
Another of the neon signs at the Harbor House restaurant in Kailua Kona. I like this one for the chair and the setting sun, but not for the beer I have to say!

Another of the neon signs at the Harbor House restaurant in Kailua Kona. I like this one for the chair and the setting sun, but not for the beer I have to say!

A while back I posted (here) about a trash cleanup at Upolu. As part of that process, the people responsible graded the dirt road down to the area, presumably so that trucks could more easily get in to haul away trash.
Paralleling that road, for a short stretch, is another road next to the airport fence. As part of the same operation, some large rocks bordering the road were moved across to block access. I think this was because the road has a low stretch which has become deeply rutted and where water and mud collects.
Shortly after the road was blocked someone moved one of the rocks to allow access. A few days later the rock was moved back. This process happened several times over the next few weeks. The rock that was getting moved back and forth is the one on the right, in the grass, in this photo.
In the latest development, another rock has been dragged across to block the road. The skid marks can be seen in the photo. I suspect this rock was chosen because it has a flat bottom and might be harder to move. I haven’t been down there since this latest development, but I’m keen to see if the game continues. I have no idea why someone has been moving these rocks out of the way, since this road joins the improved one just a quarter mile farther on. Perhaps someone is simply objecting to being prevented from driving where-ever the heck they want to. I expect that’s guaranteed in the constitution somewhere!


Kua Bay is a popular beach park a little way north of Kailua Kona. There’s no car park, so vehicles line the road to the beach. The beach itself is a small, but lovely curve of sand. It’s very popular because of this and its proximity to Kailua Kona. Most people head for the main beach, which tends to get crowded, but one doesn’t have to walk far to find more room.

There’s a lifeguard hut at Kua Bay. The lifeguards get to deal with the result of activities such as those in the photos. The bay can also be somewhat dangerous when there are onshore swells. Body surfers can get slammed against the sandy bottom, causing significant injury and requiring the help of those lifeguards to get out.





The current Friendly Friday challenge theme is ‘Shapes.’ See more responses here. Since I just paid another visit to Hawai’i Tropical Bioreserve & Garden, I thought some flower and foliage shapes would be appropriate. In the top photo, round lily pads float in the garden’s pond.




The squares show the coils within coils of a Hapu’u fern, a distinctly-shaped anthurium, the familiar curves of an orchid against a large, angular leaf, and the geometric precision of a Guzmania ‘Limones’ bromeliad.



The rectangles start with the distinctive shape of beehive gingers, then large, tropical, heart-shaped leaves, and the sinuous shape of a colorful heliconia.
The bottom photo shows feather-shaped leaves that even look like feathers!
For more information about Hawai’i Tropical Bioreserve & Garden, go to htbg.com.


Soft early morning light illuminates the harbor at Kawaihae.

When I went down for a swim one day, the water was rough so I stayed on shore and wandered around taking photos. There’s a hollow in a rock that the birds bathe in and I usually check that out. This was the scene on that day.
There are a lot of feral cats in this area, and I suspect that one of the bathing birds was rudely interrupted in its activities.

This view of the breakwater at Kawaihae makes it look like one could walk to Maui. I wouldn’t advise it!

I was taking photos of Tahitian Prawns in the stream at Hawai’i Tropical Bioreserve & Garden, but when I looked at them later, I mostly liked the abstract effect of the light and water. But, yes, there is a Tahitian Prawn in this photo.
For more information about Hawai’i Tropical Bioreserve & Garden, go to htbg.com.