Oh rejoice, one and all, the Green Monster (aka my putt-putt of a '95 Toyota Corolla) has been resurrected and has been running like a dream. Thank goodness, because Hana and I took a chance and caught a lucky break when we decided to throw caution to the wind and spend the day driving all over the other side of the island and taking the Green Monster upcountry!
We began our morning with a stop at Leoda's (now serving breakfast!).
{Hana in line to order at the counter}
{the glowing display case filled with sweet treats and freshly baked bread}
{a veggie benedict on homemade veggie patties with poached eggs and breakfast potatoes}
{Hana's humungous egg and bacon sandwich}
After our breakfast of epic proportions, we waddled back into the car and took off down the highway towards Wailuku for our first tourist attraction: Iao Valley.
Driving towards the valley, Hana immediately noticed the knot of clouds we were headed towards. It's best to visit Iao Valley early on during the day before the clouds overhead open up and unleash a storm. However, it's the regular rain that keeps the valley emerald green and lush.
Iao Needle (pictured below) is one of the most recognizable Maui landmarks. The rock outcropping is 1,200 feet and was once used as a lookout by Hawaiian warriors during the war with King Kamehameha.
{Hana at Iao Needle}
The park's paved path leads you up towards a lookout to the Iao Needle or you can follow the path down through a manicured loop of Hawaiian plants and down towards the river.
{heading up}
{sister selfie at the top}
{photo op along the rainforest trail along the water}
After seeing the sights and pointing some tourists toward the trailhead (there's a great hike past the lookout), Hana and I got back into the car and headed toward the slopes of Haleakala crater for our next stop: the Ali'i Kula Lavender Farm.
{protea}
The drive up to the farm was a celebration: the Green Monster made it uphill without overheating! Cool mountain air spilled in through the open windows, along with the scent of eucalyptus. We drove further up the base of Haleakala, where it seemed as if we were driving up into the clouds.
When we rolled up to the entrance of the farm, we got our kama'aina discount (my beat up car plastered with stickers from local restaurants looks very, very local) along with a map and three sprigs of fresh lavender.
We parked our car on the upper slope of the farm, then headed downhill into the gardens.
{Hana resting at the Secret Garden}
This was a first visit to the Lavender Farm for me as well, and I loved the peace, quiet and coolness of this tranquil place. The whole farm hummed with the business of bees and there were flowers and plants of every kind--not just lavender.
Well kept trails meandered through patches of lavender and landscaped pocket gardens.
{more protea plants}
{Hana with sunflowers in the vegetable garden}
Throughout the farm, there are lookout points punctuated with sculptures and gorgeous views of the Maui valley.
{praying with Buddha}
We began our walk of the farm by heading downhill, passing through the vegetable garden, then climbing up along the Peaceful Path above the farm office and crafting area towards the upper fields of the farm.
{the photo doesn't do it justice, but this is the view of the Maui valley from the Ali'i's Landing}
{panorama from Ali'i's Landing}
{yoga with Buddha}
{walking back down the farm}
{looking up towards the top of the lavender farm}
After our walk through the farm grounds, we went into the gift shop where we may or may not have bought some amazing gifts for some amazing people back in California (shh!).
We may have also gotten something for ourselves...Lavender Lemonade!
{refreshing!}
We left the farms just as a soft drizzle descended from further up the mountain.
We drove back down through Kula and headed for Makawao, the quaint cowboy town. Hana and I walked up and down main street and took a rest at the Aloha Cowboy store.
We met up with Bryan and our friends (just finished playing the disc golf course up at Poli Poli) at Polli's Mexican Restaurant for chips, guac, tacos and burritos before heading back to Lahaina.
On our way home, we made a second stop to Leoda's so Hana could pick up a sweet treat for later (chocolate macadamia nut pie). I can't wait to try it!
Now, offline for movie night!
Goodnight!
