Elua Condos

WAILEA, Maui, Jan 3 - I am back in Maui.  It's hard to believe a year has gone by (click here for Hawaii 2006 travelogue).  The place seems so familiar now, like a home away from home.  But not everything about is familiar.  I've never stayed before at the Elua Condos in Wailea, at the southern tip of the island (see above map).  Here's what I saw about my condo from the photos the travel agency had sent me before I booked the place...

And this is the first view of the ocean I enjoyed from my balcony at sunrise today...

The weather was improving after "a weak disturbance' that blew over Maui yesterday.  But there were still some lingering clouds most of the day.

And this is the same view an hour or so later, after the sun had risen a little higher behind my condo unit that faces northwest.

The northern side of the balcony looks like a regular jungle.  But these palms and bamboos make for a marvelous shade most of the day.

This is what the living room looked like early this morning, as I was trying to catch up on some mainland news while checking my e-mails.  After breakfast, I went for a walk, exploring the Elua Condos and the beach.  Come along...it's amazing.

My condo unit is marked above, as seen from the path that leads to the beach.  Beautiful flowers amid tropical foliage are everywhere.  Take a look at the orchids, for example, that have been grafted onto the trunk of a jacaranda tree.  Every major tree, including palms, has them.  It makes it seem as if orchids grow out of everything.  

This is the view of my unit from the backside.  Hibiscus bushes and red lilies are all around the parking lot. 

The white Chevy Malibu is my rental car.  It reminds me of "Ben," the name Karen and I gave our Australian car, and of a Magnum that we rented this summer in Western Canada.

Closer to the ocean, one can see some gorgeous lavender bougainvilleas. 

The same bougs as seen from the path below.

The closer I came to the beach, the prettier or more lush the vegetation got.

Finally the beach...

...and what a view it was.  It reminded me of another beach on the Indian Ocean that looked like it (see "Just Another Day in Paradise," Meelup, Western Australia).

The surf was still high from last night's "weak disturbance," reaching up to 10 ft in height (on the north shore of Maui, "the surfers' paradise," I am told that the waves can be up to 20 ft high).

The volcanic rocks serve as a reminder that the Ulua Beach lies in the shadow of Haleakala volcano. 

One of the two pools that re a part of the Elua Condo complex...

...and the pretty flowers around it.

The second pool is higher up, closer to my unit.  It is surrounded by wonderfully fragrant and majestic looking magnolia trees.

One of them dropped this flower on the ground, which I later on put into a glass on my living room table.

END OF PART 1 - CLICK HERE to join me for a walk on the Golf Course...

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