Erin and Adam

Day 2 on Maui took us on a 9.5 hour drive around the island on the well known road to Hana.

Hana Hwy

We started off with a book from the bed and breakfast that had a bunch of places along the highway to stop and see some great sights.  It had something for almost every mile.  We got a little confused at the beginning because APPARENTLY along the highway the mile markers reset after about 15 miles and we didn’t know that.  So when it said there was something at the 11 mile marker it was actually the SECOND 11 mile marker.  Who knew?

The road is incredibly windy and Erin had to stop reading while riding due to car sickness, so we would pick one stop, go there and then pick the next.

A View Along The Road to Hana

One of the places that was suggested for stopping for some good banana bread was Aunt Sandy’s Banana Bread.  According to the book it was better than one of the more well known stops a few miles down the road.  So we stopped and got a little loaf to try and I have to say, I’m glad we did.  I can’t say it was the best I’ve ever had, but it was pretty darn good.

Aunt Sandy's Banana Bread

A little way down the road from Aunt Sandy’s (away from the main road) was a baseball field with restrooms attached.  We had to stop by there (for some reason, with a pregnant lady, bathrooms became a common theme) and I got chance to see a Hawaiian baseball field.  Let’s just say it’s not exactly a high priced complex, but it definitely gets the job done.

Hawaiian Baseball Field

Now let’s fast forward to a stop between miles 22 and 23.  According to our guide book there would be “an awkward trail on the ride side of the upper falls, but if you go past it for 5-10 squishy minutes there’s a much heavier untapped falls and pool just above the diversion ditch that’s taking much of the lower falls’ water.  When the trail gets to the elevated waterway, you have to walk along it, then across. Only 100 more feet upstream is your prize.  The falls make an ideal photo op – you know, the ME UNDER A WATERFALL shot.”

So off we went, and it was definitely muddy.  We were both wearing sandals (not exactly the best choice for hiking) and I lost my sandal in the mud more than once.  I went barefoot for a while until we had to cross some areas with a decent amount of rocks.  My tender feet weren’t quite ready for that.  It was a bit more than 10 minutes when we found the elevated waterway that we had to walk across, so we did.  At this point we’d probably been walking 15 minutes.

We walked the 100 feet and saw no waterfall.  So we kept going…and going…and saw this.

Not exactly an under the waterfall shot.

So we had to walk back.  A failed 25-30 minute hike to see an awesome waterfall and getting quite muddy in the process.  We crossed back over the elevated waterway.

When we finally got back to where we started we decided to take a picture with the waterfall that was there at the beginning.

We’ll continue the Road to Hana a little later.

Well, that was a nice 9 day vacation if I may say so.  A welcome respite after 2.5 years of grad school, boards and generally needing to get away from work for a while.

We flew into Maui on Tuesday afternoon and stayed until Saturday morning, enjoying our time at our bed and breakfast.  There were some oddities though, note below.

Main Door to Our B&B

You’ll notice that the caption is “Main Door to Our B&B” but you’re looking in the bathroom.  You didn’t read that wrong.  The front door really did go into the bathroom.  Don’t know who laid that out but it was unique to say the least.

Let’s move on to the actual fun stuff.

The first full day we had we headed out to Molokini Crater to go snorkeling.  See some reef and later swim with some sea turtles.  We can’t post any pictures from the actual snorkeling because a) our digital camera isn’t waterproof and b) we didn’t have a disposable waterproof camera at that point.  BUT, here are a few from the trip.

View towards Molokini

Whale Tail

Backside of Molokini Crater

A Little Whale Action

So not only did we get to swim, look at coral and sea turtles, but there was definitely a LOT of whale action going on.  We got to see some pretty good jumps and a lot of tail.  There was a constant lookout for whales through the entire trip and frequently we weren’t disappointed.  All in all a very worthwhile way to spend about half a day in Hawaii.  As you can tell, it was a beautiful day for a boat ride.

And here’s the best part…

Hours in a boat, in the sun, and barely a pink body part between the two of us.  The tops of my feet got a little pink and Erin got some pink cheeks (face) but all in all a very good trip for two incredibly white people.

And last but not least, a picture of the pregnant one on the back of the boat trying to avoid the sea sickness.

The Pregnant One

Up next…

The Road to Hana

So the deal on the house didn’t go through.  The agreed upon price was fine, but the amount of repairs that needed to be done to bring the house up to a minimal code was too much for the owners to do in their mind, so we walked away.

BUT, today we signed a lease on a house just maybe a mile away from where we live.  A nice 4/2, 2300 sq ft-ish with a big back yard and a 2 car garage (not that it’s going to be used for cars).  Assuming it is what it seems it is I think it will be a good place for us to live for a few years.  We begin moving in on March 1.  We plan to be totally out of our current house by mid-March at the latest so our landlord can get this house ready to sell.  We’re sad to be leaving this house but really happy with where we’re headed (well, bummed about not buying but I think we found a good place).

So we’re in limbo.  The house inspection brought a few question marks out that need to be addressed.  Just small things like a furnace leaking gas, power lines low enough to electrocute you easily, rafters coming away from the beam.  Little stuff like that.

So now we get to ask the sellers to make around 15-16k in repairs to the house.  We’ll see how that goes.  That’s one of the waiting games.

The other waiting game is for January 26th.  That’s when we’ll be getting on a plane and heading for the wonderful land of Maui, Hawaii for our 9 day vacation.  I could tell you that I’ll miss work and such, but I’d be lying.

When we get back we’ll get ready for Erin to start working on the 8th (BECAUSE SHE PASSED HER BOARDS!).

So after a bit of haggling between the two sides, we’ve agreed to an offer with the owners to buy the house.  What an interesting process.  Lots of paperwork, lots of curious decisions and we’ve only just begun!

Now begins the fun of inspectors and repairs and all that fun stuff.  We’re pretty sure there’s going to be roof damage that needs to be fixed/replaced and some of the outside wood is going to have to be replaced without a doubt but hopefully it will all go smoothly.  We need to get this all done this next week because we’re HEADED TO HAWAII next Tuesday!

So today Erin and I did a big thing.  We put an offer down on a house!  Seems a little strange to be telling someone you’ll pay them a whole lot of money.  We also feel like we’re not old enough to be doing this.  But I guess we better start getting used to it.

We’re going to be doing a bit of work to it, putting down new carpet/hardwoods, remodeling a bathroom, painting and making a few changes to the back yard, but the house for the most part is pretty good to go.  Got to get it all done by the time the little one comes along in July, but that shouldn’t be a big problem.  Most everything inside should be done by the time we move in in late March.

Erin and I are proud to unveil our new site for everyone!  We’ll be updating this fairly regularly to keep everyone updated about what’s going on in our life.