PLACE OF REFUGE

WORK GOES ON IN THE COFFEE PLANTATION
THE TREES ARE PRUNED.
PRODUCTION REDUCES SIGNIFICANTLY ON WOOD MORE THAN 5 YEARS OLD
THE PRUNED BRANCHES ARE CHIPPED
THE MULCH IS SPREAD AROUND THE TREES
PAU HANA ESTATE IS AN ORGANIC PLANTATION

I'm now a full day behind again. As I post the Hawaiian date is Thursday, 4th April, 9.30 am (NZ Friday 5th, 8.30 am.). Not sure what we are doing today. John is out chatting with Carol about her Plantation. We were planning to go north and check things out since we went south yesterday. Tomorrow we meet Kathy, my cousin from Auckland, NZ, for lunch in Kona, (north from here). It will take us time to pack since we have a weight restriction on inter-island flights and we are returning to Honolulu with a lot more than we left with. Our flight is early afternoon on Saturday so we still have plenty of time to enjoy this area.

Yesterday, Tuesday, we were cranky with each other. I find driving on strange roads is sometimes stressful. I think it is because I do the driving from the passenger seat and these roads are challenging in that they are narrow. After breakfast I spent a lot of time doing my blog which meant we were later than planned hitting the road. To be quite honest I did not want to go out. The thought of driving down the one way road again was not appealing.

 John just plain ran out of steam. This happens when he does not have regular meals, as occurred this afternoon. He is becoming more sensitive to missing lunch or having a late dinner with no in between snack, as he grows older. Not fun, especially since he doesn't realise how unreasonable he has become. My sense of humour deserts me when I need it most. I guess I missed my lunch too.

A SACRED PLACE ONLY AVAILABLE TO KINGS AND LORDS ...
ANCIENT HAWAIIAN HISTORY

We decided to have lunch at the Coffee Shack, a breakfast and lunch café, which is a mile or two along the main road. John turned into another place with signs out. It turned out to be a coffee house on a recovering plantation run by Christians. We stopped to sample their coffee and chat with a friendly man who cut up some fruit for us to eat, the sweetest oranges in the world. We left there to go to the Coffee Shack which was only open until 3 pm and this was getting well into the afternoon. No Parking!

PAINSTAKINGLY MAKING A FISHING HOOK

 The place was just too popular so we kept going on down to the Place of Refuge, Pu'uhonua o Honaunau, a National Park. I felt so negative. Not good at all. but it was something we would have regretted missing. This is a place full of significant history over many centuries of different cultures.

Captain Cook was worshipped her when the people mistook him for a returning God. There is a monument to him just a little further along the beach.

TRADITIONALLY BUILT CANOE

MADE WITH MODERN TOOLS

We went for a little drive past homes with lovely tropical gardens until we found the main road again and stopped for icecream at the most unlikely place. The Discovery Antique shop was chock full of attractive treasures, and some that looked like junk. But it also served Island Dream icecream.

Island Dream Icecream is locally made and a treat on the island. It is deliciously creamy, almost decadent, with wonderfully flavours. We also find it expensive compared with some of our gourmet icecreams in New Zealand. John had ginger and vanilla, with chocolate fudge. I had coffee, (what else) with Tahitian vanilla. The flavouring was just right. Delicate, yet enough to tempt you to want more! I don't know what they make icecream with here but it doesn't leave your fingers in a sticky mess when it melts.

PRETTY VIEW

Finally home, we went through food in the fridge and I produced a salad based on iceberg lettuce, with tomato, avocado, red pepper and onion. I thought about what I could safely manage in a microwave and cooked up all the bok choy with lime juice, pepper and salt. Then I cooked a few slices of bacon. I mixed the diced bacon, some chopped onion and bok choy together and added a few roughly beaten eggs and voilá, a kind of egg and bacon bake to go with our salad. It didn't look good but tasted fine. We have another very large white onion to eat. They are quite sweet so go well in salad. We have enough food here for at least one more main meal and plenty for breakfasts and snacks. I am looking forward to a nice lunch on the road today though. We are in an area where there are not many restaurants and the good ones are few and far between.

SUNSET FROM OUR DECK