we stayed at the ritz residences in kapalua, and it was the most beautiful resort i've ever been to. the condos were awesome (i could definitely live in one no problem :)), there were probably 7-10 pools on the property, beautiful spa area and fitness center, all situated overlooking the beautiful glassy water and rocky shoreline of the kapalua bay. it was an incredible place! plus, so nice to stay in a condo where we could make meals, snacks, have a drink supply (that we didn't even make it through :)), and have more space to hang out than a regular hotel room.
looking at the lobby from our condo
living room - loved the furniture!
super nice kitchen
large patio outside our place
private lawn area between our condos
sweet pools!!
the first day/night we were there, we got up super early to watch the sunrise at haleakala, a crater/mountain 13,000 feet (i think) above sea level. after watching the sunrise, we biked 20+ miles down the mountain, stopping for breakfast at a cute place along the way. we got back to the ritz and relaxed a little while and just got settled in. billy and i cooked dinner that night - ahi tuna and poke tacos. yum!
don't know what's going on with my hat :)
amazing sunrise - looked like we were in the snow!
crater with black and red sand
mom, dad, and me
billy and me
bryan and kristin
the second day, we got up somewhat early again and headed out on the road to hana. it was a beautiful (and scary at times) drive on super windy roads, and we hiked to a bunch of waterfalls and beaches along the way. this was probably my mom's favorite part of the trip - she definitely won the award for most daring swimmer in the freezing waterfall water! billy had a shoe/foot casualty at the first waterfall (vibrams turned out not to be the best choice :)), so he was in some pain for awhile but still made it through all of the hikes with us. my favorite part of that trip was bodysurfing at this little beach we found with great waves...and just having the time to all hang out together during the trip :) after making all of our stops along the road to (and a little past) hana, it got dark fairly quickly, and kel did a great job behind the wheel the whole day, but it was a little scary to be on the edge of these narrow roads that were really high up. we had some excitement on the country road (further away from the cliffs thankfully) when we got stopped twice by cattle in the middle of the road. not sure if we got any pictures of it, but it was really funny! by the time we got back into civilization, most of the restaurants were closed, so we found this local place, da kitchen cafe, that had very good, traditional hawaiian food. we had the nicest waitress, and she was impressed we found the place, as it's typically a locals-only place.
first waterfall of the day
rock climbing
the whole gang by the triple waterfall
bodysurfing!
seven sacred pools (aka 3 waterfalls & 4 pools)
the next day (tuesday), we rented surfboards and headed down to a local beach to check out the waves. it was great! i think i caught more waves in like 30 minutes of surfing than i had in years in va beach - nice to have waves that were shorebreakers and came in fairly regular sets. we hung out on the beach for awhile and then headed back to the condos to get ready for the luau. the luau my mom selected was "the feast at lele", and it was so fun! this particular luau is located on the beach in this cute little village area in the south end of lahaina. when we arrived, we were immediately given kakui (sp?) nut leis and mai tais. we took a few sunset pictures and were seated at our table and immediately began to sample an abundance of delicious cocktails. the food was great and unique, and it was served family style, which was nice. they had some delicious drinks, like the lava flow (similar to a miami vice) - so good! throughout the evening, there were dancers in various costumes that represented the different cultures of polynesia. it was such a neat experience. the fire dancers were the best :) we stuffed ourselves and were all feeling pretty good by the time the luau was finished!
beautiful sunset
Christmas card??
crazy dancers (better pics on kel's nice camera :))
wednesday, we snorkeled around our place (best snorkeling was right near where we were staying - it was amazing to swim out like two feet and see tons of fish!) and then went to lahaina for lunch at cool cats, a great burger place. then, we headed back to the condo, relaxed and worked out for a little while, and then got ready for dinner at mama's fish house (coolest restaurant, awesome food). it took awhile to get to mama's, but on the way, we saw a few rainbows - even a double rainbow - which was exciting and got to see a beautiful sunset from the restaurant. it was the most uniquely-built restaurant i've been in probably ever. almost like a treehouse-type place - very eclectic but not tacky at all.
lahaina marina
after mama's dinner - again, kel has better pics (with people) on her camera :)
thursday, each couple ventured out on their own to do whatever activity they wanted. we decided to rent a jeep and surfboards and head down to the beach we had checked out earlier in the week. so fun! we had a great time surfing and just hanging out , relaxing outside. i did get stung by a sea urchin, which temporarily dyed the bottom of my toe blue, but still managed to catch a few good waves! that evening, we rode with kel and ash into lahaina in the jeep to check out dinner options. billy and i ended up back at cool cats after walking around and finding out the place we were hoping to go was closed, while kel and ash opted for a bar crawl :) luckily, we ran into them as we were leaving town, so we gave them a ride back after they had gotten lost in a sketchy area. we all hung out for a bit, playing games, but we were pretty tired most nights, so we didn't stay up super late at all.
the hula girl
honolua bay
looking toward the ritz
beautiful mountain view from the beach
me catching a wave
billy catching one of many he caught
not so good at the self-timer :)
friday was sadly our last full day in hawaii. we got up, spent some time at the spa (there was an amazing infinity pool there, relaxation room, etc - so nice!) and then took the surfboards and paddleboards out to the same beach, where by now, we started to recognize the regulars there :) the paddleboarding was much more difficult than anticipated! but we still all had a great time and survived with minimal injuries (kel and ash had some coral scrapes, but most of us fared ok). it was so nice hanging out with everyone, having a couple of beers on the beach, and just enjoying the gorgeous weather. dad, mom, kel, and ash went on a sunset cruise on the hula girl (which if we had had one more day there, i would've loved to do - they said it was awesome), and bryan, kristin, billy, and i hung out at the condo, trying to do some damage to our alcohol supply :) we all met up at whaler's village, a cute outdoor mall area, and had a good dinner at the hula grill. yummy poke tacos and bread with chili sauce! definitely love how they eat in hawaii. we had a great last dinner together and are so grateful for the fun trip with so many great memories.
this picture makes me smile!
tired :)
our jeep - different driving a 4-door one!
awesome
haha
saturday, we snorkeled for a little while to use the last bit of time we had left with the rental and then got our stuff together and ready for our trip back home. it was so sad leaving, but we'll be excited to go back at some point and to see everyone again for the 4th of july weekend coming up soon. we are so blessed with a sweet family and generous parents who took us on the amazing trip!!
on our way back, we received some sad news that a dear family friend had passed away that day - completely shocking and unexpected. it was so sad, and we were thankful to all be together, but i know it'll be a tough road ahead, especially for my parents who were very close to them. here's a sweet picture of the darbys from our wedding (and one of him with my dad, probably talking about the structure of the room :))...we'll miss you mr darby.
1 comment:
Love all your pictures! Were we there at the same time???? We were at the Ritz in Kapalua from May 16th-22nd. How crazy would it have been to run into each other!
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