Nice Da Lightning

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

Nice da lighting

Aloha kakou e kuu mau hoa heluhelu,

It’s 3:20am on the 14^th and I cannot sleep. Frick. I’m two days behind on my blog so I thought I’d better write something. Plus, the internet service doesn’t like too many computers on at the same time, so I let the others get their thoughts down first. Let’s see where to begin. We rented a car two days ago. After a painstaking rental process, cause I couldn’t speak Italian and the nice dude couldn’t speak any English (which for me was frustrating ) so I repeated the last word he would say in Italian and he repeated the last word I would say in English. We both caught on to our lack of communication to one another and then mostly smiled and nodded to one another until Alohalani arrived to save the transaction. Yay!

So the moonphase was a Kaloa phase and it was the harbinger for what we were about to experience. Ok, let me preface with I’m sooooooooooo glad Alohalani was driving. Honest. K, we get on the road and go back to where our hotel was that way Alohalani could figure out how to get on the highway. We make our way through a few towns but for some reason the traffic is acting like the Farrington Highway after an accident on a rainy day. Saaaa-loooooow. Huge puo’a clouds, cumulonimbus clouds are building, gathering & huaka’I ‘ana in our direction. They were HUGE. Alora, which I learned means and den in Italian, huge rain drops start falling

I’m watching the weather and it’s blowing. I say to the girls, Titas don’t eat too much for lunch. Don’t eat anything acidic. It’s gonna be a rough ride on the sea. We finally get on to the freeway then zooom off we go back to where we started. I don’t know how it happened but it did. We continue on passing grape orchards, plowed fields, and country. We make a pit stop at a side road rest stop to get some lunch and go lua. We eat in the car and then zoooooooom off we go again.. We make a fast stop at a little town called Sperlunga. It had quaint homes built up on a steep limestone cliff. Think of the movie Mama Mia and that’s kind of how this little seaport looked. Now I’m watching the ocean and it’s rough. Not Alenuihaha rough, more like Pailolo after noon rough. The wind is blowing hard too. I say to Alohalani, “eh we better go I don’t know how it works over here but if it’s rough water maybe the ferry not going across.” So off we go again abandoning any ideas of stopping along the way.

K, so we go for a long while and just outside of Napoli (Naples) the lunch is kicking in and our driver is getting exhausted. So we turn off the road by a sign that says Magic World, k but we turn one road ahead into the service entry…. K, now start playing the Twilight song….doo-ri-do-da… doo-ri-do-da… doo-ri-do-da… doo-ri-do-da… Freaky ass rides with clown faces… I hate clowns… other disjointed colored rides and rusted lights and freaky blue Alladin Genies on crack. Spooooooooky! The road gets all strange and we notice two other tourists are following us. We go out at the entrance and emerge into… ok wait.. you guys gotta change the song in your head now to the banjo theme song for Deliverance….daga dang dang dang dang dang dang dang.. Yep, some town with statue dogs on one corner, live man eating ones on the next, I’m thinking Kentucky and then the road goes into ruins and landscape that reminded me of the Kawainui backroad to the dump. The road gets stranger and stranger. We make a U turn and go back to the deliverance town and know we have to get back on the freeway. We cross a bridge and then BAM going back to Roma. Aaaagghhh! At a gas station we go and then nice people point us into the right direction than off to Napoli we go. K, I’ll let the other ladies tell you that story.

Now we’re on Capri Island pronounced Cap-ree like in Capricorn not Kah-pree like in pants. I guess used to have goats on the island before cause that’s what it means. Anyway, it’s the lifestyles for the rich and famous over here. It’s lovely, think Kahala on roids or a steep crowded Kapalua. People cannot quite place our group. I just ignore the stares. Anyway, we’re staying at a lovely B&B and we’ve got a great view of Visuvius, which I’m silently kanaenae aku. The buggah is still alive Gangeh. The water here is blue, blue, blue. Think Keanakeiki only somebody when drop some blue dye in the water and that’s what it looks like. The ‘ili’ili are white from the marbleized limestone and so the blue from the ocean is azure blue, blue, blue. We walked all over yesterday and swam in the cold water (actually I just waded). The sea is cold (like Hakioawa on closing makahiki when we got to go hi’uwai before dawn), has a different smell and is extremely salty. What I like the most is the nehe ‘ana I ke kai. The marbleized ‘ili’ili make a lovely sound when the waves come in and out. It was a nice pit stop. We had lunch and then caught the bus back up to the town. More exploring, cappuccino in the square, decadent box of candy and more stares from the rich and famous. The best part for me was a visit to a sandal shop we went to that had a lovely sandal maker and his wife who had sandals made for Jackie O herself and others. His father-in-law owned the shop and now he, his wife and looks like granddaughter are still making sandals. All in all a good day of exploring. The only problem is that I lost half of my photos when I was downloading. I only have the trek down. Bummers. Oh well.

Today, when the ladies wake up, we will do more exploration and than it’s off to Pompeii. K den Gangeh… Spock you bumbye.

Kalei Nu’uhiwa © 2009 Naleialoha.net

Nice da lighting

Aloha kakou e kuu mau hoa heluhelu,

It’s 3:20am on the 14^th and I cannot sleep. Frick. I’m two days behind on my blog so I thought I’d better write something. Plus, the internet service doesn’t like too many computers on at the same time, so I let the others get their thoughts down first. Let’s see where to begin. We rented a car two days ago. After a painstaking rental process, cause I couldn’t speak Italian and the nice dude couldn’t speak any English (which for me was frustrating ) so I repeated the last word he would say in Italian and he repeated the last word I would say in English. We both caught on to our lack of communication to one another and then mostly smiled and nodded to one another until Alohalani arrived to save the transaction. Yay!

So the moonphase was a Kaloa phase and it was the harbinger for what we were about to experience. Ok, let me preface with I’m sooooooooooo glad Alohalani was driving. Honest. K, we get on the road and go back to where our hotel was that way Alohalani could figure out how to get on the highway. We make our way through a few towns but for some reason the traffic is acting like the Farrington Highway after an accident on a rainy day. Saaaa-loooooow. Huge puo’a clouds, cumulonimbus clouds are building, gathering & huaka’I ‘ana in our direction. They were HUGE. Alora, which I learned means and den in Italian, huge rain drops start falling

I’m watching the weather and it’s blowing. I say to the girls, Titas don’t eat too much for lunch. Don’t eat anything acidic. It’s gonna be a rough ride on the sea. We finally get on to the freeway then zooom off we go back to where we started. I don’t know how it happened but it did. We continue on passing grape orchards, plowed fields, and country. We make a pit stop at a side road rest stop to get some lunch and go lua. We eat in the car and then zoooooooom off we go again.. We make a fast stop at a little town called Sperlunga. It had quaint homes built up on a steep limestone cliff. Think of the movie Mama Mia and that’s kind of how this little seaport looked. Now I’m watching the ocean and it’s rough. Not Alenuihaha rough, more like Pailolo after noon rough. The wind is blowing hard too. I say to Alohalani, “eh we better go I don’t know how it works over here but if it’s rough water maybe the ferry not going across.” So off we go again abandoning any ideas of stopping along the way.

K, so we go for a long while and just outside of Napoli (Naples) the lunch is kicking in and our driver is getting exhausted. So we turn off the road by a sign that says Magic World, k but we turn one road ahead into the service entry…. K, now start playing the Twilight song….doo-ri-do-da… doo-ri-do-da… doo-ri-do-da… doo-ri-do-da… Freaky ass rides with clown faces… I hate clowns… other disjointed colored rides and rusted lights and freaky blue Alladin Genies on crack. Spooooooooky! The road gets all strange and we notice two other tourists are following us. We go out at the entrance and emerge into… ok wait.. you guys gotta change the song in your head now to the banjo theme song for Deliverance….daga dang dang dang dang dang dang dang.. Yep, some town with statue dogs on one corner, live man eating ones on the next, I’m thinking Kentucky and then the road goes into ruins and landscape that reminded me of the Kawainui backroad to the dump. The road gets stranger and stranger. We make a U turn and go back to the deliverance town and know we have to get back on the freeway. We cross a bridge and then BAM going back to Roma. Aaaagghhh! At a gas station we go and then nice people point us into the right direction than off to Napoli we go. K, I’ll let the other ladies tell you that story.

Now we’re on Capri Island pronounced Cap-ree like in Capricorn not Kah-pree like in pants. I guess used to have goats on the island before cause that’s what it means. Anyway, it’s the lifestyles for the rich and famous over here. It’s lovely, think Kahala on roids or a steep crowded Kapalua. People cannot quite place our group. I just ignore the stares. Anyway, we’re staying at a lovely B&B and we’ve got a great view of Visuvius, which I’m silently kanaenae aku. The buggah is still alive Gangeh. The water here is blue, blue, blue. Think Keanakeiki only somebody when drop some blue dye in the water and that’s what it looks like. The ‘ili’ili are white from the marbleized limestone and so the blue from the ocean is azure blue, blue, blue. We walked all over yesterday and swam in the cold water (actually I just waded). The sea is cold (like Hakioawa on closing makahiki when we got to go hi’uwai before dawn), has a different smell and is extremely salty. What I like the most is the nehe ‘ana I ke kai. The marbleized ‘ili’ili make a lovely sound when the waves come in and out. It was a nice pit stop. We had lunch and then caught the bus back up to the town. More exploring, cappuccino in the square, decadent box of candy and more stares from the rich and famous. The best part for me was a visit to a sandal shop we went to that had a lovely sandal maker and his wife who had sandals made for Jackie O herself and others. His father-in-law owned the shop and now he, his wife and looks like granddaughter are still making sandals. All in all a good day of exploring. The only problem is that I lost half of my photos when I was downloading. I only have the trek down. Bummers. Oh well.

Today, when the ladies wake up, we will do more exploration and than it’s off to Pompeii. K den Gangeh… Spock you bumbye.

Kalei Nu’uhiwa © 2009 Naleialoha.net

Father Damien

Aloha kakou e ku'u mau hoa heluhelu.
Greetings all my reading friends who've joined us on our excursion to lands unknown and unseen. Lands beyond Kahikiku, touching the skies of Kahikikepapalani. Yesterday was the canonization of Father Damien. The experience ended up being.....well.... I don't know where to begin. There were so many experiences, observations, emotions, reflections. I ask you, how does one standing under a beautiful star filled sky describe just one twinkling star? It's too grand.... And I suppose that's how yesterday was too. Simply grand. So maybe let me start with my own family story.
When I decided to go on this trip I happened to be talking with my mom about the canonization of Father Damien and then this new thing called blogging. I told her that a blog is like writing articles only online. I told her about the Ku Makou E Hele Nei piece that I had written and how we were going to write about our Italian and Greek trip as well. We ended our conversation there, uneventful. Well, that evening she called me back and said, "You know. I remember your father talking about a letter. It had something to do with his uncle who died at Kalaupapa. I think it was a letter to his grandmother." "Whoah, really?" I replied thinking how coincidental her recollection was as I did make a statement in the Ku Makou piece stating that every single Hawaiian family has been affected and impacted negatively by leprosy. I didn't intend on researching or finding out about my own Hawaiian family, but now I know mine was as well. You know? Every Hawaiian sort of knows about the history of leprosy and since it was so painful and negative we try and forget about it. It seems that my generation sort of isn't in touch with the story. Well... maybe I'm being too general and should just say that I hadn't known my own story intimately.
The next morning my mom calls and says, "I found the letter. You want it?" Whoah! All these thoughts ran through my head. Of course I wanted to see it. My father had placed the letter in a ziplock bag and tucked it in a book. My great grandmother had raised my father for a significant chunk of his youth and this letter probably was kept as one hides a keepsake from others. So the next time I returned home to Maui, I visited my parents and they gave me the letter. It was a lovely hand written letter in a beautifully embossed envelope. The envelope simply said in the upper left hand corner; From Mamie Apiki, Kalaupapa, Molokai.

letter from kalaupapa

I gingerly opened the letter and began reading it. The letter writer was a woman named Mamie Apiki and she called my grandmother "Aunty," as is customary in Hawai'i. What surprised me the most is that the letter was dated Oct. 1, 1941. Two things popped in my head about the date. The first and most immediate was that Oct 1 was going to be the day that I was flying to Rome for my trip. The second was, "1941? That's not very far from today." And then I remembered that people are still separated from the world on Kalaupapa. The letter returned $90 to my great grandmother which belonged to her son, John Nu'uhiwa. We are unsure if he had been inflicted with ma'ika'awale or if he had gone over with a friend of family member. My father said that his grandaunt had also been sent to Kalawao. So we are unsure if he had gone with her or if he had been sent there as well. The letter explained that he had left the compound to go fishing for the community and was found a few days later on the beach by another fisherman. A Rev. Alice Kahakuoluna had conducted the services for him and a Mr. Anderson was going to send the ashes and his personal belongings to my great grandmother.

The letter

Later I was sitting in Kona with Aunty Kalani Hamm who is a genealogy researcher. I told her about my trip and the letter. She told me about her family members and that she'd visit her family members in Kalaupapa every summer until 1976 when the last member died. She said to me, "You are going to this canonization as a pilgrimage on behalf of your grand uncle. Father Damien represents the sacrifice that we have all made. You stand before the Pope for the victory we will experience at Father Damien's sainthood. You go on behalf of my family as well."
These thoughts were swimming around in my head when we went to the ceremony yesterday. I am sitting here again wondering how I'm going to describe the experience of the canonization. Again it's like describing a single star on the huge black tapestry in the evening sky. It was sensory overload. I didn't expect to have any feelings about the catholic ceremony, but interestingly since I was raised in a catholic family all the rituals came back instantly. They spoke Latin, but I knew what was going on, when to stand, when to sit, when to respond. I did get choked up a bit a few times. Mostly because I saw similarities in some of our Hawaiian religious ceremonies, i.e. kaku'ai, hulahula & lupalupa, and the catholic ones. The blessing of water, the need for fire, the kinolau of iesu, and the mele kahoahoa that happens. The only difference is the bling and the angelic voices. The singing by the way was extremely moving. People from all over the world converged in the Vatican. Five individuals were being canonized. Four men and one woman. The other four were from spanish countries. Father Damien, however, had the biggest following. I visited the vatican the week previously and didn't find any religion or spirituality, but yesterday I saw it, felt it, and heard it. So I will attach photos instead and you guys decide what you feel about. Sensory overload Gangeh. I took hundreds of photos. Father Damien became Saint Damien. People from France, Belgium, Poland, Hawai'i, Moloka'i & Italy were all fans of Damien. He became the patron saint of Lepers, HIV/AIDS, diseases that separate the inflicted from the others & the State of Hawai'i right before our eyes. I got choked up again when the Pope came out and spoke ten different languages addressing all of the different countries who came to witness the event. As he spoke each language the crowd spoken to would wave their flags and cheer. It was very colorful. You know. I'm saddened by the fact that I cannot articulate the event properly to you all. Just imagine a clear bright blue sky, encircled pillared walls, bright colored flags of all kinds, priests of all kinds, nuns of all kinds, brothers & fraternities of all kinds, and people of all kinds. Everyone came to participate in one way or the other. Everyone was joyous. Everyone was kind. Everyone had embarked upon their own pilgrimage for whomever they represented. When it was over the bells began to ring and the throngs of people stood on chairs, waved their flags, and sang or cheered. You couldn't help but get caught up in the fervor. I think my family members who lived and died at Kalawao are joyous that I made the pilgrimage on their behalf. I think those who perished upon the shores of Kalaupapa may feel some sort of atonement. Maybe not about the Provisional Government who forced them to be there, but for the sacrifices they were all forced to make.
Again I feel that I have done a poor job articulating everything. Just email comments and I will be more than happy to respond accordingly.
Eventually I'm going to upload all the photos on our smugmug.com website. I've got some up already from previous days.
http://papaku.smugmug.com/Papaku-Makawalu/Kaleis-Italy-Trip/9846059_bGyXU#669641920_ZeKsd

Ciao Gangeh!
Kalei Nuuhiwa
(c) 2009 Naleialoha.net

Just photos. Thoughts will come later. Canonization

Wai - Water to flow

Our waiter, GINO, who took good care of us at lunch.

We promised to write about him in our blog. So GINO - lei è magnifico!

Howzit Gangeh, it's all about Water to flow today and then a photo of our waiter who wanted to see his picture online. Which by the way was the bestest restaurant I've been to with food that was soooooooo 'ono and orgasmic. Oh sorry.... Off the subject. K, change channel and back to the blog. Makaukau? 'Ae... Holo.

He ui, he ninau.... E ui aku ana au ia 'oe.... aia i hea ka wai a Voltumus? A query, a question. I'm imploring you, where is the water of Voltumus. Voltumus is a small river, but is also a Roman god of water. Included is a photo of the Tiber river and the thunder storm clouds that remained after the major morning storm.

Then there are the four water goddesses or nymphs. They are the mo'o. They are the keepers of water prophesy and childbirth. They are called the Camenae. These mo'o were goddesses of springs, wells and fountains. They were also affiliated with Venus and could foretell the future by reading signs or patterns found in water.

The first mo'o was named Carmenta. She was whom pregnant women prayed to for a smooth, flowing childbirth. She could also read signs in water & clouds.

The next one's name is Egeria. She was first the second wife and counselor of the second King of Rome Named Numa Pompilius. She is the mo'o of wisdom that flows like water and was the goddess one prayed to for simple libations of water of milk (nursing mothers). The next two goddesses of water are Porrima who was in charge of a child born head first during labor. Postvorta was the one in charge if the child was born feet first. They also could read prophesies seen in patterns reflected on water. Postvorta was also in charge of time that flows in the past.

Water is truly the sign of a country's wealth. Rome's ancient aqueducts still flow fresh and clean enough for folks to drink straight from flowing fountains. These fountains are located in various locations and all one needs to do is bring an empty bottle and fill them up at these constant flowing fountains. The water comes out cold and tastes like mineral water that folks pay big bucks to get at fancy stores and restaurants. The fountain water is free in Rome and to me displays the wealth this city has to offer. Ok. That's my short story for today. Tomorrow we go to the canonization. I will write about my family's Kalaupapa story and about the pilgrimage I made to witness this event on behalf of those members who once called Kalaupapa their home.

Ciao Gangeh.

Kalei Nuuhiwa

(c) 2009 Naleialoha.net

Lono has arrived

Good morning Gang. It's 8:35am and I'm up sipping a cappuccino. I've been up for about three hours listening to the thunder and the heavy patter of rain on the cobblestone streets. The thunder here sounds different. The storm is happening way high up in the sky. It sounds like a sheet of metal being wobbled around as if the golden wings of Roman gods are fluttering viciously about. So, it has a metallic sound to it. Our thunder sounds like Kane and Lono themselves are picking up huge boulders and rolling them from one side of the heavens to the next as if they're playing 'ulumaika upon their celestial field.

The lightning is different too. Purple greenish flashes streak in cobweb patterns, flashing against a charcoal yellow tinged sky. The air has changed too. It went from a hot sultry summer evening into a crisp cool fall day literally overnight. The rain has different patterns here too. It falls at an angle to the left and then switches to the right. When it hits the ground, water fills into the spaces between the cobble stones creating glistening diamond shapes which quickly turn into a flowing torrential stream. The storm has washed the streets of all the debris left by the current Roman civilization. Even the smells have changed. You know how rain smells when it falls on asphalt differs from the way it smells in a rain forest or at the beach or on freshly cut grass? That's what happened here. So now Rome doesn't smell like motorinos, petrol powered smart cars, cigarettes and laundry soap (from the laundry mat on the corner). It now smells like crisp air, fragrant leaves and wet stone walls. I tried to take pictures this morning of the storm, but don't know how to take no light photos of rain against a dark morning sky. Than I decide that it's probably better for me to just enjoy the moment than to try and capture it through the lens. And, probably better for you, my hoa heluhelu, to have to conjure up the images yourself through these words.

Ok Gangeh. The rain has changed our plans for today. I think it'll be a day of museums.....

Will let you know on the next ha'i mo'olelo 'ana...... Ciao Gangeh!

Kalei Nu'uhiwa

(c) 2009 Naleialoha.net

Kim arrives in one piece

E aloha kakou e ku'u mau hoa heluhelu,

First I have to apologize to you all as this posting won't have any photos off the bat. Alohalani and I got up early and caught a taxi to the train station to go meet Kim at the FCO airport. What an adventure for me. The only train I ever rode previously was the Ka'anapali Sugar Train so you guys can imagine how exciting this experience was going to be indeed. We get into the terminal and buy our ticket. The station ticket terminal reminded me of a modern version of the grand central station. We get our tickets from a vending machine and then off we run to the train. So let me just say that I never run unless there's a man eating animal behind me or an accident in front of me where I must lend aid. So this running thing is for skinny people with knees. Not round people with fat ankles. K, anyway while we're running I'm thinking to myself, "Eh this looks like Harry Potter's train station at Platform 9 3/4." But then the need for oxygen takes over and the thought is overcome with, "Oh my Gods Kalei what the katsu are you doing?"

We make it to the train and then we're off. The ride was smooth and uneventful. Got to see all kinds homes and neighborhoods. Was pretty cool. Italians are so eager to speak with one another it's very lovely. Anyway, we make it to the airport on time, get to the arrivals section and BAM! It's a full blown ant fest. People are running about, dodging, yelling, swearing in all kinds of languages. We see that roughly 14 planes have landed all at once. We walk around trying to find Kim, but then realize that nearly 2,000 people have all gotten off of their flights at the same time. What a mess. Imagine dropping water down an anthill with all the ants scurrying about and that's what it looked like at terminal B. At one point Alohalani and I were walking against the crowd. I felt like a salmon swimming upstream against a fierce current.

After about an hour and a half I go to call Kim's phone to leave a message and that's when she emerges through the exit doors. YAY! We've found each other... We quickly get to the terminal which has now become a horde of mean wasps cranky that someone has disturbed their nest. Lines are long, tempers are flaring, stingers are at their ready. We get a quick cappuccino and get into the train which is packed with Americans, French, Bankers, tourists, Polish, & a whole bunch of others whom I couldn't place. We had to stand the whole way but it wasn't too long. So now we're in the B&B, dutifully writing on the blog. Kim will rest a bit and then tonight we go to IL CORALLO (Anna's restaurant) to celebrate all our birthdays. It's a happy birthday dinner for us and I plan to drink Brunello di Montacino. Photos are forthcoming......

K den Gangeh..... 'A'ole i pau.

Kalei Nu'uhiwa

(c) 2009 Naleialoha.net