Maui-Hawaii

The Spirit of a Rock

"As a solid rock cannot be moved by the wind, the wise are not shaken by praise or blame." -Buddha

Dawn in the Jungle

The silhouette of the palm trees along side the ocean at Wainapanapa in Maui Hawaii

Jodo Mission Bell

Made of bronze, the temple bell weighs approximately 3,000 pounds. On one side (the ocean side), are the words Imin Hyakunen no Kane (The Centennial Memorial Bell for the First Japanese Immigrants to Hawaii) cast in Chinese characters. On the other side are the characters Namu Amida Butsu, which means "Save me, oh, Amida Buddha."

Climbing Mt. Haleakalā

This is a shot taken from the car as we climbed Mt. Haleakalā to the summit 10,000 ft above sea level

Tunnel to the Sea

A lava tube along the coast of Wainapanapa in Maui.

Black Beach

The rough coastline of Wainapanapa in Maui

Wedding Couple at the Luau

This was such an amazing night. This Luau was held at the Ritz Carlton on Kapalua Beach in Maui.

Rainbow at Waianapanapa

Drift Wood

Drift Wood washed up on Koki beach. Maui Hawaii

Courtesy of the Moss

A really neat sign we stumbled across while hiking along the road to Hana

Black Rocks Blue Water

Lava boulders setting along Kapalua beach a long the Ritz Carlton.

Wai'anapanapa

Waiʻanapanapa State Park is a 122-acre (0.49 km2) state park in Hana. Waiʻanapanapa means “glistening fresh water” in the Hawaiian language, referring to nearby fresh water streams and sparkling pools. The black lava rock and sand creates a beautiful contrasting scene with the ocean.

Surfing Koki Beach

A surfer catching a wave at Koki beach along the road to Hana in Maui.

Shingle Helmet Urchins

Shingle or helmet urchins, known as “ha’uke’uke kaupali” in Hawaiian, are some of the most unusual sea urchins to live in Hawaii. Except for a fringe of spines that extend around the perimeter of their shells, their spines have shrunk and flattened to form a plated dome to withstand the intense pounding of surf in the wave impact zone.

Knife dancing has a history which goes back hundreds of years. The modern fire knife dance has its roots in the ancient Samoan exhibition called "ailao" - the flashy demonstration of a Samoan warrior's battle prowess through artful twirling, throwing and catching, and dancing with a war club. When European and American whalers and traders began commercial ventures in Samoa they introduced the natives to the long-handled blubber knife and the hooked cane knife. The characteristic metal hook of these tools was readily incorporated into the Samoan wooden nifo'oti which bears the unique hooked element whether carved from wood or forged from steel. Fire was added to the knife in 1946 by a Samoan knife dancer named Freddie Letuli, later to become Paramount Chief Letuli Olo Misilagi. Letuli was performing in San Francisco and noticed a Hindu Fire eater and a little girl with lighted batons. The fire eater loaned him some fuel, he wrapped some towels around his knife, and the fire knife dance was born.