I was eating an omlette and stirring a cup of English breakfast tea by the window as we glided towards Maui. I was up earlier than I thought, jet leg from a few days earlier had left my body clock somewhere over the mid-west US, meaning I was raring to go as the rest of the ship rattled slowly to life around me. A small splash about 20 metres from the window caught my attention. I kept my eyes focused on the spot a few moments, trying to see if it was anything interesting… A whale! A huge humpback whale broke the surface, rearing out of the water and crashing onto its back.

I dropped my spoon.

No one around me seemed to react… hadn’t they seen it? Why were they not dropping their spoons too? Another whale joined the first… then another… and another. I stopped counting at 16 whales! As more people noticed, more forgotten cutlery dropped, this was breakfast entertainment at its best. As we dropped anchor, the pod surrounded the ship, leaping in turns as I, and countless others, poured onto deck with our iPads and cameras trying to get a good shot.

Although these are pictures of humpacks in Maui… I didn’t take them. I’m not that good!

After an hour, and an inordinate amount of snapshots and shaky video (far to blurry to be displayed here!), I made my way to shore. I had 9 hours in Maui and I wasn’t going to waste it!

I have found one of the best things to do when in a beautiful place for a very short time, is to ask a taxi driver where their favourite place is, and go there! That is exactly the choice I made that morning. I had befriended a young woman from LA a few days earlier, she was travelling alone like me and desperately wanted a day of relaxation and fun on the island. With our other halves across the other side of the world and valentines day only hours away, we decided mimosas and brunch were in order.

The taxi driver set off on our 30 minute drive to Napili bay, just north of Lahaina, Maui, and his recommendation of the best brunch on the island. Vibrant green mountains erupted into view, haloed by the morning mist. The mist leant a pastel quality to the colourful flowers, that I knew, in a few hours time would be blindingly bright.

Handing us a complimentary bottle of water and wishing us a nice day (along with pointers for how to get the local wifi!… what a gentleman!) our driver dropped us by some stone steps leading to white sand. Still only 8:30 am, families were starting their descent down the rocks to the sheltered cove, ready for a lazy day of sun. The sand was virgin. The ocean was quiet and clear. Tall palm trees cast mosaic shadows on the beach. It was a little bit of heaven. The sand was so inviting I decided to write a valentines message to my hubby-to-be instead of the valentines card I had forgotten to post!

Spying a rental hut, I traded $15 for some snorkelling equipment then settled on my towel to watch the sun creep higher. Maybe an hour passed, maybe two. I’m not sure, but I was only interrupted from my reverie by my acute awareness that my 5am omlette had worn off and the earlier talk of mimosas was calling to me!

Just above the rocks lies The Sea House. (http://seahousemaui.com/) The Sea House is a fabulous establishment set on the edge of Napili bay with wide glass windows staring out to the turquoise ocean and shaded by giant palm trees. Espressos and bagels ordered, we sipped mimosas and chatted about all sorts. I enjoyed getting to know my new friend. I still find it strange how circumstance can bring two complete strangers from different continents together so far from their homes so effortlessly. I truly don’t know what we talked of. Most likely college, men, favourite cocktails… whatever. I do know it was easy and relaxed.

Morning stretched to afternoon as we swam, snorkelled, dozed, ate and drank. I should probably say we achieved something worthwhile, but we didn’t. We just had a lovely time. If you get chance to visit maui, do visit Napili bay. Do have a bite to eat at The Sea House and watch the surfers paddle through the cove.

Napili Bay

The taxi ride back to Lahaina flew by. With an hour to spare we pottered around stores, picking up the obligatory fridge magnet, before bobbing back to the ship, amidst the whales we’d left at dawn. We sailed away as the sun started to set and the island turned gold. I cannot describe the simple beauty of that day. Suffice to say, I can’t wait to go back!