The Other Side of the Road

Hey y'all - happy Monday!  We had a good weekend, with some cooler temperatures (60's).  Although there were big rain storms in the area, we got very little here at the house.  It felt good to get back into a routine after our trip.  It seems like my re-entry/recovery time from a vacation gets a little longer with each passing year!  Throw in a time change, and I think it took me a full week to feel like life was normal again.  Our trip was so relaxing that it took some extra motivation to get back to household chores!  

For today's post, I just have the usual random mix of photos from my camera roll from the weekend and previous week too. 

I'm not sure where I got the idea that we should go to Hawaii for every 5-year anniversary, and if you asked me in 2011 if we would stick with that plan, I might have laughed.  But like many things in life, this tradition has been a happy surprise.  It has given us a big trip to look forward to every few years, and has made our anniversaries feel like big events in the every day life of marriage.

I thought we would go to Oahu for our 25th, since that is the island we haven't been to yet.  The timing and pricing just didn't work out for that destination though, so I decided to go back to where it started in 2011 - Maui.  

We loved the Fairmont Orchid so much from our trip to the Big Island in 2021, so I booked the Fairmont Kea Lani on the Wailea coast of Maui.  We both agreed that this hotel earned a top spot on our "best of" list.  We enjoyed lounging at the pool and beach, and ventured out a few times to restaurants and Heleakala National Park.

I hope you enjoy exploring Maui with us.

After loving the Fairmont Mayakoba and the Fairmont Orchid, I was delighted to see that the Fairmont Kea Lani was available through Costco Travel.  I was debating between this hotel and a larger one down the beach, and I'm so glad I chose this one!  It was just a little smaller, and never felt crowded.  The service was outstanding, the room was immaculate, and everything was so beautiful. 

This post about our anniversary trip to Maui will focus on our time around the hotel beach and pool.  We spent a lot of time just relaxing and lounging, and really could have stayed at the hotel for the entire stay.  

One activity on our vacation that I highly anticipated was the outrigger canoe experience.  This cultural experience is complimentary with the hotel, and we were lucky to get a reservation.  On Thursday morning at 7am, we met on the beach with the crew.

Uncle Sol and Keira briefed us on how we would push the canoe into the water.  There was another couple that went on the ride with us.  

I am lacking somewhat in the coordination department and was a little stressed about getting into the canoe while in waist deep water with it moving forward.  I overshot and hoisted myself into the canoe, slamming my back against the other side of the canoe.  Anyway, I recovered quickly and started paddling, but that muscle in my back is still letting me know that I hit it hard a week later.  

Once I recovered my composure, we all got into a good rhythm of rowing.  The water was calm, the sun was rising, and it was already turning out to be a magical experience.