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It is our last day in Hawaii! On one hand, I can’t believe that after all of the build up and anticipation to coming here that it’s almost over. But on the other, when I think of all of the things I’ve packed into the amount of time we had here, I just feel so satisfied with my time. It has been well spent.
But still, I had one last day to adventure. It was to be an easy one, as only myself and my roomie, Emina, were going out. I already had a rental car and so we headed out early to see some of the spots I hadn’t gotten to yet.
First we went to the Iao Valley. It’s an easy drive from where the ship docks. Unfortunately, the weather when we got there was not the best. It was overcast and raining. Not hard rain, more like a drizzle, but enough to put a bit of a damper on the view. However, the main sight in the Valley is a piece of land, a mountain, called the Needle and we were able to see the top of it which isn’t always possible. So that was nice.
We strolled along the walkway that went along a stream and through some gardens.
Then in the car we headed to the town of Lahaina. Lahaina is where I attended the luau last week, but we didn’t have any time to see the town itself. So we decided to explore there. We parked the car and just wandered around the streets. It is such a pretty little town! Another cruise line had a ship in port today, but in Lahaina, so the town was pretty busy. Lots of people shopping. We did lots of final shopping ourselves. I have so many gifts to bring home, I don’t know how I’ll fit it all!
After quite a bit of shopping, we had lunch. We picked a place that had it’s seating on a patio right over the water. We were lucky to get a table at the edge. The view was beautiful, the tropical drinks were excellent and the food was good. Emina and I couldn’t stop saying how wonderful everything was.
From Lahaina, we headed further up along the coast, beyond where I’d driven before. We were so glad we did! It was such a beautiful drive!
The road twisted and turned and went up and down the hills. Emina asked if it was like the Road to Hana (she had to work last week when we did that drive); it wasn’t nearly as extreme of a drive, but the landscape was just as beautiful.
Earlier today, while we were souvenir shopping, I was looking at children’s books. One of the books mentioned mango bread which I had never heard of. I love mango anything and everything, so when I read mango bread, I was intrigued. Along our drive, we stopped at a little farmer’s market. Our whole time in Hawaii, I’d been trying to get fresh mangoes so we stopped to try to get some. We were successful in finding mango for me and avocado for Emina. While we were browsing the stand, I made an exciting discovery - homemade mango bread for sale! Of course I grabbed a loaf to bring back to the ship to try.
We drove as far as we thought we could with the time we had left before heading back. While driving in both directions we made frequent stops, getting out to take photos around nearly every
corner. We took paths along the hills to get to different views. The entire time I’ve been in Hawaii, I feel like I’d see something beautiful that nothing could top and then I’d just seem another stunningly beautiful place.
Now we’re back onboard, headed to the mainland. In five days we’ll be in Vancouver, then we’ll start cruising Alaska. Our time in Hawaii has really reached it’s end. It has seemed like a very long wait and build-up to coming here. But having now been here, all of that just doesn’t matter anymore. I feel so fulfilled from everything I’ve been able to see, do, experience . . . I feel happy, satisfied.
The spirit of aloha has captured me and I hope to bring it back with me!
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