Hula at Volcanoes National Park

 

You never know what to expect weather wise when the monthly hula performances at Volcanoes National park are shown outdoors overlooking the beautiful caldera. Today had everything, winds, mist, intense rain, sun, nice filtered light and combinations of all the above.

The dancing on the other hand was nothing short of breath taking, hula story telling and dancing at its finest and most exciting to see.

 

 

 

Traditional kahiko performances which is the ancient way of dancing in Hawaii were presented with beautiful adornments and leis.

 

 

The hands really do tell the story in their hula.

 

 

 

 

As you can see the from the photos, the dancers were so into their story telling and love of dancing hula. It was a special moment even in harsh outdoor elements to enjoy this ceremony.

 

If you come visit, check out the calendar at Volcanoes National Park for their monthly hula performances, they are really special and worth seeing.

Peace at a Zen Garden

 

 

 

 

Oh how I would love to come here often and just have some time to be

 

                         quiet, breath

 

                                    and  relax

 

 

maybe just take a moment to contemplate about my life

 

                      

 

 

                     and where I’m going

 

                                      but its too easy to get

 

               distracted in this space…

 

 

 

 

 

 

- its just too beautiful here …

 

 

 

          I love this tactile environment - I want to run my hands all through this beautiful

 

                       moss, then look at all the details

                                                                    up close

 

 

 

                          down

 

                               to

 

                                  every

 

                                     little micro-organism.

                          

 

 

                     Its very green and lush here, a perfect environment for this moss to grow

 

along with these ohia trees with their peeling bark and crevices filled with

 

green fungus

 

              mold

 

                  and bumpy looking bacteria

        

 

                     growing                     

 

                                        on their stong limbs and stems.

 

 

 

                  I look up and see the focal point atop a small mound of lava rocks and moss

 

lies a beautiful and simple buddah head

 

                                               – its sits there so peacefully and

 

                 

 

invites you in to come in and enjoy this welcoming environment.

 

                                  Aaaaaaaah – yes breath in this forest

 

                                              and enjoy the moss!

 

I wish that I could visit here more often…..

The Night Moon for Skywatch

The somber hues of an ominous, dark forest are suddenly illuminated under the emerging face of the full moon. ~Kim Elizabeth




Another skywatch friday brings us to the rim of Volcano's National Park in Hawaii, overlooking the caldera of Halema`uma`u crater. I was amazed by the full moon's glow over this caldera which was also glowing on its own with vivid red hues and intense smoke plumes eminating from the crater.  If only I had though about bringing my wide angle lens then I would be able to capture both the moon and the red glow of the volcano and show you both the amazing combination of white and red lights, a really magical moment.... But, I didn't bring my lens....oh well, so I am now focusing on our beautiful full moon to present to you.

At many points, the clouds were swirling quickly around our moon and creating different effects and moody skies, very dramatic and somber.  I loved the ethereal and wispy atmosphere surrounding this full moon.

I wish I was not such a clutz controling my camera on night scenes, I always have a hard time seeing my camera settings with my poor vision during the night. But, at least I got some decent shots... okay, just passable, I am too critical for details.

Come and check out all these other amazing skies for skywatch friday at http://skyley.blogspot.com/

Purple is the Color

Back to participating on the fun photohunt challenges that occur everyweek and this weeks word is Purple, not a typical color I see when I do my photography. Outside of sunset skies and dark landscapes turning into dark night and purple colored flowers, I went for what I typicially will find my environment.

On a recent hike to a beautiful garden I was able to capture some wonderful macros of an artichoke bloom drawing a busy bee foraging through its sticky pollen anthers. The shocking lavendar/purple constrasting against the yellow and black body of its busy guest.

The little fellow was too focused on his task to notice my poking lense at his every move....and seeing his every move in detail.

To see other purple interpretations go visit http://tnchick.com/

Clear Skies at the Capitol

The sun is setting at the Capitol another magical night and my first time seeing the Capitol lit up after a long 12 hour flight from Hawaii. I rushed from my hotel to the grounds knowing that the sun is starting to set and there will be a hoard of people coming to participate in the annual PBS special at the Capitol, another first experience for myself.

The crowds, the music and the night was totally magical, I was so grateful to be there and just participate!

To see other skywatch fridays go to http://skyley.blogspot.com/

Words That Inspire #5

 "The most important thing in life is to learn how to give out love, and to let it come in". Morrie Schwartz





When I think of these words, I see this manifested everyday here in Hawaii. One of those kindred spirits is Rose Acevedo who is a board member of the Sierra Club. Here's what she's up to feed our local food bank in Hawaii.

Pepsi Co. Refresh Project is offering a million dollars every month for great ideas that support local communities.



My idea, FRUITBUSTERS, to help feed the hungry in East Hawaii was approved by Pepsi on May 1st.  The goal of FRUITBUSTERS is to develop a small crew who will rescue all the ripe fruit from trees whose owners can’t do their own picking.  This abundance of fruit will then be donated to food banks and meal programs in our area.



We need your support, so please log on below to vote. Everyone who registers can vote EVERY DAY until May 31. 

hank you for your vote,

Rose Acevedo

Picking fruit, that would otherwise just fall to the ground and go uneaten, and donating to our local Foodbank  is a wonderful idea.  Please help us by voting for this project below.


http://www.refresheverything.com/fruitbusters








Okay you have the words, now let inspiration guide you and we look forward to seeing your interpretation Here's the link tool below to add your URL address and name/city

I will be on the mainland in June so Words That Inspire will be on hold.


To view other memorial inspirations go to http://tnchick.com/

Words That Inspire #4

"Instant gratification takes too long". Carrie Fisher


We live in a society that seems to demand everything and wants everything now. In America the material life seems to be an inherent part of who we are and how we live. You know I used to feel that way when I lived in the mainland, but things did change dramatically when I went to Hawaii and had to downsize alot of the material possesions and also downsize ideas about living with things and conveniences around me.

Now, I find that living simply in Hawaii is a better way to live and to enjoy things happening in their sweet time.

I love seeing flowers take the time to bud and surprise me with the blooms finally unfolding.

I love to get fresh herbs, fruits and vegetables from the garden and come up with creative dishes.

Taking the time to enjoy simple things like driving to the ocean and watching a sunrise is my way of connecting to nature and enjoying the moment.

Seeing a world of green instead of concrete and highways gives me peace of mind and spirit.

Our last quote  for May

May 28 - "The most important thing in life is to learn how to give out love, and to let it come in". Morrie Schwartz

I will be on the mainland in June so Words That Inspire will be on hold.

Okay you have the words, now let inspiration guide you and we look forward to seeing your interpretation Here's the link tool below to add your URL address and name/city

Sunrise along the Puna Shoreline

"The grand show is eternal. It is always sunrise somewhere; the dew is never dried all at once; a shower is forever falling; vapor is ever rising. Eternal sunrise, eternal dawn and gloaming, on sea and continents and islands, each in its turn, as the round earth rolls.” John Muir

This is my sunrise interpretation of this beautiful quote.

To see some other beautiful interpretations go visit http://noelmorata.blogspot.com/

To see other skies this friday go visit http://skyley.blogspot.com/

 

A Rainy Day Celebration

It was a rainy day in Hilo with high winds, intense downpours, sunny skies and then a remix of everything.

In spite of all these changes, we still cherish the rain and put on a good parade and the rest of us stayed covered in our pop-ups.

Parades in Hawaii are all about color, color and color oh yes did I also mention the aloha attire is mandatory gear?

All the antique cars display amazing tropical flowers from our local nuseries and add exotic color!

This is our local marching band with their aloha gear, putting up a good show in spite of the rain.

Pau riders in all their splendid leis and elaborate ornamentation always steal the show and the smiles are genuinely shared.

Even the horsey dung carts are sweetly decorated and have happy smiles!

Now you know this is a real Hawaiian parade when they include a marching band just with ukule players, giving the shaka (local hand aloha gestures)

Boy the ladies in red hats know what color to wear today and how to make everyone cheer for these volunteers!

Miss Kau coffee is putting out some sweet smiles, Kau coffee is becoming as popular as Kona coffee in the coffee world.

Oh okay, a few more pau riders, yes they are my favorite and really show us aloha, Each rider wears colors and flowers specifically to their islands and their leis are handmade with local foliage and flowers.

Canoe clubs are celebrated here and wood canoes are the traditional way of racing. They are prized and also used for parades...these types of canoes are very rare to produce nowadays.

Even little dogs like to show off their aloha and wear their leis for a big parade.

Aloha and thanks for watching our celebration of the Merrie Monarch Parade highlights, I hope you enjoyed your visit to hilo town.

To view more posts on the photo hunt challenge for covered go to http://tnchick.com/

To view more aloha friday posts go to http://islandlife808.com/memes/aloha-friday-129/

To view other photo friday challenges go to http://photofriday.com/

Aloha Friday, Lets Take a Nice Walk Today.

Happy Aloha Friday. It is such a nice sunny day today in East Hawaii, I think I'll take a nice easy hike today to see a local waterfall, won't you come join me?


We are going to Rainbow Falls which is just above Hilo on the Big Island of Hawaii. It has been raining the past week so the waterfall should be putting on quite a show.


Well, its quite busy this morning, all the tourists are up early and taking their kodak moments. We'll have to take an off the beaten path trail to avoid everyone, but of course I need to first take a shot of the waterfall.


Here it is Rainbow Falls.....

A close up view from another vista point.

Right next to the observation platform is this amazing mango tree, it seems to be over forty feet tall and not a single mango on the tree left over.

How about we take our hike and get ahead of the tourist pack down below? Theres a short climb up to the observation area overlooking the waterfalls and the vally below. Don't worry theres no more climbing outside of these few stairs to the top!

A beautiful view of our accent to the top

Okay that wasn't too bad a hike up here and aren't the views amazing from up here?

The vistas are quite clear and you can see all the way down to the ocean.

Lets go down through this forested area so we can make it down to the waters edge.

Its a little spooky around here, all the trees tend to get very close around here.

Isn't this an amazing banyan tree, all the arial roots and going down to the ground and creating new stems that will support a larger tree.

Now its getting a little more muddy on this trail so hold onto anything you can so you don't slip.

Okay, we are finally here at the waters edge, there's no-one up here at all.

What a nice way to enjoy the day in complete solitude.

Well its been a nice hike, lets go back through the forest, aren't these the strangest looking banyan trees?

Aaaah, finally back down into the main parking area, I need to take a few more photos of the amazing wild gingers around the park and one more photo of the falls before we leave.

Thanks for taking the walk with me on such a sunny day, its nice to share this with a friend.