Warrior. Leader. Ruler. Legend. King Kamehameha the Great held many titles during his reign as ali‘i nui (high chief, ruler) of the Hawaiian Islands. Celebrated as one of the most important and significant rulers in Hawaiian history, the monarch is honored on June 11—King Kamehameha Day—when lei draping ceremonies, parades and other cultural celebrations take […]
Who knew there was a heiau (Hawaiian shrine) behind Kailua’s YMCA? Not me. I’ve driven by the spot countless times on my way to the beach and somehow never paid attention to the massive historic stone structure, Ulupō Heiau, just steps from Kailua Road. It’s a spot I would have never known to visit without
Today marks the maiden voyage of the Hokulea, the first double-hulled Hawaiian voyaging canoe to set sail since the time of Kamehameha the Great, from the Hawaiian Islands to Tahiti. It was a major achievement that sparked a thriving interest, awareness and perpetuation of traditional, non-instrument Polynesian navigation to this day. Adjacent to the current
Actors Rita Moreno and Howard Keel during the filming of “Pagan Love Song.” Photo: Kauai Historical Society In 1950s Kauai, the tourism industry was just beginning to take off. There were no direct flights to the island, but visitors could now travel eight hours from Los Angeles to Honolulu by plane—a lot faster than the
Hawaii has so many distinctive land formations with interesting backstories to their popular nicknames we couldn’t just limit it to one post. Here are eight more alluring natural landmarks… 1. Dragon’s Teeth on Kapalua Christopher Michel/Wikipedia Commons Sink your feet into this unique rock formation on Maui’s Makaluapuna Point, a result of one of the
1. Chinaman’s Hat (Mokolii) Photo: Sarah Camp/cc-nd The proper native legend of this basalt islet translates to “little lizard” in Hawaiian. It was believed by Native Hawaiians that Hiiaka, the goddess of hula, slayed a giant lizard and threw its tail into the ocean—this very small island off Kaneohe Bay. Because of its similarity to an
