Maui, Hawaii Day 3, Welcome to the Four Seasons Maui

August 5th

I had an 8am meeting which meant that I had to set my alarm clock in the 2s, which felt absurd but it had to be done for me to be able to come on this trip. I did in fact set it for 2:55am, only to check at 3am that the call was not even for my team, confirming with a quick ping to my manager that I didn't need to join. He mentioned that he was impressed that I did the 3am wake up again, but I think you can always do something in the short term, and if this is what it took for me to even be in Maui right now, absolutely no complaints and I would do it over time and time again.

Soon enough, the sun was rising, the coffee was brewing, the hostel mates were waking up, and breakfast was being served. I could not believe how fast the time passed and the day started and finished. It was so amazing that I had the hostel room to myself because I was able to take calls in there and work from my bed in those early hours. I did have to check out around 10am so I took a momentary break to finish getting ready and pack up all my stuff. I finished my work day at the surfboard table, standing and working as I went through all the started work and note where I left off for my teammates to pick up as I would be off the rest of the week. There was Hawaiian music on in the background that brought a bright joy to my tasks until I clocked out of work for the day at 11:45am.

I had a couple of items to do in the city of Paia before leaving. I loved the city I stayed in so much. The cutest, most quaint town with the perfect amount of shops and tourist feel but not to the point it's overridden with wealth. I stopped in a few stores, trying to find the perfect gift for Regan to thank her for inviting me on this trip, for my souvenirs, postcards and now magnets. I was also keeping my eye out for jewelry, and there was one store but it was right when I was heading back but I did not want to be late meeting Regan. So, as it wasn’t calling to me and I was content with my postcard, coaster, and lunch, I made my way back to the hostel to get picked up after a very rushed but productive shopping and lunch session. 

Back at Aloha Surf Hostel, I was just starting to get comfortable there, talking to people and making friends just to leave in minutes. I could totally see myself coming back and staying there. I thought it was a great hostel and I loved that they had free day trips every day that I could’ve joined if I had the time. I have so much life to live, I feel incredibly grateful to keep checking off these big name places like Maui, I am beyond lucky and blessed. And the blessings aren’t even close to being done on this trip.

I ubered to the airport and waited in arrivals for Regan. She landed early but her plane was on the tarmac for almost thirty minutes, but it was perfect because it gave me time to sort through the many Road to Hana and Haleakala photos I took the last few days. Plus, I could see the mountains from where I was sitting and I was content being somewhere with such a beautiful view. 

I finally found her at baggage claim and gave her a big hug. Next to her was a bell man, wow the Four Seasons service on the ball right away! We chatted while he got Regan's bags, I learned that she got sick on her trip and she told me all about it. I felt for her as I've gotten ill in Asia a time or two, and was impressed she was still able to swim with such speed and grace. We got all of her bags from the carriage, and once we got everything, we headed to a parked black SUV. Inside was water and cool towels, and talked the entire thirty minute drive to the hotel. We had a long conversation about reading and books and catching each other up on life.

I felt like there was so much to catch her up on, my life has been beyond eventful, which is cool that it still feels that way. When I was in college, I felt like I always had major life updates, calling my family often and always having something big to share. Whether it was trips, scholarships, jobs, fairs, events, etc. But, I did not let life sizzle down post college. I won’t let life become plain and boring for me. I hope that I can always find things to fill my day and evening, to bring joy and excitement to my life. 

We got to the hotel and it was quite the grand entrance. We got lei's put around our neck right as we stepped out of the car. While they were draping it around our neck, the staff giggled and said “Just like in White Lotus”. And having not seen that show, I thought well they must have had a similar greeting. I knew that show was about hotels, but little did I know that the first season of White Lotus was filmed here. I would soon learn at check-in because they had a “Tour the Hotel for White Lotus Scenes” and that's when it clocked to me that this place was the show.

Our room wasn’t ready right away, so we walked around the hotel to check it out while the staff were getting the last touches ready. The place was massive. We walked around the lobby and to the pool area, and then to see the ocean. While on the pool deck, we ran into Kate, Lucy, and Walsh sisters and got to say hello to them. They were sitting in the Sanctuary, this private sunbathing area for your group that faces the ocean and has the most incredible view of the West Maui mountain. I was so excited to enjoy our Sanctuary tomorrow for my birthday. Yay. How cool that they are giving Regan all of this as a part of the stay's package.

We got a text while saying hello that our room was ready, so we went back to the front desk, because we both wanted to change and get in all the swimsuit time we could before the sunset. We didn’t even need to grab our bags because they were bringing that up for us, we just had to take ourselves up to our room, 563. We were smack dab in the middle of the resort and had an unobstructed view of the ocean. I was in awe of the massive room - a bathroom with two sinks, tub, shower, and a toilet where you can close the door. It had french doors to the bathroom. It was so grand. Then, there were two plush queen sized beds, a couch and table, a round dinner table, and a patio with some furniture on it. The sun was shining so the water was glimmering blue. On the table was a picture frame of Regan with a Hawaiian surfboard next to it and some sand and treats on the bottom. At first, I thought it was a toy surfboard and picture frame. I thought it was a bit odd that they were attached to each other, making it difficult to pack. But, I would soon learn that the entire thing was chocolate. Imagine, packing that in your suitcase to head home and it completely melting on you haha. 

We relished in the suite and slowly got our stuff set out. It took a minute for our bags to get to our rooms, we were antsy to get our suits on and hang out by the ocean. Our bellmen was super nice and recognized Regan was an Olympian and then looked to me and asked what I did, and I said accounting haha. He said that I should find a job at the Four Seasons because you can stay at the hotels all around the world for only about $200 a night. Even places like Bora Bora and Dubai. Noted.

We got on our suits and went to the adult pool because our Sanctuary reservation began the following day. We got some nice spots looking out at the mountain, ordered food, and talked the whole time. A lot about her swimming, her earnings, how she got this offer, relationships, and all things about each other. I was all ears and enthralled by her stories. She had tacos and I snacked on a fruit platter and some chips and guac. I was content with just water and wanted to save my appetite for the dinner tonight at a nice Italian place on the resort. The time flew by and sure enough we looked at the clock and it was 5pm and we thought we should probably get back to the room to shower, dress up, and get out for photos before sunset. 

We got in a rhythm where Regan showered first (as she should), and we both get ready pretty fast because we have quick routines so we were out the door by 6pm. We were matching with blue dresses and it was so cute! I had seen photos of Regan's other trips and knew the girls liked to dress up each night and I didn’t want to come unprepared and thank god I packed what I did because we did in fact dress to the 9's each night.

I brought my camera down and was excited to use it, but sadly I couldn't get the flash to work, which is a bummer because it would have looked great with the sunset. I soaked in the views while we had our photoshoot because I was not only stunned by the view I sat in front of all afternoon, the sunset created the most beautiful painting in the sky. It was majestic to see and made the place feel so magical.

Again, a moment that I felt my life wasn’t real. I was with these Olympians, taking photos and watching the sunset at the Four Seasons Maui. What is my life? Whatever it is, I’m incredibly grateful for it and feel profusely indebted to the gods. 

Dinner time! Tonight we were celebrating Alex’s birthday because hers was July 31st and she hadn’t fully celebrated yet. It worked out well to celebrate her tonight with my birthday being tomorrow, which we had another dinner planned. I was excited to get to know the girls more. I love making new friends, asking questions, learning about people's life, and telling them about mine to find commonalities and relate to them. We talked a lot about swimming and I found it interesting to hear their perspective. I've been following the sport for 10+ years, and knew a fair amount, but I was learning a ton of new terms, people, and events.

The dinner was great! The restaurant was nice to accommodate to my diet, there was even a vegan dessert so although I stuffed myself with a drink, eggplant starter, chili olive oil pasta, and a virgin lava flow shot, I thought 'when in FS Maui' I should try the dessert. We were the last to leave the restaurant because our reservation was at 8pm so it was pretty late and we took so much time enjoying each course of our meals. Our bill rang up over a thousand, but the package covered this dinner which was why we splurged. That meant the server got a $200 tip. Dang. That's money. Should I pick up a weekend hustle waiting at a fine dining place? Maybe that'll be one of my many retirement jobs. I was tired from getting up early for work and same with the other girls from their meet and travel days so we went straight to bed. Plus, we had an early wake up call for my first birthday request - morning yoga!