Aloha! Maui 2008 Wrap Up

Tropical Flower, originally uploaded by Sam and Ian.

2 years ago Surferman and I celebrated our 10th anniversary with a trip to Maui. I blogged about the 10 best things then. We visited the most wonderful of Hawaiian islands (yep, that's our opinion and we're sticking with it) at the end of August. I'm just getting around to blogging about our adventures. We checked up on some of our old favorites and discovered some new favorites too.

We stayed at the Maui Guest House again. It was just as wonderful as last time and still highly recommended. So comfortable and well equipped...


We found some great meals...

• Aloha Mixed Plate was as good as we remembered it. We stopped there our first day. It was a great way to acclimate.
• The Fish Market Maui - Fantastic, simple pork and mahi mahi tacos. We caught a taco special on a weekend night. Fantastic deal.
• Grandma's Coffee House - a nice place to get a latte and a really big cookie. Isn't it cute? Can you see the stained glass of Grandma in the window?
  
• Okazuya & Deli Honokowai - Big portions, low prices. You can sit at tables on the sidewalk of the strip mall, or do as we did and take it to Canoe Beach. We enjoyed our dinner as the outrigger canoe teams were coming in from their workouts and the sun set.
• CJ's Deli & Diner - a fantastic cheeseburger without the crowd at Cheeseburger in Paradise.
• The Gazebo - can't skip a trip here. Two words... Macadamia Nut Pancakes... okay that's three words. There's always a line. Bring a book.

As far as snacking...

The sweet potato and taro chips from Hawaiian Chip Company are the bomb. We bought a bag at Costco on our arrival and enjoyed them so much that we stopped for bags for co-workers, family and friends. A much better "I've been to Maui and you haven't" gift than those grody chocolate(?) covered macadamia nuts that aren't even made in Hawaii.

Things to do, things to see...

• One morning we did the silly tourist thing and drove to see the Haleakala Crater at Sunrise. It was a crazy thing to do. It's cold up there. It's one of those once in a lifetime experiences that I'm glad I can say we did. We stopped for breakfast at the Kula Lodge Restaurant. The coffee was hot and wonderful.
• With all our CSA boxes and interest in chickens and such, a stop at Surfing Goat Dairy was a no- brainer. It's a fun little goat dairy. You can pay extra for a tour, but poking around on our own was enough fun. It was a little hard to find, but worth it. We bought a goat cheese sampler. It was delicious.
• Royal Hawaiian Surfboard Rentals - Prison Street, Lahaina. Unfortunately they don't have a website, but in Surferman's opinion they have the best rental longboards on Maui. If it would've fit in his suitcase...

Where to kick back and relax...

• Barnes and Noble - Lahaina - This might seem silly, but we love bookstores. Love to sit and drink a cup of coffee and browse books. It's a nice way to spend an evening.
• Puamana Beach Park - at the south end of Lahaina. This was a great little beach for me to sit in the shade with a friendly surf break for Surferman. I got lots of video. Hopefully someday we'll figure out how to get it into the computer. He had so much fun.

What we'd do different...

• Rent a bigger car. We really cheaped out. On day two of our trip, we made a pact to stop complaining about the econob0x Thrifty Rent-A-Car was passing off as their Manager's Special. Nothing special about this car - power nothing. It was transportation. And the reason we'll have to tell you about the road to Hana after our next trip. Never rent a car that is shorter than your longboard.

Edited to add... It's been a couple of months since our trip. With recent changes, it was really nice to go back and remember our getaway, to count our blessings and get a little feeling of aloha.