Old Lahaina & Luau

   After our trek up to Haleakala Summit to watch the sunrise, we took a good 2-3 hour nap.  A nap much needed after a 3am alarm blaring, making sure we were awake enough.  We had decided that evening we were going to enjoy dinner and a luau in old historical Lahaina.  If you want to go to a specific Luau, book early!  We were deciding between Old Lahaina Luau and the Feast of Lele, but Old Lahaina Luau was booked all three nights we were in town.  And we were on the waiting list for Feast of Lele too! (one small group before us).  Anyways, we got it for Thursday night.  It was about a 40 minute drive from Kihei, right up the western coast.  The view was beautiful, laced with a few scenic lookouts and snorkeling spots.  We stopped a few times to take pictures ;)

   When we arrived a Lahaina, we were greeted with a bustling touristy town, but full of history.  It was once the capital of the Kingdom of Hawaii and then later on a big global whaling industry.  Full of little shops to look at, the pier--once for whalers, now for the snorkeling tours and a giant Banyan Tree.  It's said to be the largest Banyan tree outside of India... and it's very difficult to get a whole shot of the tree.  All those roots/trunk behind the bench on the left are actually part of the same gigantic tree.  Impressive!  We continued to checked out the shops and got myself these board shorts that a pattern appears when it gets wet at Crazy Shirt.  Very cool!  There's a lot of local artists that you can admire in their galleries too.  If you're lucky, the artist is there and you can chat them up... and ask where they went to snorkel with the sea turtles to get his inspiration.

Hawaiian course with Roast Pork & Poi

   Finally, it was about check-in time for the Feast of Lele.  The luau is located right on the beach and a gorgeous view of the sunset.  The tables are a slight series of tiered steps that help you see past so of the previous tables, so I would say that most seating is pretty good.  As you enter, you are greeted with Orchid Leis (yes Matt, they are real) and either a Mai Tai or a non-alcoholic guava-something punch.  Both were delicious!  The menu... plentiful! so I highly suggest you pace yourself and possibly not eat all of it because there's likely to be another course after.  The luau is setup into 4 parts, one for each area--Hawaii, New Zealand, Tahiti and Samoa.  Each culture is experience through 3 food dishes and dance show.  And dessert to follow!  Unlimited drink specials... so after I polished off my Mai Tai, I went for the Hawaiian Punch (midori, amaretto, southern comfort and malibu?)... either way, it was delicious and filled with my favorite liqueurs. Lastly, the classic Blue Hawaiian.  Matt even got a Lava Flow, which is a pina colada overflowing with strawberries!  Just like a delicious smoothie... very dangerous ;)
All it in all, it was a very pleasant experience.  There was some down time if you were down taste testing your food and the show for that island was done as well... so we could walk around a little and take pictures before the next course came out.  When we had booked the Luau they asked is we were celebrating a special occasion (our honeymoon) so our dessert came out in a special display with congratulations and aloha written in chocolate.  Yum!