Usually about this time of year, people start reflecting back on everything that has happened in the last 12 months. Actually, they probably started doing that a week ago and I’m just a little behind. 
Anyway, it’s been a pretty good year for us, and with all this hype and excitement about our upcoming Maui trip in February, I thought I’d take a moment to relive some of our favorite memories of our trip in April, 2008. From the looks of the last post of our ’08 Trip Journal, I think I meant to do this months ago. Oh well, better late than never.
Our Favorite Maui ’08 Moments
So here’s the list of our favorites from 2008. I thought about putting then in order, but that’s too hard to decide. Honestly, they’re all so memorable.
Meeting the Whales
We can’t describe what an amazing experience it was to finally see the whales in Maui for the first time. We came into this trip knowing that April was the tail end (pardon the pun) of whale watching season, which I think made seeing quite a few still around that much more special.
Spending the morning whale watching on my birthday was pretty nice, but if I really had to choose, I’d have to say this view of the whales 3 days later was my favorite. Going back in February is going to be such a larger whale watching experience, these first encounters may seem pale in comparison. However, seeing the whales for the first time will always be special to us.
HAPA in Concert
Seeing one of our favorite Hawaiian music artists live in concert had to be one of our all-time favorite moments on Maui. The HAPA concert at the Maui Arts and Cultural Center on Maui in 2008 was such an amazing experience, and just like seeing the whales on our next trip, we’re overjoyed to see HAPA again in February.
South Maui Beach Hopping
While the skies weren’t cloudless the entire day, we had a blast beach hopping on South Maui during our second week. We make a point each trip to visit at least 3 new beaches, but not before this year did we decide to do it all in one day!!!
It felt like heaven for both Cindy and I, for different reasons. Cindy had yet another day in the sun, that is when she wasn’t dodging the passing cloud cover. Me, well, I probably walked close to 3 miles of sandy beaches that day, including the aptly named Big Beach in Makena. In just one afternoon, I probably shot over 500 photos of all three beaches we visited, and had a blast doing it.
The Best Birthday Cake
Actually, it wasn’t really a cake, it was much better. Having a nice slice of Hula Pie at Leilani’s on my birthday was probably the best birthday celebration that I could have wished for. I mean, there was no candles to blow out, but when you’re already on the beautiful island of Maui, do you really need to make a wish?
I think another part of my birthday celebration that made it extra special was the fact that I was sharing it with the two most important people in my life, my loving wife Cindy and my wonderful mom. Being able to take her along this trip and give her a first-hand look at why we love Maui as much as we do was very rewarding for us. She enjoyed it, too.
Our Return to Hana
It was nice to make it back to Hana this trip, and the tour we chose this time was so much better. Not only was lunch at the Hotel Hana Maui very nice, we had so much more time to spend seeing the sights and getting closer to everything than we did the first time.
Climbing down the rocks at Wailua Falls to get shots like this were fun, but I don’t think much compared to my excitement shooting at the lava tubes Waianapanapa State Park this time. Actually going into the lava tubes was another thing we didn’t do last time. I seriously felt like I was a kid again. After going in first with my digital camera (and taking photos like the one of the left), I literally ran up the rock stairs to where Cindy was using the video camera and ran all the way back down to shoot video of it, too. What a great time!
Honorable Mention
While the above are the big moments from this year’s trip, there were a few smaller ones that we’ll always remember, too. One of the two that come to mind right away are the little baby kittens that we saw near the walkway at our building at the Sheraton. They were four of the cutest little black cats that we’ve ever seen, and while we’d seen the mother cat on the property for years now, we didn’t know she was starting a family. It became a ritual near the end of the trip to stop and look for them whenever we walked past.
What do cats at a Maui resort eat, you might be thinking? That sort of leads to the second quick moment I wanted to share. Beside from other guests leaving leftover mahi mahi and various scraps, I had a run-in with the mother cat of my own. A friend of mine had just become a grandfather while we were away on Maui, and I decided to call and congratulate him (he
and his wife are Maui fans, too).
and his wife are Maui fans, too).
I was standing in the open air lobby on the 8th floor of the Sheraton (here’s the view, by the way) talking to him on my cell phone, when out of the blue, I see the mother black cat racing up the palm tree not 10 feet away from me. Now, the palm trees outside this view aren’t the giant palms that you see along the coast, but smaller ones planted alongside the cliff at Black Rock. In any case, not sure what the cat was doing, I kept an eye on her while talking on the phone.
Just a few moments later, the cat came back down the tree with, of all things, a green gecko in her mouth! Of all the times not to have my camera. Needless to say, I had a hard time keeping a straight face when replaying the story for Cindy. It was too funny.
Such Great Memories
While it isn’t possible to say that one of our trips was the best out of all of them, our visit to Maui in ’08 definitely created some of the most wonderful memories we’ve had. There were a few rough moments at the end when the thought of having to leave started to settle in, but that’s expected on these trips that are so amazing.
Did you get a chance to visit Maui in ’08? Tell us some of your favorite moments this year.
