Thursday, October 30, 2008

ALOHA, CLEAN AIR, COLORS OF FLOWERS

If you are fortunate enough to be able to spend any length of time in the islands, you will find that the spirit of aloha will pervade your soul. Time schedules almost become meaningless. Living in the NOW takes precedence.

I think it is “mana” (spiritual power or energy). And there are lots of ways to explore it here on the Big Island. Lots of events, celebrations and workshops. And body work is very important – massage, yoga, exercise, to name just a few. Almost every other house is home to an excellent masseuse.

Living an authentic life becomes reality. You follow your bliss. And you always have time to “talk story”… mainlanders might know this as “shoot the breeze”… people are more important than appointments. The culture here is built on love and acceptance – aloha. Family, friends, the ocean, the land, the “Hula” and the music, pretty much in that order. There are also lots of cultural events that go on… in particular Merrie Monarch, a multi-day Hula competition. Visitors should try to take advantage of as many “happenings” as you can.

There are no traffic jams. There are practically no cops. Well, not as many as mainlanders are used to – like one on every corner hiding with a radar gun ready to make your life miserable. Big Island didn’t get its name for nothing. And the police (mostly) drive their own cars with blue lights on them. It’s weird to see very few painted cars with red cherries. A very common bumper sticker here: “slow down, you’re not on the mainland”.
And “live aloha”.

The best thing about the laid-back atmosphere here is (ladies) you can leave your make-up at home. Just bring sunscreen. And anything remotely resembling heels. Flip flops are the order of the day. These things are just meaningless here. Comfort is meaningful.

Any time is the right time to stop and smell the flowers or take in the ocean. Speaking of the fragrant air - that hits you the second you arrive and step off the plane, so be prepared. Clear, pollution-free air. Imagine that!

I’ve never been a “huge” fan of flowers until I moved here. I hated “having” something that would die soon after you “got” it… Here you can appreciate the flowers and colors almost any time, any where. A picture is worth a thousand words.

Friday, October 24, 2008

WHY IS THERE NEVER A PEN WHEN YOU NEED ONE?

I must confess this blogging thing isn’t as easy as it seems. If you think it is, you are sadly mistaken. It SHOULD be easy but IT IS NOT. I get a lot of my inspirations about what I want to share when I’m “out”. Well, that makes sense. When I’m planted in front of my computer, not so much. I just stare at the screen. So I keep a legal pad with me at all times but I swear someone eats my pen(s). It must be the menehune [pronounced meh-neh-HOO-neh]. Definition: Menehune are said to be a people, sometimes described as dwarfs in size, who live in the deep forests and hidden valleys of the Hawaiian islands, far from the eyes of normal humans.
Which that brings me to the real reason for this entry – the ever so lovely and lilting Hawaiian language. When we first arrived here I was fascinated by the language and how to pronounce the words. I practiced with street signs. And I wondered if that was common practice.
Aloha. At first it wasn’t “natural” to greet anyone (in person or in writing) with Aloha. It becomes second nature. More importantly, LIVING with Aloha. It becomes an essential part of life. This is exactly what I came here for.
And Mahalo - thank you. Almost makes ya feel bi-lingual. Pau, done. Which is what I am for now. Aloha. (PS I wish people would post comments. Tell me whatcha think! Feedback please.)

Sunday, October 12, 2008

PS TO THE CASTLEINHAWAII.COM WEBSITE UPDATE ENTRY

I should have mentioned that in all the time the internet has been around I have had but ONE web “person”/company. At first it was Adrian (“master”) and then he met and partnered with Shirley (“mistress”). That’s why the reference in the last entry to “webmistress”. I was blessed to discover “them” about ’96 or so when this new-fangled internet thing started to really take off. I found myself in a position where I needed to build a website for my business at that time. The universe sent me Adrian. We had a like mind about marketing and in those days that was my passion (still is.) He was honest, reasonable in his fees and he made me laugh. And I think I made him laugh – with my technological ignorance at least. God bless his patience. It’s been a winning combination for about twelve years now as a business relationship that has blossomed into a deep friendship, one that I am grateful for. If you need anything website-related (especially hosting) I urge you to give Shirley a call. The name of their company is AlphaWeb Design...I’m proud to recommend them.

Saturday, October 11, 2008

CASTLEINHAWAII.COM WEBSITE UPDATE

Hooray! Well my most-beloved and mysterious webmistress is working (again) on the castleinhawaii.com site (taking time away from a very important project she and her partner are working on) - so again – I am sooooo grateful. Thanks Cheri!

BG: We bought the url four years ago, did most of the verbiage then and decided on the basic design. Then we told her to stop til we were almost finished building. There was no rush. Anyway, now that we ARE almost finished I asked her to try to get some more pages “up” because everyone is always asking questions and the website is the best way to relay info. There are a few links working and now we’re trying to get the rates link (and a couple of others) posted live online so people (and especially our “supporters”) can see if they want to book a weekend or a week next year… which was actually suggested by a dear friend back East who DOES want to book now for later! This would certainly make everything go faster… right now it’s going painfully slow. But at least it’s GOING…! So I AM GRATEFUL. 8-)

We had an idea: what about doing a drawing for a free week at the castle for anyone who passes the link (www.castleinhawaii.com) around to friends and family to get the word out about us? A way to thank them… And perhaps to those who DO book NOW (for next year) also some sort of “extra”… perhaps add a free night or a gourmet romantic meal OR BOTH.
Or a full day of touring. Sumthin’ SPECIAL…comments anyone?

Right now I have a vision of this spectacular gift basket I’m going to make up for each guest that comes – overflowing with exotic fresh fruits and local munchies. Plus all the little minis just like a hotel (mini shampoo and conditioner, toothbrush and toothpaste, sunscreen, body lotion, etc.) I want people to be able to jump on a plane at a moment’s notice and not worry if they forgot a certain toiletry. And know that we will take GREAT care of them! I’d love the minis to be “private labeled” with CASTLEINHAWAII and I wonder what a minimum quantity would be to order that. If anyone out there that reads this has a referral for this (someone they have worked with) we’d love to hear from you… wow, I guess it takes a village to build a castle…

Friday, October 10, 2008

I AM HUMBLED

I wanted to say how appreciative and humbled we are by all the support of people (both strangers and neighbors and friends) that we have received since we started this project.


We're also building the castleinhawaii website as we build the bed and breakfast.
Please take a moment to check it out: www.castleinhawaii.com

Love to hear from you what you think about the website.. Love it? Hate it? Why??