April 20, 2019

You may if you’re reading on your laptop while visiting try playing Pandora – Makana Radio. Mahalo nui loa for hanging out!

My AirBnB search found Dawn’s place in the town of Makaha. The large one room unit is just feet from the ocean and with the sliding doors open I have both surf sounds and ocean breezes.

Almost Heaven, West Makaha
High-ridge mountain, crystal-clear blue watah
All my friends there hanging on da beach
Young and old among them
Feel the ocean breeze –

Country road, take me home
To the place I belong
West Makaha, Mount Ka’ala
Oh, take me home, oh, country road https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s6btdW9CPHE

You may have heard that aloha means both “hello” and “goodbye.” But the literal meaning is even more beautiful than that. “Alo” means “presence,” while “ha” means “breath.” So, the literal meaning of “aloha” is the “presence of breath” or the “breath of life.” In this way, to greet someone with the word “aloha” is as though you’re welcoming their life, whatever that may be. The nonjudgemental respect that it represents is very much something of the Hawaiian culture: a compassionate and carefree island lifestyle that invites you to be you.