The pool was busy -- but it was the perfect place to grab a cold beverage, read over the day's activities, and soak some sun. After a few hours, we headed back to our stateroom and changed into dry clothes for dinner. The girls were rushing us -- they were just itching to go check out the Kid's Club! We had stopped in there during our tour of the boat and the kids activities started at 7 pm. Sure, girls, twist our arm to let you play... Ronnie and I kissed them goodbye and headed back to the deck to enjoy the sunset while the boat sailed away from port.
The next morning, we woke up in Maui! And we got to sleep through the trip there. As soon as we were in port, we were off the boat quickly and on the shuttle to pick up our rental car for the day. We had a full day of sight-seeing planned. And we got all the local details thanks to another friend of ours letting us borrow her Hawaii Revealed book series.
First up, Haleakala National Park.
The drive across the sugar cane fields of Maui and up the mountain was GORGEOUS! We stopped at the lower park ranger station to pick up the girls' Junior Ranger books. The girls worked on their books as we made our way to the upper ranger station. Soon they were giggling in the back and saying nēnē. We were like what? Apparently, nēnēs are geese and the state bird of Hawaii.
Eventually, we made it to the top. The upper ranger station is situated on the summit of the volcano and had the most breathtaking views. Perfect for the girls to finish up their books while we explored. The ranger told us that the park was home to more endangered species than any other NPS park. Absolutely amazing!
Our drive back down the mountain was just as rewarding as the drive up.
We eventually made our way back to the ship and to the pool. Again, the kids swimming, cold drinks, and a book while soaking in the sun... Nothing more relaxing!
And yet again, the girls were chomping at the bit to go to Kids Club after dinner. Geez, twist my arm to have my husband all to myself again!
The next morning, it was time for one of Ronnie's picks. And he did a lot of research to find a place that would take Sarah... We were zip-lining!
As you can see, Holly took to it like a fish takes to water. Sarah had to warm up, but by the last run, she was bummed that there weren't any more turns.
We had a few more hours before we need to turn in the car, so we headed to the beach. It wouldn't be a trip to Maui without a visit to the beaches, right? We had a great time lounging and watching the kite surfers eat it. Actually, not all the kite surfers... you could pick the locals out from the tourists.
We headed back for the boat and bid goodbye to Maui. Instead of heading to the pool, we went back to the room to get cleaned up. The girls went to Kids Club while we had dinner in the main dining room. Ronnie and I thought we had a special dinner planned... yeah, I messed the date up. But we had a lovely dinner enjoying the Maui coastline and sharing a bottle of wine. After dinner, we went to one of the ship's shows. Again, just enjoyed having my husband to myself while the kids played.
Up next - the big island!
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