hot sun, brotherly love, snorkeling, etc

I'm in the midst of a loop around the big island with my brother Adam, who is enjoying his first experience in the tropics. We are camped at Volcano nat'l park and we've seen the lava light.
We're on different rhythms and lifestyle patterns...he reminds me that he doesn't find clothing the appropriate medium to wipe food off his hands and that the ground isn't the most comfortable place to sleep. he sleeps more and doesn't eat as much. but we both enjoy eating plenty of mangoes and swimming in translucent turquoise waters, and discovering the delights of snorkeling amongst coral reef with neon a.o rainbow hued fish and big green turtles. We had an awesome campfire at Pololu valley a couple nights ago, speaking the truth that fire pulls out, and telling a story in turns that became to be about a post-apocalyptic city whose one fire is threatened by double-elbowed mutant Yetis whose body temp.s are 37.5 deg. F...until a Hero/gyro from the planet Grafylrgyhl saves the day (though man becomes dogs best friend in the process) by transmutating into a loafy exosteleton, lambs wings & other accoutrements to clad/arm a young girl....

we also flew through albezia forests of n. kohala on a zip line course (thanks to a gift from our mother). this was pretty outrageously fun and beautiful (some of them cruised us over huge ravines and waterfalls)... it seemed like a good way to learn about plants and ecology in tidbits , the guides were knowledgeable and fun to talk to and hang out with... combined with the contemporary call for stimulation / thrill.

Pololu valley reminded us of the wash/oregon coast, with its epic rocks cliffs draped in greenery, rock beach, followed by sandy beach, pounded / washed by big waves. body surfing and hiking, locals net fishing in the surf (for a fish called moi).

the beaches of south kohala abounded in sun, sand and coral reef/rock regions. I had no idea what lay just below the surface only about 20 feet from our campsite. moundy corals, califlowery, pointy starry ones.

in puna, we snorkeled in tide pools that largely covered black lava (that was liquid only 30 -40 years ago). here we saw long skinny fish, yellow and black striped ones, rainbow painted trout looking crtters with grey eyes and yellow-magenta ones with neon blue lips. one day, my father says, we shall snorkel together and he can help elucidate the identities that these fish bear to us humans. or my sister too. here adam and I are, delighted and mystified by the oceans depths (shallows, that is) without even the marine biologist wizards to guide / teach us. ..! can't complain.

I had a lovely time at the 1st birthday party of the youngest La'akean, Ai'ala. She is an exuberant little girl who is just taking her first unaided steps and I got to dance and walk around with her while a couple of awesome marimba bands played. they cooked a sheep in an imu pit and planted a surinam cherry tree in a ceremory, each contributing a wish to her with a shovelful of soil. (I missed this part, but still had a great time).

today, I'm meeting up with my friend Morgan to hang out with him and do a little work on his land (he just came by the same internet cafe I'm at now-we always seem to run into each other...,), while Adam sleeps in and hangs out in beautiful native ohia forest by the kiluaea caldera (now a huge crater, though when mark twain came to visit it in th 1870s it was a vast vat of bright bright infernally hot lava)...
I'll meet back up with him this afternoon and we'll do some hiking, camp there again tonight, and then tomorrow head off around the south point of the island to south kona for our last two night here together, camping at Ho'okena beach and visiting the famous snorkeling spots near captain cook.

and, almost difficult to fathom, I'm actually returning home in 8 days!

almost there.

here.

love

jeremy