Moana Lani Bed and Breakfast

08/09/2024

It's been quite a long year. Today marks the one year anniversary of the fire. We are happy to say that we have officially submitted our new architectural plans to the permitting office. We want to thank all those who have been so supportive of us throughout this tragedy. It's your kind and comforting words that have given us strength. We hope to bring more exciting news and a rebuilding journey here to our account in the coming year! Mahalo nui loa 🌺

05/10/2024

We have cleared the assessment sampling and our soil is good! No more layers need to be removed. Next up is final erosion control. We're getting there!

02/29/2024

Update: Cultural clearance done. Vehicle removed. The next step is clearing the debris! They have begun debris clearance on our end of Front Street, so hopefully, it won't be too long for our property. Progress.

01/15/2024

Here is the latest update on our property. If you look closely at the sign, there are still many steps before we are cleared to begin the rebuild. We had our Mango trees assessed professionally by and it appears that they will not survive. It is heartbreaking. The company works with property owners to replace trees that were lost due to the fire. Mahalo to Duane for checking on our trees and for all the help you are providing to Lahaina residents 🌺
You can also visit their website and donate to the cause.

https://treecoveryhawaii.org/

01/02/2024

Wishing you all a Happy New Year! Mahalo to everyone who has sent us kind words and support. It means the world to us 🌺

12/05/2023

Thank you to everyone who has sent us kind, encouraging messages! We have a long road ahead but it starts with this 🩵 We appreciate all the support.

Thank you to all those who contributed to our gofund.me, making this step possible. Mahalo 🌺

09/18/2023

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09/06/2023

Vintage 1974: At Lahaina Harbor on the Valley Isle of Maui. - Once known as "Lahaina Landing" (at the waterfront of the Old Lahaina Fort), the Port of Lahaina goes back almost two centuries since Lahaina was the royal capital of the Kingdom of Hawaii from 1820 to 1845.

Our hearts are broken as our prayers go out to our Lahaina ohana.
https://www.hawaiicommunityfoundation.org/maui-strong

~ Mahalo for "Following" our page! 🌈 Aloha. ~

09/06/2023

Ahupua'a explained. Such an interesting history lesson.

Ahupuaʻa

MOKU
Each of the Hawaiian islands is divided into moku, or districts.

Maui has the 12 moku:
Wailuku
Hāmākuapoko
Hāmākualoa
Koʻolau
Hāna
Kīpahulu
Kaupō
Kahikinui
Honuaʻula
Kula
Lahaina
Kaʻanapali

AHUPUAʻA
Each moku is further divided into ahupuaʻa. *Ahu means altar and puaʻa means pig. The boundaries of an ahupuaʻa are marked with an altar of stones and an image of a pig. The altar is also used to pay tribute to the chief of the ahupuaʻa for the use of the land by the people.

An ahupua‘a is a land division running from the mountains to the sea.

They are usually separated into three sections- mountains, plains, and the sea.

In Hawaiian they would call the three areas:

Mauka
Kula
Makai

These ahupua‘a was useful for the Hawaiians.

For example, when the rain ran down the mountain and into a stream or river they would us the water for drinking, bathing, and other common deeds.

When an ahupua‘a ends and a new one begins, they put an altar.

The altar is usually a pig’s heads on top a heap of rocks. They used a pig as a sign of tax to the chief.

If Hawaiians were to enter into an ahupua‘a they usually put a gift, or ho’okupu,on the altar for the chief of the ahupua‘a.

CROPS
At the very top of the ahupuaʻa is the lewa, which means sky, where the rain comes from to fill up the stream.

A portion of the stream is diverted by an auwai which is a ditch that leads to loʻi kalo or taro patches.

The taro patches need cold, swift moving water to thrive.

The loʻi are built into the natural terraces of the land.

The higher patches pass water to the lower terraces.

The water from the lower terraces are then rerouted back to the stream.

When Polynesians first landed in Hawaiʻi they brought canoe plants.

The canoe food plants are mountain apple, sugar cane, banana, sweet potato, yams, coconut, breadfruit, ape and taro (which we call kalo).

The loʻi kalo are important because kalo was the main staple of the Hawaiian diet.

Kalo - Kalo was given to us by the gods Wākea (the sky) and Hoʻohōkūlani (the stars).

When they came together their first child was born a root named Hāloanakalaukapalili.

That root was cast to the earth and from that root came the kalo.

Their second child was born a man named Hāloa.

He was sent to the earth to care for his brother the kalo. As long as man takes care of the kalo, he will survive.

Kalo is a living metaphor for family. A stalk is planted in the loʻi. From that stalk, a corm grows to fruition in about nine months.

Also from that stalk, keiki, which means child(ren), will sprout.

The whole cluster is called an ʻoha(na) which means family.

The original stalk then becomes known as the makua which means the parent.

When harvesting kalo, you use two parts of the plant. The top heart-shaped leaf and the corm.

A small piece of corm is left on the stalk and the stalk will be replanted and another generation of kalo will be born.

Both the leaf and the corm are edible, however they must be cooked thoroughly (for hours) before they are edible.

They can be boiled, steamed or baked in an under ground oven called an imu.

If either are under cooked your throat will become itchy and swollen. It will feel like you ate broken glass.

Poipoi
The cooked kalo can be made into poi. Back in the day, poi was made using a pōhaku kuʻi ʻai, a stone pounder and a papa kuʻi ʻai, a wooden board.

The kalo was pounded, turned, mixed with water and pounded again and again until it became a sticky paste we call poi.

Today, most people buy poi. Instead of using a poi pounder and board, the manufacturer uses a corn meal grinder to make the poi.

People's taste preference for poi differ. Some people like fresh poi and others like varying degrees of sour.

The color of the twist tie on the plastic bag of poi will tell you what day of the week the poi was made so you know how many days sour it is.

Some people will eat poi that is so sour there is a thick crust of mold on the top. They simply crack the crust, mix it up and eat it. Think blue cheese, smell and all.

LOKO IʻA - FISH PONDS
Loʻi kalo are a big part of the ahupuaʻa food system. Another big part is the loko iʻa which means fish ponds.

Fish ponds are made in the ocean using a semi-circle rock wall.

The rocks are intricately stacked so that they stay in place without mortar.

A small gate is fixed in the wall. The gate is made of vertical wooden slats lashed together with cordage.

The purpose of the gate is to allow small fish to swim inside the pond where the water is warmer and the food is plentiful.

It's a safe harbor from bigger fish who prey on them.

Once the fish see how easy life is in the pond they tend to stay or they tend to leave and return.

Eventually the fish will become too fat to leave through the wooden slats and will have no choice but to stay in the pond until they are harvested for food.
loko i'a

KAPU
Back in the day, fish were regulated by the kapu system.

The kapu system was the laws of the land. Fish and other food were part of this system to ensure that there was a time for the ahupuaʻa to replenish itself.

So, for certain times of the year certain fish were kapu (prohibited) from eating.

The penalty for breaking this kapu could be death. Some people may think this was a harsh penalty for a chief to issue, but think of it as your whole village's food system being at stake.

If one person or family broke the rule, there might not be another generation of food to continue to feed the people.

The kapu system was in place until 1819 when Kamehameha the sovereign ruler of the Hawaiian islands died.

Two of his wives, Keōpūolani (the most sacred wife) and Kaʻahumanu (the favorite wife) in a public display broke the kapu system.

http://watershed.weebly.com/ahupua699a.html

09/06/2023

The field must smell amazing!

09/06/2023

No ka oi

09/06/2023

Remember to aloha kekahi i kekahi (love one another).

08/21/2023

Just a reminder, be kind to everyone you meet. Here, in Hawaii where people have lost everything, we need all the Aloha you can give 🌺

08/14/2023

08/14/2023

08/14/2023

Due to the overwhelming demand from non-essential individuals and non-Maui residents who have flooded the distribution areas we are suspending the placard program until further notice.

We will continue with essential workers and West Maui residents as before.

08/14/2023

The New York Times article.