Kihei, Maui
The second leg of this trip began with our last morning at the Sheraton Maui, wrapping up a week with Kelley's family celebrating Bill's 80th birthday. Great trip, great location.
We had to wait until 3pm for our Airbnb to be ready, so we relaxed in the hotel lobby until it was time to leave. The Uber took about an hour to our new place in Kihei.
Kihei Check-In
Friday, Jan 23
The Kihei area is totally different from the Kannapali resort area. Densely packed condos, more traffic, more people, strip malls and restaurants everywhere. We're right across the road from the ocean though. A great spot for the next two weeks.
We explored on foot after settling in and found a place to eat at Coconut's Fish Market. Great food. Then we walked across the street to the ocean and watched the sunset. The first one we've actually seen since we got here over a week ago. At the Sheraton, the sunset was blocked by the nearby island of Lanai.
Afterwards, walked down the beach for a while, then headed home to watch some TV.
Groceries & Beach
Sat, Jan 24
Saturday morning we finally had some decent coffee in the condo, then walked next door to a new cafe opening up. The owner was super chatty and excited about getting his new restaurant and brewery going. He'd previously operated in Lahaina but lost that place in the fire. Great coffee and a really good breakfast sandwich.
Afterwards, we walked to the closest grocery store wearing our backpacks to fill up. About a 90 minute round trip, but eating in the condo will save us a lot on food. Everything is crazy expensive here. $10 for a dozen eggs, $7 for a bag of tortilla chips, $7 for the cheapest loaf of bread, $7 for a tiny mayo, and on and on. We fit $150 worth of groceries in our two backpacks.
Just Hanging Out
Starting Week of Jan 25
This week, we've slowed down and are just living local. No car... just walking and exploring, but mainly sitting by the pool, eating at home & catching the sunset every day at one of the beaches across the street.
The folks back home are experiencing a different kind of winter.
Daily life includes:
- Morning coffee while we catch up on screen time
- Trying to decide whether to go to the beach today or sit by the pool
- Sometimes walking next door for coffee and a chat with the restaurateur at Koa Brewing who is trying to get his new business going
- Walking either north or south along the road and picking a beach to sit on
- Stopping by the ABC (convenience store) to pick up misc supplies
- Occasionally, making the long (3o minute) walk to Foodland to buy a backpack full of groceries (not cheap, but cheaper than ABC)
- Finding a place to enjoy sunset every day (usually, across the street from the condo)
- Making dinner and watching TV
- Do it again tomorrow
One day we rented a surfboard, and Ronnie gave it a shot. He caught a few good runs, but man, it was exhausting! We only lasted a couple of hours with long breaks between attempts. Kelley tried body surfing, but the waves weren't great for that. The real highlight was watching a local family with their sweet pit bull. That dog swam all the way out past the surf multiple times and climbed right up on the board with her dad to ride the waves back in.
Most of our meals were homemade in the condo to keep costs down. We made fish tacos, quesadillas, salads, spaghetti, and other simple favorites. But we splurged one night and returned to a spot we loved from our last visit: Cafe O'Lei Kihei. It's a great upscale restaurant in the area.
Our last full day in this spot, we spent the afternoon across the street at Kamaole Beach Park II. Another lovely, relaxing day. We wrapped up with dinner at Koa Brewing with our friend from next door.
Tomorrow we've got an early start (haha, 10am) to pick up a rental car and our friends Scott and Carie at the airport. Then we're off to our next adventure in Wailea.
Next Stop, Wailea
Ronnie