Bishop Museum Hosts Lunar Eclipse Viewing

An exciting evening of moon gazing is coming up.  You can view it with your own telescope or head over to Bishop Museum and enjoy it others.  Should be great!

For the first time in three years, there will be a total eclipse of the moon on Monday, December 20, 2010 from 9:42 p.m. to 10:52 p.m. Hawai‘i Standard Time.   The moon will be within the Earth’s inner shadow, which will block most of the sun’s light from hitting it.  The moon will be noticeably darker the normal, and will turn a reddish copper color. 

The J. Watumull Planetarium at Bishop Museum, in partnership with the Hawaiian Astronomical Society, will host a free eclipse viewing party on the great lawn of the museum from 8:30 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. on December 20th.  Volunteers from the Hawaiian Astronomical Society will be on hand with their large telescopes to help people observe the moon in its large, reddish detail.

The viewing event is FREE but interested participants should RSVP at 848-4176.

Other highlights of the evening include:

• The large telescope in the Museum’s observatory will be open for moon watching.
• Planetarium programs on eclipses.  Show times 8:15 p.m., 9:15 p.m. and 10:00 p.m.

• NOAA’s Science on a Sphere, the glowing six-foot globe in the planetarium lobby, will be used to project images of the moon, sun and planets.

“This is the most striking astronomy event over Hawai‘i since the 2007 lunar eclipse,” said Mike Shanahan, the Museum’s Director of Education, Exhibits and Planetarium.  “The planetarium turns 50 next year and over the decades it has been a go-to site for astronomy in these islands.  Thanks to the support of the Museum and of the Hawaiian Astronomical Society, we’ll keep this tradition alive with this viewing party.”

 

More information about this eclipse is available at the Bishop Museum planetarium homepage:

http://www.bishopmuseum.org/planetarium/skyWatch/2010/dec10.html

Please note only the observatory and planetarium will be open that evening.  All Museum galleries will be closed.  For information about Bishop Museum, please visit www.bishopmuseum.org or call 847-3511.

Protea ... growing in Kula

This is what a protea plant looks like.  I had never seen one before I visited Paradise Flower Farms in Kula, Maui.

Visual tour of Paradise Flower Farms in Kula, Maui

The very best way to take a tour of a working flower farm is to walk throughout the farm with the owner / grower but, when that's not possible, another good way to do it is by looking at a photo gallery.

I had the chance to do the walking tour this weekend with Teena Rasmussen, half of the Paradise Flower Farms team and am sharing the photos I took during the tour.

Her farm is located in Kula, on the slopes of Mt. Haleakala on the island of Maui.  This for me was a huge plus because the air is much cooler in Kula than is it at sea level so taking the walking tour was a delight.  The photo here shows the beautiful view that one sees from the farm.  The high elevation allows for sweeping views of the Pacific Ocean and town below.

The family-owned business was established in 1980, just about 30 years ago. Owners and Maui residents Craig and Teena operate the farm 6 days a week and employ about 22 people, including their two daughters. 

Here are two of the ladies sewing the fresh flower lei that are destined for Maui shops and stores.

Paradise Flower Farms specialize in fresh cut flowers and ready-made flower lei.   

The 50-acre farm is the largest flower lei farm in the State of Hawaii, producing approx 7 million carnations, tuber rose, plumeria and other lei flowers each year. 

In talking with Tina, she mentioned that there are always inquiries about a tour of their farm and recently, she and Craig have been talking about putting together a ‘growers’ tour for residents and visitors.  However, that may not happen for some months to come so until the details are finalized, please visit the photo gallery for the pictorial tour of Paradise Flower Farms that follows.

 Bunches of cut flowers to be used for bouquets and arrangements

 

 Protea start to bloom

 Rows of roses

Beds of protea plants 

 Carnations growing under shade

 Closer look at the carnation beds

 One of Paradise Flower Farms trucks ready to deliver flowers and lei

Paradise Flower Farms specializes in fresh cut flowers and ready-made lei for residents of Maui and Hawaii, but, they also ship fresh flower lei, lei making supplies and flower gift boxes throughout the US and Canada.

For more information, visit www/paradiseflowers.com.  

Diamond Bakery to launch “Kimo’s On The Go” Ocean Care Program with mascots “Kimo” the Dolphin and “Olina” the Octopus

Hawaii's Diamond Bakery (www.diamondbakery.com) announced the October 1, 2010 launch of “Kimo’s On The Go” – Diamond Bakery’s Ocean Care Program for school children of all ages. 

Diamond Bakery is partnering with Waikiki Aquarium on a program that educates students about the beautiful, yet fragile nature of Hawaii’s ocean.  "Kimo’s On The Go” – Ocean Care Program is open to all schools and grade levels and teachers are encouraged to plan a trip to the Waikiki Aquarium with their students this fall.”

How the program works – 5 easy steps:

All classrooms registering with Waikiki Aquarium for a school visit between October 1 and November 30, 2010 will be automatically qualified for “Kimo’s On The Go” – Diamond Bakery’s Ocean Care program. To enter your classrooms into a pool for $100 prize drawing, teachers must finish the following steps:

·     Log on to www.diamondbakery.com, and complete the KIMO''S ON THE GO REQUEST form online. You will be asked to provide school and teacher’s name, class information and time & date of your proposed school visit to the Waikiki Aquarium. Upon completion, an email confirmation will be sent to you.  Each electronic request should be submitted only once per clssroom. 

·     Program mascots Kimo (right) and/or Olina* (left) will make an appearance during each school visit, greet the class, hand out snacks and take photos with the students. 

·     When the school tour has successfully been completed, the class must share with Diamond Bakery, photos and a one-page (or longer) summary of their aquarium visit to be eligible for the $100 prize drawing (up to a maximum of 20 classrooms).

·     The collection of writings, illustrations and photos will be assembled and printed as part of Diamond Bakery’s Kimo’s On The Go Initiatives’ collection. Diamond Bakery will provide 20 FREE printed books to the students to take home or to use as a fundraising opportunity. Kimo and/or Olina will drop off the books for a book signing party to reward and congratulate the class for finishing their Ocean Care program.

·     All visits to the Waikiki Aquarium must be completed by November 30, 2010.

* Kimo the dolphin and Olina the Octopus are two shapes that Diamond Bakery uses to make its Hawaiian Animal Cookies. They are the inspiration for Diamond Bakery’s commitment to save Hawaii’s Reef. And now the company thinks the world is ready to meet them in real life --- newly revealed mascots Kimo and Olina, for its Ocean Care campaign.

Dianond Bakery is providing cash and printed books as an incentive to Hawaii classes for participating in the program, our goal is to advance students’ understanding and aloha for Hawaii's ocean.

Diamond Bakery is donating the profits from sales of Hawaiian Sea Animal cookies to fund this worthwhile program. A check for $3,000 will be presented to Waikiki Aquarium for their school educational programs.

“Kimo’s On The Go” is the next chapter in Diamond Bakery’s Ocean Care Program that kicked off in 2008.  The program is part of the company’s mission to “share heartwarming aloha” with the world.

For more information, visit www.diamondbakery.com or call 847-3551.

Sarento's Top of the "I"

On the heels of the Hawaii Five-0 premiere, I had an opportunity to dine at Sarento's Top of the "I" restaurant ... located, where else, but at the top of the Ilikai Hotel & Suites ... of the original Hawaii Five-0 fame.

The restaurant has its own elevator and the ride up gives you a wonderful view of the yacht harbor, Waikiki and west Oahu.

 
We had a breath-taking view from our table that was very similar to this.

Here's what the website says about the restaurant:  With breathtaking views of Diamond Head, Waikiki Beach and Honolulu's famous skyline, Sarento's brings a bit of Italy to Hawaii with style.  Old country warmth, hospitality and live piano music are part of the atmosphere that makes this fine dining establishment one of Hawaii's most celebrated.  The casual elegance yet superior service coupled with the outstanding culinary offerings has earned Sarento's numerous accolades from the community.  Beautiful private dining rooms are available for groups up to 36. 

The appetizers we had were delicious and included:

1) Bocconcini - Mouthfuls of Bufala Mozzarella wrapped in speck and grilled.  Served with grilled Kamuela Roma tomatoes. Finished with a baby arugula salad tossed in a lemon-truffle vinaigrette.

2) Sarento's Smoked Salmon - Bermuda onion creme fraiche wrapped with smoked salmon and layered with crispy russett potato chips, Avruga caviar, and Maui onion shavings.

3) Carpaccio del Giorno - Blackened Ahi sashimi served over a basil citronette.  Accompanied by an avocado/Maryland blue lump crab tower.

For dinner, we shared the Sweet Tiger Shrimp Entree.  Grilled Tiger Shrimp served scampi style with a sautee of white wine, lemon, garlic, shiitake mushrooms, sun-dried & fresh tomatoes.

As you can see, I almost forgot to take a photo of this fabulous meal.

And, for dessert, Sarento's General Manager Adam Miller prepared Strawberries Panzini - local strawberries flambeed with Grand Marnier, Blue Curacao and 151. Drizzled in caramel and chocolate and served with the accompaniment of Devonshire cream, dark chocolate, and Maui brown sugar.

Adam did it at the table and this single photo does not do it justice because the picture I took of the flambe did not turn out.



Valet Service is available at the front entrance Porte Cochere of the Ilikai Hotel.  Self-parking is also available in the hotel parking lot and in the Marina Parking on Hobron Lane.  With Validation, the cost is:  Valet: $2.00 per hour, Self Parking: $2.00 per hour

Dinner:     Nightly 5:15 pm to 10pm
Lounge:     Nightly 5pm to 12am
Happy Hour:     Nightly 5pm to 7pm ... Half off well drinks and special priced appetizers.

For more information about Sarento's Top of the "I", visit http://www.tristarrestaurants.com/sarentos_top_of_i/