Wally, all this talk about Hawaii has me feeling nostalgic for the family vacation we took to the Kona Coast on the Big Island of Hawaii back in 1967. My Dad rented us a house in a fishing village near Kona Village. It's been so long I can't remember the name of it or if it's even still there.These paintings by local artist,Robert Thomas, capture the magical quality I remember most.
The house we rented was on the coast of Kailua-Kona. There was only one phone in the village and no television. As a parent I can't think of a better gift to give my own kids. This allowed us to explore our "neighborhood"; an unpaved lava rock road to our house, our own lagoon, tons of coconut trees to climb and plumeria and night-blooming jasmine growing everywhere. Heaven on earth.
The small lagoon we swam in all day long was only accessible to locals. This painting looks so much like the way I remember it. Neither my brothers or I had ever snorkeled or seen fish like this in our lives. We finally convinced our parents to buy us masks and snorkels from the local Ben Franklin's Five and Dime. 
The lagoon was full of just about every size and shape fish we could imagine. we had to wear water shoes to protect our feet from getting cut on the coral reef. I can remember being obsessed with volcanoes and lava explosions and drawing pictures of them every night before dinner.
There were white, pink and yellow plumeria (and about a million other exotic plants EVERYWHERE. Mom always had a Hibiscus tucked behind her ear.
These are shots from my Dad's Polaroid...remember those? Here's Mom in her muumuu and parasol. Even with 3 kids and no bug spray she was never more relaxed.
One of the best days ever - my 10TH Birthday celebrated at the Kona Village Inn. Check out the orchid lei and the parasol from the Shirley Temple behind my ear. I got a ukulele and Happy Birthday sung by the locals. Pure unadulterated island paradise.
The best souvenir of all, amazing memories and a sizable piece of local coral. Aloha!
Posts
