Fear and Luauing in Hilo, Hawaii
September 1, 2009
Aloha! I fulfilled another travel dream: I spent five days in Hilo, on the Big Island of Hawaii. After several visits to Kona on press trips and to judge the annual Kona Coffee Festival, I was excited to land in Hilo, a two-hour drive from Kona. My good friend Gary Marrow, co-owner of KapohoKine Adventures, www.kapohokine.com 808-964-1000, greeted me with a sign, “Ben’s Sister.” Yes, he’s one of my brother’s biggest fans.
Gary Marrow welcomes me to Hilo
My timing for visiting Hilo could not have been more perfect. On July 27 the finale of the popular reality show BACHELORETTE was airing nationally, and KapohoKine Adventures hosted the bachelorette’s dates. The Big Island received well-deserved media attention.
Hilo is a quaint and charming city, beautifully green and lush, beckoning new visitors to r-e-l-a-x or enjoy a plate lunch choice of lots of adventure or lots of down time. Hilo is called the wettest city in America, with an annual rainfall of more than 70 inches. The occasional rain was a welcome sight in this summer heat. Hilo was first inhabited by Polynesians, and made famous with its sugar crops in the 1900s. Today, after damaging tsunamis in 1946 and 1960 and the decline of sugar as a commercial crop, Hilo is thriving as a popular travel destination, a refreshing change from Kona and other Hawaiian islands.
Adventurous visitors swim, go kayaking, hop on helicopters perhaps for a thrilling flight over Kilauea Volcano and for fabulous views of Hilo, take a Big Island Grand Volcano flight and Waterfall Swim or or visit the Rainbow Falls. For others, colorful shops face Hilo Bay and reflect the relaxed atmosphere of the community. Festivals, fairs, and open-air swap meets and farmers markets offer something for everyone. Stroll over to the famous Hilo Clock, Lyman Museum, Hilo Culture Center and the Tsunami Museum right downtown.
Two Ladies Kitchen
274 Kilauea Ave
Hilo, HI 96720
Open Wednesdays-Saturdays only
Draped with Gary’s beautiful gift lei made of ti leaves, Opihi shells & kukui nuts, I smiled thinking of this loving Hawaiian tradition. He whisked me off to TWO LADIES KITCHEN, a tiny but well-organized and busy shop headed by owner Nora Uchida. She welcomes us and scoots us to the back kitchen where several famiily members tended to their chores. Two Ladies Kitchen specializes in mochi, a Japanese rice cake made of sticky (glutinous) rice pounded into paste and molded into little balls. Mochi is a popular snack in Hawaii but also favored by countless mochi fans all over the world.
Nora made a Strawberry Mochi for me, which contains one whole fresh strawberry (from Watsonville, CA) covered by house-made tsubushi-an, whole mashed red Azuki bean filling and wrapped in mochi. It was very delicious and I wish that my 3 year-old strawberry-loving granddaughter Stella was with me.
Nora makes a strawberry mochi
Their mochi is so popular, it was no surprise to see the kitchen filling many orders to go. Some of Nora’s favorite creations are Lilikoi Mochi (passion fruit); Peach Mochi, Sweet Potato Mochi, Peanut Butter Mochi, and Butterfly Mochi, among many others. Two Ladies Kitchen creates original and unique mochi to highlight the seasons, birthdays, anniversaries, showers, weddings, and family gatherings.
Next, Gary took me to the 300-acre OK FARM for a luau among friends. Located along the Hamakua Coast of Hawaii’s Wailuku River, OK Farms is owned by Ed Oldson and Troy Keolanui (hence, the O and K = OK Farms). The OK Farms’ tours show off tropical and exotic fruits such as loogan, lychee, rambutans, poha berries as well as oranges, lemons and tangerines, and spices like nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves. There is much more: Honey Mac Nuts are grown here and coated with homegrown honey, and coffee. OK Farms’ Hawaiian Heart of Palm is a sustainable crop grown from a clumping variety of palms that is available all year round.
We were invited to another luau and headed off to Keaukaha for a slice of heaven. Every year about 50 families, through a lottery system, are allowed to pitch tents for the summer months of July, July and August. For the lucky winners, the setting is magnificent and almost surrealistic in beauty. Some local local families have been coming for generations, as kids frolic in the park and swim in the lake with the clearest of water. Everyone pitches in money for food. Today I tried nenue reef fish caught in this very lake. I filled my plate with Chicken with Long Rice, Kalbi Short Ribs, Mac Salad, Poi, steak and hearts of palm. Gary’s friend Thomas introduced us to chili pepper vinegar oil which added a little punch to the beef and fish. I earned a new Hawaiian name, Kayaki’i for lasting under two minutes ‘attempting’ to kayak for the first time. My favorite line was: “get me outta here, I’m drowning!” to which Gary replied, “we haven’t gone anywhere yet.” Poor Kayaki’i, what a wimp.
It was time to stop eating and check into Hilo Honu Inn (Hilo Turtle Inn,) a three room luxury bed and breakfast.
465 Haili Street
Hilo, HI 96720
Phone: 808-935-4325
www.hilohonu.com
The Honu Hilo B&B is operated by a charming husband and wife team, Bill and Gay Covington. There is a California connection as Bill lived in Redwood City for several years. I have two spacious rooms, including a living/front room with overhead fans, air conditioning, birds singing outside. It is a relaxing place for me, and I appreciate having complimentary internet access to work and stay in touch with my family and friends.
The next morning, I awake to the sweet aroma of fresh coffee. Breakfast includes white pineapple, mango, papaya, lichees, loongan, baby bananas, fresh papaya juice, and Bill made a Praline Banana Strata.
During breakfast, hula dancer Gay offers to perform for us - what a treat!
My good friend Jessica Ferracane (Big Island Visitors Bureau) picks me up and we are off to the Makuu Farmers Market in Puna, as local a market as I can find.. We taste Smoked Ahi, Smoked Swordfish, nibble on BBQ Roast Pork, Roast Chicken, and Big D’s Pastele. It’s a wonderful not-to-be-missed market offering mostly local ingredients.
Dinner tonight was at Kilauea Lodge & Restaurant in Volcano, just a mile from the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. The Lodge was originally built in 1938 as a YMCA camp and today is a favorite environment-friendly “green” inn for visitors and locals. After starters of lightly fried Brie Cheese coated in herb batter and coconut flakes, mushroom caps stuffed with smoked ham, turkey and cheese, diners have a many choices — D’Orange, Fish of the Day topped with papaya ginger sauce or mango chutney glaze, German meatballs, vegetarians can appreciate the Eggplant Supreme; meat lovers will delight in prime rib, lamb, Ostrich schnitzel. Dinners include homemade soup or salad.
On Monday, I am so happy to check into Hale Pukana La (Sunrise House), www.halepukanala.com, a gorgeous oceanfront home with coastal views from most rooms.
I am a guest of Sharene and Harrison Klein, owners of Big Island Vacation Rentals and send many mahalos for the memorable stay. The two-level house is big enough for a family of four or more. It is spacious, with large windows and glass everywhere, a well-equipped kitchen and all the conveniences of home and office (think high-speed internet.) The seemingly endless lanai would be a perfect place for Maggie and Stella to play and ride tricycles. The coastal views and sunrises make me want to stay in to work, read and relax.
The next day, I have some friends come over for a sunset dinner, filled with conversation and laughter. And…too soon, it was time to say farewell…but I know: I always return to my beloved Hawaii.
Tony DeLellis bids me a fond aloha farewell