Maui 2011: Above and below the cloud

After the great snorkel trip Saturday, Sunday was a much more laid back day. We hung around the condo a while, and then headed south to do a bit of shopping, and a bit of beach, ending up at Polo beach in Wailea. Another beautiful beach, and for mid day on a Sunday, there was hardly anyone there. The surf was much, much calmer here than at Big Beach, and there were many novice boogie boarders and body surfers. This beginner caught our eye:

Katie and Daryl spent a couple of hours hanging out in the surf. I, having broken the second swim suit clasp of the trip, had to stay put and hope my bathing suit top wouldn't fly open! At about 2:30 we headed back to Kihei for a late lunch. Word of warning to future visitors - lunch pretty much ends by 2 p.m. and most places close for a couple hours before dinner. Our late lunch habit is not one to emulate in Kihei. We chose the Maui Coast. The restaurant (Spices) was deserted, but we sat out in the shade, and shared their appy platter. Fantastic! Coconut shrimp, Calamari slices and chicken. Something for everyone, well prepared, hot! Yum!

We also decided to go out for dinner Sunday, and chose Cuatro. Katie was leery of the menu - mostly fish, beef or pork. The single chicken dish contained ham! However, she ordered it, with rice instead of potatoes, and was impressed. Everything here was great - beautifully prepped food, attentive service, fabulous experience. I had almost given up hope of a good meal out for the trip. When we quit reading guide books, and just picked places, we did much better.

Monday we headed up Haleakala. Another of the many 'must sees' that we had not managed to see on prior trips. The road up to the top is pretty winding, and I would suggest taking gravol with you. The trip is fabulous and totally worth the drive. We were about half way to the park when I realized that I had left my camera at the condo! Un-freaking-believable! Katie had her little Sony P&S, and saved the day!

From Haleakala, we went to Makawao for some shopping and lunch. Once again, we pushed that 2 p.m. deadline. We walked into Casanova at 1:58, so we were seated and allowed to order lunch. Good thing too, because this was another really stellar meal! Daryl got his t-shirt fix in (bought 5!) and Katie stocked up on gifts for friends. At an art gallery, we saw some beautiful sunset photos from Big Beach and Makena Beach, so we headed back south to pick up the camera and get to the beach for sunset. The sky was full of angry clouds, and the sun not visible for the first hour, but it did eventually break through and gave us a great show. Not having my tripod last night was a problem, and the photos suffered somewhat because of this. I wish that I had been able to have the camera higher (I had it on top of my camera bag, at beach level), and been more mobile to change positions more. But, the display was still awe inspiring, and I won't complain any more than that!