I’m sorry I’ve been such an awful blogger this last week. As you can probably tell, Hubby and I have been in Hawaii for a much needed break from the norm and to celebrate our 30 years of marriage. It’s been an amazing 30 years, but with so much time spent on kids (8 of them) we needed some time to ourselves. And apparently when I have time to myself I have a hard time coming back to reality. This week I will slowly be coming back. Along with catching up the laundry, cleaning the house, running the kids around and getting some projects done, I will also be announcing the winner of the giveaway (sorry that’s taken so long), catching up on some things I should have already posted and thanking all of you awesome ladies for joining in the last We’re Organized Wednesday link party. You all rock and I will be commenting on your blogs this week. Thanks again for putting up with me and for allowing me to sway from my regular blogging for a while.
We started Memorial Day by going to the Valley of The Temples Memorial Park. It was very crowded because of celebrations and people visiting their loved ones, but was worth every minute of driving through all that traffic.
The Byodo-In Temple is a scale replica of a temple at Uji Japan that was constructed over 900 years ago.
The bell house holds a replica of the bell in Uji Japan. The bell is rung by, hitting it with the log, before one enters the Temple.
You must also take your shoes off before entering the area where the Buddha is.
The Buddha is 18 feet tall. This is a place of worship for many people.
There are koi fish in the streams and ponds surrounding the Temple.
The sunra gardens surrounding the Temple are amazing.
The bamboo are unbelievably tall. Hubby looks so small walking through them.
The grounds were so lovely and peaceful.
We ate lunch then headed off to Waimea Valley to take the hike up to the waterfall. These green things hanging from the tree are a relative of the tomato.
The valley is full of interesting plant life.
And some a little overwhelming like this plant taking over the tree.
Then we spotted our first glimpse of the falls.
This is it’s medium flow. There’s always a lifeguard or 2 on duty to tell you the rules before you can go in the water and sit under the waterfall.
Hubby on his way out to the falls.
And me relaxing for a minute on the rocks, before my hula lesson.
The lifeguards won’t allow you on the left side of the falls. It’s over 30 feet deep there.
We stayed at the falls and played in the water for about an hour then headed back down, looking at more beautiful flowers along the way.
At the entry of the Waimea Valley is a Hale o Lono. It dates back to 1470 and is very sacred. It is the only fully restored heiau (temple) dedicated to Lono, the deity of agriculture, ferility, peace and music.
We ended the day by attending the Lantern Floating Hawaii celebration.
It’s a Memorial Day tradition based on the Asian tradition of sending lighted lanterns afloat with prayers and wishes to ancestors.
They are set out at Ala Moana Park by individuals or groups. It is such a beautiful sight to see. They are all gathered out after a while to be used again next year.
Well, I guess it’s time to get some more laundry done and go through the mail. I need to catch up on my sleep too.
I am so jealous! Looks like such an amazing trip. And those lanterns are gorgeous floating away like that.