For those of you who don’t know, Sarah and I got married on Maui in 2015. We had planned to return in 2020 for our 5-year anniversary but COVID had other plans. So in 2021, we returned on our 6-year anniversary to celebrate our 5-year anniversary because it’s illegal to celebrate milestones that don’t end in a five or zero.
I did a horrendous job this trip of taking pictures, which I think was a result of just wanting to be outside and away from technology after COVID. As such, I’m just going to put a smattering of photos from the whole trip in this one post and then will break out 3 discrete events in separate posts, rather than taking it day-by-day as I typically do.
We stayed at The Hale Pau Hana, which is run by some incredibly friendly people. The price was very reasonable, the views amazing (see above), and the beach was super secluded even though it wasn’t technically private. Hale Pua Hana gives discounts to repeat visitors, which we’ll likely be regardless of that bonus. And there were more sea turtles than you could shake a stick at*.
*Please do not shake sticks at the turtles. I love them. 🐢❤️
There were so many, in fact, that they would regularly swim right past us while we were wading in the shallows. It was surreal. 80 year old turtle the size of a coffee table, coming through. No big deal. Welcome to Maui.
Monkeypod Kitchen
The Mai Tai’s and the Hula Pie below are from Monkeypod Kitchen which is a borderline must-do. I say borderline because there are just so many great places to eat and this one doesn’t have views like other places on Maui, but their food is excellent and they legit do have the best Mai Tai’s on the island. They even make their ketchup from scratch, which is a conviction I can appreciate even though I’m a Heinz guy through and through. They seem very environmentally conscious from the food they source to the materials they use in (and to build) their restaurants.
Cafe O’Lei in Kihei
Another place worth eating, if you’re in Kihei is Cafe O’Lei. We actually ate there in 2015 with my brother and sister in-law and came back for a second round. It’s got a unique interior and the food is very good. I don’t think I took any pictures of that food so use your imagination.
Aloha Kayaks Maui
Another super fun thing we did was go ocean kayaking and snorkeling. Unbeknownst to us, we put in just a mile or so up the road from where we got married, which became apparent as deja vu swept over us while driving through that area. Since we were trying to respect his vibe, and just take it all in, we didn’t get any photos. But as it turned out we kayaked right past Kukahiko Estate where we got married – this time with the view the sea turtles had. So here are some wedding photos instead.
There are many outfits who will take you out to do this, in fact there were probably 10 of them in the same area where we started. While I can’t speak for all of them, I can tell you Griff, our guide, was super chill. He had moved there maybe 20 years prior with little more than was on his back – he even camped in the yard of a friend for a while. He’s since fallen in love with the island and the culture of Maui. He taught us a lot about the history of the island and local words, all of which clearly have deep meaning to him now. He was exceptionally respectful of the land and took us a different direction than the other 30 kayaks all went. We had a blast with him and he deserves the business. So check him out if you’re looking for a guide.
