Can I PLEASE take off this blindfold now? Lahaina, Hawaii is too Beautiful to miss…
“Can I PLEASE take off this blindfold now? I think the rest of the passengers get
the idea that you are trying to surprise me and I am starting to get motion
sickness.” As I take off the
silky blindfold and quickly realize my husband gave me one of those blindfolds
with the fake wide eyes on it with way too much mascara, I look around and
don’t even bother looking for clues as to where we are headed. I overheard my husband ask the flight
attendants to remove all the in-flight magazines.
Let’s rewind 48 hours ago… I came home and could only open our
front door half way. I squeeze my
head through the opening and look down to see luggage blocking the door. Either my husband is leaving me or he is
throwing me out. I yell for him to
come let me in and as he whistles down the stairs, I realize it is none of the
above. He must be up to
something! He is always up to
something! “What is going on
here? Why is our luggage
out?”
“Our luggage is out, my friend, because we are
going on vacation. A surprise vacation destination. Don’t worry; I have taken care of
everything. I packed your clothes,
stopped the mail – by the way – our mail delivery personal, which I
found out does not go by mailman anymore, the hard way – is very nosey
and insisted on knowing our travel
destination so you are banned
from speaking with him till we get back.
I have my mother coming over to water the plants, and your boss gladly
gave you the time off since you have worked for 3 years straight with not one
day off.”
All I could do was stand there speechless. I am a bit of a control freak so taking all
my powers for planning, organizing, and scheduling, is like taking Wonder Woman’s
indestructible cuff bracelets away!
What’s that saying? If
you can’t beat them, join them???
I guess I have to put my trust in my husband’s hands that this
surprise works out a bit better than the time he thought it would be perfect to
move our home office into our bedroom (even though we had an actual room
designated for a home office) and we could not sleep
because of the hard drive’s hum, the blinking lights from the monitor,
and the fax machine’s ringing.
So, now we are back on the plane, 3 hours into the flight
and my husband will not give me a clue.
“How much longer till we land?” He told me that we had quite a bit of
time left but assured me that it would be worth it. My husband went as far as having the
pilot announce that it was time for me to put my iPod on before he continued
with ANY of his announcements. How
my husband managed this one, I may never know!
Nine hours later, we were getting ready to descend onto
land. I wish I could tell you I had
a clue as to where we were vacationing but my husband kept the window closed
the whole time! When
we landed and the seatbelt light went off, the flight attendants emerged with
flower leis on over their uniforms.
Ah-ha! Hawaii! I felt so bad because I saw my
husband’s expression sink. He
made it 6000 miles from home with no clues and the surprise is blown by a
couple of leis! HAWAII!!!! We are in Hawaii! Yahoo! “What island are we on? Not that it matters because every island
is perfect in Hawaii! Thank you so much! I love you! What’s next? Where are we staying? The Four Seasons? The Hilton? Marriott? A Hawaiian Vacation
Rental by Owner? Oh
wait, did you use Villa4Vacation.com??? Remember that great rental by owner we
found on Villa4Vacation
for your parents’ 40th anniversary in the US Virgin
Islands???”
“Better.
I didn’t use Villa4Vacation.com
this time… I found this
quaint island Bed & Breakfast for us to stay at. They serve fresh mango muffins every
morning with locally grown Kona coffee, and outside our lanai is a
waterfall! And, we are on the island of Maui, and
heading to Lahaina.”
After getting our bags, picked up our rental car, and
grabbed an island map, we were on our way to our Hawaiian B & B. As we pulled up the palm tree lined,
rock covered driveway, both of our jaws dropped. We could not believe what was in front
of our eyes. I looked down at the
pamphlet my husband gave me in the car and then looked up at the b & b. The
photo on the cover must have been taken about 50 years ago because what was in
front of us was much much different.
What stood before us made the Bates Motel look like a 5-star luxury Hawaiian
Villa Rental! What a dump! How could we stay here for 10 days? This was one of those moments when my
husband and I could read each others’ mind telepathically. He put the car in reverse and started
down the dirt road lined with brown, limp palm trees. We headed back towards the airport, both
of us speechless. I did not want to
say anything because in all actuality this is typical for my husband. His heart is in the right place but his
execution never seems to go his way.
Before we know it we are
back at the airport and I decided to go up to the young girl dressed in the
Hawaiian muumuu directing tourists.
With a smile on her face the whole time, she explains
that because of some triathlon event this weekend, all the major resorts are
booked but she can recommend a few Hawaiian vacation
rental homes that are available where you rent by owner. I went over to the airport wi-fi area
and logged onto the public computer.
Villa4Vacation.com,
which is what my husband should have done in the first place but if I harp on
him now it would take away all the good he was trying to do, has tons of homes
available right here on Maui and even in Lahaina. I take the information and get back into
our rental with my husband. Without
a word about the Hawaiian Bates Motel, we start calling the homeowners to book
a vacation rental
directly by owner. We did not
have time to email the owners since we were in airport limbo so thankfully, Villa4Vacation lets you lookup the
homeowners’ phone numbers. When
the homeowners ask when we need the vacation
rental for, they chuckle when they hear “in about an hour,” but
are very accommodating. We manage
to rent a Lahaina
vacation rental home directly by owner within walking distance to Lahaina
Harbor and the historic Banyan Tree.
The Banyan tree is treated like a member of the community because it has
played a significant part in Lahaina’s history. King Kamehameha III celebrated a
birthday beneath its leaves, as it was a part of the ceremony that celebrated
Hawaii’s inclusion in the United States of America. You have to see it to
be believe it! Today it provides the shade for the
celebration of life in Lahaina. Beneath it you’ll find craft
shows, music events, meetings and those who are just in search of a nice place
to sit and rest.
The Lahaina vacation
rental home was stunning!
Bamboo furniture throughout, traditional Hawaiian décor,
and more room than our home back in New Jersey! We decided to unpack our clothes and
freshen up so we could go explore the town. My husband did not have much planned
because the unfortunate bed & breakfast assured him that activities and
excursions were part of the rental package.
“Oh my goodness! What did you pack? Did someone tell you the weather goes
down to 30 degrees in Hawaii? Where are my skirts? My beautiful sun dresses? What about my straw floppy hat that
looks more like I am attending the Kentucky Derby instead of
sunbathing?” What did my
husband do? After a few minutes of
rummaging through my luggage, I manage to put together a somewhat, less than
noticeable, out of place outfit.
Wool dress slacks and a camisole??!! A shopping in Lahaina we will
go!
We spent the evening walking around Lahaina and
talking with locals about must-see Maui hotspots. By the end of our stroll, we have 10
days worth of activities and excursions booked. We even got invited to the
neighbor’s for a laulau.
Think the yellow chiffon bridesmaid’s dress from my sister’s
wedding will be appropriate for such an occasion? I was already trying to figure out how I
was going to bike down Mount Haleakala in my winter white turtleneck sweater
and gym shorts! Every time I
thought about my luggage, I just shook my head. At least I can wear my Walk-for-a-Cure
sweatshirt and jeans in the car and just pump the air conditioning when we
cruise the Road to Hana.
Thankfully we were able to rent a Lahaina, Maui
vacation rental where we ate our first few days of meals in private because
it took me a few days to purchase a summer wardrobe. Going to dinner in my high school
cheerleading uniform may be frowned upon in Maui! I know I would be frowning. (And, I am
not quite sure what my husband was thinking when he packed that. Well, I do but after the 12 hours of
isolation on a plane, a trip to the Adam’s Family Bed & Breakfast,
and a winter wardrobe for a Hawaiian vacation,
that was NOT happening!)
All in all, our trip to Lahaina, Maui was
a blast. The Lahaina vacation
rental home was absolutely perfect and the homeowner even stopped by with a
fresh pineapple on our last morning!
I will wait till we land in New Jersey to start harping on my husband
about not using Villa4Vacation.com
for this trip. That is the Hawaiian
way! Mahalo, Lahaina, Maui! Aloha `oe… A hui hou kakou. Thank
you, Lahaina. Farewell to you, and
until we meet again!
http://www.villa4vacation.com/rentals/Lahaina.aspx
http://www.villa4vacation.com/rentals/hawaii.aspx
http://www.villa4vacation.com/rentals/maui.aspx
http://www.villa4vacation.com/rentals/US-Virgin-Islands.aspx