Maui Magic

Finding rejuvenation in paradise can be a study in not looking for it

YOU WOULD THINK simply stepping off the plane in Maui is enough to bring a sense of serenity into your personal world. Then again . . . maybe not. The air conditioning fighting against tropical humidity, the interminable wait at baggage claim, then the slick sweat on the skin of the person next to you as he fights to grab the wrong (i.e., your) bag——suddenly you feel as if you’ve simply traded one set of stress inducers for another, more expensive variety.

But the island itself comes to the rescue once you’re out of the Kapalui flight pattern. Driving by the sugar fields on the way to Wailea, I was reminded once more that Maui is indeed one of the Magical Isles, as the visitors bureau says.

My first stop on the road to serenity was the Grand Wailea Resort. Located south of Lahaina, the hotel is a memento of the early days of resorts in Hawaii when the key word was “huge.” Really huge. The lobby is a paradise of plants and Botero sculptures, while my suite is bigger than my first apartment. Yet despite the size, the resort’s emphasis on service makes one feel like a cherished member of an extended family.

After a morning indulging at Spa Grande, lounging in a variety of mineral pools, I ventured to the other side of the island to visit the Iao Valley, repository of ancient royal graves and long held as one of the more sacred sites on the island. Today the main draw is the Iao Needle, a basaltic core that has withstood weathering from rain and wind. Its beauty was majestic, but unfortunately, I had gone in the late afternoon, and while I could ignore the tour buses dropping off tourists by the gross (the valley has been open to commoners for some time now), it was more difficult to block out the noise of the incessant leaf blower or the sight of the young man who, for a sufficient tip, would dive off the bridge into one of the presumed sacred pools. Serenity proved elusive; instead, I thought of the medieval faithful who complained the vendor stalls in Notre Dame kept God away from the Mass.

Then I journeyed up the coast to the Ritz-Carlton at Kapalua. As I walked the beautiful grounds, I found a good portion of land along the beach was “kapu,” or forbidden. This is the Honokahua Preservation Site, the most sacred area on the island. The resort had originally been designed to sit right at the shore when an ancient burial ground was discovered. Since respecting the earth and the bones it held was more important than immediate access to sand, the hotel is now situated away from the shoreline. Paths lead to D.T. Fleming Beach, one of the finest beaches in the country, and the staff roams about in carts, ready to carry you back and forth if you’re tired. Looking out of my window, I was constantly reminded of the ancestors who guard the island. That’s not a bad feeling at all.

I was there to visit the Kapalua LifeFest, a yearly gathering of alternative health experts who seek to expand our understanding of what it means to live to the fullest. One of the rooms was filled with booths set up by local practitioners of massage therapy, aromatherapy, music therapy——really, just about any therapy you can imagine, except those that rely on pills.

The nice thing about the LifeFest is the plethora of classes. If a class on anti-aging therapies doesn’t appeal, you can try “The Yoga + Chocolate Experience.” Never thought of putting those two together? I hadn’t either. Under the direction of David Romanelli, I indulged in a Vosge truffle, then sweated through a 90-minute session of Vinyasa yoga, then was rewarded with a second truffle. Believe me, that second truffle was all the sweeter for the effort.

Food for the soul, food for the body. The annual Taste of Lahaina and Best of Island Music Festival was being held the same weekend as LifeFest, and it was here that the weekend’s quest for rejuvenation came to a memorable end. Staged on the local soccer field, this celebration offers up booths filled with some of the tastiest creations of Maui’s best restaurants. Makaha Sons and Ekolu were among the headliners as musicians from the islands played country and rock, all fused with an island rhythm.

While the mountains turned pink with the sunset, I indulged in chipotle pineapple taquitos from Cilantro and watched the children play tag. The soft tropical night set in, I sipped Maui’s own Ocean vodka, and there was absolutely nothing wrong in the world at that moment.

That’s the real secret about magic: Don’t look for it. Just recognize it when you find it.

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If You Go

Room rates at the Grand Wailea range from $345 to $1,000, with a daily resort fee of $20 and an option of a daily breakfast buffet. 800-888-6100; grandwailea.com. Rates for the Ritz-Carlton range from $425 for a garden room to $3,500 for the Ritz-Carlton Suite. A daily resort fee of $18 covers privileges such as preferred tee times, cultural history tours and use of the nine-hole putting green and bocce ball lawn. 808-669-6200; ritzcarlton.com.

The 2007 Taste of Lahaina and Best of Island Music Festival is scheduled to be held September 14 and 15. Go to visitlahaina.com for details.

Due to renovations at the Ritz-Carlton, the Kapalua LifeFest is deferred this year.

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