The Introduction



Maui was formed when two underwater volcanoes erupted and kept on spewing out lava until they broke the ocean surface, only to head skyward. These two shield volcanoes threw out so much lava that they eventually combined with one another to form the West Maui Mountains and the Haleakala volcano, which is 10, 023 feet above sea level. However, the myth is that the great demigod Maui was fishing one day and his line got stuck. He pulled and pulled to free his lure, but pulled up what are now the Hawaiian Islands. Along with having a very interesting history, Maui has some interesting secrets. The climate is fascinating, and the vast arrays of landscapes are breathtaking. Also, many different cultures and people have all influenced the culture of Maui in some way. In all, Maui has a vast variety about itself.

The History Behind it all

Polynesians, from Tahiti and the Marquesas, were the first to populate the island and did so around 1000 A.D. They sent birds over to Maui and checked to see if the birds were surviving well. Needless to say, the birds came back fatter and the Polynesians settled there. It wasn’t until November 26, 1778 that Maui was even thought of. Captain James Cook was the first person to see the island, but never set food on it because there was no where for his boat to land. French admiral Jean François de Galaup de La Pérouse was the first person to land on the island. And with this first landing, many more Europeans followed. Traders, whalers, and missionaries were the main groups to explore this new and exciting island. With the work of the missionaries to help ‘civilize’ the native people, they helped in altering and preserving the culture. Examples of this would be the fact that no hula dancing was allowed, but the missionaries brought in printing presses to document the culture. Given Maui’s fantastic spot for whales, whalers found it to be a treasure. In one season, Lahaina had had over 400 ships go in and out of its dock. A while later Maui got the attention of the U.S. as a naval base, so the U.S. annexed the Hawaiian Islands. It wasn’t until Pearl Harbor that it got the mass amount of attention that it has today. In 1943-44, Maui had over 100,000 troops stationed on it. It wasn’t until 1959 that Hawaii became a state, and the population has increased more rapidly ever since.

What to bring


Now that all that history part is done, it’s time to get into the good stuff. Maui is one of the most beautiful places on earth. However, it’s an island, so everything has to be shipped to it. The average cost of living is about 30% to 60% higher than the average, so you can only imagine the prices. If you’re going to bring anything, bring a lot of money. Since you can’t really bring food or water by airplane, you almost have to buy everything once you arrive in Maui. With all that said and done, it would be best if sunscreen was brought 2nd to only bringing money. Well, you'll pretty much fry without it. I say they are both the most important. A camera is a must, good hiking boots because you’ll want to do a lot of that, things for swimming. Basically, you should bring everything with you that you would bring if you were going hiking/swimming just to be prepared for anything

Water, oh water

Sugar cane is one of Maui’s biggest products because it grows so well in the fertile valley. However, sugar cane once caused Maui’s officials to rethink how they watered their sugar cane. An entire ton of water is required to produce a single pound of refined sugar. Talk about your water hog. At one time 80% of Maui’s water supply was going just to feed their thirsty little sugar plants. Now with the population nearing 140,000 people new ways are forming to keep the steeply growing population with a steady supply of water. Maui uses around 476 million gallons of water everyday, so if any big natural disaster happens, there’ll be trouble. Maui is completely dependent on water being constantly shipped into the state.

Here is a picture of a sugar cane field.

Maui has all the climates

Maui, along with being one of the most beautiful places, it is also known for having almost every climate.

There are deserts.

There can be snow, but only at the top of Haleakala.

And there are rain forests

What brings people to Maui

aui has many attractions, but the main two are: the beaches, and the Road to Hana. Maui’s beaches aren’t just white sand, but there are red beaches and black beaches. It all depends on what side of the island you are going to.

However, the Road to Hana is by far the best attraction Maui has to offer. With its 600 curves, 53 bridges, hundreds of waterfalls, and thousands of different trails, the Road to Hana offers the most variety. The best part is you don’t even have to stop. You can just keep on driving or stop if you feel so inclined. Much of the driving takes place in the rain forest climate of Maui.

Culture


The culture of Maui has a variety of different people, but they all have the same mind set. Everyone is incredibly laid back in Maui. When you talk and see the people you will quickly realize that they’d probably give you the shirt off their back if you needed it. Even when driving, they are laid back. There’s no hurry in Maui. It’s a tiny island in the middle of the ocean, why the rush?