Hawai'i Pictures

This was probably not the typical Hawai'i tour. This was my mother and siblings exploring our Hawaiian heritage, so it was a week before we even stepped onto a beach, and Waikiki was almost an afterthought.

I met my mother's cousins and aunts who I've heard about all my life, but finally got to know. We indulged in Hawaiian food (that will be a post of its own), and visited sites of historical/cultural interest. We talked to an uncle about our family tree, both Hawaiian and Chinese ancestry. We saw live Hawaiian music and came home with stacks of CD's - Iz, Keali'i Reichel, Hoku Zuttermeier, Lopaka Keli'ikanaka'ole, Amy Hanaiale'i, Ledward Kaapana (who is apparently distantly related to us!)

We all felt a strange and strong connection to the land, and got emotional at certain points - when a young man blew a conch shell, viewing the Na Pali coast, being in the room where Queen Lili'uokalani was imprisoned when the Americans overthrew her monarchy, our final departure from Hawai'i. History is always fascinating, but in this case, it feels like my personal history, the history of my people, and my queen.

Here are just a few interesting highlights. I'm doing a whole food post later, and I'll do a separate post of just scenic photos.



These chickens are everywhere; they run wild. There are different theories about how they became wild and so abundant. They request that people not encourage them by feeding them. Don't feed the chickens!



Iolani Palace, the only real palace where monarchs lived in the entire US. Queen Lili'uokalani was imprisoned in a room here for two years.



There are adorable little churches built in the 1800's by early missionaries all over - this one is in Hanalei. We were all unimpressed with Hanalei's shopping district (more of a generic beach scene rather than Hawaiian), but the scenery away from the tourist areas is lovely.



Kahiko Hula! There were lots of these statues around Oahu; this is one of the many at the Aloha Tower shopping center.