Oh good...a Maui TR.

I thought Maui was basically Disney and Vegas in a blender, with an evian spritz and orchid garnish and maybe a sprig of wild lavendar. Oh Pele, don't tell me it is more then that!!!

And a finer teacher in the land could not be found. . .

Does this mean you will miss Iceeu2's Big Birthday Bash (cause they won't let you into Kauai if you live on, well, you know.)

Come on Bill, class is dismissed already. I am home on medical leave, day two and already stir crazy. I need distractions! I need to plan my Hawaii trip! Invited to go in April and I need some ammo to assault my husband with!

another hour or two to wait... not getting any warmer here, brrr

Alas as we wait, I offer you one of the most kickakahini perfomances from last years Merrie Monarch as bruddah iamq composes his thoughts. . .

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4Lk7...66C90&index=22

she is amazing

Yeah, what rncheryl said!!!!! You promised!!!! You have plenty of time because that big zero one isn't until 2013!!!

Hurry up....your trip reports to everywhere are always the very best read!!!

Ok...let's give this a try.

Martin hasn't been to Maui nearly as many times as I have, so each time we go I try to plan at least one excursion or side trip so he can see a bit of the island each time. Neither of us were interested in being on the go every day, especially after we saw where we were. We could easily have stayed at the house and never left and been completely happy, BUT I thought he needed to see a few things and he trusts me (ahem).

One of my favorite spots is Hookipia Beach on the North Shore. It is THE place to windsurf, surf and kite surf (if you're experienced. This is not the place for beginners), but for us it was THE place to watch the surfers, windsurfers and surfers. We spent a couple of hours sitting on the beach watching all the action and the crazies battle the waves. The winds were whipping and the waves were raging. It is a unique and interesting place. While we were there we saw several rescues and some really knarly wipeouts. Adrenalin and testosterone wafted heavily in the air. Spending time there made me want to visit the North Shore of Oahu in the winter to watch the surfers some time. Very entertaining!

The other outing was Martin's first visit to Lahaina. I figured he needed to see it and experience it and I had not been there is over 20 years.

Here's some advice for visitors to Lahaina, do not go there when there is a gargantuan cruise ship anchored offshore! There were at least another couple thousand people there from the ship for the day. As we drove up the coast and I saw the cruise ship, I said, "Uh oh."

Being that this was a holiday week and with the addition of the cruisers, the place was crawling with people, which actually is part of Lahaina's charm in some odd way. We parked the car (in a pay lot) and set off in search of the famous Banyan Tree. We found the tree and took the obligatory photos. Some nice wahine took our picture by one of the big roots. This may end up being our holiday card this year. I was also in search of a new pair of slide on sandles and chatachkas for my classroom "scholar dollar" store. We wandered around and meandered in and out of galleries and tacky gift shops. I found the chatachkas and I found my slides at...yes...you guessed it, the Crocs store! I vowed I would never buy a pair of Crocs. These actually aren't the tradional Crocs clog style which make me gag. They look more like your garden variety athletic slide sandal. I love them. After that we found ourselves in a gallery being kanoodled and schmoozed by a salesperson trying to sell us one of Anthony Quinn's gorgeous carvings. Truly gorgeous and a steal at $5000.00 Yep, Lahanina had not changed much over the years. The biggest change was Bubba Gumps, LOL.

more later...

Forgot to mention that we flew Hawaiian Airlines from San Jose. $500 per ticket, which isn't bad for a holiday week. I bought them about 6 months out. They eventually went up to around $700. We usually pay around $600 to $650 during the summer months.

mo lattah.

>>

A few years ago, we were on the north shore of Hawaii on what turned out to be "opening day" of the big surf season. We were interviewed by the local TV news and that night saw ourselves on TV while we were eating dinner at some local diner!! (and the waves and surfers were awesome -- we didn't even stick a toe in the water that day)

The Banyan tree photo sounds cool. Don't you think Hawaiian vacation pics make THE best holiday cards?

We've made two trips to HI and both were over Thanksgiving. Although it was a last minute rush the holiday cards were worth it and absolutely gorgeous

Great airfare deal too!

Are gonna make us beg? More please?

No begging necessary SeeHag!

Whales, whales, whales everywhere! Being on Maui at this time of year is made even better because the Humpback Whales have come home. Within two minutes of being on our deck that first morning we saw several breaches, a few spy hops, numerous flipper slaps and dives complete with tails gracefully disappearing into the water. I brought my fairly powerful birding binoculars and having those made the experience even better. There's nothing more relaxing than sitting on a large ocean front deck drinking Kona coffee, scanning the horizon waitng and hoping for the next whale to surface. A couple of years ago we had an amazing, almost intimate experience with a Humpback just offshore of the east side of Maui near Hana. It just kept breaching right near us. We counted something like 10 or 12 breaches over a period of 5 or so minutes. It is something I will never forget. I think both of us were secretly hoping for something like that to happen again, but that was not to be the case this time, but they were everywhere and we got lots of great views.

One way we could've gotten closer to them was to take a kayaking trip out to where they are known to hang out and then just wait. We were staying right next to the one of the most popular kayak put ins on the island, so access would not have been a problem. There were three or four groups leaving every morning just down the road, but in the end we were content to sit on the deck with binocs. Yikes, we sound like really boring people, don't we? LOL.

Another plus with having the whales nearby is that while snorkeling or swimming one can hear the whales "singing". That was an amazing experience. The variety of the sounds they make is remarkable. We heard everything from mournful calls to clicking sounds. If you are considering a trip to the islands keep in mind that the Humpbacks can really add a lot to a trip.

"There's nothing more relaxing than sitting on a large ocean front deck drinking Kona coffee, scanning the horizon waitng and hoping for the next whale to surface".

Iamq, this is the perfect tag line to entice one on a trip to Hawaii! (My daughter was in Wailea around the same time you were in Maui and described the massive whale fest as well - sometimes as many as 30 frolicking off shore)! Love your descriptions and look forward to more. You may help me convince DH to visit Hawaii yet. He says he's not a beach person, but isn't there more to Maui than sitting on the beach?
Carry on with the tale, please...

Oh what a wonderful report,imaq.
Elnap, my husband and I have been to Hawaii many times and the only time we have spent on the beach was to walk it after dinner. Hawaii is a feast of history, culture, varied terrain, magnificent vistas, great hiking, birding, volcanoes, wild life...they call it Paradise for a reason.

Seeing the whales in Maui and Kauai was also one of my favorite all-time travel experiences. I also loved starting my morning with my coffee, my journal and my binoculars.

Pure heaven.

cmcfong, I could not have said it better!

Oh, iamq, I always love your trip reports and this one is just as wonderful as the others. I agree there is nothing more exciting than seeing the whales breach, breach, breach. I have never heard them sing. That has to be a remarkable experience. Now, did you eat any good food?

Yes, imaq, let's hear about where you and M dined.