Have Dog, Will Travel!

My first post from the ground in quite a while! Well, I’m still in transit, hanging out in the Los Angeles Admirals Club lounge. It costs 50 bucks for a day pass; that is, unless you politely ask someone to pull you in for free as their guest. I went the latter route, and am now enjoying a steaming cup of coffee (light with sugar) as I wait for my 730 AM flight back to Boston.

Maui!

8 days of beach, beach and more beach.

I’ve been a proud member of couchsurfing for about 2 years now. After hosting something close to 50 people in both New Orleans and Buenos Aires, I finally surfed while on Maui! Twice, in fact. As my brother Jon pointed out, “Surfing couches and water all in the same day”.

My first host, Jackie, was actually born and bred in Maui (and that’s quite a bit more rare than you might think!). She lives in Pa’ia (which is pronounced Pa-ee-ah, not paella, as I maintained for most of the time I was staying there). My first couple nights were spent in a hostel in Kahului, Maui’s main population center (think New Jersey), and her place was a great improvement.

Some highlights, via photo/video:

Prehistoric hiking in the Iaio Valley. This spot really reminded me of Machu Picchu. That tall column barreling into the sky is a spot-on replication of Juaynu Picchu, the monolith that stands above the Incan ruins.

Hucking cliffs at Twin Falls

The Commando Hike. My friend Kristin lived on Maui for a summer, and sent me a super-detailed itinerary of everything to see and do. She describes the Commando Hike as "the best and worst experience on Maui". I'll admit, it was pretty intense! The craziest part of the hike takes you through a lava tube in pitch darkness, scrambling up walls and swimming through tunnels.

It was unlike anything else I’ve done, and definitely my favorite thing on the island. As for being the worst part of my trip… I’d say the enormous red splotch on my back gets that award. Next time I’ll bite the bullet and ask a random on the beach to apply some sunscreen!

I tried windsurfing for the first time! It was great! I definitely plan on additional outings this summer in Thailand.

Over the weekend, we headed out to Hana, all the way on the West side of the island. Jackie had a paddling competition out there, and we camped out at a friend’s house. A pretty solid night of partying ended in crashing some 45-year old guy’s party on a neighboring property. I started a limbo competition, which quickly turned into drunk people falling to the floor.

Hana Paddling Competition

And a last parting shot of Maui!

Pretty damn close to paradise.

From here, it’s Boston>Maryland>NY>Europe! I leave for Dublin in exactly one week: not nearly as much time as I would have liked, but my bags are packed (I’ve been living out of my backpack for a month) and my tickets are bought (as of last week).