Today's port of call was Kahului on the island of Maui. The only printed material given on this port was a small town map telling us that the city's center was 1.5 miles from the pier, and there would be no free shuttle. If you wanted a taxi or an Uber, they would be available in the Maui Mall across the road from the pier. It was a good 15 minute walk to access the mall.
The ship was docked at Pier 1, the only cruise ship pier we think, by 8am. There were plenty of tours offered here which included the main attraction of Haleakala Crater and Ocean Center for $300 for 6 ½ hours. The other all day tour was Hana Road Adventure with a picnic lunch for $440 and 8 ¾ hours. Molokini Crater and snorkel was a unique tour for a small group and ran $260 for 7 hours. Easier excursions were a Maui beach transfer for 5 hours, at $140, and Maui tropical plantation and Ocean Center was $210 for 4 hours. A tour we have done in the past included Iao Valley for 6 hours and $300. Our first stop there was wonderful with spectacular views. However, the second time it was raining so hard we could barely see three feet ahead of us. Luck of the draw.
Usually, the historic town of Lahaina was the major destination of Maui. But as we all know there was a devastating fire destroying the town in August of 2023. An excellent island map had a warning printed that parts of Lahaina were in a restricted area and please respect Lahaina and its residents during this healing and rebuilding time. Good advice.
The weather was much the same as in Honolulu, only there was less of the trade wind breezes early on. There was a small chance of rain, which never did happen, at least where we were located. After staying on the ship most of the morning , we headed off to town by 11:30am. This harbor is a commercial one that is quite active. So most of the walk was channeled into a maze between two chain link fences. We remembered from two years ago that old tuna fish cans were left here and they were for the feral cats. The dock workers filled the cans with kibble for the wild cats, who in turn, kept the rodent population down. Today we saw the cans, but there was not one cat to be seen. A few roaming chickens were about the only birds we saw.
The Maui Mall was located almost directly across the road from the pier. The largest stores we could see were Whole Foods and Longs Drugs. Longs has not been changed to a CVS here yet. Once you walked deeper in the mall, we discovered several stores like TJ Maxx, a Ross, several hair and nail salons, a theater, and many restaurants and fast food outlets. If you were up to a longer walk, there was a Walmart and also a Costco nearby.
We saw two strange things today. One happened to be two young girls shoplifting in TJ Maxx. They were followed by a store employee, and although we did not see it, we are sure they were stopped. Then later in the afternoon, we saw a young boy, maybe 10 or 11, catching two roosters in the parking lot. One chicken looked dead already, and the other was making a heck of a racket. We figured there could be two reasons for the kidnapping. These were games chickens that could be used for fighting, or they were plump birds suitable for dinner. Who knows???
The first time we visited here back in 2022, we located an Italian restaurant further uphill. It was a long and hot hike, but they advertised wood-fired pizza. When we found the café, they informed us they had stopped serving pizza for several years, but had failed to update their website. So we continued our search back in the Maui Mall. That's when we found a place called the Ale House, the local sports bar and grill. It became very obvious that this place was a favorite of the locals.
We were happy to be seated right away because it was hot outside and this place was air-conditioned. Of course we ordered Longboard draft beers and one 14 inch Hawaiian pizza. To be honest, it wasn't the best crust we have had, since it was probably a thin frozen shell. But the toppings made up for it. They did not have Hula pie, but they did have a photo of a cookie dessert with a cute name. It was like "shut your mouth cookie". We were thinking cookie like on the ship….small with some ice cream and whipped cream. Well, this came with a 6 inch pan with one gigantic chocolate chip cookie baked on the bottom. There were two generous scoops of vanilla ice cream on top, which were smothered with whipped cream and drizzled with chocolate sauce. Good grief…..we ended up eating the whole thing.
One good thing about dining here was that they had free wifi. It was the perfect timing to update the Kindle, which worked just fine for the hour we spent there.
Time to move on, we did some shopping for a few things at Longs, then headed back to the ship. All aboard was 6:30pm, and there were some folks running to get on at the last second. We did have a good view of the pier as well as the Kahului Harbor and bay. The waves were breaking on a reef along the coastline, but there were no nearby beaches like you find in Honolulu. In the distance earlier in the afternoon, we did spot some of the kite-flyers over the choppy waters. The ship left in the dark after 7pm. Time for dinner.
There was an Hawaiian Dinner featured in the Lido Market at their regular time of 5:30 to 8pm. It featured fresh seafood the tropical flavors from fish that had been brought onboard in these Hawaiian ports. The dining room menu did have Blue marlin as one of their entrees. We were happy with one shrimp appetizer and spring rolls. One of us had the chicken noodle soup again, which is preferred over a creamy or cold soup. They make it better here with using small curly noodles that are one inch long. They stay on the soup spoon for a change. Not like spaghetti soup on other ships. Main entrees were one cheese-stuffed cannelloni and kalbi ribs with a side of crispy French fries. Chef Kamal paid a visit to our table and we thanked him for doing such a great job with the menu. He admitted he was responsible for our veal chops last night, which we thanked him of course. He said anytime we wished something special, please contact him and he will help us out. He even left his card with us. Very nice fellow. Finally dessert was one serving of a panna cotta with berries. Light and refreshing.
The World Stage entertainer this evening was Katie Clarke, who may be the same Cat On The Keys that plays in the Ocean Bar. One good idea we have spotted is the fact that ½ hour before the shows begin, the Cruise and Travel Director has a Q&A on the following port. What a good idea, since many folks get their seats early in the lounge anyway.
Tomorrow will be our final Hawaiian stop in Hilo on the island of Hawaii. It will be strange visiting Hilo last, since it is always first. We do hope the rain stays away for one more day.
Bill & Mary Ann
