-We rented a beautiful house in Kihei, on south Maui, very close to the best beaches on the island. Jonathan, who owns the house, was very nice and accomodating. He gave us dinner recommendations and answered many random questions, since he's been living on the island since before we were born. He said Hawaii was "discovered" by the tourist industry in the 70s and really picked up and commercialized in the 80s. The house itself had a beautiful kitchen where we cooked breakfast everyday, packed lunches for the beach, cut up pineapples, watermelons, and mangos, and made lots of fruit smoothies. We also had access to a master bedroom, lovely backyard with hottub, outdoor grill, and shed full of beach gear. I don't think Kayle could've picked a better place to stay on the island!
-Most of our free time was spent relaxing and swimming at the many pristine beaches in Maui. We especially enjoyed the beaches in Makena, the very southern end of the island. Kayle enjoyed some Kindle reading (Hunger Games and Robinson Crusoe) under various trees, keeping an eye on me as I swam and snorkeled near the shore. I also enjoyed several naps on the sand and beach picnics with cut fruit, beef jerky, and sandwiches. One day, we went boogie boarding on some small waves at Makena state park. We could sometimes manage to ride the wave all the way up on the beach with just an inch of water left underneath the board. And don't worry moms: both of us were careful not to burn in the sun, wearing sunscreen everyday and lathering on the aloe at night. We got a little red, on our shoulders, cheeks, and especially the top of Kayle's head, but no peeling for either of us!
-One of the most exciting days featured a 5-hour boat cruise and snorkeling tour. We left in the morning by 8:30 and were served breakfast and lunch on the boat. Our first snorkel stop was Molokini island, a federally protected marine reserve with a brilliant coral reef, tons of colorful fish of all shapes and sizes, and visibility underwater up to 150 feet. Kayle and I swam around together for an hour, admiring almost every kind of fish in Finding Nemo and more. It was like swimming in a giant aquarium! The second snorkeling site was off Makena beach and aptly nicknamed "Turtle Town" for all the giant green sea turtles that live there. We saw 3-4 different turtles of varying sizes. One of them was definitely bigger than me (they can grow up to 5 feet long and 450 lbs). I almost swam right into him as he surfaced since I was looking the wrong direction while kicking with my flippers. It was so awe-inspiring to see the turtles swimming along at a leisurely pace only a few feet beneath us. It all made me think about how wondrously creative God is with all the creatures he has made. If this earth is so magnificent, I wonder how much more awesome the new earth will be with all its splendor and no sin, death, crying, or pain! Revelation 21-22 is one of my favorite passages in the Bible.
-Kayle and I spent one day walking around the historic town of Lahaina, which is now filled with art booths and tourist shops. We loved the giant Banyan tree that spread out to shade an entire park by having aerial roots that drop down to form trunks to support an ever-expanding canopy. We walked down the street, ate some flavored "shaved ice", visited some little shops, and stopped in an antique home owned by the first missionary family to Hawaii (they landed on the island after a 6 month voyage around South America in 1823). My favorite store was a greenhouse and bird store that sold bonsai trees, plumeria plants, and all sorts of parrots. I was delighted to hold two of the birds and exchange some short phrases with a talkative cockatoo (who got very jealous and squawked when I left to go hold another parrot for a while- parrots are a lot like toddlers, it seems). The store also featured a pair of mini potbelly piglets that had a whopping $2000 pricetag (each!). Here we also bought my favorite souvenir, a baby board book of tropical animals with English and Hawaiian names. In the evening, we ate a small dinner at the Sheraton hotel before watching a torch-lighting and cliff diving ceremony on the beach at sunset.
-On our last night in Maui, Kayle took me to a nice beachside restaurant called the Waterfront. The luaus we wanted to attend were sold out, so we decided to splurge on a fancy dinner at sunset instead. The food was incredible with a stunning view of the harbor as the sun went down. We enjoyed a baked brie appetizer, prime rib and machong (a mild ocean white fish) for entrees, and a brownie sundae for dessert. A wonderful end to a very memorable vacation!
All in all, we enjoyed our little slice of paradise but were ready to return home to prepare for our next trip to Michigan. In Hawaii, people kept asking us whether we were on our honeymoon- I guess we looked so young and happy to them just smiling ear to ear and holding hands all the time. I just turned sideways to show them my growing baby bump and said we were expecting our first baby in October. Oh...and baby Hinkle enjoyed himself in Hawaii too. I feel a little more distinct and frequent kicking now as he rolls around in my belly!
We love you all!
Angie and Kayle
For more pictures from our Hawaii trip: https://picasaweb.google.com/Angie.Hinkle/MauiBabymoon2011#
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