Maui

On By tandtonthemove
Aloha! We’ve spent the last three days exploring the island of Maui and have experienced quite the spectrum of scenery. We were first greeted with 80 degree weather, blue skies, and palm trees; a stark contrast to what our friends and family have been experiencing in New England! Initially, we did not book a rental car but upon arrival, we realized it would be a crucial factor in us seeing the island, so off to Hertz we went (and it was worth every penny). Our first day was spent traveling the west side of the island along a lush, remote road that could very well have been the set of Jurassic Park. And bonus: we unknowingly timed our drive perfectly and were able to view our first Hawaiin sunset, which was spectacular. Then we spent the night in a hotel room (splurge!).
I think we said the word “lush” at least 45 times on this part of the drive
First official Hawaiian sunset!!
Our second day consisted of driving the “Road to Hana” which is incredibly beautiful. We would recommend the drive to anyone visiting Maui, but be warned, it’s not a short drive (we spent most of the day in the car). Halfway through the drive we stopped at the Seven Sacred Pools in Ohe’o, which is a multi level swimming area connected by waterfalls. From the pools, we did a 4 mile round trip hike up the Pipiwai Trail and ended up at the largest waterfall either of us have ever seen. Sometimes nature’s magnitude leaves you speechless and this was certainly one of those times.
The drive to the Seven Sacred Pools
Taylor feelin and lookin like a 10/10
Seven Sacred Pools (pt 1)
Seven Sacred Pools (pt 2)
Waterfall on Pipiwai Trail

Flash forward to us checking into our first hostel of the trip:

I will preface this with the fact that we spent many nights in hostels in 2014 while traveling Europe. For those who aren’t frequent hostel-dwellers, the accommodations are usually rooms with multiple bunk beds (if you’re feeling extra boujee you can get a private room, but that’s usually not in our budget). We soon realized that 2014 Tristan and Taylor, are not quite 2019 Tristan and Taylor.
We forgot just how… unique…the bathroom cleanliness is when you are sharing a space with dozens of other people (most in their high school and college years). Basicially, you just have to be ok wearing shoes all the time, unless you are in your bed. The people and staff were all very friendly, but there was a small mishap on their part with our first night’s reservation, which resulted in us not only sleeping in seperate bunk beds… but seperate ROOMS. So for those of you wondering how we won’t get sick of eachother on this trip? We now have the perfect solution…. hahahah just kidding (but honestly, maybe not?).
Ok back to the recap…
On our third day, we rented snorkel gear and got to experience swimming next to real life sea turtles! Then we finished the afternoon with $3 happy hour mai tais, which did not disappoint. 
Safely on shore away from the sharks
Today, our fourth day here on the island, it was really starting to feel like home! Tristan finally got to go surfing, a huge bucketlist item (bonus points to him for not getting injured by a shark or coral reef). Then, we went snorkeling (again!) and swam next to a sea turtle (again!). We didn’t think much of it when the lifeguard came by on his jetski…. but then we were told there were reports of a shark swimming close to the shoreline. 
Needless to say, Tristan calmly started swimming back to shore, while Taylor frantically doggie paddled (for some reason, even though she is a fine swimmer) with snorkel mask in hand. She admits it wasn’t her most badass moment, but she wasn’t trying to get eaten by a shark this early on in the trip, let’s be real.
After we narrowly escaped a potential shark attack, we decided the best way to calm our jitters was to have some piña coladas (for obvious reasons). After quite the exciting time in Maui, we depart tomorrow for Kauai! More updates to follow!

-T&T