Huddle

Football huddle - I'olani High School field

A qua water...

Relaxing pool side at Kahala

S.O.S.

More commonly, S.O.S. is known as a distress call, in this case, its actually an acronym for a gang called Sons of Samoa.

Koa Kanu

The real canoe paddling season begins with the Duke Long Distance 26 mile, 3 hour plus race from Kailua to Waikiki.

This race was especially rough and challenging with strong winds and large surf. Karel Tresnak, steersman for the winning crew, and one of the top paddlers on the island describes the experience of the day...

"It was victory at sea the whole way... It was just crazy. The roughest I've ever seen it in a long time. There were times during the race when the entire canoe went airborne, and other times where it nearly swamped."

Fishing Day

It was a nice day today, a perfect day for a fishing expedition - fishing at the University man-made pond. One of the guys had just caught a gold fish - possibly one that used to be someones pet at the student dormitory?
Below is a broader view of the pond from the top of the stair case.

Post-Hurricane Flossie

The residuals from what used to be Hurricane Flossie, pictured is rain falling perfectly within Manoa Valley in the distance with a very bright rainbow appearing at the end of the shower's blessing =)

Pre-Hurricane Flossie Threat

A bird's eye view of a couple of new picnic tables made by the University of Hawai'i - Below is a view of Diamond Head on a day before the Hurricane Flossie threat

Above is a view of Manoa Valley on the same day

Preparing for Hurricane Flossie

We happened to come upon this grave site on Sunday with an interesting but sad history. A 1946 8.5 earthquake off the Aleutian Islands near Alaska generated a Tsunami that reached heights of 45 feet on the Big Island, as it passed through the whole island chain. The lack of a Tsunami warning system attributed to the high death toll of at least 96 people and caused millions of dollars in damages. A total of six were killed on this island (O'ahu), three of them were children from the Kanakanui Ohana of Kahana Valley. This grave site marks there final resting place.

As Hurricane Flossie approaches close to the Big island of Hawai'i, located South East of O'ahu, we pray for the safety of all.

Cinderella in III Acts

We attended the Cinderella Ballet in III Acts that was on performance this weekend at the Blaisdell Arena. This is a photo of the program booklet provided at the door.

Man Down!

This photo was taken about two weeks ago, as part of the International Tree Climbing Championships, held at the University of Hawai'i Campus, a mannequin was set up in this tree for one of the five tree competition event:
http://www.isa-arbor.com/
Below is one of the female competitors, being timed, as she recovers the mannequin safely to the ground...

This Old House

I was on my walk this morning and came across this old house, like I do many times before but never had my camera. Behind this door, like many others, must be many interesting stories to be told.
I find even more interesting, the house below, or rather, the remnants of a house that once stood where the Bamboo forests now reside, hidden deep in the mountains of the Pali...

Bamboo Forest Illusions

We were doing some exploring in the valley forests of Nu'uanu when we came across this thick bed of Bamboos. At times, we had to squeeze through nonforgiving bamboo stalks that don't bend. Along the way, we came across a wild pig, hunter's apparatus, and got lost quite a few times. Its really amazing how disorienting it can get in a forest even on an island!

Tuscan Skies

This picture was taken this past weekend along a mountain top in the lee side and reminded me of Tuscany in some ways. Thanks to my friend for the perspective pose =)

Below is another image I thought about posting...

Rainy Embrace

At about 9 in the morning, a passing shower suddenly poured down on us with huge drops of rain. As we ran for cover, this couple stood in momentary embrace.

Banana Poka?

I'm not sure if this flowering vine is one species of Passiflora mollissima (a.k.a. P. tripartita), whose common name is banana poka, part of the passion fruit family (Passifloraceae). Its unwieldy vines can cause considerable damage to the ecosystem and its native habitat. On our recent hike, we came across these invasive killers placing a strangle hold on sandalwood and koa trees.

Another Pot of Gold

This photo was taken on Saturday Morning at around 9 AM outside of Hawai'i Kai.

Rainbow Factory

According to the Guinness Book of Kala Records, Hawai'i produces the most rainbows in the world. This rainbow was photographed about 30 minutes ago while at the University of Hawai'i! In the background is Wa'ahila Ridge, the roof of the Hamilton Library, student services center (Queen Liliuokalani) building etc. Have a great weekend!