Wednesday, August 22~Halawa Valley~

Last evening we went back to Paddler's Inn to see Lono perform. Must say that even though he was very good, we were a little disappointed.  I guess we were expecting something more along the lines of Phineas Poon at the Red Dog Saloon.  He was more of a Spanish-Hawaiian and after 2 or 3 Hawaiian War Chants we decided to go look for ice cream.  We then retired to sit by the side of the pool, overlooking the ocean  before heading off to bed.
This morning we slept in.  I got up around 6 and walked down to the pool to look for birds, but so far roosters, mynas and zebra doves along with the ever lovable house sparrow, are the only ones that seem to want to be seen.  We packed a lunch and headed out on the road that leads to the east end of the island.  We found the only two remaining churches that Father Damien had built on the top side of Molokai and several of the ancient Hawaiian fish ponds before getting to the end of thee 27 mile road at Halawa Valley.  We were able to see the longest water falls in Hawaii at the end of the valley.  We made the decision yesterday not to hire a guide to take us back to the water fall for $75 each and instead reserved a spot on the mule ride down to Kalaupapa.  It sure looked a lot farther that 2 1/2 miles to the water fall so I think we made the right decision, at least we hope so.  I will let you know tomorrow when/if we get back!  Later today we may drive to the west end of the island to watch the sunset on the longest beach.  Aloha until my next post.

 Ancient Hawaiian fish pond, still in use.

 Climbing up into the mountains on the east end of the island.

 The longest waterfall in Hawaii.

 Looks a lot farther than any 2 1/2 miles to me.

 Halawa Valley at the end of the road.  This was taken from an overlook before we got to the bottom.

Tuesday, August 21~First day in Molokai~

Leaving Honolulu heading south to Molokai

Diamond Head Crater

Hanauma Bay

Molokai

Our plane, there were 8 passengers counting a baby

Our condo at Hotel Molokai.  Also had 2 twin beds and a kitchenette

Our lanai

Oceanside pool and hammocks

We drove to the Kalaupapa Trail overlook

The lighthouse at Kalaupapa

 The steepest cliffs in the world lie behind the colony of Kalaupapa, this area was chosen to keep the leprosy patients from leaving the colony.

 And need I say it, this was the Phallic Rock.  Curiosity got the better of us.

 Yesterday we were walking in Waikiki, today in a forest of some unknown tree that looked much like a spruce.  Much more enjoyable that the hot sidewalks of Honolulu.

Sharon was so depressed this morning because she was missing the first day of school for the first time in 35 years.  And then she woke up and realized it was just a really bad dream!!  We flew out of Honolulu on Pacific Wings (more like a wing and a prayer!) to the island of Molokai where we will be staying until Friday morning.  It was a beautiful flight and we flew right over the Diamond Head crater and could see Hanauma Bay from the air.  It was about a 25 minute flight before we landed on a very small airstrip.  We picked up our rental car and headed to the Hotel Molokai to check in.  The island appears to be quite dry except in the areas that are irrigated such as the coffee plantation and the macadamia nut farms.  We had lunch at Paddler's Bar and got the special, 2 hamburgers for $15 with sides.  We are going back tonight for the entertainment.  Judy Snyder said we needed to find where Lono was playing because he was a premier musician on the island.  Lono is playing at Paddler's tonight.  We drove to the Kalaupapa Overlook to see the leper colony.  It looked absolutely beautiful today.  Hard to believe that for nearly 100 years anyone in the islands that had or appeared to have leprosy were exiled to this desolate place.  Sharon and I just booked the mule ride to the bottom for Thursday so make sure to check out the blog on Friday (or Saturday) for what I believe will be some spectacular photos.  Heading out for supper and some island Aloha.

Monday, August 20~Hard Rock/Luau Hale Koa~

Today all we did was eat.  Not really but the only pictures I have are of us doing just that!  We had lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe and this evening Luke, Sharon and I went to the Luau at the Hale Koa.  Luke fell asleep during the meal but did manage to wake up and stay awake for the show.  His favorite was the two boys that twirled flaming knives.  They were very, very good.  Tomorrow Sharon and I head to Molokai for several days.

Sunday, August 19~Hale Koa & Fairy Tern Chicks~

 Duke's statue, on the way to lunch.

 One of the large banyan trees along the way.

Luke with Tiki Man at the restaurant

Last night we let Sara and Matt have the night to themselves and stay at the Hale Koa while we stayed at their house with Evie.  Evelyn loves Luke because he is always making her laugh. Lily on the other hand is always telling Evelyn that she can't do something or is taking toys away from her. "No, baby, that's mine" or "No baby, don't eat that", she is quite the bossy little girl.  The kids had fun together and Evelyn was very good for her first time away from Mommy.  The high light of the night was bath time with all three in the tub.  Today we drove all the kids back downtown to the hotel and spent the day swimming.  We had lunch at a roof top restaurant called the Tiki.  The ocean was particularly beautiful today sporting an almost turquois color.  This afternoon Sharon spent some time in the lobby of the hotel reading and there was a volunteer who was watching a Hawaiian Fairy-Tern nest and talking to the public.  This white tern or Manu-o-ku means bird of peace in Hawaii and according to the volunteer is on the endangered list.  (My source says they are only threatened and fairly common but only on Oahu)  They lay a single egg on a bare branch or window ledge and when the egg hatches the chick stays at the hatching site for 45 days while the mother and father feed it small fish.  There were two small chicks in the banyan tree of the lobby courtyard. Although this was not a life bird for me, it was quite a thrill to see the two chicks at such close range.  Tomorrow:  Luau at the Hale Koa!

Fairy tern chick #1

Backside of chick #2

Adult Fairy Tern