Pa'ia Bay

John and I love to stay in small places when we travel. B&B's, vacation condos, beach cottages. But we've found, over time, that you have to be prepared for a few clunkers every now and again. Places that don't live up to your expectations or even come close to their description. Places that weren't bad, just weren't really what you wanted them to be. Places that would have been great if they'd just been in a slighly different location.

When we first got to Kihei, and we walked into our condo at the Kealia Resort, I was pretty sure that I was going to put it into the category of "nice, but not quite up to our standards". But then John found the beach towels all ready to go to the beach, and I discovered the coffee filters and coffee grinder so that I could engage in my favorite morning ritual with some fresh Kona, and I noticed some of the hand-stitched pieces in the bathroom and the quilts on the walls. It wasn't the Ritz-Carlton, but it felt homey and warm and cared about. And it overlooked a beautiful beach. So finding the Kealia Condos was clearly a victory (they are quite affordable as well) in my book and when it was time to check out, I didn't completely want to leave.

Our next stop was supposed to be a small cottage adjoining a vacation house on Pa'ia Bay on the north shore of Maui. When we got there, it was cute enough, but it hadn't been cleaned and wasn't ready for us. John made a phone call to the group that manages the property and suddenly we found ourselves moved from the cottage to the house (no one had reserved the house while we were scheduled to be here). We wouldn't have complained about being in a cleaned up cottage, but to be upgraded to the house was really a wonderful surprise. It's a two floor place that could probably house 8 people. And it has a full kitchen (complete with coffee maker!) and a wireless router. And John's favorite part? It has two available hammocks.

Paia Bay House

And the sleeping accomodations aren't bad either... you go to sleep and wake up with the breeze and the sound of the ocean. If you're me... this is paradise. In Chicago, I never get to sleep with the balcony door open because the city noise makes it hard for John to sleep. Here, I get my fill of wonderfull breezes.

A Room With A View

And the view? Well, it isn't so bad, either! Before we went to bed, we sat under the palms and watched the stars. Amazing!

A View of Paia Bay

We face west and when the clouds aren't too bad, you can see Halemahaina. And there's nothing like doing a little surfing off your back porch.

John and His Laptop Take In the Ocean View

We've had a number of people gently rib us about not being able to leave our computers behind and enjoy the world around us. But at the end of the day, we are what we are, and we like having out digital windows on the world , being connected to our friends and family, being able to post to a blog. As I put this post together, it's still not quite 8 in the morning yet, I'm having coffee on the lanai and enjoying a spectacular view. Peaceful and connected. It may not work for everyone, but it certainly makes us happy.

We're also within easy walking distance of Paia -- a nice little town with a host of cute restaurants, coffee shops, bakeries and touristy galleries. We felt much more at home having dinner last night in the Mexican/Southwestern style restaurant we found than in any place we went on the southern part of the island. I can see now why people like northern Maui. Southern Maui is a wonderful place to visit, but the north shore feels like a place you could really settle into and live.