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| Out for a drive, we stopped to see this beach. |
How excited we were to hear we had a confirmed reservation for a whale watching expedition for tomorrow (Saturday) at a 1:00 pm sailing.
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| Maui has one beautiful beach after another. |
We secured a reservation with help from our new friends, Marie and Terry at Maui Travel Partners, condo and event booking agents, whom we met last week at the Whalers Village Museum. With the busy holiday weekend, we were thrilled to secure a spot.
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| Many beaches are left in a natural state with vegetation growing along the shoreline. |
If we don’t have the glorious opportunity to see whales, we’ll consider the fact that we had a pleasant boat ride in Maalaea Beach. The outing is arranged through the Pacific Whale Foundation, which has a location in this area, an organization devoted to the preservation of marine life as indicated below:
“Pacific Whale Foundation is a non-profit organization founded in 1980 to save whales from extinction. Our mission is to protect our oceans through science and advocacy. We are an international organization, with ongoing research studies in Hawaii, Australia, and Ecuador, and are active participants in global efforts to address threats to whales and other marine life.”
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| The colors in these hills looks more like a painting than real life. |
The foundation states there is a 97% likelihood that we’ll see whales. But, a little skepticism is in play based on the fact that the whales usually arrive in the islands in December which explains why we waited so long to book this event.
Perhaps, we’re a few days off or not. We shall see if “safari luck” prevails once again tomorrow afternoon.
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| The top of a mountain peeked through the clouds. |
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| In a matter of minutes, the clouds began to disperse for a better view of the mountaintop. Notice the buildings at the top of the mountain. |
This morning I’m off to the post office in Kihei to mail the package to the first house in Pahoa containing the excess food and supplies as a result of our zealous purchases at Costco in preparation for Hurricane Ana when we first arrived.
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| On the road to Kihei, we stopped at this park to walk along this wood walkway. |
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| The walk on the wooden walkway. |
We decided that even if the cost to mail the package is $50, it will be worth doing so. In estimating the cost of its contents, I calculated a total of $125, certainly worth the effort.
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| Breathtaking shoreline. |
Now, I’m rushing to complete today’s post including more new photos, drive to the post office with the package and return for another fabulous day.
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| We stopped to investigate what appears to be a Chinese cemetery. |
The weather is perfect, the doors (with screens) are wide open welcoming the cooling breeze, and we’re content as we can be knowing that every single day of life matters and is as fulfilling as we choose to make it.
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| A headstone with two stones left as a token of love, by a visitor. |
We hope our family and friends in the US had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Happy day to all.
Photo from one year ago today, November 28, 2013:
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| One year ago today, as we wound down the time in Kenya, we anticipated the ferry that was necessary to take in order to get to the airport located on the island of Mombasa. For details from that day’s story, please click here. |