Blogs from Big Island, Hawaii, United States, North America - page 10

Background Since moving to Hawaiʻi, I have been very fortunate to work for a Native Hawaiian organization with significant land holdings, first as an independent consultant and now as an employee. One of the things that struck me about the people of Hawaiʻi, and Native Hawaiians in particular, was how connected many of them were to their land, environment, folklore and traditions. This is in direct contrast to many Singaporeans who are very disconnected. Although I love nature and I daresay I am more connected to the natural environment than most of my peers in Singapore, my connection tended to be visual, aesthetic and academic (I was a Geography major, map geek and avid kayaker) rather than something I internalized for my own wellbeing. For many Singaporeans, growing up was about academics and getting a headstart ... read more

A 5am wakeup call might sound early to some but with the help of jet lag it was a walk in the park for us. We were the first hotel pick up, luckily there were not many others to pick up on the way to the airport. By the time we checked in and got a coffee it was time to board the plane and after only a 45 minute flight we were in Hilo, also known as Hawaii Island or Big Island. Since I was a teenager, visiting Big Island had been a dream after I first read about Kilauea, the world’s most active volcano. It has been continuously erupting since January 3rd 1983, almost my exact birth date. I remember reading that you could book a trip to cycle alongside molten lava as it ... read more

The day after the conference in Honolulu (Honolulu is located on the island of Oahu) I left for the island after which the entire chain of islands is named: Hawaii. For clarification Hawaii is often also called Big Island and there is some truth in the name because it is in fact the biggest of all the islands and all of the other islands would easily fit into this one. Hawaii is the southern most of the islands and also the youngest one. The islands exist due to a hot spot in the crust of the earth across which one of the tectonic plates our earth consists of move from southeast to northwest. So Hawaii, the youngest island, is in the southeast, whereas the oldest islands, Kauai and Lanakai, lie in the northwest and will gradually ... read more

We landed at the Kona airport, right around twilight. After being off the plane for no more than 5 minutes we both declared "we should move here". There was a nice warm breeze, it didn't feel humid even to us coming from Arizona and the airport was all open-air. The security area, ticket counter, baggage claim; all outdoors with random thatched hut looking coverings. It was awesome and very inviting! After we got our rental car, we started our drive up to the rental house. Up, up, up we went in a fast ascension through the cloud forest, along winding roads. The house was even better in person! Beautiful and spacious and clean and airy and homey and charming. A hot tub, fireplace, soaking tub, homemade ceramics, high vaulted ceilings, humongous lanai with views, spacious yard ... read more

Click here for my October 2013 blog entry on the Saddle Road. Last week, I had the opportunity to drive the new and improved Saddle Road again, but this time in the opposite direction from Kona to Hilo. A vendor I was working with was at our Kona office on Wednesday, and we both had to be on the Hilo side for a meeting the next day, so I flew into Kona where my vendor picked me up at 8am. From Kona airport, we headed to the Mamalahoa Highway, reaching the Saddle Road at 8.45am. Unlike my last drive, we weren't in a hurry this time, so we stopped to take photos several times (that means no pictures taken through a windscreen or window this time!). The scenery along the route was nothing short of amazing, ... read more