Aloha & Mahalo Maui

There is something about getting off a plane, feeling the sweet warm tropical breeze, looking up at the crystal blue sky and listening to the hum of the palm trees. as you exit the small airport, a friendly greeting by local men and women with big smiles offer shell lays around your neck. Aloha and welcome to Maui.


Maui has a great laid back island feel but it is also mixed with a ton of tourists especially over the holiday season. As usual our approach was to ignore, seek out quieter spots and if we couldn't find them make sure we were heading out early to beat any crowds.


The island is filled with amazingly lavish restaurants, serene beaches, windy roads and a ton of stuff to do or not to do. the choice is yours!


Some of our favourite highlights include:


TRY:

• A surf lesson with Zack Howard- friendly, laid back and gets you right out surfing the waves. Zack and Cody are great teachers, patient and give you all the basics you need to learn how to "hang ten".
• Drive the Road to Hana, but leave early in the morning to avoid all the tour vans and other late departer's. We left around 7am enjoying the road to ourselves with a few stragglers behind us. Notable stops: Honokalani Black Sand Beach at Wai'anapanapa State Park just before Hana & my favourite the 2 mile hike through a mix of rock, gravel and an insanely large bamboo forest to see Waimoku Falls. This is located at the Haleakala National Park (Kipahulu Area) about 12 miles past Hana.
• Rent snorkel gear and visit the many beaches and coves that Maui has to offer. Our best spots were just off Big Beach (Makena Beach) where we swam with 2 seas turtles and a ton of bright, striped, dotted tropical fish and up around Napili Bay where there was a nice mix of reef, schools of oddly shaped fish and sea turtles swimming in slow motion. National Geographic-ish!
• Haleakala National Park (Summit Area)- best at sunrise or sunset, the drive up is long and windy, but the views from the summit at 10,000 ft are stunning. Be prepared for the wind, it gets cold so dress warmly!
• Visit Pa'ia- a vibrant little surfer hippy town, with some awesome boutiques, local artisan shops, gift shops, cafes & restaurants.

view from the summit at the haleakala national park

makena "big" beach

waimoku falls

EAT:

Wailea:

Kai Wailea- $$$- located at the shops at wailea. 3750 Wailea Alanui, Wailea, Maui, HI 96753 


fresh fresh fresh sushi. served family style so everything comes out at different times and meant for sharing. service is good, but can be slow when they are very busy. highly recommend the rock shrimp tempura roll, seaweed salad and the ahi poke. YUM! make a reso!


Pa'ia:


Mama's Fish House- $$$$- 
just off the mile marker 8 off the Hana highway- look for Mama's Fishing Boat


I think I eat out a lot and this is hands down one of the best places I have ever eaten at in my life. they have an amazing concept, they have a team of their own fisherman that catch all the seafood and everything on your plate is fresh within a 24 hour period. How lovely is that! Everything is good here, service impeccable. Make sure you make a reservation well in advance!


Lahaina:


Mala Ocean Tavern- $$$
1307 Front Street, Lahaina, Maui 96761


Another great restaurant, the small but cozy deck overlooking the ocean is a perfect spot to sit an enjoy brunch, lunch or dinner with a fancy cocktail. Would be a great spot to catch the sunset! Great service and food is fresh & light, try the gelato of the day that hails from a local producer Ono Gelato Company....to die for!




SLEEP:


While the start of this trip was at a time share in Kihei, and the latter was a beautiful rental property at the Papakea Resort that we found on VRBO. There are many options you can choose. You can go the route of finding your own vacation rental through the almighty VRBO, which offers a ton rentals ranging from low to high end. Or of course if you require something on the high roller side you will not be disappointed with what the island has to offer.


Wailea:


Four Seasons Maui at Wailea- We saw Billy Crystal there!
Fairmont at Kea Lani
Grand Wailea (A Waldorf Astoria Resort)- check out the Spa Grande for some amazing but pricey spa services!


West Maui:


Westin Maui Resort & Spa
Hyatt Regency Resort & Spa
Ritz Carlton Kapalua Resort - Located near the world famous Kapalua Golf Course

one of the may rainbows you will see

the last sunset of 2011

being surrounded by!

i recently came back from a short trip in las vegas with a group of girls that all ran the rock n roll half & full marathon. this year they organized the event a bit differently and the run took place in the evening down the strip! sounds pretty awesome. it was awesome asides from a couple huge logistical errors on behalf of the event team. there have been several posts from people complaining and you can read a snapshot here - Vegas Marathon Complaints

i don't want to get into because what did make the event amazing was that i was surrounded by a group of incredible friends that no matter what happened and the frustrations we felt, it all ended in big laughs and high energy. when a group of you are standing in a sea of thousands of people, freezing, hungry, feeling sick, claustrophobic and irritated because all you crave is a hot shower and to change out of your sweaty clothes and to sit down because your legs were powerhouses for the race. i realized that none of us were complaining, we all just went with the flow, cracking jokes and making the best of the situation with BIG SMILES on our faces. it's a pretty remarkable feeling especially in an environment where there was a ton of negative energy in the room. i am so thankful to have such a great group of friends (some old and some new) that were able to share this experience. an instant bond was created that made for some pretty rad lifetime memories. its hard enough to organize a group of girls together and this time it wasn't even about organizing, it simply came together. so with that being said next time you feel like you need to get out of the situation your in, or give up, or call it quits, or if your feeling frustrated with something can you remember to DO WHAT YOU CAN WITH WHAT YOU HAVE WHERE YOU ARE. its pretty powerful and changing your thoughts and energy to just settle into your surroundings and finding a comfortable place in the moment can turn your negative feelings into an unforgettable positive one!

we love high kicks!

the run had over 40,000 people....brutal

surrounded by amazing human beings!

a little road trip to cannon beach.

there's something about oregon that just gets me. i have to say it's one of my favourite places in the US and a place that i could call home. we decided to take a road trip down to cannon beach driving down through the western washington coast. the washington coast is also a pretty little drive with scattered little towns like westport, south bend and long beach that are home to neat antique shops, fresh seafood markets and restaurants and beaches that scream beauty.


after taking our sweet time to get to cannon beach, we arrived at our cozy cute little cabin perfect for two which we rented from www.vacasarentals.com. it was the perfect location to set out and explore the beach town by foot. cannon beach is serene and tranquil, even with the weather being windy and stormy, there is something to be said about putting your gumboots on and layering up to head for a windy beach walk to the famous haystack rock. the town has great little shops with a ton of local artisans, restaurants and gift shops.


a couple highlights and places to check out if your down there:


1.  
sleepy monk coffee roasters- http://sleepymonkcoffee.com/
cozy coffee shop- i usually only drink coffee on the weekends and this place was a perfect little spot for a coffee, cheese & black pepper scone & a newspaper


2.  
mo's seafood restaurant- http://www.moschowder.com/
amazing view of the haystack. great fish n chips. try the toasted shrimp sandwich.
and a cup of their famous chowder to warm you up.


3. 
ecola state park-http://www.oregonstateparks.org/park_188.php
beautiful mix of beach & forest hikes, but don't make the mistake we did. make sure you  
park at the indian beach parking lot and hike in from there. if not you'll be in for an extra    long hike. also surfing looked good at indian beach.


4. 
if your into antiques there is a whole bunch to check out in seaside (about a 10 min drive from cannon beach). there is an antique mall and few other shops scattered on the main strip. some notable finds for me were a vintage hudson's bay blanket for $30 (ahhhh- that's me screaming in excitement for such a great find), a vintage map from 1880 of the philippines, and an old military flashlight we bought for our friends at union wood co.


i highly recommend a weekend getaway to cannon beach, i could easily spend a week there. relaxing with a book, blanket and fire. on our list for next time we visit is to check some other state parks for good hikes and do some surfing.....hopefully soon!

sunset along the washington coast.

view from ecola state park.

haystack rock.

early morning walk. beauty.

hmm we think it could be a jellyfish.

another view of the haystack.

tall trees in ecola state park.

our cabin for the weekend!

Union Wood Co.Grand Opening !!!

I spent the day with my good friend Cara Donaldson helping her on a little shopping trip, setting and decorating their new shop Union Wood Co. on Railway St. They have amazing reclaimed wood furnishings made by Cara's boyfriend Craig Pearce. As well as a wonderful mix of antiques, cool curios and a mix of vintage industrial, military and one of a kind items. A definite spot to check out which produces amazing pieces both ready made and custom.


Come check out the shop at the Grand Opening Party!
Friday November 25, 2011
7pm till late


Union Wood and Supply Co.
503 Railway Street
Vancouver, BC
www.unionwoodco.com


Here's a couple sneak peek photos!

time to shed the old.

sitting in yoga class yesterday i was reminded that you need to let go of things that don't serve you and make room for the new things that will. that's my focus for the weekend sometimes letting go is the hardest thing, but opening that space is an invitation for new and exciting things!

The last stop...Jaipur the "pink" city

Reluctant to leave Pushkar, I had been dreading this day. Jaipur was the capital of Rajasthan and another big city. The crazy markets, traffic, honking of horns and overpopulated streets was in our near future and I was not looking forward to it. After being in two smaller towns, it opened my heart for my LOVE of them. I usually don't mind the big cities but I felt that after doing so many tourist stops and having a taste for the smaller towns, ending our trip in Jaipur was going to be difficult. So everything I expected was true except the markets were insanely overwhelming and every shop owner would stand outside and ask you to come in, offer cheap prices blah blah blah. It gets exhausting after some time and you don't want to be rude and bitchy, but seriously it gets old fast. So I learned to bite my tongue keep my head up, not make eye contact and just walk like I had a purpose. I wasn't quite sure what to expect of  the so called pink city but all it was were several walls and buildings painted in pink, which to me looked more of that barfy terracotta colour. I think my head was thinking it was going to be this bright and lovely crazy vibrant pink that we had been seeing on women wearing saris. Adrienne and I did a ton of tourist stuff- O.M.G I don't know what possessed us to follow the mass tourist crowds but for some reason we found ourselves getting sucked into the trap. I think it had more to do that with the fact that both of us were not too keen on being in Jaipur to begin with so we were trying to fill our time with seeing as much as we could to make the time pass. The one incredible stop we had there was called the Jantar Mantar- it's a World Heritage site that is an astronomer, astrologer and a historian's dream come true. It is a virtual museum built in the 1700s for astronomical observation. The area is scattered with public art like pieces that hmmm its quite hard to explain but.....(thanks wikipedia) are major geometric devices for measuring time, predicting eclipses, tracking stars' location as the earth orbits around the sun, ascertaining the declinations of planets, and determining the celestial altitudes and related ephemerides. Whoa! Amazing! It is so fascinating and I highly recommend a visit if you ever find yourself in Jaipur. Either than that I have to say Jaipur was another big city that was not for me, but as always I am grateful to have had the chance to go there. And for the first time in a BIG city, I met a great shop owner and got to do my favourite- sitting and chatting about life. The two days in Jaipur went fast and the end of our trip was coming to a close. The drive to Delhi was how we would spend our last day. I am never good with ending any trip , I think because I am never ready to go home. Being away I feel like I'm at my best, on top of the world, savouring every moment and taking in, learning, experiencing, connecting, motivating, inspired- the list goes on but traveling is my PASSION. But, I knew I had to let myself feel and accept the emotions of going home- positive, negative, sad, mad etc. I was obviously excited to be with my husband again and to be surrounded by family and friends. But everything else seemed so non existent and I knew that the drive to Delhi would be time for some serious reflection......

Pushkar

It was hard to leave Udaipur. I felt so comfortable there and my wish was to only spend a few more days, but back to our schedule we carrying on to Pushkar. The week was quite busy as Diwali was approaching and many Indians were taking holidays as well. So this mixed with the number of foreigners traveling made for all the little towns to be busy. Pushkar is known as a Hindu pilgrimage town that has long rooted history that is associated with the Hindu creator-god Brahma. Pushkar is home to one of the world's only Brahma temples and holds much importance in the Hindu religion as this was one of the places where the lotus flower fell from Brahma's hand. We stayed a very nice guesthouse called Inn Seventh Heaven, a hundred year old haveli that has a beautiful open courtyard, with vines hanging from each floor. The laid back environment houses several comfy couches and swinging chairs. This mixed with the scent of freshly picked rose petals and burning incense makes it a great place to chill and curl up with your favourite book and go down for an afternoon nap. Pushkar has been known for the overlander hippies traveling through and this is quite apparent as you walk the main strip through the bazaar. The stores are filled with clothes, silver jewelry, leather goods and a lot of the same things we had been seeing through our travels. The lake is small but serene with several ghats. Similar to Varanasi is some way, there are prayers (pujas), people bathing and rituals happening everywhere. Since it was Diwali the sound of fire crackers were non stop and these were not like anything we have at home. They were the kind that made your heart skip a beat every time they went off. It was something we just had to accept, it was not stopping and nobody was going to do anything about it. October 26th was Diwali and the streets were lit up with tiny candles similar to tea lights all through the small narrow pathways and of course people praying and visiting with family and friends. I wasn't sure what to expect of Diwali, it was known as the festival of lights. I think if we were staying with the host family back in Faridabad we would have gotten a better sense and real feel for what it's all about. I did end up meeting a couple of other female travellers and decided we would do a short hike up to the top of small hill where the Gayatri Temple stands. It felt good to get some exercise in with one of the most beautiful rewards at the top. An Indian sunset. The sun in India is different, it reminds me of a ball of fire, rich in colour, glowing orange. Mother Nature's beauty shining upon us.

What I really loved about Pushkar was the food. First the most amazing juice bar that served the best muesli I have ever eaten in my life, there are several juice shops but if you are ever in Pushkar make sure you make a stop at SONU's, located right in the middle of the main strip. Second the Sixth Sense rooftop restaurant on our hotel. I was starting to crave something besides curry and the pasta and salads we had were to die for, it satisfied my deep craving for "western" food. Pushkar was a great little town and I had a tough time leaving as I knew that the last city on our leg would be Jaipur (another large city) which would be our last stop......tear.