One of the places I wanted to visit when going to Maui was a cat sanctuary on the nearby island of Lanai'i.
I had read about it years ago - and looked it up to see if we would be nearby. I discovered that
Lanai'i was a 45-minute ferry ride from
Lahaina, a historic port city in Maui, its port dating back to the whale hunters in the days of the novel, "
Moby Dick."
My son and I Ubered to Lahaina, then headed for the pier to get our tickets.
With half an hour before our ferry ride, we headed over to shop and explore a nearby park with large banyan trees.
The boat ride was interesting... (On our return trip, the water was a little choppy - but we saw a pod of
whales breaching!)
A shuttle van was waiting for us at the harbor in Lanai'i.
We drove to the cat sanctuary, a few miles away.
My son, an avid cat lover, was thrilled to be surrounded by so many cats! The sanctuary houses 640, although some are timid and only come out at night.
Some were lounging in baskets; others had found a perfect spot in the shade.
Where do these cats come from? we asked...
Wild cats are caught and brought to the sanctuary. In the wild, they pose a threat to birds that nest on the island's sandy beaches...
After several hours of playing with cats and feeding them treats, the shuttle picked us up again and returned us to the ferry.
We could have spent more time on the island - but chose, instead, to head back to Lahaina and spend a bit more time there.
We had supper at a seaside restaurant - where I ate marlin for the first time... (It made me think of "
The Old Man and the Sea," another novel I studied years ago.)
Later we wandered around a bit more - and discovered a historic church that was open...
It was such a fun day!
Fresh air, sunshine, a boat ride...
Cats, whales, marlin, banyan trees, historic buildings!
What more could one ask for?!
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