Abraham Studios

Hawaii

Mahalo
24 x 30"
acrylic on canvas
Wallflower Gallery, Miami, FL

On December 13th, 2006 we took off from Southwest Florida International Airport headed for Hawaii	From the plane window we had an awesome view of the sunrise. The clouds began to look like they had fire underneath them.
Honolulu, Hawaii on the island of Oahu	The Hawaii liscense plates have rainbows on them and for good reason, almost everyday you see at least one.
The act of riding waves with a wooden board originated in Western Polynesia over three thousand years ago. The first surfers were fishermen who discovered riding waves as an efficient method of getting to shore with their catch.	John Ledyard, an American serving under explorer Captain Cook, was the first American to witness surfing in Hawaii in the late 1700s.
Because of its remote location smack dab in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, Hawaii is the beneficiary of gusting wind patterns, ocean swells, and tropical currents from every direction.	Giant shore break.
Hawaii became the 50th state of the United States on August 21, 1959. The islands that make up the state are Niʻihau, Kauaʻi, Oʻahu, Molokaʻi, Lānaʻi, Kahoʻolawe, Māui, and Hawaiʻi	Many memorials can be seen on along the coast.
Kristin waking along the water near Kea'au Beach	Kaneana with Kaena Point in the background
Kaneana Cave, local legend has it that a shark man lived in the cave and would lure his victims in	Squatters can be spotted at many beaches. We learned cleaning the beaches up can be tricky because some of the beach parks are on land owned by the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands, which is supposed to provide lots that members of the native ethnic group can use as home sites.
The USS Arizona Memorial, in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, marks the resting place of 1,102 sailors killed on the USS Arizona during the Attack on Pearl Harbor on the 7th of December in 1941 by Japanese imperial forces. It also commemerates the events of that day.	The 184 ft. long structure has two peaks at each end connected by a sag in the center of the structure. It represents the height of American pride before the war, the sudden depression of a nation after the attack and the rise of American power to new heights after the war.
On the far end of the memorial is a marble wall that bears the names of all those killed on the USS Arizona.	The Navy stipulated that the memorial be in the form of a bridge floating above the ship.
	The USS Arizona Memorial has over 1.5 million visitors per year. As of March 1, 2006, 38 USS Arizona survivors are still living; 36 sailors and 2 Marines.
	Adjacent to the USS Arizona Memorial is the USS Bowfin Submarine Museum & Park
The USS Bowfin Submarine	Humid tropical rain forest including the world’s wettest spot, arid and semi arid deserts, temperate, and frozen alpine ecosystems all exist in Hawaii.
	Kristin standing on the cliffs with the Halona Blowhole in the background. The signs to the left are at the Lanai Lookout. Several scences for the tv show Lost were filmed near there. We found out that they film all over the island of Oahu for the show.
Halona Blowhole	Sandy Beach, South Shore of Oahu
We drove along the coast around the whole island.	Amazing views from Nu'uanu' Pali Lookout
	Walking along the beach on the North Shore near Dillingham Air Field. Left is a Buddhist temple near Honolulu.
Playing along the ocean on the North Shore near Dillingham Airfield
Parachuters landing at Dillingham Airfield	Dole Pineapple Plantation
Rocking the ukulele...	...while Kristin hulas
We found a crab hiding in between the rocks on the beach	Fuselage of Oceanic Flight 815 from the tv show Lost. Apparently they crashed on the North Shore.
	Oahu means the "Gathering Place", is the third largest of the Hawaiian Islands and most populated island in the State.
Laniakea Beach a.k.a. “Turtle Beach”	Sea turtles come in and bask in the sun after a long day in the ocean
The Banzai Pipeline	Volcom House over looking Pipe
	We had an awesome shrimp scampi lunch at Giovanni's Shrimp Truck and made sure to sign the truck. Left is a peacock that tried to attack Alfonso when we went to the Waimea Valley Audubon Center
Sugar Mill Ruins	We recognized another filming location from Lost, the Pala Ferry Pier. This is where the others took Hugo, Jack, Kate, Sawyer then gave Michael and Walt a boat to leave the island.
	We went to the Byodo-In Temple at the Valley of the Temples. the Byodo-In Temple is a replica of a 900-year-old Buddhist place of worship in Japan.
Inside the Byodo-In Temple is a nine-foot Lotus Buddha, the largest wooden Buddha carved in over 900 years. It is covered in gold.
	Thousands of Buddhist, Christian and Shinto residents of Hawai'i are laid to rest, side by side in The Valley of the Temples.
The Ramsay Museum in Honolulu, was the participating venue for Hawaii.	We had an amazing time with famous artist, Ramsay and her husband Dr. Norman Goldstein.
Ramsay and Dr. Norm invited us to their house on Maui and gave us a tour of the island.	Looking toward Haleakala, a volcano that makes up more that 75% of Maui.
Breadfruit Tree	Bringing in the catch of the day
We went out on a whale watch tour from Lahaina. It was a lot of fun going out on the sailboat. We didn't have much luck spotting whales until we were about to go back in. Then we started seeing them all over. We ended up coming back in late and cut it close catching our flight back to Oahu.

Whale Tail	Flying back from Maui
View from the plane on our way back to Oahu from Maui	King Kamehameha Statue in Honolulu. Kamehameha united the islands under one supreme rule in 1810.
Iolani Palace, the only Royal Palace in the United States	The Hawai'i State Capitol
Hawaiian elves	Iolani Barracks or Halekoa (house of warriors).
	We did it!! We've come full circle. On December 20th, 2006 we made it back to Florida. We have officially made it to all 50 states. We traveled 62,218 miles by car and 15,840 miles by plane. It took us 403 days. In October of 2007 we will start the traveling exhibit chronicling our incredible journey.