Category Archives: Scenes

First visit to Hawaii

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Meaningful Memories.’ See more responses here.

This seemed like an opportune time to revisit my first visit to Hawaii, back in 2010. My wife and I stayed in a vacation rental near Captain Cook, overlooking Kealakekua Bay. The sky was hazy with vog from Kilauea Volcano, but the place was awash with colorful flowers. Just down the road was the Painted Church and at the foot of the hill, Puʻuhonua o Hōnaunau National Historical Park celebrates Hawaiian culture and history with its wooden ki’i and towering palms.

We traveled the whole island from the black sand beach at Pololu (even if we had to pass the carcass of a dead whale twice) to the black sand beach at Punalu’u, dotted with resting green turtles, and rocky surrounds. There were waterfalls big and small, and roads lined with tropical foliage leading to the active lava flow at that time.

There, signs warned that flowing lava is dangerous (who knew?), but we were still able to get within 10 feet of oozing tongues of red, and saw small fires still burning in nearby brush.

There was even a house for sale: ‘Buy now before it burns!’ We didn’t, though that house still stands while others, much farther from that scene, have since been consumed by subsequent flows.

It was this visit that prompted us to return permanently two years later. Hawaii isn’t paradise – it has its pros and cons like any place – but we haven’t regretted the move and are looking forward to the next 10 years.

Brownea Coccinea

A Brownea Coccinea flower
A Brownea Coccinea flower

Brownea Coccinea is a native of Colombia, Ecuador and Venezuela, which is why it’s also known as the Rose of Venezuela amongst other names. The tree is a small evergreen, but the flowers are large, showy, and really quite rose-like.

This one was at Hawai’i Tropical Bioreserve & Garden. For more information about Hawai’i Tropical Bioreserve & Garden, go to htbg.com.

Hawaiian Stilts on golden pond

Hawaiian Stilts in a pond at Kaloko-Honokahau Park

My final post in response to this month’s Becky’s Squares challenge theme of ‘Odd.’ See more responses here.

The stilts are odd enough in themselves, with their pink legs and long beaks, but it was the lighting in this image that got my attention. The sun was sinking and the shadows lengthening. But the distinctive lighting in this photo was due to the reflection from a cream-colored trailer parked beside the pond!

Signs: Working together

An unusual sign in Hawaii

I’ve posted about this sign before (here), but recently I was walking along the coast, noticed this view, and it struck me how odd this must look to anyone coming from this direction for the first time.

Posted in response to this month’s Becky’s Squares challenge theme of ‘Odd.’ See more responses here.

And finally, a heads up for those of a sensitive nature. Tomorrow’s post features spiders and an unfortunate beetle!

It’s BIG

The landing area for Big Island Gravity Skydivers

Another view from Upolu, this time of a portion of the airport. But why is there an area of long grass, blowing in the wind, with the letters B I G mowed into it?

The reason is that this is where Big Island Gravity, a local skydiving operation, is based. This area is where the skydivers touch down after their jumps. A couple of days later, and the grass had been mowed again. The letters were still visible, but the long grass was gone.

For more information about Big Island Gravity, go to http://skydivebig.com/.

Posted in response to this month’s Becky’s Squares challenge theme of ‘Odd.’ See more responses here.