with aloha
I know you people think I’m on vacation in Hawai’i. That’s only half true. I’m working. It’s a working vacation, which happens when your job involves going to beautiful places. I’m working (and playing) so hard that I barely have time for a proper post. That’s partly because connectivity to the interwebs are a little sketch where I’m traveling, so I’m taking advantage of the fact that I have access and some time in Hilo before the next leg of the itinerary. Meanwhile, it’s soon to be Mother’s Day and I just had to give a shout out to my mom, my MIL, my grandma, my aunties, my friends, and all of the wonderful mothers out there who do the toughest job in the world:
happy mother’s day with aloha
While I’ve been shooting the wonders that are the Big Island (and much of that in the rain so far), I’ve also been snapping photos to document our trip. I promised Jeremy this would not be yet another slog of a photo shoot and that we’d do fun things too. Needless to say we’re both exhausted, but having a great time when we’re coherent enough to remember what we did just two hours ago. Enjoy the snaps and hopefully you’ll hear from me again soon!
the plant life here is incredible
awesome malasadas (guava is pink, taro is purple, also strawberry- and chocolate-filled)
the ubiquitous hibiscus
we stayed in the rainforest
and ate plenty of papayas
black sand beach
sampled local thai food
gorged on ahi tuna poke (po-kay)
walked from the big island to a tiny little island
sampled seriously amazing passion iced tea
more ahi tuna poke and some sweet potato chips
can’t pass up shave ice (ice shave): rainbow and lilikoi/lychee
rainbow: strawberry, pineapple, and blue vanilla
a sampling of handmade mochi
heavenly strawberry mochi: fresh strawberry and sweet adzuki beans wrapped in silky mochi
May 7th, 2011 at 5:30 am
the food is epic!
malasadas, the thai food, ahi tuna,the passionfruit tea..WOW! all of it looks amazing.
so safe to assume, you’re enjoying yourself then?
:)
May 7th, 2011 at 8:00 am
I looooove the Big Island! It’s one of my favourites. If you get the chance to go up Mauna Kea for a stargazing tour, it’s just incredible up there. We’re going to Kauai and Maui this summer and I can’t wait for passion fruit anything! It’s my favourite flavour, hands down.
May 7th, 2011 at 8:02 am
Sweet! I hope your visit continues to be tasty and lovely.
May 7th, 2011 at 9:12 am
makes me want to jump on a plain right now.
May 7th, 2011 at 11:01 am
Aloha! Hawaii is just so special. Enjoy your work and your play (and having Jeremy with you). All the fresh fruit and excellent food. And how annoying it is that certain plants can be brought back but aren’t particularly happy unless in a greenhouse. My bias, that you should have a few extra days when you finish work to relax and recharge before leaving the Islands. Take your time. We will all still be here.
May 7th, 2011 at 5:13 pm
Your photography makes EVERYTHING look like paradise.These Hawaii photos are incredible.I can taste the rainbow shaved ice.Thank-you for your beautiful photos,heartfelt text,amazing recipes and great pics of your hubby and beautiful doggy.peace.
May 7th, 2011 at 6:32 pm
The photos are amazing! And the food looks delicious! Thanks, now I want to go to Hawaii!
May 7th, 2011 at 8:09 pm
What magnificent shots! Love the last one- that looks dreamy. Enjoy your time in such a special place :)
May 7th, 2011 at 8:47 pm
Happy Mom’s Day to you too! (I’m sure the beautiful Miss K. will echo my words.)
Enjoy your travels and don’t fret over the work part too much. I do hope you get a vacation in there somewhere. You give 110% with everything you do. Take time to spell the forest, the rain and the sand. If Jeremy gets tired of lugging gear, give me a call. I work for free in these parts of the world.
;)
May 8th, 2011 at 7:45 am
you gave us so much of the vegetation: the hibiscus, the forests, the palms, the papayas, the strawberries, guavas, lychee….but where were the fabled pineapples?? beautiful pix, scenery, & food! mahalo.
May 8th, 2011 at 10:47 am
So amazing!!
May 8th, 2011 at 12:42 pm
I’ve always wondered how tuna poke is any different from tuna tartare? Also: those handmade mochis look AMAZING… and the strawberry/adzuki mochi? Dear god… heaven!
May 8th, 2011 at 1:33 pm
Loved Hawaii went there on my honeymoon a long time ago. I have missed the beauty of it all. Thanks for taking me back to a wonderful time in my life. Great pictures as always. Paulette
May 8th, 2011 at 9:55 pm
What beautiful images. It has been far too long since I have been to Hawaii and your photos make me want to hop on a plane. Enjoy your adventure!
May 9th, 2011 at 5:28 pm
Ahhh, you lucky duck. Love Hawaii, and it clearly has been too long. You are noshing on some of my faves over there; the malassadas as well as the shaved ice. Have some fun while working! Enjoy the sunshine!
May 11th, 2011 at 6:46 am
Hi Jen, wow, Hawaii! That looks all great and warm! … I could use a little warm here, I just arrived in Boulder and its freezing, right now, snow and rain! Feel a little homesick? ;o)
I love it here, wonderfull city, marvelous mountains! And CSR rocks!
Have a great time!
Trolleira
May 12th, 2011 at 9:00 pm
Averie – that’s all relative. It was a travel shoot which means work – hard work in some instances.
Alyson – we’ve been up to Mauna Kea before and Jeremy has observed on the Keck telescope (he is an astronomer – that’s his profession), so that wasn’t high on our list this time. And I totally agree – passion fruit is THE BEST :)
Kate – thanks, but we don’t have the luxury of relaxation time ;) It’s not how I roll anyway.
melanie – thank you :) xo
Margie – ha ha! You and about a hundred others ;)
zingara – pineapples always take a backseat to passion fruit and lychee for me. sorry!!
Allie – I think poke is just slightly different in dressing and it’s more “Asian” if that makes any sense (it’s okay if it doesn’t make sense…) I kinda went crazy over those strawberry mochis – omg!!
Chez Us – believe it or not, it was cloudy/rainy/pissing rain 5 out of the 6 days we were there :)
Trolleira – yes, Boulder can be surprisingly cold in spring (intertwined with surprisingly hot days).
May 13th, 2011 at 12:53 pm
One of those piccies looks extremely familiar, I hope you got a chance to stay in the volcano house b&b (or whatever it was called, NOT the one at the park, the one outside). We loved the big island, I think we’ll try and make it back soon.