It’s been exactly one week since I was basking in the sun, mai tai in hand, staring out at the beautiful blue ocean, trying to get in just one more sighting of a whale breaching in the distance.
Maui. It’s been exactly one week since Maui. And I’m already counting down the days until I return (349 days according to my countdown app).
Every year for the past eleven years (minus one year when we went to Napa Valley instead – rough life, I know), my family has made it a tradition to venture to the beautiful island of Maui for a week of sunshine and sandy beaches. I’ve started calling it my “de-winterizing” trip. A chance to decompress, thaw out from the cold winter, and soak in the island life.
I look forward to this trip every year, for obvious reasons, but also because I have fallen completely and helplessly in love with the island of Maui. From the volcanic cliffs, waterfalls and rainforests of the Road to Hana to the luxury of Wailea, there is something for everyone on the island, and never a reason to be bored. I’ve sort of made it my mission to do one adventurous thing during each visit – whether it be hiking the Iao Valley or spending a day taking in the art galleries of Lahaina – I try to find something new to do, see, or experience while on the island.
Most of the time, though, you can find me at the Four Seasons Maui at Wailea – lying by the Serenity Pool with a pineapple mimosa in hand, enjoying a nice meal at one of the three restaurants found on the resort property, or getting pampered at their newly-renovated spa. It’s the most luxurious place I’ve ever stayed, and it’s dreaming of this beautiful property that gets me through the harsh winter months back home in Oklahoma.
This past trip was just as magical as previous trips, maybe even more so. There were twenty of us this time, having included extended family on this trip, and there were many memories made. My boyfriend indulged my adventurous side by accompanying me on a two-and-a-half hour drive both ways to the Pipiwai Trail where we hiked through the famous bamboo forest to reach Waimoku Falls, stopping off at the Seven Sacred Pools before embarking back to the hotel. I was then his cheerleader on his first scuba dive experience, me “watching” from the beach after being told by my doctor that I could “absolutely not under any circumstances ever” dive with my asthma. Sipping on my smoothie, toes in the sand wasn’t a bad compromise.
Of course, we were all sad to leave last Sunday, but as with any vacation or trip, it’s always nice to come back home. Especially when home includes an ornery little cat and a 95-pound German Shepherd who upon seeing each other again for the first time in a week, Tabitha sniffed his nose while Kayne licked her face from neck to ears. I think they like each other…
I’ll have a few follow-up posts with details and more photographs from our trip, so be sure to check back.
