The last time Mark and I were on Maui was winter 2015. We went in February with my mom to see the humpback whales. We had the most amazing experience being within reaching distance of a humpback for nearly 30minutes from on a catamaran cruise. This trip with Mark's mom and Craig we decided to splurge and stay at one of the nicest hotels on the island. Actually, this hotel was on my bucket list even when we lived in Wisconsin. We stayed at the Grand Wailea in southern Maui. The hotel boasts a swim up grotto bar (ridiculously cool), a water elevator (you don't even have to take the stairs to get to the top of the slides!), a crazy long lazy river, hot tubs hidden within caves, and even a floating restaurant. Grand Wailea is one of those resorts you could spend the entire four day trip exploring the property and still find new pieces of artwork, hidden amenities, and new food all throughout the property. We made swimming a priority while we were there so we didn't spend the whole trip off property exploring. The trip was the perfect blend of adventure and relaxation.
Our lanai at the hotel had amazing views of the resort/pool as well as a never ending view of the ocean. We utilized it so much enjoying a sunset, dinner and even daytime reading. One of my favorite meals of the trip we enjoyed on that lanai. We picked up bbq from a smokehouse down the road in Kihie, a sleepy surfer town. This was hands down the best bbq I've had since we left Wisconsin!
One of my favorite spots on the island of Maui is the old fishing village of Lahaina. Front street in Lahaina is filled with shopping, ocean front restaurants, views of other islands and so much more. It's always exciting with tourists and locals alike busy around the area shopping and checking out the delicious food. It also is home to the largest banyan tree in Hawaii.
Over the weekend we ventured over to the Maui Ocean Center, stopped at one of my favorite Maui beaches; big beach and tried a local coffee place!
A few friends who were from Maui told me we had to try Tasaka Guri Guri. It's a tiny family owned shop in Kahului that makes only a few flavors of Guri Guri- which is like a ice cream sorbet like dessert. It was very refreshing and delish as it's homemade. The recipe is secret and was first made by the family in the early 1900s in Japan. We also stopped in Paia to try Flatbread Company for lunch.
By the time we arrived back on Oahu it was nearing the end of the vacation for Craig and Kathy... but we ended it with a bang. After work on the 4th of July, I met up with everyone and we had a exciting evening planned at Top of Waikiki. The restaurant is situated at the top of a hotel with awesome views of Diamond Head, Waikiki, and sunsets. This was a really fancy, and awesome dinner celebrating the fourth of July, my birthday, Mark's birthday and of course our two lovely guests making the trek across the world to see us! As the restaurant slowly rotated throughout the evening we ended up having a perfect view of the Waikiki 4th of July fireworks from our dinner table. I felt pretty special eating prime rib while watching the show with great company! We also all shared my favorite dessert; lilikoi crème Brulee...delish!
On Kathy and Craig's last day they visited me at work and Kath finally got to try standup paddleboarding! Craig enjoyed the diet coke and cheering his mom on! Later that day Mark and I came home to a home cooked meal (miss it so much) and later we all went for a stroll to see the beautiful sunset at Ala Moana. The sky seemed to put on a show for their going away gift. We had such a great two weeks with those two and our last night was spent reminiscing about our awesome adventures together!
Our two visitors left on my birthday so Mark and I had a pretty low key night celebrating. We enjoyed one of my favorite foods; cheesy fondue yummy and had a chill night watching TV and relaxing which was perfect after such a busy two weeks!
It's crazy to think summer is coming to a close! Next time we'll share all the fun from mine and Mark's anniversary and Mark's big 3-0 celebration! Whoot Whoot!
Aloha!
XOXO, Jen & Mark
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