Maui Travel Diary

There's no place like home, especially when home is a Hawaiian island. I feel truly blessed to be able to call Maui my home.  The list of reasons Maui is amazing is endless, I honestly don't even know where to begin. The perfect weather? Swimming in the ocean? The gorgeous beaches? The friendly people? The beautiful waterfalls? The epic sunsets? The clear starry sky? The fact that shoes are optional? Or that a bikini paired with a sarong is considered fully dressed? You get my point.

So instead I'll just focus on just one factor; the food! Seriously some of the best food I've ever eaten has been on Maui. Why? Because everything is fresh, fresh, fresh. Maui is tropical fruit paradise, which is perfect for someone like me who lists mangoes, coconuts, pineapples, and bananas among my favorite foods.

In my opinion, there are few things in the world better than picking fruit straight from a tree and biting into sweet, juicy, ripeness. In my parent's backyard alone we grow mangoes, tangerines, oranges, papayas, avocados, bananas, and coconuts. And that's just in our backyard! The craziest thing is that our family didn't plant any of these trees, nor do we have to put any effort into maintaining our fruit trees. We just let nature do her thing and reap the benefits of the harvest! It's incredibly satisfying, and slightly magical, to watch your food grow right in front of your eyes, watching it change color, and anticipating the moment it will fall from the tree at it's prime ripeness. Buying fruit from the grocery store simply can't compare.

As wonderful as my parent's backyard may be, it's only a small example of how bountiful Maui can be. My best friend and her boyfriend actually put a lot effort into maintaining a beautiful garden and fruit trees. Their backyard boasts kale, broccoli, snap peas, eggplants, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, papayas, bananas, and much, much more. I love being invited over to dinner at my friend's house, not only because her boyfriend is one of the best cooks I've ever met, but because everything served is fresh out of the garden.

Needless to say I ate incredibly well while I was home. An average day began with a fresh coconut, followed by a green smoothie with coconut water as a base. For lunch I treated myself and bought fresh salads and wraps from my favorite health food store. It's called Mana Foods, and it is hands down the BEST HEALTH FOOD STORE IN THE WORLD. I realize that's quite a grand statement, but it's true. Mana Foods functions as more than a grocery store for our town, it's a community center. If you live on Maui, it is impossible to go grocery shopping without running into at least, oh about ten people you know. That's the beauty of Maui.