I’m back from Maui! But more important is why I went there. Some of you already heard on Twitter that I proposed to Megan on Sunday morning atop Haleakala, the 10K+ foot summit of Maui’s eastern half. It’s a great place to watch the sunrise despite waking up at 3 AM to drive out there. Here’s a picture of us shortly after I proposed.
Sunday was the third anniversary since our first date, and I wanted this event to be someplace special. Maui is easily one of my favorite places in the world, even though it is incredibly expensive and not always the easiest place to relax–there’s just so much to do! Still, we had a lot of fun.
We took hundreds of pictures, and a very detailed trip report will be coming in March. This was one of those trips where I did not use points or Hotwire or other tricks to travel someplace exciting for free or nearly so. I had a very specific idea of the vacation I wanted, and to make sure that happened I frequently had to pay up for a lot of things. But there was still some hacking wiggle room. I’ll also share with you the opportunities I found but passed up, so hopefully you can take your own trip there soon enough without breaking the bank.
On the other hand, that ring was the most expensive thing I’ve ever bought. Assuming you aren’t going to be proposing–or getting married–your trip will probably be cheaper than mine regardless of where you stay.
The Back Story
Since some people ask how we met, I’ll go ahead and share in advance. I love telling this story because it gets Megan riled up, but she’s learning to have some fun with it. 😉
I’d managed to convince myself to go to a speed dating event hosted by the graduate student association on campus, but most of the time I spent looking at Megan at the table across from mine. We never really got to speak because the rules said we could only trade chairs at our own (large) table, and I was too shy to approach her afterward. However, some of my friends convinced me to go to a local dive bar afterward. As luck would have it, Megan’s friends convinced her to do the same, and they were seated at the table next to ours. Later I went up to get another pitcher, and a guy she had just brushed off decided to try his hand with the women at my table, taking my seat. So I was ended up sitting next to her. SCORE!
I spent most of the night drunkenly talking about my research, but at least I had the good sense to find some small connection in an art exhibit we both recently attended. I never asked for her number, her last name, or her email address. The next morning I realized my mistake and finally found a friend at the association to contact her for me. For some reason Megan overlooked my flaws and emailed me back. I asked her to pick a restaurant, drive us (I didn’t own a car), and even called her for some strange reason on the morning of our date to tell her I spilled coffee on my shirt. And yet she agreed to a second date, and then a third…
She still puts up with my flaws, including those mileage runs to the middle of nowhere. That’s why, for once, this trip was all about her. 😀
