The first part of our journey began in Maui to celebrate with the other T-Mobile Peak award winners. We stayed at the Sheraton in Kaanapali and had an amazing room - right in the center of the hotel, facing the pool and the ocean just beyond that. We saw many beautiful sunsets and could always scope out our lounge chairs from our room prior to hitting the pool.
We were treated like VIP's throughout our trip - yummy meals, fun evening activities (awards dinner, beach party and a luau), tons of swag (t-shirts, hats, all kinds of fun stuff waiting in our rooms when we returned each night), cool activities (ours was a trip to Hana, see more details below) and last by not least, all winners and their guests received a new pair of Maui Jim sunglasses and each winner received the newest T-Mobile device (which launched just three days before we received it) - the HTC HD2.
I think our biggest highlight in Maui was the Road to Hana trip. Even though we've been to Maui multiple times, we've never driven to Hana. We had a great time and were able to see so many cool things in this lush, jungle part of Maui. The best part is that we were able to do a complete loop, vs. a there and back trip, since a portion of the road, which was closed after a 2006 earthquake, re-opened last year. We stopped at multiple water falls, a black sand beach, a flower farm, Charles Lindbergh's grave site, the Seven Sacred Pools (large natural pools made out of a grouping of rocks on the coastline), and the Tedeschi Vineyards. It was a long day but we were happy to see so many cool sights all in one trip and to have a tour guide who filled us in all sorts of interesting tidbits along the way.
The T-Mobile portion of our trip came to a close on Wednesday and from there, we hopped on a small plane to meet my parents, brother and their friends Patti and Dave on the Big Island. By small plane, I mean a 9-seater...I had never been in such a small plane! It was a cool experience though and it was nice to not have to wait for tons of people to board and exit.
We spent the day exploring the town of Kona, watching dolphins jump around in the water off the coast, checking out a painted church, and then heading to the condo they were renting in Waikoloa. The condo had a huge lanai that wrapped around almost the entire condo - with its great views, we spent lots of time relaxing out there with everyone.
The highlight of our Big Island time was our trip to the Volcanic National Park. While there isn't any lava to see on the island right now, we were able to check out the Mauna Loa and Kilauea craters, as well as walk through the Thurston Lava Tube. On our way back, we were able to stop at a black sand beach as well as swing by Ka Lae, the southern most point of the U.S. And what road trip wouldn't be complete without stops at Killer Tacos and Donkey Balls for snacks?
On Friday, everyone headed back to the mainland and Corey and I headed back to Maui for one last day, which we spent shopping at the Shops at Wailea and stuffing ourselves at Mama's Fish House.
All in all, we had a wonderful trip and can't wait for our next Hawaiian adventure. In sticking with our yearly Hawaiian getaway tradition, we better start planning a trip for next spring or summer!
Here are some photo highlights. A bunch of other great photos can be found on Corey's Flickr site (the full set or just the highlights) and a few others on my Flickr site.
View from our deck at the Sheraton. I could get used to this!
Our new favorite treat - Yogurt Land at Whaler's Village. I think we enjoyed this yummy yogurt three times in our 5-day stay.
Members of the T-Mobile leadership team handed out the HD2's during our awards dinner. That's CEO Robert Dotson running the phones out to each winner.
Throughout the Sheraton property, you'd see signs that T-Mobile folks were there...like this light projected on the side of the hotel.
One of our first stops during our Hana tour.
One of the beautiful waterfalls along the Road to Hana.
Corey and I at a black sand beach during our Hana trip.
Hanging out at the Seven Sacred Pools.
Look what we found on our walk back from the Seven Sacred Pools - I think this is all one tree!
Our teeny, tiny plane to Hawaii.
Persson family shot on the lanai. That's not a fake backdrop behind us - it's the real deal. Now you understand why we spent so much time out there!
View of Mauna Loa from the Visitors Center.
View from inside the Lava Tube.
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