Holo Holo Puna

We decided to take a little holo holo to Puna again to enjoy the tropical weather. Unfortunately, monsoon-like rain and wind wasn't quite what we had in mind. So after a couple of days waiting for the rain to ease, we scooted over to Kona side to get some heat and dry out Wanda! The winds were howling Kona side as well, but no rain on the coast.
Before we went back to Kona, we took a drive down to where the Kalapana subdivision used to be before the lava destroyed it (and the Royal Garden subdivision to the southwest).

Used to be a housing subdivision here.

We were at the red arrow.

Some folks rebuilt.

Some didn't.

A vent in the distance (about where the words "Royal Gardens" is on the map above).

Tried my hand at opening a coconut. Kept all my fingers, so I did well!

Over to Kona side:

Watching a multitude of whales frolicking about at Mahukona Beach!

Heading back to the mainland.

Coral.

Humpback whales come down from Alaska to calve around here and Maui, then head back up to Alaska after a few months to gorge on the fish before heading back down in two years to calve again.

Wanda was getting hot, so we parked behind the trees for a bit o'shade.

The sunsets can be dramatic!

The land around this area used to be mostly taro until the sugarcane farmers up north diverted the water for their fields. Railroad tracks were laid to move supplies up and down the coast. Nothing remains but a few buildings and roads where the tracks once were laid.

Navigational rocks were set up on high points of land to direct the Hawaiians in canoes to the other islands. Apparently you turn at this marker to go to Maui.

Closeup of the markers.

Maui.

Wanda chilling at the beach.

Hawaiian Cardinal.

We went down the road a few miles to see the Mauna Kea Resort beach. They have to allow 40 cars to park in their parking lot for public beach access. One of the best beaches on the island.

Good stuff!

Peace my friends!

Happy Chinese New Year

We were invited to Chinese New Year dinner with Manono, Nani, Aunty Bobbi, Martha, Andre, Toby, and Hannah. So much food, and a Jet Li movie (Hero) afterwards.

Kirsty made Black Pepper Tofu. Delicious!!!

和平 my friends!

Puna-The Wild, Wild West

We went holo holo to Puna (southeast of Hilo), for a few days. This is one of the wilder places on the island, with a notorious reputation as the place to disappear, either intentionally or unintentionally. The jungle hides everything. All sorts of characters are about: new agers, hippies, bikers, lost souls, straight, gay, nudists, retired geezers, itinerants, and just plain weird and scary folks. One can't be too shy here, showering outdoors and changing wherever. The rules are for other folks around here, as most of the rules are bent, if not broken. But folks get along it would seem (for the most part), as it is laid-back and a beautiful place to hang about.

We first stopped at the Puna Luu Black Sand Beach to check out the turtles.

 Snoozing.

This one was in the water, just off the sand, waiting for the tide to rise a bit so it could go back out.

Appropriately named, Black Sand Beach.

A trip to the market and we found this:

In case you were wondering, they do make many varieties of SPAM. We prefer Ahi to SPAM, so we left these for the Puna folks to enjoy.

Deeper into the jungle to Isaac Hale Beach:

 The flora here is amazing. It rains everyday, making for a very lush environment.

 Kept waiting for Big Foot to walk by.

 Looking for treasures.

 The vines cover just about everything.

 Noni. This fruit is used for everything from acne to cancer. Smells and tastes bad, but then so does penicillin.

 Love the colors here!

 Early morning surfing.

 The early morning light is gorgeous.

A cup o'joe, in the morning, on the beach.

Coconut husk and leaves.

 Which end has the pot of gold?

 Jungle floor colors!

Expecting Tarzan anytime.

In the early morning, we went just down the road to Ahaluni. This pool was made to allow for the water to flow in from the ocean to mix with the spring fed fresh water. In the 1950s, the magma flow shifted underneath this area, resulting in the heating of the pool to about 90 degrees.

View of the pool from the ocean.

 Kirsty enjoying a swim.

I had lots of tiny fish nibbling on me if I stayed still.

Ahhhhhh.

 Kirsty walking on the sea wall at Ahaluni.

 Green is the operative word here.

Just outside the pool.

A short stop in Hilo (where we are planning to move to) to see what was what.

 Standing on Coconut Island in Hilo Bay.

 Looking back towards downtown Hilo and the heavy clouds blowing in from the ocean.

Bridge in Liliuokalani Park. Much more on Hilo (and this beautiful park) in future blogs.

My moment of Zen.

Peace my friends, wherever you are finding it!