I had the opportunity to spend five delightful months in Hawai’i, as an Asia Pacific Leadership Program fellow at the East West Centre back in 2012. During my time in Honolulu, a close friend from my undergrad years, who lived in mainland US, made plans to visit me in Hawai’i with her family. She suggested Maui and selected a hotel on the beach.

The highlight was catching up with her and getting to know her twin toddlers better, who were more excited about tent canvases and lamp shades, than the sunset or beach.

We did enjoy short excursions outside the hotel we were staying. Her husband, who was also a batch-mate from undergrad years, had rented a car and we decided to drive along the famous road to Hana. Our stopping points were more dictated by the needs of the toddlers, anticipating whether they needed to run around a bit or get a snack break etc. And, we didn’t go beyond the Garden of Eden, as the kids were quite tired after our walk around the garden.

One of the points we stopped at was the Ho’okipa lookout, where we watched surfers in action.

The Garden of Eden stop was great, because while it was a beautiful garden to explore, it also turned out to be fascinating for the little ones and allowed them to run around as they wished.

Keopuka rock overlook

As we drove back to the hotel, we saw dark clouds on the horizon and anticipated a heavy rain.

However, fortunately for us, back at the hotel, there was hardly any sign of rain clouds and we experienced a beautiful sunset as we had dinner at the restaurant on the beach.

Have you visited this beautiful island? What was your favourite part of your visit or what would you like to explore, if you visit it for the first time?

[Linking this post to The Weekly Postcard and Faraway Files #30]