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I had been debating whether or not I should go to Maui or just head straight back to Oahu. On one hand I didn't really want to spend 12+ days in Waikiki but on the other hand going to Maui meant spending even more money (on an extra flight, higher cost for accommodation, etc.) Anyway, around Wednesday I made my decision that I was going to go for it. I hadn't been there in 3 years and I'm definitely glad I decided to go back. I had forgotten what an amazingly beautiful Island it is. It does have its downsides for a backpacker - hostels are more expensive, most are located in the town of Wailuku - which is not pretty and not close to ay beaches really, and public transportation kind of sucks (buses comes once an hour and if you happen to miss the one you wanted to get, too bad - you have to wait another to come an hour later).
I had left Kona around noon and arrived in Kahului in time for the 1pm shuttle courtesy of Northshore Hostel.
I had a very thorough check-in. Got to my room - it was a mess - and I could only chuckle when I discovered that, of course, it was room #5. Just like in Paihia.
I slept in a bit Saturday and then one of my roommates asked if I wanted to go to Baldwin Beach in Paia, http://www.paiamaui.com/ , (sounds like Paihia - but without the 'H'). AS SOON as we got halfway from the parking lot to the beach it started raining. We tried to wait it out but got bored and it didn't look like it was going to stio any time soon, s we just headed back to the hostel. Spent the rest of the day mostly just hanging around the hostel. And then I met Will. I had seen him around the hostel before, but he came outside when I was on the balcony, started chatting and introduced himself (oddly enough, at the time I had been JUST thinking about 2 guys I had met on previous trips to Oahu whose names had been William and Will). Weird. Anyway we chatted away for quite awhile and then we decided we should eat and went for Thai food.
The next day I wanted to go to Lahaina, but since I had JUST missed the bus, I decided to head back to Paia instead of waiting around for another bus to Paia. I spent the majority of the day at the beach but it was crazy windy. Eventually I couldn't take it anymore and walked around the town and looked in the shops, many of which were closed because it was Sunday.
Monday morning Will asked what my plans were for the day, I told him I was going to go to Lahaina, and he suggested we go together and go snorkeling. We got snorkle gear in Laihaina and headed farther North to a couple spots. Had a great time and saw a few turtles. Around 4 we decided we had time to check out one more place and headed back through Laihaina and farther South. It was another great spot and once again we saw a turtle or 2 and this time a sting ray. The sun was going down as we headed to shore, me cold and both of us tired.
We took some time to snap some pics of the georgous sunset and then sat on a towel to chill (or in MY case - warm up!) for awhile. Dusk quickly turned to night and we found ourselves standing in the ocean, eyes to the sky, in search of shooting stars and looking for various stars and constellations. Amazingly I had retained a lot of what I learned from Greg on the trip up Mauna Kea and even managed to point out somce stars and constellations. When my limited knowledge ran out we downloaded Sky Map on his phone and used that instead haha. Before we knew it, hours had passed and we were both famished. Since I was losing the seeing shooting stars game 6-1, I agreed that we should leave to find food. We headed back to Lahaina and after spending the ride there discussing our pizza cravings, we ended up at Cheeseburger in Paradise where we both got - you guessed it - cheeseburgers...Afterwards we walked all over the town, window shopping and checking out landmarks. It was very late when we got home - after 1 - and we made our arrival known by setting off the car alarm. lol
Tuesday morning I awoke sore and still tired. I got up anyway because I wanted to get to the beach and make the most out of my snorkel rental before taking it back to Lahaina. Will decided to join me and we agreed to go to the south east area of the island and snorkel an area referred to as "Turtle Town" assuming that we would be likely to see turtles there.. We saw a few, took more pics of the beautiful scenery and headed to return our gear in Lahaina.
Will wanted to shop for a shirt and hat, so once again we hit the town, this time actually getting to go IN stores and galleries. My favorite place was an art gallery where there were signs all over encouraging people to touch the art.
After seeing the whole town again, we headed for Paia as will hadn't been there yet. We were hungry once again so we stopped at Paia Fish Market for some food and then, just like in Lahaina, checked out the shops and galleries. The last place we went went we bought eachother a friendship bracelet. We're supercool like that. Then he dropped me off at home and headed to the airport.
The last day I was going to go to Kihei, but due to the slack bus system, it would have taken me about 3 hours in total travel time to spent 1 hours at the beach. So I just lazed around the hostel, reading and enjoying feeling warm.....
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