But my favourite Hawaiian word is:

Humuhumunukunukuapua'a" is actually a proper noun. It is the name of the Hawaiian state fish, a Wedge-Tail Triggerfish.

NATIVE TONGUE A HAWAIIAN GLOSSARY
Author: E. Kalani FloresClick on the bold hyperlink to play a .wav sound file of the word and explore the Hawaiian language:'aina{noun} Land, earth. alelo{noun} Tongue, language. aloha {noun-transitive verb, noun-stative verb} Love, affection, compassion, mercy, sympathy, pity, kindness, sentiment, grace, charity; greeting, salutation, regards; sweetheart, lover, loved one; beloved, loving, kind, compassionate, charitable, lovable; to love, be fond of; to show kindness, mercy, pity, charity, affection; to venerate; to remember with affection; to greet, hail. Greetings! Hello! Good-by! Farewell! Alas! aloha 'aina {noun-verb} Love of the land; to nurture and care for the land. halau {noun} Long house, as for canoes or hula instruction; meeting house. hele {noun-intransitive verb} To go, come, walk; going, moving. hula {noun-transitive verb} 1. A dance characterized by rhythmic body movements, a hula dancer; to dance the hula. 2. Song or chant used for the hula; to sing or chant for a hula. huli{intransitive verb} To turn, reverse; to curl over, as a breaker; to change, as an opinion or manner of living. kai {noun-stative verb} Sea, sea water; area near the sea, seaside, lowlands; tide, current in the sea. kama'aina {noun-intransitive verb} Native-born, one born in a place, host; acquainted, familiar. [Commonly referred to a long-time resident of Hawai'i, as distinguished from a visitor.] kanaka maoli{noun} Full-blooded Hawaiian person. [Also refers to an indigenous person of Hawai'i whose ancestry predates the arrival of Captain Cook in 1778, such as a Native Hawaiian.] kapa {noun} Tapa, as made from the inner bark of various plants. ki'i pohaku {noun} Stone carving, petroglyph. kokua {noun-transitive verb} Help, aid, assistance, relief, assistant, associate, deputy, helper; co-operation; to help, assist, support, accommodate. kumu {noun} 1. Teacher, tutor. 2. Beginning, source, origin; starting point. 3. Bottom, base, foundation, basis, main stalk of a tree, trunk, handle, root; hereditary, fundamental. 4. Reason, cause, goal, justification, motive, grounds, purpose, object, why. kupuna {noun} 1. Grandparent, ancestor, relative or close friend of the grandparent's generation, grandaunt, granduncle. 2. Starting point, source; growing. lei{noun} Garland, wreath; necklace of flowers, leaves, shells, ivory, feathers, or paper, given as a symbol of affection; beads; any ornament worn around the head or about the neck; to wear a lei; crown. lu'au {noun} Hawaiian feast, named for the taro tops always served at one. This is not an ancient name, but goes back at least to 1856, when so used by the Pacific Commercial Advertiser newspaper; formerly a feast was pa'ina or 'aha'aina. mahalo {noun-transitive verb} 1. Thanks, gratitude; to thank. 2. Admiration, praise, esteem, regards, respects; to admire, praise, appreciate. makai{noun-stative verb} On the seaside, towards the sea, in the direction of the sea. makua {noun-stative verb} Parent, any relative of the parent's generation, as uncle, aunt, cousin; progenitor; main stalk of a plant; adult; full-grown, mature, older, senior. malama {noun-transitive verb} To take care of, tend, attend, care for, preserve, protect, maintain; care, preservation, support, fidelity, loyalty; caretaker, keeper. malihini {noun-stative verb} Stranger, foreigner, newcomer, tourist, guest, company; one unfamiliar with a place or custom; new, unfamiliar, unusual, rare, introduced, of foreign origin; for the first time. mauka {noun} Inland, upland, towards the mountain, in the direction of the uplands. mele {noun-transitive verb} Song, anthem, or chant of any kind; poem, poetry; to sing, chant. nalu {noun-transitive verb} Wave, surf; full of waves; to form waves; wavy, as wood grain. 'ohana {noun-stative verb} Family, relative, kin group; related. 'olapa {noun} Dancer, as contrasted with the chanter or ho'opa'a (memorizer); now, any dance accompanied by chanting and drumming on a gourd drum. 'olelo {noun-transitive verb} Language, speech, word, quotation, statement, utterance, term; to speak, say, state, talk, mention, quote, converse, tell; oral, verbatim, verbal. oli {noun-transitive verb} Chant that was not danced to, especially with prolonged phrases chanted in one breath; to chant thus. 'ono {noun-transitive verb} Delicious, tasty, savory; to relish, crave; deliciousness, flavor, savor. pilikia {noun-intransitive verb} Trouble of any kind, great or small; problem, nuisance, bother, distress, adversity, affliction, accident, difficulty, inconvenience, perturbation, tragedy, lack; in trouble, troubled, bothered, cramped, crowded. See 'a'ole pilikia. pule {noun-transitive verb} Prayer, incantation, blessing, grace; to pray, worship, ask a blessing. 'ukulele {noun} A four-stringed instrument shaped similar to a very small guitar. [Literally defined as "leaping flea"; probably derived from the Hawaiian nickname of Edward Purvis, who was small and quick and who popularized this instrument brought to Hawai'i by the Portuguese in 1879.] wai {noun-stative verb} Water, liquid or liquor or any kind other than sea water; to flow, like water, fluid. wikiwiki {stative verb} Fast, speedy; to hurry, hasten; quick, fast, swift.
©2003-2004 Media-HI, Inc. All rights reserved.

Kona Day 1 Part 2

We went down to the bar to watch the sun set on Kailua Bay. Don's Bar is the home of the original Mai Tai. The sunset was magnificent.

Then it was time to stroll down to Bubba Gump's for dinner.

http://www.bubbagump.com/locations/kona.html

O.K. I'm a happy camper...had dinner at Bubba's and passed the trivia test!

Remembrance Day

We missed the Remembrance Day ceremonies today as we were in flight.

Yesterda, however, we visited the Army Museum in Honolulu which was quite a moving experience.

We visited Pearl Harbor when we were here in 2005 and that was certainly a lesson in history.

Honolulu Chinatown

We ventured out by bus to Chinatown and had a great time following Frommer's walking directions. We then stopped at ta market and ate in the food court wher John had the lucky experience of a cockroach trying to climb his leg. it absolutely freaked me!!

Taken from Frommer's Walking Tour of Chinatown:

Chinese laborers from Guangdong Province first came to work on Hawaii's sugar and pineapple plantations in the 1850s. They quickly figured out that they would never get rich working in the fields; once their contracts were up, a few of the ambitious started small shops and restaurants in the area around River Street.
Chinatown was twice devastated by fire, once in 1886 and again in 1900. The second fire still intrigues historians. In December 1899, bubonic plague broke out in the area, and the Board of Health immediately quarantined its 7,000 Chinese and Japanese residents. But the plague continued to spread. On January 20, 1900, the board decided to burn down plague-infected homes, starting at the corner of Beretania Street and Nuuanu Avenue. But the fire department wasn't quite ready; a sudden wind quickly spread the flames from one wooden building to another in the densely built area, and soon Chinatown's entire 40 acres were leveled. Many historians believe that the "out-of-control" fire may have been purposely set to drive the Chinese merchants -- who were becoming economically powerful and controlled prime real estate -- out of Honolulu. If this was indeed the case, it didn't work: The determined merchants built a new Chinatown on the same spot.
Chinatown reached its peak in the 1930s. In the days before air travel, visitors arrived here by cruise ship. Just a block up the street was the pier where they disembarked -- and they often headed straight for the shops and restaurants of Chinatown, which mainlanders considered an exotic treat. In the 1940s, military personnel on leave flocked here looking for different kinds of exotic treats -- in the form of pool halls, tattoo joints, and brothels.
Today, Chinatown is again rising from the ashes. After deteriorating over the years into a tawdry district of seedy bars, drug dealing, and homeless squatters, the neighborhood recently underwent extensive urban renewal. Just enough sleaze still flourishes on the fringes (a few peep shows and a couple of topless bars) to keep it from being a theme park-style tourist attraction, but Chinatown is poised to relive its glory days.
It's not exactly a microcosm of China, however. What you'll find is a mix of Asian cultures, all packed into a small area where tangy spices rule the cuisine, open-air markets have kept out the mini-malls, and the way to good health is through acupuncture and herbalists. The jumble of streets comes alive every day with bustling residents and visitors from all over the world; a cacophony of sounds, from the high-pitched bleating of vendors in the market to the lyrical dialects of the retired men "talking story" over a game of mah-jongg; and brilliant reds, blues, and greens trimming buildings and goods everywhere you look. No trip to Honolulu is complete without a visit to this exotic, historic district.

Going to Big Island

We had a nice, leisurely breakfast at the Seaside Bar and Grill (again) on Kuhio, just across the street from the condo. Had a very chatty waiter from south America who had an opinion on happiness being a state of mind. Had the $3.75 special again.

Back to condo to get packed, blog and read. Took a cab to the airport ($35) and checked in at Hawaiian Airlines for our flight to the Big Island, 40 minutes in duration. It is the 80th anniversary of the airlines today.

Once checked in and through security we came across this hula girl and band playing for the travellers.

We were on the left side of the plane so we had amazing views of Honolulu as we left and then the other islands as we flew over.

The Big Island looks flat and barren, covered in black lava rock from the air.

Landed and John went to get our luggage from the baggage claim.

Got our rental car and left the airport. As we left this was our view!

Checked into the Royall Kona resort where we are staying for 1 night. The grounds and lobby areas are nice, but the rooms could use some updating, however, it's only 1 night.

Time to go our for lunch, so we packed up the cameras and headed into Kona on foot. Stopped for lunch where we had sliders combo of kalua pig, chicken teriyaki and burger with a couple of Longboards. There was an amazing gecko who climbed up the railing beside our table, he had the bluest eyes ever!

Time to stroll back and decided to buy several pair of Crocs on the way. No, not the neon coloured ones, these are very tasteful.

And just think, it's only 4pm!! Will head out for mai tais and watch the sunset in about an hour or so!

Dinner at Jimmy Buffett's Honolulu

Wantedd to go to Matteo's for Itlaian (we had eaten there in 2005) but it was closed for renovations. Walked around and everywhere was busy so settled on Jimmy Buffett's. What a fantastic layout in the Beachcomber Hotel. Much larger than the one in Las Vegas.

Food was very good, I had a Kobe burger which was incredible and John had the fajitas. Service sucked big time, though.

Great entertainment. There were quite a few Torontonians in the audience and 1 couple was getting married on Wednesday.

Hawaiian Ramblings

Continental charges you for every piece of luggage.

Shopping here is more trendy and decandent than Rodeo Drive in LA or the Magnificent Mile in Chicago.

It's going to be a hot day today with a high of 82 but the sun is shining.