Hostel life

Dear travel diary

Thursday, July 1, 2021

At 5:00 a.m. and a few minutes later, some alarm clock rang in the room. Fortunately, I was able to fall asleep again and sleep more or less until about 6:30 a.m., as people kept coming in and out.

At 8:00 a.m., I got up, went to the toilet, briefly lay back in bed, and then went outside because it was already getting hot in the room at that time.

In the courtyard, we met Corina, who told us that Dominik had emergency checked himself into the hospital during the night. A bleak message in the early morning. Apparently, he had been having unbearable stomach pain for a few days. Fortunately, the examinations did not reveal anything serious, so he probably just had bad food. The three of us women then made pancakes, which you can make for free here at the hostel, and ate them while Dominik finally came back.

Manu was so kind to offer us a ride to Ho‘okipa Beach in his car since he had to go in that direction anyway. We naturally didn't turn down this offer and arranged to meet at 12:00 noon. Shortly before that, however, he knocked on our door and asked if we wanted to quickly go with him to the town of Makawao. A small village with charming shops on both sides of the street. We strolled together (Manu, Corina, Chantal, and me—Domi stayed at home) through the street and the shops. Then we drove to the beach, where Manu dropped us off, and we made ourselves comfortable after admiring the turtles in the sand. Sunbathing, swimming, and eating were on the program until Manu came back and also lay down with us for a short while.

However, he had to leave shortly afterwards and drove us back to Paia. While Chantal and I explored the different stores and shops, Corina went back to the hostel. In Paia, all the stores are more than charming and invite you to come in. When we arrived back at the hostel, the three of us girls treated ourselves to a glass of wine and planned the next few days together with Dominik.

After dinner, we jumped into the hot tub, which was so hot that we almost got burned. It was still cozy though, and the shower afterwards was also nice.

Friday, July 2, 2021

What, already 7:00 a.m.? So, I already missed the first half of the match. However, Chantal and I snuck out of the room afterwards and met with Corina in the living room, where we were able to watch the match on the television. It was a bit unusual to watch the game in English and not hear the emotional commentary by Sascha Ruefer. It took longer than expected, and it was only when Oyarzabal shot the round ball into the net that we could finally have breakfast. In the meantime, we also FaceTimed with the three Luca's, who are still on their North America tour.

We made pancakes again and enjoyed the peace and quiet a bit before going on the first tour of the hostel. Today's tour takes us to Ka‘anapali Beach and the town of Lahaina.

So, we first drove in the minivan to the Foodland in Lahaina to get supplies if necessary, and then we went to the beach. There, we could sunbathe, snorkel, or do other activities for a total of three hours.

Since it was quite windy and we were getting covered in sand and leaves from the trees, we looked for a shower on the nearby hotel property, as Jarot, our driver, had told us about it. However, we couldn't find it, so we decided to jump into the pool of the 4-star hotel to clean ourselves roughly. We felt almost fresh afterwards and continued to the town of Lahaina. Like almost every other town, it was a charming little village with various shops on both sides of the street. We stayed there from early evening until sunset.

After visiting the different stores, Corina, Domi, Chantal, and I made ourselves comfortable in a park right by the water and watched the sunset. In the meantime, we were entertained by Pua, a nearly two-year-old dog, who kept bringing us her ball to play with. Pua was pure entertainment as she even did headers and ran after her ball like crazy.

After the sun said goodbye, we returned to the bushes where Jaret drove us back to the hostel. We had a late dinner and then hopped into the hot tub in fine rain. When it got too hot for us again today, I filled out my application for the vaccination certificate, and we sat comfortably in the lobby.

Saturday, July 3, 2021

I slept a bit worse last night and woke up several times during the night.

Since Francesco kindly signed us up for today's tour, we had a spot on the bus. Today was the Waihe‘e Ridge Trail.

Before departing, we rented a car so that tomorrow we can explore Maui independently with five people (Esther is arriving today).

At around 10:00 a.m., we started with our guide and his dog Bella, a huge bulldog. However, he said she loves hiking and always has a big smile on her face. And it was true. Bella ran ahead, came back, and did this throughout the entire trail.

The trail led us through a beautiful green landscape with a view of the ocean and the coast. However, the visibility got worse, the path got muddier, and the fog got damper. Once we reached the top, it started raining during the meal, so we headed back.

I almost fell asleep on the bus because I was so tired. Afterwards, Corina, Chantal, and I went down to Paia to a café before enjoying the sun in the courtyard and sweating even more in our sports clothes.

When Esther joined us, we had pasta for dinner and then jumped into the hot tub in fine rain. When it eventually got too hot for us today, I completed my application for the vaccination certificate, and we sat comfortably in the lobby.