After weeks of kitchen renovations taking over our lives and
sanity, we were due for a vacation. Using my US Airways miles and Starwood
points from travelling to Charlotte, we booked a room at the Westin Maui from
October 13th to the 20th.
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| View from our room |
The trip was planned around my coworker’s wedding in Maui on
October 18th and she did an amazing job planning events throughout
the week. On Tuesday morning we were up super early due to jet lag so we went
for a run on the beach before heading out for a snorkeling trip. We booked the
trip months ago through the Pacific Whale Foundation and it was an amazing
trip.
We did a snorkeling trip in Kauai on our honeymoon but we
were really impressed by the day we had with the Pacific Whale Foundation. We
were served breakfast on the way to Molokini Crater and had an hour of
snorkeling around the island. We were then served lunch on the way to Lanai where
we had another hour of snorkeling and fun. It was a long day (8:30am – 3pm),
but worth every penny. That night we laid down to take a nap at 5pm and woke up
at 5am the next morning – apparently we needed some sleep!
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| Momma and baby dolphin off the front of the boat! |
On Wednesday we had no events plan until the evening, so we
took advantage of the free day and went for a hike on the Waikee Ridge Trail
with Accenture friends of mine from previous clients. The drive to the trail
head was one of the craziest I have ever experienced, with single lane roads around
hairpin bends. The actual hike itself took about three hours, with amazing
views at the top.
On the ride back to Kaanapali, we stopped at the OlivinePools for swimming and cliff diving. The “cliff” was only about 10 feet but it
was good enough for me! I was shaking so hard after jumping; it was time for a
Mai Tai!
That night we went to the Old Lahaina Luau with everyone on the
island for the wedding. It was so nice to share the experience with Accenture
friends I don’t see as often as I would like.
On Thursday morning Emily arranged for a Pure Barre
instructor to come to her family’s rented house to give us a private lesson. We
ran to the house (about 2 miles) and then had a painful Pure Barre work out. I have done PB a few times in the past and wasn’t too
impressed but I really liked it this time. After marathon training ends, I
really want to look into doing more classes!
After Pure Barre we headed home to quickly get ready for the
welcome lunch hosted by Emily and Scott’s families. It was a beautiful and hot
day and the lunch venue, Pacifico, was the perfect location for lunch on the
ocean. We drank way too many Mai Tais and were in bed early to get ready for
Friday’s events.
One of the “must dos” in Maui is a drive along the Road to
Hana. We spent most of the week with my friend Laura and her husband Dan and
had a blast, so we made plans to do the drive with them in their convertible
rental car. Our friends Seema and Randy also joined us for the trip so we had
our own little Hana Highway caravan.
Laura bought a Maui guidebook and read it before coming
so she had a plan for the day, which was amazing. We did the drive in reserve
of the typical drive and, with Laura’s guidance, stopped at mile marker
destinations along the way to swim and take pictures.
The stops we made throughout the day were really
unbelievable. Our favorites were swimming under the waterfalls and taking a dip
in the ocean after lunch. If you are ever in Maui, make sure to take the day to
do the Road to Hana, but have a plan before you go!
Unfortunately, Hurricane Ana was on its way and on track to
hit Maui so the rain started on Friday. There was concern that the wedding
wouldn’t be able to happen if the wind and rain got too bad, so we all crossed
our fingers that the weather would cooperate. We spent a rainy Friday night
having a fabulous homemade dinner with our favorite boys at the wedding. It was
the perfect night before the “big day.”
We woke up Saturday to clouds and light rain but no
hurricane conditions! The wedding was on and the crew cleaned up for a day of
love. We all had a glass of Prosecco at the Westin lobby before getting off the
bus for the wedding.
The wedding was at Sugar Beach, a beautiful venue in southern Maui.
Due to the rain, the ceremony was indoors but, with the windows open to the
beach, beyond beautiful. The bride and groom looked amazing, there was so much
love at the ceremony, and the guests were ready to party.
The week of activities as a group in Maui made the wedding experience really great for Andrew and I. I have never been to a wedding where people danced as hard as they did, including us!
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| My fav gay boys showing off our temporary tattoos |
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| The Accenture crew! |
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| Happy boys. |
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| Turnt up. |
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| The Maui crew |
After the wedding we headed to the after party, which was equally as crazy and fun. It was a small group of us at a little dive bar where the ceiling was leaking from the hurricane rains and it was an epic dance party.
Our final wedding activity was a happy hour at Emily's parent's house in Lahaina. We spent Sunday afternoon drinking Prosecco, watching the turtles, and reminiscing about the awesome trip.
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| View from the house! |
The sun finally came out on Monday, just as we were headed home. We took a quick swim in the ocean and made our way to OGG for the long travel back to Philadelphia. It's time to eat clean and save money for our next adventure!
Congratulations to your friends! That is such an extravagant wedding. I can tell everyone had a great time at the wedding's expense. Hahaha! The view from your hotel room looks epic. Sounds like it was one hell of a stay there. I'm sure everyone is itching to visit again, now that everyone had a taste of Maui. Thanks for sharing that! All the best! :)
ReplyDeleteJeff Riley @ Happy Guests Lodge