I might be one of the luckiest people alive to live where people vacation — the beautiful island of Maui, Hawai'i.

But it wasn't until I left Maui for college in Massachusetts that I realized this. I lived on Maui my entire life, and I didn't go out much, so I didn't quite understand what the tourists were seeing. For me, going to the beach was once in a blue moon throughout my childhood years. It felt like I was living in a bubble on a rock. I hadn't even been to Hana, Maui, the ultimate must-see tourist hot spot, until the summer of my senior year. When I went, it felt like a dream. (In all fairness, the road to Hana is a long, windy road alongside a cliff that not too many people would dare to drive.) It was breathtaking, and I feel like you really have to be there to know what I'm talking about.

Here are some of my favorite memories of my first Hana trip.

This is on the way to Hana. The entire trip was an adventure because we made a bunch of stops along the way to swim in small ponds and, of course, go cliff-jumping! Yes, they actually did jump!

Trust me, the water was really deep!

She was captivated by the waterfalls before her.

It was here that I discovered one of the world's great treasures — mini waterfalls. As you can tell, I couldn't contain my excitement.

Here, I spotted a wild monkey lurking in the trees!

This is one of my favorite beaches on Maui, Wai'anapanapa! It's not that hard to pronounce. Haha!

It felt so serene driving on this tight road underneath a canopy of trees, green all around us.

The Seven Sacred Pools is one of Maui's well-known tourist attractions. Although there were too many people for my liking, the sight was remarkable, and not to mention it was one my favorite places to cliff jump.

We spotted beautiful, majestic horses adjacent to road and needed to take a picture! Who said locals can't be tourists?

My article can't be complete without a clear picture of one of the greatest bodies of water, the Pacific Ocean!

This is only a taste of what Maui has to offer. There is so much more — hikes, waterfalls, sunsets, beaches, foods, etc. — and I'm still discovering what's out there. But, in all honesty, it was at these moments that I realized the true beauty of Maui.