Kukui Trail, Kokee, Kauai, Hawaii
Kukui Trail, Kokee, Kauai, Hawaii
Eo'e Emalani i Alakai
Since 1988, Hui o Laka/Kokee Museum has hosted “Eo e Emalani i Alakai” to commemorate a historic event honoring Queen Emma’s 1871 visit to Kokee and Alakai Swamp. Each year people are chosen to represent Queen Emma, Kaluahi, and attendants.
Invited hula halau from around the state and Japan honor their queen with dances and chants honoring Kaleleonalani – Traveler of the Mountains. The event starts at 9am along with exhibits, crafts and snack sales in the Kanaloahuluhulu Meadow. After the Queen’s party rides into the Meadow at eleven, a dozen halau perform dances and chants honoring Queen Emma. There is no admission although donations are accepted at the Kokee Museum.
Parking is extremely limited with car pooling strongly suggested. Shuttle service is in the works from Kekaha and Waimea Neighborhood Centers.
Saturday, October 8th, 2016 at 9:00 am – 4:00 pm Free Event. This year’s event is sponsored by Hui o Laka, Hawaii Tourism Authority, County of Kauai. New event furnishings were supplied through the Kekaha Host Community Benefit Program – Kokee is Kekaha’s backyard!
Sunset Yoga on a Black Sand Beach in Hawai'i
This is a beautiful time-lapse of a hatha yoga flow taken as the sun sets behind a black sand beach in Punalu'u, Hawai'i. Watch as the coconut palms sway and we evolve the mind-body organism together. You may find yourself wanting to dance along!
Yoga is union - of body to mind, of consciousness to super-consciousness, of yin to yang. Yoga is a journey and each beautiful soul's own journey is unique. My journey began about 10 years ago in Los Angeles, California where I was blessed with a yogi as a roommate. He inspired me to begin practicing and I haven't stopped since. Now I have 300 hours of teacher training in advanced hatha yoga and my journey continues. I consider it a blessing to share this transformative practice with like-minded souls. When we come together on a beach, it is all-the-more blissful! If you'd like to connect, you can find me here:
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If you find yourself on the Big Island of Hawai'i, you can book a yoga session with me here:
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Punalu'u Beach Park is famous for it's black sand. The history of this place is rich and the mana (energy of the land) is palpable. Both hawksbill and green sea turtles can be found here resting or nesting on most days. It is always awe-inspiring to witness these beautiful beings. In Hawai'ian, the word for sea turtle is honu. Honu also means peace in Hawai'ian. When thinking of sea turtles, peaceful is often a descriptor that comes to mind along with graceful, curious and slow. These turtles, which can weigh up to 400 pounds, are primarily vegetarians. They eat algae or limu (Hawai'ian seaweed) growing underwater on coral reefs and on rocks close to shore.
In addition to turtles on the beach, Punalu'u is home to the remnants of Kane'ele'ele Heiau, a sacrificial heiau used by ancient Hawai'ians along with scattered petroglyphs that they left behind depicting various things. If interested, one can walk along lava rocks to find this sacred spot. Though lava rock is beautiful and interesting, it is best to leave it in Hawai'i. It is told that if you take lava rock(s) off-island, bad luck will surely enter your life. Some attribute this legend to the fact that Native Hawai'ians’ indigenous religion worships Pele, goddess of the volcanoes and fire, who is said to have traveled from the South Pacific to take part in the creation of the entire island chain. Believers say that Pele makes her home at Kilauea Volcano on the Big Island of Hawai'i, about thirty-five minutes away from Punalu'u Black Sand Beach Park, where volcano eruptions have been almost non-stop since 1983. Pele, known for her fiery and unforgiving temper, is said to be righteously indignant if anyone takes a piece of her body (lava rock) away from her island home. Naturally, she is said to curse any person who does so. Or so the story goes…
If you find yourself attributing a recent string of bad luck to a lava rock souvenir you took from one of the Hawai'ian islands and want to mail it back, you can send it to one of the following:
If you took it from Hawai'i island...
Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park
P.O. Box 52
Hawai’i National Park, HI 96718-0052
If it was taken from the islands of Maui, Lana'i or Moloka'i...
Haleakala National Park (island of Maui)
P.O. Box 369
Makawao, HI 96768-0369
For rocks picked up on the island of Oahu...
Bernice P. Bishop Museum
State Museum of Natural and Cultural History
P.O. Box 19000-A
Honolulu, HI 96819
For rocks picked up on the island of Kauai...
Kokee Natural History Museum
P.O. Box 100
Kekaha, HI 96752
Here is more interesting information on Punalu'u from Van James' Ancient Sites of Hawai'i, Archaeological Places of Interest on the Big Island: Enclosed on one side by the grey-black sands of Punalu'u Beach and surrounded by low-growing coconut palms is a sweet water pond, no longer producing fish as in the old days but providing a picturesque view for beach-goers and visitors... This is Punalu'u Fishpond. Separated from Kuhua Bay by sixty yards of beach, the brackish water pond is fed by a spring called Kawaihu o Kauila. Kauila is the legendary turtle goddess who protects and cares for the spring and the pond. Punalu'u means the spring dived for.
Find more information and follow the adventures of me aka Yogini in Hawai'i here:
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A very special mahalo to Hawai'i Aloha Song Across Hawai'i and Iya Terra - Movement via Sugarshack Sessions for the pleasing auditory vibes!
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