Home

Every trip has a beginning, a middle, and an end. Our trip ended Sunday with two uneventful but painful flights back to Austin.

We said "Aloha" to our room at the Westin.

Our shuttle was scheduled to pick us up at 9:45 am and we sat outside the front of the hotel to wait.

Ricky called SpeediShuttle at 9:45 when they weren't there to pick us up.

Much to our surprise the shuttle parked in front of the hotel was waiting for us! We didn't realize it was SpeediShuttle.

We drove past the ocean on our left

The mountains were on our right

We drove past fields that were once planted in sugarcane.  The landscape was very dry.

We flew out of Kahului Airport

Lunch at StingerRays

This unfortunate bird was living inside the airport.

We left Maui at 12:45 pm and landed at LAX at 9:00 pm. It was a 5 hour flight, but we crossed several time zones.  We arrived at our hotel after 10 pm. The only food choices were chips and candy.  😞 We got up at 2:15 am to be back at the airport for our 5:30 am flight. It was a short and hungry night. 

We had a happy homecoming. The dogs couldn't believe it was really us at first, then they became exuberant.

Just like old times. Ricky and HoneyBee took a nap in the chair. 

The tomato vines were loaded.

We put on a pot of beans first thing and ate them for supper. It's good to be back home!

Last Maui Sunset

"A little piece of heaven fell from the sky, and they called it Maui."-- Hawaiian Airline attendant at the Honolulu Airport

We enjoyed our Subway sandwiches on the balcony as we watched our last Maui sunset.  This is a beautiful island and I am so thankful I had the opportunity to see it.  Mahalo.

Whaler's Village

Whaler's Village is a place to shop and eat with 90 or more high-end shops and restaurants.  A great place to run over to and pick up a new Rolex and Louis Vuitton bag. 😆

We also found a food court with a Subway here. It saved our lives.  We have been gone long enough to grow weary of fancy food and just needed something simple like a sandwich. What we really want though, is a pot of beans and a home cooked meal.

Spa Day

We splurged our last day here and got a couples massage. The spa facility was very nice with a heated tub and sauna and all the personal hygiene amenities available.  We got our massages side by side in the same room. Ricky had a hard relaxing though. He said the towel used to wipe the lotion off his feet was scalding hot. It took an hour in the swimming pool and some Crown Royal for him to recover. I thoroughly enjoyed my massage.

Amigo's

We ventured back into Historic Lahaina on our last day. We found Amigos, a real Mexican food restaurant. OMG! Those refried beans were delicious! I had three helpings. It was a true taste of home.

Real chips and salsa and a cold Miller light

Ricky had beef fajitas and green chilies that were really HOT.  I had bean and cheese tostadas with beans and rice and a side order of refried beans. 🤣 And a house margarita that cost $7.99. Tex-Mex Heaven!

Maui Videos

These are some short videos I took on our last day in Maui.

Maui Morning
https://youtu.be/eq9LsSkLNag

Westin Resort Relish Oceanside
https://youtu.be/AAWRo8rTzic

Westin Resort and Spa Courtyard
https://youtu.be/tV6NCDixwuQ

Lahaina Wharf Cinema Center
https://youtu.be/BtETipDLfCw

Lahaina Front Street
https://youtu.be/Ew15c7n6xGU

Lahaina Banyan Tree, Courthouse, Old Fort
https://youtu.be/RTS2SEpVB5o

Lahaina Harbor
https://youtu.be/roQuOBWNLlk

Ka'anapali Beach
https://youtu.be/HXhDTE8EFUI

Ka'anapali Westin Resort Swimming Pools
https://youtu.be/iMT0op0SafU

Kuuipo, My Hawaiian Sweetheart

Today, June 14, 2018, is our 10th wedding anniversary.  We renewed our wedding vows this morning on Napili Bay Beach. Rev. Peter Soares with Aloha Fun Weddings was the officiant. We could not have found a nicer, kinder human being to help us celebrate this occasion.  We got there early to be sure we were in the right place.  The sky was overcast and it even showered a few raindrops on us while we waited for Peter to arrive. The shower passed and patches of blue sky appeared.  Napili Beach is north up the coastline about 6 miles from our hotel. It is a much smaller beach that Ka'anapali and has a more organic down-to-earth feel.

                          The beach path

Volcanic rocks at the south end of the beach

Tiki totems seem to be everywhere

Steps down to the sand

The sand is very soft and deep. The beach is sloped at about a 35 degree angle.  The phrase, "Walking on the beach," takes on a whole new meaning here. We tried to walk to The Sea House restaurant on the north end of the beach but gave out at the midway point. 

There were tiny shells on the sand

There were lots of kids and families playing in the water.

Waiting for Rev. Peter to arrive

We saw this guy catch two fish while we waited. He put both of them in the pocket of his shorts. Seemed like an odd place to store his catch.

The Rev. Peter arrived with a Walmart bag and guitar in hand.

He performed a very tender Hawaiian ceremony beginning with a prayer for us, our five children, and our five grandchildren.  I confess, I cried tender tears during the ceremony. Rev. Peter wiped a tear and told me I had him crying too.

He helped us give each other leis.  He had us perform the ritual of "honi," pressing foreheads together and breathing "ha" the breath of life into our marriage.

He sang "Kuuipo" which was a very tender moment. 

https://youtu.be/Si-EQS0RMzM

When we finished he refused to let us call a cab and he graciously offered to take us back to our hotel.