Posts Tagged ‘News’

Maui Ocean Center Welcomes New Turtles

Wednesday, August 26th, 2009

Turtle CrossingI just received a note from subscribing to the Maui Ocean Center newsletter that they will be having a traditional Hawaiian blessing tomorrow, August 27th at 1pm to welcome a batch of 6 new hatchlings on loan from Sea Life Park on Oahu.

We’ve been huge fans of these guys since we first saw them popping up their heads from the water outside of our ocean front room at the Sheraton. And since we’re not avid snorkelers, we get our up-close turtle fix by visiting the Maui Ocean Center instead. Based on this update from the MOC, I think there’s a very good chance we’ll be paying them a visit next month as part of our mini Trip 5. They look too cute to pass up.

More from the newsletter:

Turtles at Maui Ocean Center
Maui Ocean Center cares for a total of 12 green sea turtles; the six new hatchlings and six which are juvenile. While at Maui Ocean Center, the turtles are fed a primarily vegetarian diet, including algae brought from the ocean, to prepare them for their eventual release to the open sea. The turtles were captive-bred at Sea Life Park on Oahu. Sea Life Park is home to a colony of adult Hawaiian green sea turtles which produces 200 to 300 hatchlings each year, most of which are released into the wild. A few of these, including the turtles at Maui Ocean Center, become part of the Hawaii Green Sea Turtle Educational Loan Program and are released at a later age to provide an educational opportunity for those that visit these institutions.

If you happen to be nearby in the next month or so, and hadn’t thought of visiting the ocean center, maybe this might change your mind.

In fact, I remember shooting video from the Turtle Lagoon exhibit at the MOC a few years ago that I posted on YouTube. Grant it, I spend way more time working with Photoshop than editing movies, so the quality has a lot to be desired, but it’s still fun. Someday I’ll get around to tweaking the quality.

In any case, here you go.

More Honu Love

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Posted in News, Trip 5 Plans, Videos | 1 Comment »

The State of Hawaii Turns 50

Friday, August 21st, 2009

Hula Pie - BeforeIt was 50 years ago today, on August 21st, 1959, that the Hawaiian islands officially became the 50th state in the union. In honor of reaching the big 5-0, how about a little slice of celebratory Hula Pie?

Some Suggested Reading
In case you weren’t aware, statehood in Hawaii to some Native Hawaiians and their supporters is a very controversial subject. It was certainly not something I was aware of when we started visiting the islands with frequency, and a subject I have been following for about a year now.

This statehood milestone has given rise to more media coverage of these issues of Hawaiian sovereignty and, combined with the power of the Internet, information and history surrounding this movement has never been more accessible. I wanted to share a few news articles and links for those who are interested in learning more.

My Opinion
One of my primary rules here for this blog is not to engage in politics or enter into these types of debates. There are many other forums and places that are better suited for such. I realize that is a cop out for not sharing my own views here, and I apologize.

I will say that ever since I fell in love with the Hawaiian islands (particularly Maui) as a visitor a few years ago, I have done everything I can to support the land, her people, and their culture. I do my best to live Aloha and share that spirit with as many people as I can, and through as many channels as I have access to here on the mainland. I have connected with, and met in person, some of the greatest people I know through talking story and sharing experiences with Hawaii, more so than any other place I’ve visited. That is one of the many things that continues to draw us back to the islands year after year.

I have done my best to understand the debate over statehood and the views on both sides. Of course, in the end I am truly just an outsider looking in on the entire matter, and therefore I only play the role of an observer with goals to stay as informed and educated on the subject as possible. I’m not one to try an influence others one way or another on most topics, and this is one of them. At best, my hope is to share the information that I come across that I feel is helpful to others.

Talk Story
Again, my intent here is not to start a debate or argue for or against statehood. I would still love to hear your thoughts, though, and if you have a link or two that you’d like to share, please feel free to do so.

Also, if you are planning to celebrate this anniversary, I’d love to hear about those stories, too.

Mahalo,
– Kris

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Posted in News | No Comments »

Weekly Website: KGMB9 News Hawaii

Wednesday, January 21st, 2009
Aloha and welcome to another edition in our Weekly Website series.
We’re taking a somewhat different approach to our series this week by featuring, of all things, a TV News website in Hawaii.
KGMB9 News Hawaii

First, I’ll say that we always enjoy watching the local news when we’re on Maui. For us, it’s not about seeing the weather forecast, but staying more in tuned with the everyday life on the islands and learning what happens on Hawaii from day to day. Sure, there’s some of the same national stories and, like back home, there’s always the bad news being reported (violence, crime, the economy, etc.). Yet, there’s always at least two or three local stories that are very heartwarming and showcase individuals or local organizations spreading the Aloha Spirit.
Okay, back to the website portion of this post. Why KGMB9, and not one of the others online? Two words, “Streaming Video”. Well, there’s actually more than that, so read on.
Features
Now that the cat is out of the bag, my favorite feature of the KGMB9 website is the Streaming Video they have right there on the home page. It’s easy, always on (at least from the times I’ve tried it) and free. Depending on daylight savings time here on the mainland, I can tune into the 6pm news airing on Hawaii instead of watching the 10pm news locally. Pretty neat, I think.
Also, if you’re looking for an alternative to the national network morning shows, how about one with a Hawaii flavor to it? Their website also features stories and content from Sunrise on KGMB9, the Hawaii morning show that starts off at 4:30am HST (which again works out nicely if you’re on the mainland).
There is one other thing I wanted to mention about KGMB9 that has really drawn me to their website, and it’s their engaging use of the micro-blogging service Twitter. You can follow along and get first tips on breaking stories by following @KGMB9, and if you’ve never heard of Twitter before, KGMB9 even has a short article to get you started.
For us on the mainland, it has never really been this easy to stay tuned to all things Hawaii without actually being there. Of course, visiting the Aloha State is always the best option, but the KGMB9 website can certainly help out in a pinch.

Talk Story
Mahalo for playing along with our little change of pace here in the Weekly Websites series. If you have any thoughts on this review or about the KGMB9 News website, we invite you to talk story here.
Also, if you have a website or blog you think we’d be interested in, check out the contact details below and tell us about it.
Mahalo.
The Weekly Website Series here at our blog showcases various websites and blogs that we like to frequent, as well as recommend to others. There are so many Maui and Hawaii focused sites out there, it might seem a little intimidating at first. By featuring sites that we us ourselves and have found very helpful and engaging, we hope to introduce others to the very best out there.

To follow along with future editions of our Weekly Website Series, be sure to subscribe to our blog feed to get the latest posts and updates. We already have a bit of a queue, but if you haven’t seen one of your favorites yet, you can contact us or send me a note on Twitter.

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Posted in Weekly Websites | 6 Comments »