Magical Maui

If you lean towards the same tendencies as I do, then you'll love Maui. The island is known as Mama Maui for her good vibes, lush energy and nature. I stayed in Makawao in the Upcountry and also Haiku. Those are the best spots in my opinion to be close to Upcountry, travel around the island, and very centrally located to get to Paia the beach town and if you want to go check out the resort areas, beaches elsewhere and other beautiful nature spots. Otherwise I would've stayed in Hana to explore more at that end - the day trip Road to Hana is so much for one day if you love lush nature the way I do. They say that the Hana end of the island and Kipahulu look like the Hawaiian villages of old, from 50 years ago. I can see why, the nature is so lush and everyone has a fruit stand - talk about communal slow living and knowing your neighbors, it is so beautiful.

We did lots of hiking everywhere in the national parks and on trails. You can read all the guidebooks for the detailed activities but what I can offer is a list of all my favorite places that I visited as well as all my favorite health & wellness activities. I've had two friends visit since I left and although I didn't get to meet up with them there, I loved that they got to experience the same magic that I did. I met amazing people, whom I wrote about more in detail on my instagram photos - each photo has a detailed post and summary. Below is just a glimpse of how elated I was upon arrival and some of the majestic settings we explored - lavender farms, beachside, great big expanses of blue and green. I really didn't want to leave - I can easily see why some people never go back to where they came from - we have friends from high school who grew up on our island in the Atlantic Ocean who have lived there for 10 and 20 years. We figure it must be the island vibe - from one island to another - in our case, from the subtropics to the tropics. Yes to slow living and the spirit of aloha. It was one of the few places that have felt like home to me.