Spotted on the Roadside: Duke Kahanamoku and the Shaman Stones

June 26, 2015 Comments Off read Hawaii, Pacific, Spotted on the Roadside, Travel, USA, West

Residing beside one another in Waikiki are two sites of note–the shaman stones (or “Stones of Life), and a statue of Duke Kahanamoku. As long as throngs of tourists aren’t blocking your view, you can literally turn from one and see the other!

The plaque on the Stones of Life reads “Legend says that these stones are the living legacy of four powerful Tahitian healers who once resided near this site at a place called Ulukou. From the court of the Tahitian chief, the names of the four were Kapaenahu, Kapuni, Kinohi and Kahaloa. They came from Moa’ulanuiakea on the island of Raiaiea long before the reign of Kakuhihewa, beloved O’ahu chief during the 1500’s. The fame of the healers spread as they traveled throughout the islands administering their miraculous cures. When it was time to return to Raiaiea, they asked that two stones be placed at their Ulukou residence and two at their favorite bathing place in the sea. Four huge stones were quarried from Kaimuki, and on the night of ‘Kane’ thousands transported the stones to Ulukou. Incantations, fasting and prayers lasted a full cycle of the moon. The healers then gave their names and mana (spiritual power) to the stones before departing to their homeland.”

In 1997, the stones were moved together in Waikiki, placed on an altar, and fenced in to protect them. The heaviest stone weighs almost 7.5 tons–no wonder it took thousands of people to transport them!

The statue of Duke Kahanamoku is by far the more popular tourist attraction–Duke was the father of international surfing, having introduced the sport to the eastern seaboard. He was also a multi-Olympic goldwinner, movie star, and even served as sheriff for a time, and was honored with this statue in 1990*. Duke’s torches are lit with a special ceremony every Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday at 6:30pm, followed by a hula performance. If you’re in need of a quick Hawaiian vacation, you can crank up the heat in your home, make a drink, and watch via webcam.

*Duke was also honored with a beachfront restaurant and bar that everyone says you should go to, but you really, really shouldn’t, unless super drunk cover bands singing “hotel california” are your thing. Their lava flow drink is the bomb, though.

Spotted on Kalakaua Ave in Honolulu, HI

Spotted on the Roadside: Mmmm, macamadamias

June 19, 2015 Comments Off read Hawaii, Masticating With Mellzah, Pacific, Spotted on the Roadside, Travel, USA, West

“Free macadamias? I’m going to eat macadamia nuts until I barf!” I announced to my long-suffering husband. Or at least I was going to do my damndest to try. Look, they had an entire bin of free raw macadamias and the only rule was that you couldn’t fill a bag to take home. As it turns out, eating macadamia nuts until you hurl macadamia marzipan is a lot more difficult when you have to crack them open yourself, owing to each nut having not one, but two shells that have to be removed. My hands went numb from the impact of smashing them with the provided rock after only opening a few nuts.

The only other request was that guests not feed the chickens and other birds that were milling around the stumps, looking for macadamia scraps, which was almost impossible to avoid since occasionally we’d underestimate our own strength, Hulk out, and send bits of macadamia flying everywhere. And there was that one time that my rock failed to smash the nut, instead sending it flying off the stump to strike a nearby chicken in the neck. Let that be a lesson to the rest of you…nuts.

Spotted on Kamehameha Hwy in Kaneohe, HI

Spotted on the Roadside: Laniakea Beach

June 5, 2015 Comments Off read Hawaii, Pacific, Spotted on the Roadside, The Great Outdoors, Travel, USA, West

Hawaiian green sea turtles hang out all around Oahu, but they seem particularly drawn to Laniakea beach on Oahu’s north shore. Even if there aren’t any on the beach itself, if you look out into the water, you can often see an adorable little face pop up. On the day I went, I saw several bobbing around, doing their turtle business. One eventually slowly, ponderously, dragged itself ashore. I swear I could hear it groaning in effort, inching its way farther inland. To protect the turtles, some awesome volunteers hang out near the beach every day, answering questions and making certain that people stay a safe distance from them so they don’t feel harassed. Spotted on Kamehameha Hwy just outside Hale’iwa, HI. If you go, make sure to park on Kamehameha–there’s a side road that’s a little closer, but it’s private.

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