Day 7 Honaunau Bay and a little slice of heaven

I thought we would experience some historical culture today....do you hear the groaning?  Throughout our jaunts here, we have happened upon a few heiau.  These thatched structures are Hawaiian temples and considered sacred religious sites.  The one we visited was located in Pu'uhonua O Honaunau National Park. It is south of Kona and we drove the two-laned, curvy Hwy 11 which heads up into coffee country.  We were high enough to be driving in the clouds and there were several coffee farms along the way....something to do another day.  It felt like we were in Central or South America as we passed little homes with rusted tin roofs, an old theater, and several historic little buildings.  I even saw a coffee picker, with a sack of beans slung over his shoulder.  No wonder Kona coffee is so expensive, it's hand picked!  We wound back down to sea level where the park is situated on Honaunau Bay .   It is very picturesque and peaceful, offering a glimpse into traditional Hawaiian life.  The park really set the mood and if you squinted your eyes you could just imagine a day in the life. On a more irreverent note, I couldn't get the Gilligan's Island theme song out of my head.  Being on this bay made it ideal as a refuge with its sheltered canoe landing area and fresh water.  It became a place for royal chiefs or ali'i to create their royal grounds.   We took a self guided tour and learned about daily life in this idyllic spot. The royals would engage in different recreational activities, or they might hold negotiations during war or peacetime, all while their servants performed the daily tasks required in serving the chief.  The other part of these grounds is known as the place of refuge or pu'uhonua. I think the natives maybe viewed it as a little slice of heaven?  There was a rule prohibiting any bloodshed on these grounds, so it was a second chance for the people who couldn't fight in times of war, for injured warriors, and for those people who broke the sacred laws.  If one broke a sacred law they were chased down and the penalty was death, because it was thought that when the laws were broken, the gods would react with violence in the form of natural disasters, like volcanic eruptions or tidal waves, etc.  But if a lawbreaker made it to the refuge they were absolved by the priest in a ceremony and then they could return home.  The temple (named Hale O Keawe) here was considered a sacred and powerful place and had the bones of 23 different chiefs entombed there.  It was believed that the mana or special power, within the bones provided extra protection to those that came for refuge.  The temple was guarded by fierce-looking, carved, wooden totem poles, which were in the images of their gods.   As I was walking the grounds and absorbing all the history I couldn't help but reflect again on my faith as a Christian.  While these people were searching for refuge and absolution in a place, and in the supposed power of dead bones, and  power in wooden totems, I was grateful to know that my refuge and absolution is in the risen Christ and His powerful work on that wooden cross. 



Hale O Keawe



 



Olivia resting in the refuge



Guardian gods

After finishing our tour, we asked the docent at the park if she could recommend a place for lunch, she told us of a place up in the hills.  We headed up to the cute little yellow, cottage-like building that housed a take out food stand.  We had to drive a one lane road through a lava field up into the more mountainous region to get there. If you didn't know that what you were looking for, you would drive right by.  These little places are actually the norm, especially out from the towns. They are little homegrown establishments that offer plate lunches and sandwiches. The kids ate burgers, Paul had a grilled Ahi wrap, and I opted for a BLT, cause you can't go wrong with a BLT.  The food was good and the atmosphere was quaint.  They only had outdoor seating under a tent and on a covered porch, which was good because it was drizzling in the clouds today.

From there we backtracked down to the bay for some snorkeling.  Josh, the first mate from our manta snorkel, told me about the place.  The locals call it "two-step" which I thought was a weird name for a snorkel site, but after arriving, I figured out why.  We had to walk out on a lava flat to where the water met the rock and there was a step down onto another rock, and from there we jumped into the sea.  The area is well known as the sleeping grounds for Spinner dolphins.  Josh told me that if you get there early in the morning you would find the dolphins swimming in a cirlce, that's how they sleep, and you can swim out and up in the middle of their circle and hang with them.  This is also a place where monk seals sun themselves.  We were there in the early afternoon and lots of snorkelers were in the water, so no dolphins and no seals, but there were alot of fish and coral to be seen.  It felt like I was swimming in an aquarium, the water was so clear and blue.  The ocean is a unique thing.  At first look out on the surface, it seems like a desert, just vast expanse of waves, rhythmic and some might say mundane.  It doesn't really appear as if anything is happening, but as soon as you go underwater, it's a  different world.  Whole coral cities teeming with life, completely independent from the world above. 

School of Yellow Tangs

 

 On our way home, we stopped in town to walk around a little.  There's an expo going all week and some of the pros give talks an such, so Paul brought along all his memorabillia in hopes of getting autographs.  The guy can get a little carried away with the stalking.  There has been many a time that the kids and I have run the other way because we were so embarrassed.  But I gotta hand it to him, he has guts and it usually pays off.  Thankfully, he brought along my favorite memoir by Sister Madonna Buder, entitled The Grace To Race.   She is an 82 year old nun, born and raised in St Louis, who has raced over 22 Ironmans and she didn't even start running until she was in her late 50's.  She opens a new women's age group at most races she participates in.  Well, it just so happened that we ran into her within 5 minutes of parking.   She was at a bike tent and Paul went up to her and started talking to her.  When we saw that she smiled and wasn't going to scream for the cops because of the crazy fan, the kids and I walked over too.  We spoke to her and asked her to autograph her book and a picture we took of her in Des Moines at the HyVee 5150 Championships.   She was so excited to see the pictures and asked if we would mail her one and then happily signed everything.  She offered some suggestions on things to see, hopped on her bike and pedaled off. The woman is a legend and a true inspiration.  I can't wait to cheer her on Saturday!



Sister Madonna Buder HiVee Championships