Travel Theme: Mystical

This week, Ailsa of Where’s My Backpack?, challenged readers to post photos of something that means “Mystical”…

A couple of winters ago I visited Kona, Hawai’i for the first time.  Just south of Kona is a national historical site, Puuhonua o Honaunau.  It is one of the most sacred sites in Hawai’i and the temple there, at one time, housed the bones of 23 chiefs.  It was also the home of royal grounds and a sacred place of refuge for those who broke the laws, or kapu.  These are photos of the temple site and the kii (wooden images of gods) that guarded it.  Read about the site in the link above, it’s an incredible history.  This is one place I would love to return someday!

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Weekly Photo Challenge: Growth

There were a lot of things that came to mind as I read this week’s challenge: my garden, fruit trees, the development of certain neighborhoods in Denver.  But my mind went back to a trip to the Big Island (Hawai’i) in January 2011, where the winter surf was nothing short of spectacular.  Here is a slideshow from one afternoon and the clear growth of the waves…

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Weekly Photo Challenge: Dreaming

Although my number one destination for vacation is Italy, I must admit that when I dream – to get away from it all, usually – it has something to do with ocean and beach.  Here are some photos from a fabulous dream getaway in Hawai’i, on the Kona Coast…

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Aloha

It’s been almost a year since I was last in Hawai’i - in fact, through the kindness of a friend who let me visit with her at her family’s oceanfront home.  It was the second time I had visited the State, on two different islands.  Aside from the obvious beauty and wonderful climate, the one thing that struck me the most unexpectedly was the “spirit of Aloha” – not just a nice way to say hello for the Hawaiians - it embodies the ancient attitudes of a people…