Maui - Part 2

Tuesday

I woke up at 2:30 and couldn’t go back to sleep. Argh! I hate jet lag. My body just does not like going west. For some reason, I find it much easier adjusting to the time change in Europe.

Our plan for the day was to explore West Maui since we hadn’t seen that part of the island before. Jenny suggested that Ron and I take the Mini Cooper so we could put the top down. The Mini Cooper was adorable, blue with the Union Jack painted on the side mirrors, very Austin Powers. We zipped along the coast, deciding to start at the farthest point, the Nakalele Blowhole. The Nakalele Blowhole is kind of like a geyser, a hole in the cliff where the waves shoot through. The hike down to the blowhole turned out to be a lot trickier than I was expecting. It was very steep with large boulders and some slippery, sandy spots. I had stupidly forgotten to put on my hiking sandals and was wearing flip flops, but I finally made it to the bottom with much help from Ron. Unfortunately, the blowhole was sputtering more than blowing that day, which was disappointing, although the rocky cliffs were scenic and we did find the heart-shaped hole in the rock. But then we had to climb back up! I am definitely not the most coordinated person so I was crawling my way carefully up the rocks, using my hands for balance, when some man marched right past me like he was walking through the mall. How embarrassing… :-)

morning on the lanai

the Austin Powers car

Nakalele Blowhole

Unfortunately, it looked more like this most of the time

You mean I have to climb back up??

Back in the car, we worked our way back towards South Maui, stopping a few times to take pictures at various overlooks. The views of Honolua Bay were gorgeous. There were several sail boats in the bay and we could see little tiny people snorkeling below. The water seemed bluer on this side of the island. Turquoise, like it is in the Caribbean.
 
We had lunch at the Sea House on Napili Bay at a table overlooking the beach. I ordered the blackened mahi wrap and Roselani ice cream for dessert. While I was researching for the trip on Trip Advisor, I’d read about all the wonderful food in Maui so I had a checklist in my head of things I wanted to try. I’d already checked one item off the list (the kalua pork our first night). Roselani ice cream was another check. I chose the Kona coffee ice cream and it was fabulous, almost chewy like soft caramel. So good. After lunch we walked around on the beach and along the path on the rocky point. I was totally in love with Napili Bay. It was this perfect little cove lined with palm trees and a few Polynesian-style hotels. As Ron put it, it just looked so Hawaiian.

Honolua Bay

Napili Bay

One more stop at the Farmer’s Market in Honokawai for banana bread and lilikoi cream cheese (two more items off the checklist) and then we headed back to Wailea. By the time we got to the condo, it was mid-afternoon and we were ready to cool off. It was really hot that day! Maui was having some kind of heat wave, and the trade winds that normally cool the island in the afternoon weren’t blowing.

For dinner that night, we went out to eat at Sansei Seafood and Sushi in Kihei. The boys decided to stay in Wailea with some friends so it was just Jen, Jer, Gretchen, Ron and me. We ordered one (or two) of everything off the menu. Our waitress just kept bringing out plates until we couldn’t eat any more. Yum! We caught the end of the sunset back at the condo, but since I’d been up so early that morning, I could barely keep my eyes open and was in bed at 8:30.

continued on Part 3