped off a nice direct flight with free Mai-Tais for everyone on board, which was a great way to welcome us to Maui! We were only a little concerned about the roaming chickens when we picked up our rental car, but soon we were loaded into our Jeep and headed to Kihei to check into our condo at
Kihei Akahi! We got a great deal on the condo as well, and it was beautifully appointed with a gorgeous view of West Maui and the ocean. There were
Wailea Beach
Sunset over Wailea Beachevent coolers for the beach! We got settled, and went to see S & G, who were staying in the same condo complex, in a different building.
After grabbing lunch, we were treated to a drive to West Maui and Lahaina so we can get our bearings, then we headed back to South Maui and took a walk along the shore to Wailea Beach. The sand was so soft under our feet, and we were able to take pictures along the way and as the sun went down. It was so nice to be in warm weather with the whole week ahead of us! We made plans with our friends to hit their favorite beach the next day.
I woke up on Friday before sunrise, thanks to the three hour time change. From our front door, I was able to catch the sun rising over Haleakala, which was gorgeous. I knew we'd be having a relaxing day at the beach, so I stayed up and made some tea to have on the lanai. I texted S, knowing she was probably up with their then 6 month old, Cal. We made plans to let the boys sleep and walk
Mango Scones!
The best possible way to start the morning. over to
Cinnamon Roll Place a few blocks away to grab a mango scone and walk along the beach. Now, I don't even really like scones, and those were amazing. The huge mango pieces made the scones more moist than usual, and eating them on the beach with other early risers was a great way to start the day.
When we finally got ourselves together and headed to Makena Beach, we had no idea what kind of a day was in store. After setting up a little tent for Cal, and getting our chairs and coolers and umbrellas in place (we had quite the beach set up), S and I decided to grab our snorkle gear and try to find some turtles.
As soon as I walked into the water, I felt a sharp pinprick on my leg, but I thought I was maybe just feeling the salt water on a small cut. We swam out past the murky water to perfectly clear coral with dozens of schools of fish of all colors. We were swimming along, and S pointed down to show me two turtles just relaxing near the bottom! I was so excited that I screamed through my
Turtle!
One of the turtles off of Makena Beach. I'm pretty sure he wanted to come home with me. snorkle and started snapping pictures with the waterproof camera I bought for the occasion. I love turtles and I was excited to see them, but they are much larger than I imagined, so it was a little frightening too until I realized they had no interest in us at all. While swimming, I was starting to feel more pinpricks on my legs, and then on my arms too. Now, I have to explain that I had been snorkeling twice before this, and stung by jellyfish BOTH times. This definitely felt similar, but much smaller stings. It was getting to where I was fairly certian I coudln't have this many cuts that were aggrivated by salt water. I popped my head out of the water and mentioned it to S, who agreed that she was getting stung too! We hightailed it back to shore (which was harder for me since I was swimming without fins!) When we got back to the beach, other swimmers were saying they were stung as well. Jeremy and G laughed at us until they saw the welts starting to form on our arms and legs-- it was not fun. A few ice packs from the cooler made us feel better, but we were done with the water that day. We decided later, via the internet, that we had been swimming through clouds of "sea lice", which are basically like jellyfish larvae that is barely visible, but can still sting. We also discovered by mistake that fresh water (in the form of showers, for us) can cause the stinging to re-activate. Awesome.
After the welts subsided, we had a good time relaxing on the beach with bloody marys and laughing at the older couple who were having their own version of a Playboy shoot on the beach-- he was taking the photos, while she was taking her clothes off. Strange, but true. On a public beach. Then we saw a whole school of spinner dolphins go up and down the coast right off shore, twisting and turning as they jumped out of the water and performed for everyone watching on the beach and from near by boats. They drew a huge crowd (more than the naked lady, in fact!) and people were trying to swim out to get closer to them. Amazing to see.
After we had enough sun, sand and stinging things, we packed up our beach gear and headed to
Makena Grill, a little road-side food stand. We chatted up the owner and chef, Marisa, while we waited for some of the best fish tacos I'd ever eaten. A little more driving to see the far south end of Maui, and then a little relaxing before we ended our night with appetizers and Mai Tais with a view of the ocean. While eating every happy hour appetizer the four of us could get our hands on, we made plans to head out early the next morning to drive around the north side of West Maui and hike around to the Olivine Pools, which S and G had been telling us about for years. More to come!
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