Maui 4: Aloha Haleakala

Oh wow!  Have you ever woken up at 3 am so you could drive 2 hours on a long crowded road in a packed-to-the-gills rental van to greet the sun at the top of a volcano?  Well, thanks to my Aunty Kathy, we got to do just that!  She had made a reservation to reserve a parking spot for her rental van so we could go greet the sun.  I was thankful we were all able to crowd into there!  There was Aunty Kathy, Uncle Joe, cousin Tyler, cousin Lani, cousin Jovi and his girlfriend Rita, Aunty Nani, Steve and I for a total of 9 people in a van made for 7.  Tyler got stuck in the trunk.  Lani squeezed on the floor between feet.  The back row was all wonky because 2 of the rental van's back seats were stuck in a recline position.  It was dark and the road was very twisty as we ascended the many switchbacks up the mountain.  After we got quite a ways up there, Tyler was moaning and not feeling well.  Jovi, acting as our bus driver, pulled over and we released Tyler from his miserable prison in the trunk so he could vomit.  Apparently, car sickness is no new thing for people who've made this drive.  We configured a new way for Tyler to be able to sit up front by maneuvering a mini cooler between the driver and passenger.  I suppose I could admit here that the passenger situation in this vehicle was totally illegal and we couldn't hide that now with Tyler up front.  It gave Jovi a little anxiety as he knew any cop would be likely to ticket him after counting the heads in the van.  Luckily, we were never stopped, and we made it to the parking lot at the top a mere 10 minutes before the sun's arrival.  It was cold up there, we could see our breath.  To get a better view, we went on a short hike up a nearby hill.  Upon arrival, Steve and I set up our cameras and began shooting.  It was sorta like being in the airplane again because we could see all the clouds below us.

As the sun peeked over the horizon, people all around began to cheer and you could hear shouts of "Aloooooha!"

phone camera selfie

Uncle Joe offered to take a pic of Steve and I.  Or was it selfies of himself on my phone?

Most of my cousins were hunkered down deep into the blankets they brought.  To me it was a little cold, but not too bad.  I was comfortable with my hood on.

Because of how cold it was up there, everyone rushed back to get in the car and start down the mountain.  My cousin Jovi not only drove our caravan, but he gave us all kinds of fantastic historical stories. He is a tour bus driver on the island of Oahu and I loved hearing from him!

We went out to breakfast at Sam Satos, a noodle house known for their fried saimin.  I liked the warm broth and the little pastries they sold there.

Afterwards we got dropped off at our inn to rest and relax.

Later that evening, I was ready to set out again and see if we could spot some sea turtles.  It was the time of day that the Hanohanos recommended.  We tried our best to find our way there, and luckily, our landmark- the cat lady- happened to be there making it easy for us to find.

Cat lady and the 20 something feral cats swarming her pick up for food

As Steve and I walked up the beach, there one was!  A sea turtle was enjoying a nice rest on the beach.

I was super excited because I've never seen a sea turtle before and it was one of the few things I wanted for sure to see when I went to Hawaii!  We actually saw a few more turtles making their way onto the sand as well.  They are way bigger than I thought they'd be.

After our excursion to see the turtles on the beach, we found a cheap place to eat... McDonalds!  I actually just wanted to stop there to try their Poi Pies.  That's something you'll only find in Hawaii!  By the way, they are very delicious!