Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Last Post on Hawaii - I Promise!



Okay, about time I wrap this up, right? Just a few more things... This is not the first time I've been to Hawaii with my sister. We were here way back in 1993. This is what we looked like then...



And this is us now. I like my long blond hair better now!



One of the most interesting places we saw in the northern tip of the Big Island was the Mookini Heiau. A heiau is an early Hawaiian religious temple. Near here is also where King Kamehameha the Great was born in 1758.



The temple is over 1500 years old. It was built by as many as 20,000 men, passing stones hand to hand from Pololu Valley, 14 miles away. It was supposedly completed in one day.



On the plane from Phoenix, I read an article in their magazine about the Wiliwili tree. I had been looking for one our whole time in Hawaii and finally found one in a resort on the Big Island. Wiliwili means "twisty" in Hawaiian. There is a saying here that "when the wiliwili tree blooms, the sharks bite." I was glad it wasn't blooming...



All along the road north of Kona is a kind of Hawaiian graffiti, where words are written on the black lave with white coral rocks - sort of an "eco-friendly vandalism."



And there are also petroglyphs here, although not as old as the ones in the Southwest US.



At long last, it was ready to depart our tropical paradise. But we do intend to come back in a couple years and explore some of the other islands in greater depth.



When I got home, I laid out all my souvenirs. Here I have several shell necklaces, 2 kokui nut neclaces (one I made and one I bought), and my ribbon lei that I made on the ship.


I also have a new (to me) address book that I got in a thrift store, a wooden bowl, flower earrings, 2 Christmas ornaments, a black pearl necklace and earrings, and some coral and lava rocks. Quite a haul, huh?

I hope you've enjoyed my Hawaiian "vacation." I sure did!

7 comments:

  1. Glad you had a good time, we sure did following along.

    Loved your 93 picture, you sure haven't changed much! :c)

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  2. I can't wait to go back again. I was there in 1969.

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  3. HEY, two very cute photos of you guys...I missed a couple of the posts Ill have to backtrack..SURE looks like you had a wonderful trip!!!

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  4. I enjoyed your trip too. Thanks for letting me follow along. Love the 1993 pic!

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  5. You went to town with all kinds of neat stuff. Enjoy wearing them and remembering your trip.

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  6. Weren't we just soooo cute with our very stylish permed hair?

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  7. I just ran across your blog and saw this post; my dad lived on the Big Island (Kona side)which it looks like where you were...I'm hoping that the lava rocks you brought back aren't from the black lava all over the Big Island. It's VERY BAD LUCK to take the lava away! The coral is ok and the shells are ok, but never ever take the lava rock....I know it sounds crazy, but I'd send it back unless I could use it as a good excuse to go back soon! BTW, can't wait to get into your site; I'm thinking about a camper for me and my two Yorkies so I know you'll be a wealth of information!

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